Media

Reviews

My Book Addiction and More just came out with their review.

I’ve posted it below.

Reading this book was reminiscent of Dan Brown’s Da Vinci Code series, with an added and much-appreciated nod to actual theology. Like the Da Vinci series, this book delves into literal and figurative meanings of many icons, myths, scripture and historical tidbits related to the life and death of Jesus Christ, and in this case, the idea of eternal life.  There was a lot going on in this book, and it was difficult at times, to keep everyone and all the stories straight. They did all come to a head eventually and many of the loose ends were tied up by the end, although a few do remain open, perhaps for the sake of a sequel.

The only real negative I have is that Reggie is, by far, the most unnecessarily paranoid person, when under major stress. More so than I would assume most people with his history would be.  Although it did add to the story, I think it was a bit overdone and could have been scaled back with the same effect. That and the fact that much of the scientific terminology and experimentation are a bit distracting due to the difficulty in understanding the nature of the subjects discussed.  Some of the technical jargon could have been altered for easier understanding.

The Club and their literal translation of the idea of eternal life was quite sad to me. Had they truly understood the meaning of the grace and love of Christ, they could have used their considerable resources to do some real good in the world. Part of me hopes for a sequel with Reggie’s suggested induction, so that he may shed the Light on their quest.  I do recommend this book to lovers of symbolism, of scientific advances, and especially to those Christians who love a good suspense thriller.

Rating: 4

Reviewed By: Daysie W.

Review Courtesy of: My Book Addiction and More

Harriet Klausner recently posted her review.  I’ve pasted it below.  It can also be found at Genre Go Round Reviews and Follow the Clue.

Thursday, December 12, 2013

The Vintage Club

Darin Gibby

Reggie Alexander knows he comes a long way from his impoverished life as a DC orphan thanks to affluent Walter and Sherri Trudell who gave him shelter and sustenance from the street violence as one of their “projects”.  Now married with a wife and son in Rockville, Reggie takes the o-dark commute to his work in Washington as a bureaucrat at the Patent Office. Reggie’s safe family façade collapses when someone murders Walter; as the philanthropist’s associates at the Vintage Club believe he killed his savior.  Not long afterward, Reggie’s wife and son vanish while he goes into hiding to avoid the assaults on him that emotionally take him back to his brutal childhood before the rescue.  What Reggie is unaware of is that the Vintage Club members seek the Last Supper wine of immortality and think he killed Walter for it. This Brownian thriller is an action-packed tale that removes a young man from his heavenly middle class existence and places him in hell with the return of his childhood PTSD; turning Reggie into an unconfident David facing presumptuous billionaire Goliaths.  Though transitions are choppy (hazard of first books), fast-paced with fascinating interpretations from the bible, fresh use of customized nanotechnology, insight into patent law, and child trauma haunting the adult; readers will relish this engaging novel.  Harriet Klausner

 

Amazon Reviews

Robin Landry “singer/songwriter” reviewed The Vintage Club

wine & suspense                 December 10, 2013

                    What if you could make a wine from the same seeds that made the wine that Jesus served at the Last Supper?  Would it transform you?  Would you live forever? In the vein of Dan Brown, Darin Gibby’s debut novel asks questions of our more sacred stories, and what secrets they might hold for our present day. I love the idea that the Bible is full of coded messages, and Gibby’s in pursuit of a very interesting one, the idea of eternal life.  I really love the idea that drinking wine might hold the answer.  Talk about a win-win proposition. The main hero of this story is Reggie Alexander, a young husband and father, who’s been ‘rescued’ from a life of poverty and despair by a billionaire philanthropist, who gathers together a group of boys into the church of The Living Waters, to offer them mentoring from the congregation.  Reggie, who is an orphan with a terrifying history of violence, who finds sanctuary with Walter and Sherri Trudell, a wealthy couple with no children of their own. Reggie succeeds in life with some hard work and the opportunities he’s been given, and now works at the patent office.  When his mentor, Walter is murdered one night, Reggie’s world falls apart in a hurry.  Dealing with acute anxiety from his dysfunctional upbringing, Reggie finds that all he’s worked for is in jeopardy, including his wife and young son.  Going on the run with no idea of who to trust, Reggie dig deep within himself to overcome his fatal flaw in order to rescue his wife and son. Fast-paced, in the tradition of Dan Brown, The Vintage Club is a near perfect read.  Since this is Darin Gibby’s first novel, it’s not as sooth as The Di Vinci Code, but then that book wasn’t Dan Brown’s first, more like his third, I believe.  On the other hand, for a first novel, this is a first-rate effort and at the rate Gibby is going, he’s going to be a best seller in no time. Full of information about patents, which Gibby is an expert in, and good characters that are relatable.  I loved Reggie Alexander.  He was brave, and sweet and deserves another installment in his story.

 

Will drinking wine make you live forever? I hope so, quaff on!, December 5, 2013

By Caitlin

Who wants to live forever? Most people if you ask them. This is a very entertaining book with some interesting science which will probably be available at a liquor store near you in the near future. Exciting with great character development, left me wanting more. Wondering when the next book is coming out.

 

Goodreads

Here are a few of the reviews from the giveaway on Goodreads:

Rachel rated it: 5 of 5 stars

            I received this book from the goodreads first reads program. This was an excellent book. I was intrigued by all of the elements; murder, mystery, biblical symbolism,  secret society. Well written and extremely enjoyable to read.

Shelley rated it: 4 of 5 stars

            A brilliant novel by Darin Gibby. I was gripped all the way through. The story line is really original, like Dan Brown, Darin explores the possibilities of hidden codes in the bible, this being that wine could unlock an elixir for eternal life. Its really fast moving and there’s no pointless chapters to pad it out, each chapter adds something to the story. The characters are three dimensional and believable and the book is very well written. Whilst the plot sounds a little crazy, its so well tolold its almost realistic. I really enjoyed it!

Tracy Champagne rated it: 4 of 5 stars

           I received this book free from a goodreads giveaway.  When I first saw the book, I must admit I was not very enthusiastic about reading it.  I was pleasantly surprised however, with the content of the book.  It was a thriller and a page turner with lots of twists and turns.  The ending was not what you would have expected either, which is always good, when many mystery thriller type books are very predictable.

Blogs

I’ve been fortunate to have several blogs run feature articles.  I have to admit, they came up with some good, probing questions.  Here are some that recently posted.

Edith Jones Books

My Book Addiction and More!