The Troubled Soul of a Neolithic Iceman
OTZI'S ODYSSEY
Ötzi's Odyssey - NEIL PERRY GORDON
"While I observed a body, half-buried in the glacial ice, I could not reach out and touch it. While I heard the shrieking winds, I could not feel the frigid snow being pushed up into towering drifts. While I shouted my anguish aloud, my words fell silent on the mountainside. If it is true that I existed, then it must be also true that I am not of body."
~ Excerpt from Otzi’s Odyssey
MIDWEST BOOK REVIEW
Ötzi's Odyssey - The Troubled Soul of a Neolithic Iceman is a metaphysical fantasy thriller. It embraces these genres in a manner that will intrigue and delight readers looking for something refreshingly action-packed, employing a different flavor in timelines that move from modern to prehistoric eras and back again.
Ötzi the caveman's mummified body is found trapped in ice, in 1991. What isn't trapped is his soul, which awakens from its long sleep to find itself in a strange new world.
In an effort to uncover answers to many questions about his life and reincarnation, Ötzi journeys from present to past. This brings readers into his perception of caveman conflicts and daily life and the conundrums his journey poses not only to that world, but present-day events.
Imagine waking up to see your frozen body. Neil Perry Gordon paints a vivid picture of Ötzi's awakening: "While I observed a body, half-buried in the glacial ice, I could not reach out and touch it. While I heard the shrieking winds, I could not feel the frigid snow being pushed up into towering drifts. While I shouted my anguish aloud, my words fell silent on the mountainside. If it is true that I existed, then it must be also true that I am not of body."
As he struggles to answer haunting questions of how his soul remains connected to his body, and what the purpose of his reincarnation serves, readers follow him a journey that brings him to Jolly Jane, who joins him and others in this strange state of being half-alive.
Jane was known as a murderess, committing others to death because it "helped her cope." Ötzi sold his soul to the devil in a bargain which has apparently landed him in this position. Both find themselves undertaking a journey through tortured souls, guided by a Voice that seems to inject a higher purpose to their conditions and present-day dilemmas.
Gordon's story is thought-provoking, action-packed, and thoroughly unpredictable. Spiritual wisdom and guidance juxtapose nicely with the adventure component to keep readers both entertained and enlightened.
As memories of past life and loved ones are channeled in unexpected ways, Ötzi must find the courage to follow his calling through past lives and into a future where he makes better choices.
Readers who enjoy more than casual metaphysical inspection, spiced with the thriller components of an adventure through past and present realms, will relish Ötzi's Odyssey. The story is highly recommended for fantasy, spirituality, and thriller collections alike. ~ D. Donovan, Senior Reviewer, Midwest Book Review
BookViral Review
Gripping throughout, Otzi’s Odyssey finds Neil Perry Gordon at his very best with mercurially vivid human and otherworldly encounters and an original narrative that’s sure to capture the imagination.
With Gordon’s previous releases including The Bomb Squad and Hope City, his readers know he isn’t an author to dish up archetypal historical novels and Otzi’s Odyssey certainly isn’t an exception!
Decidedly dark, with a lighter injection of humor courtesy of Otzi’s take on our modern world, Gordon certainly knows how to build a visually powerful tale whilst ensuring the definitive devices of Metaphysical & Visionary Fiction are ever present.
From concept to execution his plot is flawless and his inventiveness hard to deny as he confidently navigates multiple threads to create a delightfully disquieting sense of time and place which lingers long beyond the page.
Gordon’s choice of protagonist could have come unstuck but Otzi being out of step with our modern era makes him particularly intriguing. Allowing his character to evolve throughout the story whilst finding an equitable balance between philosophical expression and the mechanics of telling an enthralling story.
This aspect of Gordon’s novel is further supported by a host of superb supporting characters like the soul hunter Creyak and Miko the Seer which encourage us not only to reflect on the nature of our souls but the meaning of redemption and our wider place in the universe.
A rousing and evocative release from Gordon, Otzi’s Odyssey is a gem to be savored from an author at the top of his game. Not to be missed, it is highly recommended!
