This novel by William Paul Young has a lot going for it, but a few downfalls.

The plot centers around a family father who has a young daughter kidnapped and murdered by a serial killer. Some time after the awful events, the father receives a note from someone proclaiming to be God. God tells the father he would like to meet with him, and he wants to meet with him in the place where the little girl was killed, a shack in the woods. Of course the father doesn’t believe it could actually be God who sent the note; the father tends to believe it is the killer trying to play games. However, the father arms himself and decides to go to the meeting. Maybe he can catch the killer.

As it turns out, God really is there, as is Jesus and the Holy Spirit. That’s right, the whole Trinity has shown up for a couple of days of conversation with this father of a murdered girl.

I won’t say much more on the plot than that, because it would give too much away.

But all that being said, I’ll point out that the plot itself is fantastic, and the story has some interesting and memorable characters, including each member of the Holy Trinity.

There are some downsides, too, though. This novel comes from a first-time novelist, and it shows, in my opinion. The writing isn’t awful, but it’s not overly exciting nor as inspiring as it could be.

Also, for those with a religious bent, keep in mind you are reading one person’s interpretation of God, Jesus and the Holy Spirit. These three characters might or might not conform to your own ideas of how they should be. Not that there’s any truly offensive material to be found in “The Shack,” just that you should be aware of things you might not agree with.