The Methuselah Project by Rick Barry

The Methuselah Project (Kregel, September 2015)

Nazi scientists started many experiments. One never ended.

Roger Greene is a war hero. Raised in an orphanage, the only birthright he knows is the feeling that he was born to fly. Flying against the Axis Powers in World War II is everything he always dreamed—until the day he’s shot down and lands in the hands of the enemy.

When Allied bombs destroy both his prison and the mad genius experimenting on POWs, Roger survives. Within hours, his wounds miraculously heal, thanks to those experiments. The Methuselah Project is a success—but this ace is still not free. Seventy years later, Roger hasn’t aged a day, but he has nearly gone insane. This isn’t Captain America—just a lousy existence only made passable by a newfound faith. The Bible provides the only reliable anchor for Roger’s sanity and his soul. When he finally escapes, there’s no angelic promise or personal prophecy of deliverance, just confusion. It’s 2015—and the world has become an unrecognizable place.

Katherine Mueller—crack shot, genius, and real Southern Belle—offers to help him find his way home. Can he convince her of the truth of his crazy story? Can he continue to trust her when he finds out she works for the very organization he’s trying to flee?

Thrown right into pulse-pounding action from the first page, readers will find themselves transported back in time to a believable, full-colored past, and then catapulted into the present once more. The historical back-and-forth adds a constantly moving element of suspense to keep readers on the edge of their seats.

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Rick Barry is the author of "Gunner's Run," another World War II novel, "Kiriath's Quest," and more than 200 articles and fiction stories. In addition to being a World War II buff, he is the director of church planting ministries at BIEM, a Christian ministry operating in Eastern Europe. He holds a degree in foreign languages, speaks Russian, and has visited Europe more than fifty times. Rick lives in Indianapolis, Indiana.

Margie’s Comments: Several years ago, I discovered I like books with a blending of a historical story with the contemporary, a kind of truth and consequences type of story. When I first considered Rick Barry’s The Methuselah Project for review, I was intrigued, not sure where a story with the hero who never ages could go when he was introduced to the twenty-first century. The changes in society, technology, and every other area of life, especially in the US are so completely alien to the world Roger Greene grew up in. Yet, as he and Katherine meet, learn each other’s stories, and work together to seek the truth in their mixed-up world, I was pleased to see how believable and real the premise is.

The author has created characters I like and desire to cheer on through the end of the book. In fact, they are still with me even after I finished reading the book. Because of the demands of my life outside of reading, I had to set aside the book occasionally, but the story drew me back more frequently than usual and it kept me reading long after I should have put it down. While I don’t want to give any spoilers here, I will only say that I’m wishing the story could have gone on. Of necessity, not all the threads were neatly tied up and concluded. So this story will continue on in my own imagination, as will Roger and Katherine continue to live.

So if you’d like a fresh perspective on World War II, The Methuselah Project delivers that. The author has definitely done his homework in research and storytelling. I will be looking for more books by Rick Barry in the future.