Stephen Lawhead, The Skin Map

Thanks to Thomas Nelson for the review copy. This book is the first in a new series by the prolific author Stephen Lawhead. The concept is a relatively intriguing one: London-resident Kit Livingstone sumbles on a "Ley line," an invisible portal between different universes of our multiverse. He is apparently possessive of some faculty that allows him to do this. And things get immediately stranger when he meets his great-grandfather, who helps him understand this new ability and this trans-universe travel. Soon he, and separately his casual girlfriend Wihlehmina, are off on adventures in other times and places. Wilhelmina ends up in 17th century Prague, and her storyline is a fun one, as she develops as a character and learns to navigate life in a different time and culture. Kit, meanwhile, is thrust on his own adventures in London and elsewhere. And as the story develops, we learn that there are forces for good and evil competing to track down the pieces of a mysterious map that holds important keys for navigating the ley lines.

There are the bones of a good story here, as well as some fun parts to this book. But overall it was really lacking in compelling characters and action to drive it. I was hoping for more from Lawhead, but he hasn't yet delivered. I hold out some hope for future volumes in the series, to see where he takes the action and how he develops the characters, but I'm not in a big hurry to get to them. If you read this one, know that it's only the beginning of the story.