Review of Beyond Hate

[Gabrielle Sigaki]

[Following is an official OnlineBookClub.org review of "Beyond Hate" by Jin Williams.]

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4 out of 4 stars

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Tim was the owner of a bar and a widower who decided to use dating websites to meet new women. He thought it wouldn’t work until he found a woman called Jenny, a Muslim Filipina who seemed genuine. However, Tim didn’t get to know her better since she was assassinated right in front of her computer while talking on a video call. Later, he found out that the man who killed her was Paul Asoph, as known as Snake, who was a merciless killer involved in several issues with terrorist organizations. Now, we get to know Paul Asoph, but also what happened in his life until the moment he killed Jenny.

Beyond Hate by Jim Williams is a historical fiction book that brings Paul Asoph as the main character. The book is narrated from the first-person perspective, but it begins with the reports from Tim’s and Jenny’s perspectives. It’s a novel filled with interesting characters and suspense, even though we know the end of the story. It brings fictional details about terrorist organizations and violations of human rights too.

My favorite part of this book was Paul’s development as the main character. He wasn’t a good person, but he wasn’t the typical villain who didn’t care for anything or anyone. At first, he seemed to be purely evil and cold-hearted, but later we can see that he is human after all. For example, he was a killer who didn’t attach to anyone, but he found a friend in Gabe, who was also his student in Beirut. Sometimes, Paul showed humanity when he couldn't protect someone innocent, but he also shows his evil side when he enjoys killing other innocent people. Paul is one of the most complex characters I have ever known, and that’s what makes him even more realistic. In real life, some people tend to be good and people who tend to be evil, but it is extremely rare to find someone who is entirely good or evil.

The only aspect that I didn’t enjoy in this book was the lack of likable characters. However, I think it fulfills the author’s purpose of writing a fiction book from the villain’s point of view, so I’m not taking a star off my rating because of it. Besides, this novel seems professionally edited since I didn’t find over ten errors while reading it.

I rate this book 4 out of 4 stars. It’s a unique historical fiction book with interesting character development. I recommend it to those readers who are already interested in historical fiction books that bring the villain as the narrator and main character. However, I don’t recommend it to those readers who are sensitive to the themes of physical, psychological, and sexual abuse since this book might be triggering for them. I also don’t recommend it to younger readers since it contains sexual content and violent graphic scenes.

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Beyond Hate
View: on Bookshelves | on Amazon

[Chiwelite O]

I'm curious to know what a book written from a villains point of view seems like. Thank you for the recommendation.

[Georgia Lyonhyde]

As thorough as your review was, I feel like so many spoilers have been given that it has possibly taken much of my enjoyment and suspense away. I know who the killer is, who he befriends. I have a plot of how he develops. I am intrigued to read it and will probably add it to my shelf but it will be a long time before I pick it up as I want to forget much of what I now know.

[Emmanuel Luyakha]

It's already triggering me though am sti curious to know the character development of this main character Paul. Thank you for the great review.

[Pearl Thomas]

The character development of an antihero, from a total villain to a likable person is a tough thing to do. The fact that this book does that well shows the author's undeniable skill of writing. Great review.

[collinsogw555]

This book sounds interesting and I am curious to know what happened to Tim. Great review.

[Barbara Perini]

This seems to be an interesting publication, as  historical fiction book.  It's intriguing that mentions themes such physical and psychological abuses. It's a delicate topic to read about,  indeed. I also like to know about the characters, and reading your words about  Paul’s development, I agree that's interesting.

[Tarie07]

I'm not a fan of historical fiction but this book sounds intriguing. I would love to read it. Thanks for the great review.

[Mbenma Esther 080]

Paul's character is a true model of how human beings can behave. Thanks for the review.

[markodim721]

Really interesting plot. It seems very realistic. Thanks for the reading recommendation.

[Elendu Ekechukwu]

I'm not a fan of historical fiction; but this seems very interesting from the review and I would give it a try