Wow. Some history before I get into the book review. I was listening to Howard Stern on Sirius Satellite Radio one day and I heard an aspiring author talk about how he wanted Fred Norris to review his book so bad that he would be willing to pay for it. Fred obliged, accepted the money, and read a copy of the book. A few weeks went by and the author was a call-in guest to receive Fred’s review and it wasn’t the most glowing review, but any publicity is good publicity when you’re trying to sell a product!
After listening to this (and knowing that I have a network of sites that might be able to help this first time author), I e-mailed the guy and told him that I would be willing to review the book for free. The author, Harry S. Franklin, was kind enough to send me a signed copy of the book and I dove right into it. Why did I want to help out this writer? Well, I’m an aspiring writer, too, and though I can’t afford to self-publish at this point (Paradigm Shift is self-published) I would like to do that in the future.
One of the comments that I remember Fred saying on the Stern show was that there was so much going on in this book that he had to keep notes. Well, I didn’t keep notes but I do agree that there was a LOT going on. In fact, it felt more like I was reading the screenplay for a very long movie instead of a novel. As a reader, you’ll get this feeling all throughout the book as there are often events that are overly described. Sometimes it feels like the author is talking directly to a set designer so that the environment looks perfectly for a film.
I also had trouble grasping the plot changes in the book. The book is amazing as it builds in the beginning with a secret organization plotting to overthrow religion and begin a worldwide Humanist political party. After the 9/11 attacks, though, the entire leadership of this organization is wiped out and only some random members remain. One of those members puts together a hoax that fools a good portion of America into thinking that there was a real UFO in the California area. At that point, you begin to see how the paradigm shift may occur with people relaxing their religious beliefs due to worldwide belief in UFOs.
But then everything changes as the earth is invaded by alien bugs. BUGS!
As I said before, this novel reads much like a screen play as we are taken to different scenes around the world before the bug spaceships (mistaken as dead comets) hit the earth. The bugs begin spreading and reproducing and after not seeing the initial main characters in the book, they come to save the day and rescue a young woman in Florida who happens to have evidence that aliens may have been a major influence on Christianity (and by major influence, I mean they created it).
Crazy enough yet? Remember that at this point in the book, the entire world is in shock as these bug aliens have landed in some 7 or 8 different areas around the earth. And they’re not just landing in a spaceship - these are the equivalents of comets hitting the planet! Tidal waves, earthquakes, raging fires, smoke blocking out the sun, etc - it’s all taking place at the same time.
But then the paradigm shifts again as a new set of aliens comes to earth to help humans fight the bugs. It gets much more complicated from there since the new aliens are actually split into two factions - the older Sempiternals and the subservient Houmn. The book gets confusing to read at this point since the Sempiternals are often referred to simply as Houmn (since they are, but just a lot older). Why delineate a separation between the aliens? Well, because there is a fight going on among the two groups, of course!
Again, much of the story reads like a screenplay with large stretches of conversation written out only as one quote after another quote with none of the quotations specifically cited to one person. Sometimes there are more than two people in the room, too, which makes attributing the speeches an even harder job.
I began reading this book in July and only finished it two days ago. Part of the reason in the large delay between beginning and end is the length of the book. Franklin would have been better served to publish this story as a series of smaller books which could have each been more refined than this novel. There are a multitude of spelling errors throughout the book (common in self-published works) which also helped to make this story more laborious to read. But be that as it may, it was still a fun story.
My advice for Franklin would be to definitely hook-up with an editor next time around since you can tell the difference between self-published books and edited works. I’d also suggest that he scale back on the descriptions used for people, places, or things in future novels. It actually gets distracting. Also, if you’re really thinking of a movie script instead of a novel, then it might pay dividends to write a screenplay instead of a novel and try to get the movie out there as a B-level film. Honestly, I think that Paradigm Shift would be a great B-level movie - if done properly it could become a cult classic.
As a novel, though, this one was a tough read. The dialogue becomes confused very often and the reader will frequently find himself straining to read overly lengthy descriptions. The addition of spelling errors throughout adds to the weight of this book. If you’re interested in purchasing a copy for your own use, though, you can do so by visiting the official website of the book. Enjoy!
