An excellent thriller with a good message. A bit violent and possibly quite frightening.
Plot
Kevin Parson is driving his car one day, when suddenly he gets an unexpected call. The mysterious caller who calls himself Slater tells him he must confess his sin in three minutes, and gives him a riddle as a clue. With no idea what sin Slater's talking about, Kevin does nothing. Three minutes later, his car explodes, sending him on a winding path of clues, red herrings, and shocking twists.
Morality
Thr3e deals with human nature: the good side, the bad side, and the person in the middle. The villain is very evil, and the protagonists are good. Kevin, however, does try to kill Slater.
Spiritual Content
A good amount. Samantha (Kevin's childhood friend) tells Kevin near the end to look to the Maker. The entire story is somewhat of an allegory for the kingdoms of Heaven, Earth, and Hell.
Violence
Slater threatens multiple people, some shootings occur at the end of the story. Slater also blows up some buildings. Overall, a rather violent tale.
Drug and Alcohol Content
Slater kidnaps someone by knocking them out with chloroform. None besides that.
Sexual Content
A little romance, nothing else. A man and woman dance innocently.
Crude or Profane Language or Content
Possibly some mild language like crap, idiot, etc. Retarded is used in the proper context.
Conclusion
Ted Dekker did an excellent job writing what is essentially a parable of human nature: the good, the bad, and the in-between. Thr3e is written extremely well and keeps you wanting to know what comes next. Like many of Dekker's books, though, it is not for those easily disturbed, as it has a rather dark premise; one look at the black-and-red cover is enough to give you a hint of that.
