4 Stars

I want to start by saying that this book really surprised me.  I was a little weary at first with it being a christian fiction book, not really knowing what to expect.  After I started reading it, I was very surprised.  I was expecting it to be very strongly religion based, but I think that if I didn't know it's genre to begin with, I would have thought nothing of it.  I felt like this was a very easy read, and the story was very enjoyable.  I felt that the author did a great job at making the characters very likable and easy to relate to.  Great job to the author.

The story line follows a man from California by the name of Rick.  It begins with a couple who had been trying to have a child finally succeed in pregnancy.  The child, Rick, is born, and this is a story of how he comes to his destiny.  It follows Rick as he conquers the daily struggles that we face in life, while the government continues to rule unjustly.  Rick ends up facing all of these corrupt agencies, giving people hope.  It's hard to describe the story without giving too much away.  I recommend this book to everyone!

Tiffany L. Davis

Reviewed By Lynn

Josue and Mari Vasquez, after trying for so long, finally have a son. When his lusty cry is heard in the fields, the old man with the weathered face, picks up the lamb and as he strokes it, he is heard to say “it is finished”. Little did they know the world he was going to grow up into and how his life along with theirs would change. Unable to bear anymore children Josue and Mari gave all their attention to Ricardo(Rick) who was very bright and outgoing as a young child. When he grew up with their neighbors boy Phillip the two were inseparable. They rode horses together, went to school, played football and on to college. They eventually ended up working together. .... Making his way in the world with his own computer ISP business... they find out they have been hacked. But just who was the hacker? When they got it under control, that is when everything starts to go downhill for them. With America in throes of a deep recession, heath care now is now run by the government, Un-employment is at its highest level and a shortage of fuel. The government is now taking over the ISP and software computer businesses. .... At this time a transformation is taking place in his life. Christianity is being challenged and into this chaos Rick emerges, a man to being message and hope to all.

This is a very deeply written story which is so reminiscent of today. Throughout the book one is going to find love, hate realistic happenings as they are taken on a journey and will have their spiritual faith strengthened .The characters are quite interesting and easy to connect with.

When the author asked me if I thought it was a book that I would like to read, I checked out his page and agreed. I am glad I did as it is a very interesting book from the beginning to the last page which is appropriately ended with the words "The Beginning" I feel like this book will be enjoyed by many.

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Reviewed By Amy

The Angels' Footpath is an amazing spiritual journey through one man's life from the day he is born until he becomes what the sad and hopeless citizens of the world need.  A prophet for the 21st century.

At first, I was weary of a "Christian fiction"; I didn't like feeling ashamed if I wasn't living a certain way or feeling a certain way.  I didn't think Christian fiction was very interesting and was unsure if I could really get into it.  Boy, was I  wrong!

This story doesn't read like a christian story.  Yes, it talks about God in it, and it has a lot of spirituality in it but it doesn't come off as "my religion is better than your religion" type of story at all.  Instead, it is a compelling novel about love, fear, family, and most importantly hope.

I believe the totalitarian style government described in the story is very scary for this country; people being in fear for their lives just by criticizing those in charge, makes for a great enemy in the fictional story.  However,  I do hope, that even though many of the situations happening in the story are similar to what we as a Nation are facing today, people do not take this as a true story.  It is a fiction story.  A wonderful one at that.  

I enjoyed the ease in which was to read it.  It flowed and the prose was beautifully illustrated leaving serene pictures in my mind of a happy loving family, especially in a time of turmoil.

This is a great book to help you step out of your comfort zone and delve more into a spiritual reading.  Along the way, you may find something you didn't think you had: a little faith.  

Reviewed by Douglas R. Cobb

I’m not in general a big fan of “inspirational” sorts of novels. The Angels’ Footpath (subtitled: Let’s Take This Walk Together) by Ronald R. Cooke goes beyond the usual definition of what an “Inspirational” novel is, and like LeHayne’s Left Behind series, it crosses over into the science fiction genre with its vivid depictions of a future filled with turmoil where revolution is in the air. As is often the case, where political strife is prevalent, there is also religious strife, and people of religious faith feel as if their faith is being challenged. With the End Times upon us, there is born an infant with a special gift to a Hispanic couple whose names (Josue and Mari) are derivations of Joseph and Mary from the Bible. Will their child, like Jesus, prove to be “the Light of the World”? Is their infant, whom they name Ricardo Juan Sanchez Vasquez,” the Second Coming of Christ; or, is he someone entirely different, either an important Prophet or perhaps even the Antichrist?

