Outrageously fortunate

I've been very fortunate to have been hired to teach four composition classes at the local county college. It is the first step in my dream to teach others to write and to love writing as much as I do. Since I am teaching a few different levels of composition at the same time, I have been working diligently on reading the books for the courses and writing the assignments into the template for the syllabus of each. So, I haven't had quite as much time to read.

I did recently finish the following book. I have very mixed feelings about it.

Secret of the Seventh Son by Glenn Cooper

I guess this book would rate a 4 out of 5 stars.

Will Piper is a miserable drunk nearing the end of his FBI career. He just wants to live his miserable life, letting time go by as he gets closer and closer to retirement. This character is almost too flawed to really like very much. He also has a mean streak - when paired up with a new, young female partner, he looks at her as flabby and his internal dialog is very negative and completely superficial. Later, when she gets in better shape, he has yet another internal dialog that appraises the change as positive. Excuse me, you're a miserable alcoholic with a lot of nerve.

Interwoven into the story are historical snippets of an order who has found, and nurtures, a silent prophet of sorts. One who begins writing the birth dates and death dates of those around him. At times the historical story, though sometimes more interesting, seemed out of place. I wondered about halfway through this book if I should even continue to read it... but then it suddenly started to become far more interesting.

Most of the story is told from the point of view of the main character. Point of view shifts briefly to others to enhance plot at times, and is done well. My complaint is the internal dialog of the main character near the beginning of the story, something I already stated. Also, you need to suspend belief quite a bit for a few unbelievable plot points.