Lionel Ross' Men of Conviction was one of those happy accidents that I came across fairly recently. Having had the privilege of actually meeting the man at a book signing, he came across as a highly intelligent individual who knew what he was talking about. Aside from coming across as a compassionate man, Lionel Ross also possessed many moral convictions to be proud of.
These qualities are reflected perfectly in his writing. Men of Conviction is an enthralling novel, one that examines the biggest problems facing today's multi-cultural society (i.e. religion, crime, corruption, terrorism etc). The premise of three unrelated young men (Hussein, Wayne & Dovid), who are released from prison, examines some extraordinary parallels of the different paths criminals take. This alone is a great concept that's executed superbly well, but when the paths of the three central characters tie together to form an actual plot, the whole complexity of the story changes in ingenious fashion.
Hussein, Wayne & Dovid each have basic, yet strong personalities and goals. You have Hussein (the Islamic preacher) who's driven by hate and his overwhelming desire to convert all of Britain into the Islamic Caliphate. Then you have Dovid (the one-time offender) who's determined to make an honest success of his life, and finally you have Wayne (a notorious burglar and drug-addict) who's determined to make something of his life and remain on the up-and-up...and maybe bend a few rules here and there.
The paths that these jailbirds take are true-to-life, in that anyone who's been released from prison can either hold onto their convictions, reform themselves completely or TRY to without getting caught. It's strong character focus indeed, and each of the main characters are given the right amount of time in the spotlight to serve the story's strengths.
Lionel's writing is very masterful indeed. Aside from displaying a strong understanding of character, the author also examines the darker side of society with great relevance; like how religion is used as a notorious (and pathetic) excuse to justify terrorists' motives, how the immoral use of drug-dealing and prostitution has spread through society, how revenge can be for the self-destructive and how (ultimately) cooperation between different people and cultures isn't that farfetched after all. But Ross doesn't waste anyone's time and patience preaching these messages throughout his story. He doesn't overstate anything, and it's all written with a degree of realism, intelligence, knowledge and plenty of evident research.
The plot, sub-plots and interaction between all the characters is also written expertly. The whole story goes back-and-forth throughout the years of Men of Conviction's timeline, which amazingly manages to avoid being convoluted and instead turns out coherent and simple to follow. Granted, some readers may feel that the various coincidences are one too many and some of the use of stereotypes may be a little extreme, but it's all presented plausibly thanks to the pace the novel goes, and Ross' gripping, interlinking narrative.
Men of Conviction is truly a fine read. In many cases, it's too easy to write a story like this and for it to flop due to issues of implausibility and lack of proper research, but Lionel Ross clearly knew what he was doing and what he's talking about. An excellent novel indeed and a highly recommended one at that.
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