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3 of 3 found the following review helpful:
 Unique story Nov 23, 2008
By Rai Aren
"co-author of Secret of the Sands"
The Second Virgin Birth is a unique and compelling read that takes on one of the most fascinating concepts I have come across in my reads - the cloning of Jesus Christ. It's an incredible premise, and the story is very engaging as a result. This book is a well-conceived exploration of faith, power, corruption, and how one decision can lead us down paths we cannot always predict let alone control. The book shows how some people can demonstrate steadfastness in the face of danger and incredible temptation, while others crumble via unfettered greed and the lust for power and domination. The Second Virgin Birth takes on a plausible premise yet has a parable-like quality to it. I thoroughly enjoyed this book, it kept me turning pages quickly as I was so eager to find out where the story was going.
Rai Aren
6 of 8 found the following review helpful:
 Good Idea, But.... Sep 20, 2009
By Jym Cherry
"Writing Under The Influence of Rock 'n' Roll!"
Ideas are the foundation for any writer. An average idea executed well can get national attention and make the author a critical and commercial success, such as Dan Brown`s The DaVinci Code. Conversely, a great idea that is poorly executed may lay unread. Unfortunately, I have to put The Second Virgin by Tommy Taylor in the latter group.
When people talk about cloning they usually discuss it in the context of bringing back some historical personage, Elvis, Caesar, Hitler (for some strange reason) or Jesus. This is exactly the premise of The Second Virgin Birth. Dr. James Burk is a scientist working for Pope John Paul III in trying to isolate DNA of Jesus from the Shroud of Turin. Burk does indeed find DNA on the shroud that he is able to identify as being 2000 years old, and from a 25-35 male who was crucified. Convinced, the Pope will have him killed after Burk turns over the DNA. Burk steals it, heads to England and meets up with Dr. Clark Sullivan, a bioengineer who can clone the DNA. Together they meet and convince Brazilian industrialist Alberto Alvarez to invest in the project to clone Jesus from the DNA they've stolen from the Pope. Alvarez sets them up in a state of the art of lab. After finding a young girl, Mary, who God has told she'll be the mother of his son, they clone and impregnate her. They set-up the Church of The New Living God and start receiving pilgrims and donations from around the world which makes them richer than their wildest dreams. While they're doing this the Pope has mercenaries track them down, and launches raid after raid, to have Mary killed. All fail until he hires a genocidal general from a third world African nation, who launches an all out assault against Alvarez's compound that protects Mary. There is murder, greed, attempted rape, and gunfights but this isn't enough to move the novel.
The main problem seems to be that there is very little literary artifice, as if Mr. Taylor expects the idea itself to carry the reader over. No real dramatic tension is built up over plot points. They're mentioned and then resolved within a chapter or two with no real time or exposition to build up the dramatic anticipation of wanting to see what happens next. There's no real character development beyond the avarice of Alvarez, Burk and Clark, and even they're clichés. The Pope is said to be evil. Sending mercenaries to kill Mary is certainly the act of an evil man, but there is no real reason given that the Pope is threatened by the cloning or Mary except that it will bring down the church. No reason's are given for the Pope to believe this, and we're not even sure of the Pope himself. Is he an evil man who worked himself up to the Papacy? Or is he an inherently good man who either genuinely or mistakenly believes the new Son of God will bring about the ruin of the church? The DaVinci code also casts a Cardinal and a devout zealot as the antagonists, but their actions are understood because Brown gives us some background and explains their motivations. That is what is lacking here.
The Second Virgin Birth is a really good idea as a concept, but it misses the opportunity that comes naturally from the source material and that is morality and values. A lot of good science fiction uses extreme ideas and scenarios to comment on a society's morals or values. The idea behind this novel lends itself to comment on cloning, whether it's a good idea, or is it "because we can science." Nowhere does Taylor take the opportunity afforded which should be the natural stomping grounds of a Christian writer. The book also fails to succeed as a thriller. As mentioned before, there is no real tension in the actions or decisions of the characters and events. It doesn't even have non-stop action that would keep the reader hanging on by the seat of their pants.
There are also some logical inconsistencies that detract from the story. A couple anomalies may exist in a novel, but when they start adding up they become noticeable as a pattern. Taylor says that people who come into contact with Mary instantly become their better selves, but the people closest to her act opposite to this and you would think those closest to her would be affected the most. If there was supposed to be an ironic reason for this, I didn't see it. The characters of Burk and Sullivan at first seem to waver between being faithful and unfaithful, but these inconsistencies seem to exist for no reason within the world presented to us by Mr. Taylor.
