Review: Paranormal Thriller Invites You to Meet Keaton!

Dreamer
By Phillip L. Davidson
iUniverse
ISBN: 9781440149283
292 Pages


Although this novel is listed under “religious” fiction, let me first highlight that Dreamer by Phillip L. Davidson is also a great paranormal thriller/adventure story! On a scale of 1-5, I’d go 6 easily.

David had begun having dreams again. They were flashbacks to his time in Vietnam, which had caused dreams years before just after he had come home. What he couldn’t figure out was why they had started again. Sunny had suggested he visit a psychologist; only to have him, too, later appear in one of his dreams! Finally David began to wonder if his dreams were not just dreams, but visions.

One of the main characters in his dreams was Keaton, formerly well-respected Sarge in his group of Green Berets. And then he learned from his psychologist that he had had a visit from Keaton! In fact, David’s entire former group had also received a visit from him.

The only thing, though, was that David had been at Keaton’s funeral many years ago!

Sunny had received word that her parents had been placed under arrest in Argentina. The location was very dangerous at that time since Britain was threatening war. David begged Sunny not to go, but of course realized that she had an obligation to try to help. However, as soon as she landed, she was arrested, while her parents were freed. It was Sunny and her connection to David that had been wanted. Everybody knew what would happen, she would be tortured to find out what the U.S. planned to do regarding the potential war.

Trying to find out about Sunny was futile. David was astounded that nobody was willing to try to help an imprisoned American, especially, the wife of an officer!

In desperation he tried everything, until he thought carefully about Keaton’s visit to Father Perez, his psychologist, and his demand that David meet him at a mansion in Georgia. And it was then that he knew—he was to free Sunny himself, using the plans that Keaton had already set in motion well before Sunny had even left the States.

From then on, adventure after adventure takes place. Sometimes Keaton is there; sometimes he has briefed one of the team personally. And more than one participant of the ongoing battle between good and evil sometimes took Keaton’s identity! Each of the men met the “Keaton” that he would follow into death!

Phillip L. Davidson is a former infantry Captain who commanded a group of Kit Carson Scouts during the Vietnam War. His experience has been effectively used to create a novel of action that reflects on the loyalty, camaraderie, anger, frustration and pain of those who participate in war battles. But it is the author’s obvious personal experience in faith that moves this book beyond a great adventure thriller to a drama that “must be read!”

G. A. Bixler