“13:24” was published in 2014 and is the first book by author M. Dolon Hickmon (http://1324book.com).

Chris is an abused and troubled teenager who finally reaches his breaking point. Many attribute his crime spree at first to the dark music he listens to. By chance his favorite band, Rehoboam, is in town for a concert.

William Hursel is the detective that is called in to the resulting crime scene. He sees the result of a teenage boy gone crazy, but believes that there is more to the case. The more he digs, the more he uncovers.

Josh is the lead singer of the popular band Rehoboam. Josh comes from a hidden past where he was abused. Now a teenager who has reached out to him is involved in a crime spree. Because of the abuse they have both lived through he wants to help but it is bringing back the nightmares of the trauma of his own youth.

The novel takes the reader through a world of child punishment and those who are willing to pay to watch it as Chris rebels and Detective Hursel pursues him.

I found the writing and character development excellent. The story was very engaging and I recommend this book.

Excellent book-- I couldn't put it down once I started it. Characters were well developed and the storyline was easy to follow and offered some twists along the way. I will definitely recommend this book to all my customers who come in looking for an exciting thriller

I thought this book was very well written and the author did a fair amount of research on topics. The characters were well developed and the storyline was impeccable. Only warning for this book is some people won't be able to handle some of the issues that it brings up. Also the book tends to jump from past to present, but it does so in a way that you as a reader are not constantly wondering "When did this happen?" I look forward to more from this author in the future.

Corporal punishment.

Two words that can strike one of the biggest debates in the land. Most of us were spanked as kids, and we turned out relatively ok, because our parents didn't 'beat us' in the modern terminology. To us corporal punishment is not an 'evil thing, as it is presented in modern media. But there are always two sides of the coin. My parents, and my friends' parents, tempered the punishment to a basic hand spanking. There was no whipping with belts or rods. And we knew we had done wrong and for the most part, did NOT repeat what got us spanked in the first place. What we don't hear about are the kids that were spanked, such as we were, that are civic leaders, considered wonderful citizens, and leading lives devoted to the good of others. It's almost taboo to admit that corporal punishment does NOT always lead to emotional lifelong trauma. It's an argument that will probably go on and on, as parents always seek what works, and is best for their kids.
Being in law enforcement for over 20 years, I can tell you who was spanked and who wasn't, pretty easily with how they react to those in authority. I have seen a generational change from kids who respected authority (some would argue feared), to kids who curse and demean those in authority, at VERY young ages. Their concept of what is right and wrong is pretty well skewed into 'what is in it for me?' These are the kids who got time out, and would call child welfare if they were spanked even once. For the most part they have short focuses and no thought of other people's feelings. Would spanking have solved that? There is no short term answer to that question, but when a 6 year is telling their mother off and cursing them out, and there are NO repercussions for it, then yes, there IS something needed, especially when said child refuses to comply with time out and any other 'modern parenting techniques.
But back to that flip side, there are always people who will go too far and seek a justification for the wrong that they are doing, and try to couch it in acceptable rhetoric and thoughts. Wrong? Definitely. And that is where this book delves- in corporal punishment for the WRONG reasons, and in the WRONG way. Does it go on across this country? Yes, and do we hear about it? Yes. Many churches have changed and stopped supporting such false teachings, as presented in this book. Which is why there IS a place for this book, and why it is needed to reach out to THOSE kids who need to know, that what they are experiencing is NOT what was intended, and that they are not alone. They are the kids the system was set up to help and protect. Setting aside the controversy, this book is the epitome of the 'I couldn't put it down and had to read it in one sitting book'! From the beginning, you know who is committing the crimes, and you see what Josh is experiencing. The twist, and mystery, is the why and how are these two subjects connected- strictly as 'rock god' to fan, or is there more? This is not a book for those with queasy stomachs, as the crime scenes are very graphic. But they fit the story, as it shows the repercussions of severe punishment and child abuse. It is a worthwhile read, and I urge anyone whose church still adheres to severe corporal punishment to read the book.

(ARC received in exchange for honest review)

I am generally an avid reader of crime and horror fiction.  All the better if they have firm basis in real life – “could this really happen?”.
I first picked up 13:24 as I had heard it being described as disturbing, its cover appealed to me and I was intrigued by the title itself, as I had no idea what it referred to.
I like to discover a book as I read it, and let it speak for itself, without it being marred by any preconceptions I might have due to someone else’s account of it.  As such, it took some time and a lot of guessing on my part before I came across the actual significance of 13:24, and as I delved deeper into the story I was slowly able to truly appreciate the full meaning of the tagline “A story of faith and obsession”.

I would strongly suggest to any reader to do the same.  The narration will explain everything.
Just a word of warning: the book deals graphically with child abuse, but it only touches upon child pornography.  If you are squeamish, or thin skinned… well, get over it!  
This is real life – face it. 
Learn from it (and there is a lot to learn and plenty of food for thought here) and stop burying your head in the sand. 
Events such as those described in this book are most probably occurring in your neighbourhood (especially if you live in the USA), not that far away from you, and they are only going to stop if people are aware, if people are horrified and take an active stand against it.