Like most Christian writers, Taylor wants his climatic battle scene to be a battle between good and evil. The characters that are supposed to be the "good guys" are shown to be acting as vilely as the Pope's attacking mercenaries, committing murder, demonstrating avarice and lying to each other. Good has to distinguish itself from evil. In the end nothing redeems these "good guys." The breakthrough of Christian novels like the Left Behind series is that they use modern literary techniques to capture the interest of their audience and not count on the reader's faith, or the morality-tale aspect to sell the story to the reader. They conjure their own sensibilities and induce the reader to follow. The Second Virgin Birth doesn't.
10 of 14 found the following review helpful:
I Truly Got My Money's Worth With This Book Nov 22, 2007
By Thankful Reader
I was told to read The Second Virgin Birth to read by a friend who said it was good. Before reading it I thought that it was most likely another Da Vinci Code. Boy was I wrong, it is so much better. The characters and events are so believable that one wonders when this is actually going to take place. The chapters are short and that was a problem for me. I wanted to stop reading the book and begin it again tomorrow, but as I would finish a chapter, I would look ahead and think, well it's only 7 more pages and I would read that, try to put it down and do the same thing over and over. In other words, I wanted to find out what happened next more than I wanted to go to sleep. It was a fast and entertaining read that held my attention the whole time. The fact that Mr. Taylor made his major character, Mary, a sweet little girl, go insane at the age of six, completely caught me off guard and I had to adjust all of my preconceptions of how I thought this character would play out. The book was one, "I did not see that coming," after another. In most reviews I say that I don't want to tell the reader too much and spoil the ending, however in this book, I can't tell you too much because story has several very original new thoughts running throughout the book and I don't want to give any of them away. For once, I felt that I truly got my money's worth.
10 of 14 found the following review helpful:
Nicely Done on a Thought-provoking Topic Nov 15, 2007
By James L. Erjavec
As both a writer and reader of fiction, I realize how difficult it is to come up with an interesting story, and more so, something that is new and innovative. I believe Tommy Taylor has done just that though - "The Second Virgin Birth" is a unique fusion of a very old theme with that of our modern way of life, including the technologies we live with and depend on for our existence, as well as the choices genetic technology now permits us to make, in fact sometimes forces us to make. Not only that, Taylor looks at religion from the thought-provoking perspective of "What if the Savior was actually born today?" How would people react - the faithful and faithless, how would the leaders of the mighty religions deal with Him, how might His birth change the path the world has taken? Ultimately, Taylor poses the question: How would that affect the meaning of faith itself? The basis of this story is the discovery of the DNA of Jesus Christ - and the questions it poses to a science that is capable of bringing "Him" back to life. Why? For riches? For power? For prestige? For ultimate control? For the beginning of a new age? But things just aren't as straightforward as that, and that's what I really like about Taylor's development of his story. Enter into the plot a girl, Mary, who has been "chosen" to be the Mother of God's Son by perhaps more than just chance. How do her motives and thoughts come into conflict with those of the scientists and power brokers who are determined to bring the Son of God back to life at any cost? As it goes, many people adore Mary, but others despise her for what she is doing and what she represents. For me, this aspect of the story provided a tantalizing glimpse at the foundations of religion itself. I found this book to be a fast, entertaining read with enough mystery to keep me turning the pages to see what was going to happen next. I kept wondering - how was all of this going to end? And that, I can't tell you - you'll have to read the book yourself. And you should.
Jim Erjavec
Author of The Caverns of Mare Cetus
1 of 1 found the following review helpful:
"THE SECOND VIRGIN BIRTH" (GMTA REVIEW) Oct 21, 2011
By Kitty Bullard
"Great Minds Think Aloud Literary Community"
"THE SECOND VIRGIN BIRTH" BY TOMMY TAYLOR
What if history really did repeat itself, so closely that the entire world would be graced with the second coming of Jesus Christ in the same way as before. This book explores that possibility through the story writing genius of Tommy Taylor. I was completely hooked from beginning to end and the way he has woven the tale is both intricate but so possible it leaves you breathless.
As controversial as some of the material in this book may be to some it has the power to leave you questioning whether or not it could be truth. Perhaps as Tommy says, the happenings in this book have not come to fruition yet... but they will.
I challenge you to read this book and not fall into the realm of possibility and come out still with no doubts in your mind.
My rating: 5 Ravens
Kitty Bullard / Great Minds Think Aloud / [...]
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