TUNNEL VISION  By Gary Braver.  Forge. 383 pages. $25.99
By Carrie Cousins
carrie.cousins@roanoke.com

Zack Kashian is unknowingly stuck in a war between religion and science.  And what he doesn’t know might kill him.
That’s the premise behind Gary Braver’s latest thriller, “Tunnel Vision.”

The book opens with a man walking out of a hospital after being declared dead.
After the shock of the first few pages, the plotline is more believable.

So believable, in fact, that this book could stir debate between the religious community and the scientific one. It might even be tough for people with strong religious beliefs to stomach.

Kashian is in an accident, and during a coma recites an ancient language and becomes a 15-minutes-of-fame religious phenomenon, even though he claims no religion himself.

Later, in need of cash, he signs up as a test subject in a sleep study only to learn that the study is much more controversial. The researchers are trying to prove the existence of an afterlife through Kashian.

But researchers begin turning up dead — one by one. And the murders are being carried out at the direction of the church.
Braver is able to effectively mesh a tale of fear with scientific possibility.
Although parts of the book could infuriate some, the premise is plausible and really makes the reader ask “what if?”

That is precisely what makes “Tunnel Vision” work. The science in the story seems real and diving into the unknown can be petrifying.
The book is not just theories, though; it also has enough action to keep any reader happy.

The only pitfall is in the editing of the book. Certain sections do seem to drag and it does take a while for Braver to really get the story going and begin to connect all of the dots. But the tale is good enough to make up for some initial clunkiness.

Noted science-fiction writer Ray Bradbury called it a “wonderfully frightening and insightful tale.”

It falls short of insightful. But frightening indeed.