Review of The Freedom Building
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Review of The Freedom Building
[Following is a volunteer review of "The Freedom Building" by Martin Kendall.]
The Freedom Building by Martin Kendall is a novel about a 48-year old local architect John Gowan. His wife and their only daughter live abroad and he expects marriage to end soon. Gowan is successful as the owner, senior partner, and lead designer in his firm, the Gowan Partnerships, co-founded with his friend Pete Williams. With nothing eventful happening in his personal life, the narrative focuses on his architectural masterpiece, the Freedom Building.
News of an enormous explosion in an aesthetically dull Zenith Star building breaks. It was the headquarter for an international apparel company catering to the Israeli military, among many clients. Things went awry when a high-ranking Zenith official had made some religiously inappropriate remarks, prompting the terrorist attack and riots. The catastrophe and the wish to rebuild a structure symbolizing true freedom inspire Gowan’s inner artist. With the world focusing on the blast and the aftermath, he believes whoever designs next becomes the legacy to commemorate. He envisions a building layout hoping that his firm gets the dream project. Excited, he visits the annihilated scene in the town’s heart and takes notes of the perimeter. On his way back, he meets a near-fatal car accident. Next, he couldn’t recall the three and a half year long designing process that followed the car crash. Apparently, he is a celebrity who has created the unique building design hailed as a work of genius. He has no memory of achieving such a brilliant feat. He fears revealing his strange condition. It will make him look weak and incompetent on the market. Worse, it may threaten his credibility as the genius who conceived the layout of the Freedom Building scheduled to be erected soon. So, he conceals his amnesia to ward off any opportunistic people and the devouring media. With his entire existence at stake, he tries to pretend and play normal against the sharks around, until he reclaims his lost memory.
Something happened during that period of amnesia. Darkness shrouds the period between the accident and the day reconstruction begins. His amnesia is debilitating. Any attempt at looking up the design or construction plan causes extreme dizziness. Martin Kendall did a commendable job of handling such a complex plot with perfection, woven around complicated and painful human emotions. Since the story centers on internal conflicts and fears, some readers may find its pace a bit lazy. Still, it makes for a very engaging and thought-provoking read. Hence, I give it a 4 out of 4.
The book best fits as a psychological thriller with allusions to terrorism, political gambit, and the ruthless corporate system. There is no profane language except an account of intimacy. So I would only recommend it to a mature audience with an interest in deciphering human psychology. This book appears exceptionally well-edited with no errors found in proofreading.
Though I have found nothing negative about this book, referring to the Muslim community while alluding to the terrorist attack may irk some readers. Although, things are told in a state-of-affairs way and not to harm any religious sentiments.
******
The Freedom Building
View: on Bookshelves | on Amazon
The Freedom Building by Martin Kendall is a novel about a 48-year old local architect John Gowan. His wife and their only daughter live abroad and he expects marriage to end soon. Gowan is successful as the owner, senior partner, and lead designer in his firm, the Gowan Partnerships, co-founded with his friend Pete Williams. With nothing eventful happening in his personal life, the narrative focuses on his architectural masterpiece, the Freedom Building.
News of an enormous explosion in an aesthetically dull Zenith Star building breaks. It was the headquarter for an international apparel company catering to the Israeli military, among many clients. Things went awry when a high-ranking Zenith official had made some religiously inappropriate remarks, prompting the terrorist attack and riots. The catastrophe and the wish to rebuild a structure symbolizing true freedom inspire Gowan’s inner artist. With the world focusing on the blast and the aftermath, he believes whoever designs next becomes the legacy to commemorate. He envisions a building layout hoping that his firm gets the dream project. Excited, he visits the annihilated scene in the town’s heart and takes notes of the perimeter. On his way back, he meets a near-fatal car accident. Next, he couldn’t recall the three and a half year long designing process that followed the car crash. Apparently, he is a celebrity who has created the unique building design hailed as a work of genius. He has no memory of achieving such a brilliant feat. He fears revealing his strange condition. It will make him look weak and incompetent on the market. Worse, it may threaten his credibility as the genius who conceived the layout of the Freedom Building scheduled to be erected soon. So, he conceals his amnesia to ward off any opportunistic people and the devouring media. With his entire existence at stake, he tries to pretend and play normal against the sharks around, until he reclaims his lost memory.
Something happened during that period of amnesia. Darkness shrouds the period between the accident and the day reconstruction begins. His amnesia is debilitating. Any attempt at looking up the design or construction plan causes extreme dizziness. Martin Kendall did a commendable job of handling such a complex plot with perfection, woven around complicated and painful human emotions. Since the story centers on internal conflicts and fears, some readers may find its pace a bit lazy. Still, it makes for a very engaging and thought-provoking read. Hence, I give it a 4 out of 4.
The book best fits as a psychological thriller with allusions to terrorism, political gambit, and the ruthless corporate system. There is no profane language except an account of intimacy. So I would only recommend it to a mature audience with an interest in deciphering human psychology. This book appears exceptionally well-edited with no errors found in proofreading.
Though I have found nothing negative about this book, referring to the Muslim community while alluding to the terrorist attack may irk some readers. Although, things are told in a state-of-affairs way and not to harm any religious sentiments.
******
The Freedom Building
View: on Bookshelves | on Amazon
Latest Review: Strange Stories II by Roger Mannon
