Bunn's Unlimited (Because Isn't That Fun to Say?) {A Giveaway}

I've said it before, and I'll say it again: I love my job. What other gig pays a stay-at-home mom to talk to professional athletes whilst in her pajamas? (Though I do dress nicely if Skyping!) Plus, I often get to read their memoirs before the books even hit the shelves.

Well, Davis Bunn is no pro footballer, but he is a great fiction writer. Who just so happens to have sold more than seven million books in 16 languages while winning four Christy awards (in Christian publishing, that's a REALLY BIG DEAL), all while serving as writer-in-residence at Oxford. Which brings me to my latest review and giveaway.

Behold, Bunn's suspense novel Unlimited...just-released and also coming to a theater near you!

 Simon Orwell is a brilliant student whose life has taken a series of wrong turns. At the point of giving up on his dreams, he gets a call from an old professor who has discovered a breakthrough in a device that would create unlimited energy. He needs Simon's help.

Upon crossing the border, nothing goes as the young man planned. The professor has been killed and Simon is assaulted and nearly killed by members of a powerful drug cartel.

Now he must take refuge in the only place that will help him, a local orphanage. There, Simon meets Harold Finch, the orphanage proprietor who walked away from a lucrative career with NASA and consulting Fortune 500 companies to serve a higher cause.
With Harold's help, Simon sets out on a quest to uncover who killed the professor and why. In due time, he will discover secrets to both the world-changing device and his own unlimited potential.

Bunn is known for engaging characters and a puzzle-like ability to knit every twist and turn together. I am a big fan of his "Lion of Babylon" and "Rare Earth" books for this reason.

What I liked about "Unlimited": it has glimpses of those Bunn hits, and a great setting in the real-life town of Ojinaga, Mexico. Descriptions of the setting felt very authentic and provided a lot of oomph and motivation to the characters' actions and back stories. The characters are flawed (thankfully; I can't stand books where everyone is perfect) enough to be likable, and there is plenty of solid theology sprinkled throughout. Finally, it deals with the plight of orphans and real-life social justice, which is always a winner for me!

What I didn't like: the characters didn't draw me in as much as previous Bunn books; I found myself not necessarily caring as deeply about their fates. I would have loved more description of the technology described -- it felt slightly dumbed-down.

Otherwise, a solid read. And even better, it's coming on the big screen to 25 theaters next month. Definitely looking forward to the movie!

And now, here's your chance to win.

You could win a $50 Fandango gift card plus UNLIMITED, Davis Bunn's new suspense novel. Ten additional winners will receive a copy of UNLIMITED. Enter right now by clicking this link: http://woobox.com/mp5qew 

Or, you could win my copy! Just leave a comment naming the best book you've read lately. Contest runs through Saturday, September 28 at 9 p.m. Pacific.

If you don't want to wait to see who won, here's the first three chapters. Happy Unlimited reading!

I received a complimentary copy of Unlimited from B&H Publishing Group in exchange for my honest review.
UPDATE: Megan Stuck, you are the winner! Congratulations.