Cooke’s compelling and impressive writing style makes you want to continue reading late into the night, to discover the answers to the questions he brings up and to learn more about the early life and transformation of Ricardo into a religious leader of the Christian faithful. We read in the very first chapter about Ricardo’s long-anticipated birth to his loving parents, and also that a mysterious “old man with a weathered face” in the fields hears the newborn’s cries, and says: “It is done.” 

Rick (as Ricardo comes to be called) grows up with his best friend, Phillip. They ride horses together and go to school together and play football and eventually go on to college. Rick gets married and has kids.He and Phillip have their own quite prosperous computer ISP business, but it gets hacked. Just when the two friends think they have the problem settled, the economy takes a steep downturn and America falls into a deep recession.... The scenario that Ronald writes about seems to sadly be the way the country is currently headed. This eerie prescience adds a further element of realism to The Angels’ Footpath similar to the also prophetic novel by George Orwell, 1984.

The Angels’ Footpath is a moving and captivating novel that seems to prophetically evoke what is happening in America and around the world today. Ronald R. Cooke brings his characters to life for his readers with his vivid and descriptive writing style. There are both very kind and good characters, and some who are downright mean and nasty in Cooke’s novel, just as there are in real life. If you like reading novels about spiritual journeys that are also sure to increase your faith, I’d highly recommend that you check out The Angels’ Footpath and see for yourself what a fantastic author Ronald R. Cooke is. Read it, and perhaps get a glimpse into America’s future!
 

The Angels’ Footpath - Excerpt from Chapter 1

Chapter 1 Innocence

  Josue Vasquez leaned against the weathered doorway of his aging farmhouse. A gentle misty rain swirled about the yard. The cool night air was pungent with the smell of mud and farm animals. Nearby Putah Creek gurgled and splashed its way toward the valley. His eyes passed over the dark shadows of pens and sheds. But he really was not seeing anything. Not even the barely visible forms of his farm machinery. His mind was cluttered with the thoughts of the day. Mari telling him it was time. Calling for the mid-wife. Making up a bed. Boiling water. And now waiting. Just waiting. Straining to hear the sounds that would tell him he was a father.

Hours passed. To relieve the tension, Josue walked across the farmyard to the barn. Then he returned to the farmhouse. Back and forth. Maybe 30 times. Tracing a path through the mud and wet grass. The silence of the damp night air was broken only by the bleating of a lamb and the distant sound of highway traffic –all muted by the shroud of fog rising slowly from the creek.


 Josue was a big man. Taller than most. Proud of his independence and his skills. Josue worked as a farm machinery mechanic in Winters. People said he could fix anything. There was a sense of satisfaction in that. Being really good at something. He and Mari worked their little farm in their spare time. They had three cows, some chickens, a pig for slaughter and – in the spring – rows of carefully tended vegetables.


 Josue and Mari had tried many times to have a baby. They had prayed to the heavenly father for a child. And now this agonizing delay seemed to last forever. Just before midnight, the night sky began to clear, revealing the twinkling lights of a thousand stars. A gentle breeze brought the chill of cooler air . Josue shifted uneasily from one foot to the other. Then – finally - the sound he was waiting for filled the house. The lusty cry of a new-born baby. Followed by much commotion as the mid-wife went about her chores. Suddenly, a very large woman appeared in the hallway behind him.


 “Congratulations, Josue,” she smiled. “You are a father. You have a beautiful son.” She carefully handed a bundle of blankets to him. Josue tenderly cradled the baby in his arms and unfolded the blanket just enough to see a very small pink face.


 “My son, our life.”


 Tears filled his eyes as he looked upward at the stars. “Thank you, Heavenly Father. Thank you for granting our wish.”


***


 In a nearby field a man reaches down into the damp grass to pick up a very small lamb. He hears the cry of a new born baby. It has happened. Josue and Marie have gotten their most cherished wish. Cuddling the lamb in his arms, an almost imperceptible smile traces its way across the man’s weathered face. His eyes become moist with a private joy. Gently he strokes the lamb.


 “It is done,” he whispers.

The Angels' Footpath is available from CreateSpace

and from Amazon

.