Huge thank you to Villa Magna Publishing for allowing me to read 'The Celeste Experiment' as an advanced reading copy!

'The Celeste Experiment' has elements of a romance, of something like spirituality, and an attempt at disproving cynicism...and, for me personally, if fell flat attempting them. Had Imady focused on one over the others, or been more clear at what was being conveyed, I feel that 'The Celeste Experiment' could have been a title on par with 'Illusions: The Adventures of a Reluctant Messiah' (Richard Bach). 'Illusions' is of similar length and content, a work of allegory, philosophical fiction, and something deeper. 'Celeste' strove for that and did not succeed.

We did not get enough of Michael, a man grieving his wife and bereft after religion failed to save her. This is how 'The Celeste Experiment' opens. Rather than delve into why Michael feels this way, or why he feels the need to disprove religion (yes he's grieving, yes God did not save his wife), he decides to used his vast wealth to partake in some light human trafficking and essentially buys and manipulates a young girl from afar, trying to (I think? It was never very clear) create a new prophet using the formula he has identified.

Thankfully, our most compelling character is Hamida, the young woman Michael buys and runs this ethically questionable experiment. Had she been the focus, with no Michael involved, I think the book may have been stronger overall. However, even her story is muddled, and there is no clear conflict. Hamida doesn't really question anything, Michael never really does anything, and all other character are incidental. This is unfortunate, because I believe that 'The Celeste Experiment' could have been the next 'Illusions'.

When religion is discussed, there is a clear preference toward Islam over the other religions, likely due to Imady's background as a disciple of Muhammad Bashir al-Bani and Hamida being from Kolkata. So many books like this are written from a Christian understanding, usually a bit more conservative, and to have this one not be similarly focused was a relief and a breath of fresh air.

With a little more focus and polish, 'The Celeste Experiment' could be a solid read. As is, it is suited perhaps to a college or high school course on religious studies or philosophy rather than light reading to tickle the mind and stir deeper beliefs and conviction on religious topics. That said, I am interested in the author's other works, and will look into them after having finished 'The Celeste Experiment'.

This was a interesting concept for this story, it was what I was hoping for when I requested this. The characters were what I was looking for and felt like they worked in the story. I thought it was well-written and did the job really well, I look forward to reading more from Omar Imady.

"She felt a hand on her arm. It was her grandmother. From within the folds of her turquoise robes, her grandmother drew a golden seal. She pressed it to the parchment, signing her name beneath the chain of women who stood around the throne."