E. B. Roshan’s Final Chance: Shards of Sevia is a drama set in a fictional country (Sevia) currently in the middle of a major internal conflict. The ethnic Turs and the Sevia majority are violently clashing until Europe sends peacekeeping troops. With this tenuous situation in place, a young woman named Preen receives a phone call from her assumed-dead husband, Rama. Thinking of their two-year-old daughter, Preen heads off to a battle-ridden city of Dor to find if her husband is alive. If Rama is living, and if Preen can convince him to return home, this may be their final chance to make their marriage work.
While this summary may sound like a romance, Final Chance reads more like the thriller it actually is. Chases, gunfights, narrow escapes, and cat-and-mouse games build tension as Preen explores the city around her. The novel reflects life in countries where revolutionaries fight for freedom and gunshots are heard every night. Though Preen is Tur, the book never makes a firm stand on the righteousness of either the Turs or Sevians. Villains and heroes exist on both sides of the conflict.
Though billed as a second in a series, I had no problems picking up the narrative. A short history and a cast of characters orient the reader immediately. FYI, so many reviewers look down their noses on including a cast of characters, but I love them.
Final Chance is categorized as Christian contemporary, but you won’t find many Bible quotes here. The narrative asks the question of whether God gives out a second, or third, or final chance. And what happens to one’s faith when opportunities go awry, or the actions of a well-intended Christian ends with horrible consequences? Preen struggles with these significant questions through the story.
Final Chance is a gritty contemporary novel and not for the faint-hearted. Mostly bleak in tone, it’s a Christian thriller that doesn’t pull punches. The novel is short at 168 pages and could’ve used a little padding when describing the details of the city or the refuge camp. The characters, however, are realistic and make logical choices, keeping the reader pulling for them.
It’s a rare offering these days to see a Christian novel depict such a hopeless situation, so it’s refreshing to see one take the risk. This book is not what one often sees on “shelves,” which allows it to stand out among its contemporaries.