So Far From God A Novel

Getting Your Hands on So Far From God A Novel

I picked up this Christopher Golden novel a few years back after seeing it recommended in a handful of forums. It's a dark fantasy horror book that came out around 2008, and honestly, it does what it says on the tin. But if you're trying to track down a copy or figure out whether it's worth your time, there are a few things that aren't obvious at first glance. The book follows a journalist named Tom who investigates a series of bizarre deaths connected to a religious cult in upstate New York. Golden mixes supernatural horror with procedural investigation, which is a tone that doesn't always work. In this case, it mostly holds together. The pacing drags in the middle section, and the third act gets a bit overstuffed with lore drops, but the first two-thirds are tight enough that you push through. When I read mine, I had a specific problem with the Kindle edition. The chapter breaks were misaligned in a way that made it hard to navigate between sections, and the table of contents didn't link properly to the actual chapters. I spent maybe ten minutes trying to figure out if I'd downloaded the wrong version before I realized the formatting was just built poorly. Switching to the paperback fixed the navigation issue entirely, and I ended up keeping that copy instead of the digital one.

Where people go wrong looking for it

The most common issue I see is people confusing this with other similarly titled books. There's "So Far from God," a play by Almudena Grandes, and there are a few self-published titles with nearly identical names on Amazon. If you search the exact phrase "So Far From God" you'll get a dozen results before you hit Golden's book. Double-check the author name before you buy. I lost twenty bucks on a mislabeled Kindle listing once. Another thing worth noting: the book went out of print in hardcover for a while. You'll find copies floating around on eBay and Amazon Marketplace from third-party sellers, but the condition varies wildly. Some of the used copies I've seen have significant dog-earing and highlighting that goes deep into the margins. If you're a collector or someone who cares about clean pages, stick to paperback reprints or check the seller ratings carefully.

Is it actually good, practically speaking

It's solid genre fiction. Don't expect literary prestige. Golden is a professional storyteller, and he knows how to build tension and deliver jumpscares that land. The cult lore is decently researched without becoming an info dump. The protagonist isn't particularly memorable, but he's functional, and the supporting characters, especially the cult members, have enough dimension to keep you invested. The real weakness is the ending. Without going into detail, it resolves too neatly for the amount of dread Golden builds up to that point. If you're the type of reader who needs every thread tied up, you'll probably feel let down. If you're okay with a genre-appropriate climax, it works fine. I think about the final pages for about ten seconds, shrug, and move on. For people who enjoy authors like Clive Barker or Peter Straub, this will feel familiar. It's not breaking new ground, but it's competent execution of well-worn territory. I'd recommend it as a weekend read rather than something you plan to re-read. My copy sits on my shelf alongside a handful of other Golden novels I've kept, but I wouldn't hold my breath waiting for him to revisit this particular story.

How to get it

It's available through most major retailers. Amazon carries both the Kindle edition and the paperback. Barnes and Noble has the Nook version. If you want the physical copy, check ThriftBooks or AbeBooks for cheaper options, but again, inspect the condition notes before committing. The digital edition usually runs around nine to eleven dollars depending on the platform and any current promotions. Used paperbacks can sometimes be found for under five dollars if you're patient. If you run into formatting issues like I did with the Kindle version, try downloading a different file type or switching retailers. Sometimes publishers push out corrected editions without updating the metadata everywhere, so checking multiple sources can save you a headache. I've found that the later printings of the paperback have better kerning and page layout than the early ones, which matters more than it should for a book you're reading in one sitting.