13:24 is not your usual crime story – we know from the beginning who the killer is (a teenager, Chris).  What we need to figure out is why these murders are happening, and what ties them to a rock band, Rehoboam and to 13:24.

13:24 is an excellent read, sensitively written by a survivor.  The pace of the story is fast and gripping, reminiscent of a blockbuster: we follow three main characters, Chris –the killer, William – the investigator, and Josh – the rockstar, as current events unfold and through flashbacks, which connect more and more of the dots and which will take you to places which are darker than you had ever imagined.  M Dolon Hickmon’s style is clear, gritty and emotionally charged and you cannot help finding yourself fully engaged with the protagonists.

I found that some passages were difficult to swallow as they evoked many personal memories – albeit (and thankfully) not as extreme as the ones described in the book.  Once I had reached the end, having spent the last twenty years in the UK, it all felt rather insular and detached from my own experiences and from those of the ones closest to me.  However, having been raised in Northern Italy by a Southern family, some of the methodology described in the book did ring clear bells, but I had never associated it to the root which is identified in this book.  I believe that these practices are mostly widespread in the United States, however you just need to watch the news to realise that they also happen all around Europe and the rest of the world, behind closed door – people are the same no matter their geographical location, of course the right encouragement from the right pulpit can provide the thin justification required to release dark impulses.

You can find out more on M Dolon Hickmon’s website http://1324book.com/wp/.  The blog ‘A Survivor’s Conversation with Christianity’ is of particular interest, with its links to Michael and Debi Pearl and their manual “To train up a child” http://t.co/j6mILLCdpa.

13:24 – A Story of Faith and Obsession, is a terrifying fictional account of what happens when the Bible is interpreted, manipulated, and taken out of context to serve the perverted needs of alleged religious people. The title refers to Proverbs 13:24 ("He who spares the rod hates his son; but he who loves him disciplines him early") as justification for ferocious child abuse.

The story tells of young Josh Garnfield, whose father, Allen, is a "stern but charismatic" Baptist minister. When young Josh does not immediately follow his father's orders, his father drags him into his bedroom and proceeds to beat him bloody with his belt, not stopping until Josh tearfully tells his father that he has been "disobedient" and acknowledges that the beating he just received was not because his father hated him, but because he loved him and punished him to learn how to be good and, in so doing, make God happy.

As if this story were not enough to make you want to run and hug the nearest child, there are parallel stories of child pornography and lurid murders that will make your blood run cold. What happens to Josh as an adult who somehow survived these beatings with no permanent physical damage but with lasting emotional damage is graphic and heartbreaking. The three parallel stories converge in an horrific but ultimately redemptive conclusion, leaving you gasping for breath at M. Dolon Hickman's ability to weave a story that is too close to the truth for comfort. While I initially thought that the parallel and related stories were too bizarre and to be believable, when I started thinking about his book as a "vessel" to deliver and extremely important message, the details I found a bit far-fetched became unimportant. These practices continue today; a quick internet search revealed a well-known pair who promote lashing as the means to loving God and creating obedience.

I wanted to vomit many times while reading this book, not because it was bad, but because I knew how close to the truth a lot of it was. We are all too willing to stick our heads in the sand because we don't raise our children or follow the Bible's dictums in strict adherence to the text and ignore what horrors may be perpetrated on innocent children by their, in my opinion, extremely misguided parents. This book sends an important message that we should all heed. This is a scandal that should be brought more directly to the light of public opinion.

I received this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Sometimes, reviews are hard to write. It doesn't matter how much you like a book, it can be difficult to effectively express how a book made you feel. This is one of those books.

First, this book is well written. The story is told in both the past and present. It required a little more attention to remember what was happening when, but it certainly wasn't a big deal. At first it was a little jarring to jump, rather suddenly, from present to past back to present again. However, the jumps weave together perfectly to tell an intense story. Throughout the story, we meet different characters that really come to life. The characters make this disturbing book even more realistic.

Second, this book isn't for everyone. It's subject matter is disturbing and violent (done well and never over the top). Truthfully, even after reading the blurb and watching the book trailer, I wasn't exactly prepared for some of the things I read. In my case, though, I think that added to my overall enjoyment of the book.

I'm glad I took a chance and read this book. I enjoyed it and I'm sure the story will stick with me for some time.

Wow. Having started this book and about 10% thought, "Yuck. Totally not my thing." I finished it feeling the opposite. It's a dark, disturbing story, that made me feel ridiculously uncomfortable, but also an incredibly powerful story. When my son was about three years old, I was given a book by a well-meaning (church-going) family member. This book instructed me to "beat the child with an inanimate object such as a wooden spoon as the hand is an instrument of love". Needless to say, the book went in the bin and the family member was told that we did not care for their parental advice. Hickmon's novel is emotional, disturbing and having googled the author on finishing the book I have nothing but admiration for him.

So hauntingly true to life at times, if it had been a movie, I'd been forced to cover my eyes!