Official Review: A Dangerous Freedom by John Ruane

[jennydelacruz]

[Following is an official OnlineBookClub.org review of "A Dangerous Freedom" by John Ruane.]

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4 out of 4 stars

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How many times have you smiled right after putting a book down? Well, it’s pretty rare for me. This book had me smiling from ear to ear after I read the word “The End.”

A Dangerous Freedom by John Ruane is an impressive fictional story. It tells us a story of how the fateful 9/11 incident affected everyone; even people who were just watching the scene on the television. A creatively written book that appears to be more like a superhero-kind-of-movie – minus the superpowers.

Ruane introduced the story by showing us young Dylan Reilly. It was September 11, 2001. Dylan and his friends were at the school. They were talking and having fun in their conversation when they saw some teachers looking somewhat alarmed. Moments later, somebody was running from the hallway yelling about a plane crashing. All students and teachers gathered in the library to watch the news. Everyone was filled with various reactions and emotions.

That moment, one of Dylan’s friends declared that he would join the Marines to get back at the terrorists responsible for the tragic event. Thinking about the unfortunate event and his friend’s proclamation, his mind is filled with thoughts of revenge. Dylan had never seen a real gun, unlike his friend who goes hunting with his father. He is considering getting himself a gun to be able to protect his loved ones when necessary.

More than a decade passed after the 9/11 incident. In this part of the story, we are introduced to another young kid, named Arman. His family escaped from Iran during the revolution and came to America. After the incident, Arabs or who look like Arabs are bullied. Things were challenging for young Arman who was frequently bullied by his schoolmates.

Dylan and his wife survived three attacks, which made him decide to own and learn how to use a gun. He uses the gun like a cowboy with amazing speed. With his agility and accuracy, he is now a well-celebrated hero presented on national media. How is Dylan relevant to Arman’s life? How did he learn how to handle a gun, let alone be extremely accurate?

The author did not beat around the bush. The book is invigorating from start to finish. Not a page wasted for unnecessary and irrelevant anecdotes. This is one of the numerous reasons why I love the book. It was as if I was watching a movie about a superhero. The story is inspired by the 9/11 incident, nonetheless, it is far from reality. I have immensely enjoyed reading the book despite being unrealistic. I love how the characters were introduced and how the author orchestrated stories to integrate them. I enjoyed the narration of the action scenes. I have nothing to report on what I did not like about the book.

Some minor errors can easily be edited. To be honest, if I wasn’t consciously taking notes of errors, I would have overlooked them. There were light graphic descriptions of death – light to my standards and may not be pleasant to some. Foul language is also present but no indecent contents. Because this story was inspired by the 9/11 event, mention of Islam is present and the principal characters are Catholic. The book is not preaching, however, this is something to keep in mind.

That being said, I am rating this book 4 out of 4 stars with a smile. A good-to-read book that kept me engaged. I would like to commend the author for such an enjoyable and entertaining story.

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A Dangerous Freedom
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