Book Review- The River by Michael Neale

The River by Michael Neale- which I received through Thomas Nelson's book review program Booksneeze- was just an ok read for me. While I thought it was well written it was not a story that held my attention. The story in itself is about a young man who lives his life in fear because of a tragic accident that he witnessed. The love of his life convinces him to face his fear and in facing his fear he learns what he has been missing. He confronts The River and learns to love it through all of its moods. The River is written as an allegory for God and I could see it however it was not a compelling allegory for me. I felt like there was a large amount of concentration on the fear that holds the main character captive; and while there are some good scenes that describe his experiences with the river I wanted more of them. Overall I thought it was a good read for what it was and I enjoyed reading it. However it was not a game changer for me and it was not as compelling a read as I anticipated. The River did not live up to the hype for me.