Eerie at first ... simply because you know the main character, Eddie, is on his last moments of life as we know it here on
earth; and the ending of his life and how it happened is vividly described like a moment-to-moment, reel-to-reel tape.
The book is basically abstract from beginning to finish as it lurches back and forth like an old steam train around the fictional "Ruby Pier" to take you on the ride of your life between the people Eddie meet in
heaven and the moments of many birthdays throughout Eddie's life. It can get confusing if you don't keep up.
Persons one through five are significant people Eddie has met or known in the course of his life, and he runs into them in the environments in which they want to be when he arrives. It is apparent that none of them can go on to their own chosen slices of heaven until they do the job they came to do with Eddie. It makes you wonder why they chose to wait for him -
maybe because they had nothing but time on their hands?; maybe because he was the one who had the most impact on their own lives?. You'll have to read it to see.
The ending? Phenomenal. We find out who Eddie will wait for and why; and what he has chosen to do for all eternity afterward. It makes its point about the inner-connectivity of all humanity and you do find out
whether or not Eddie saves the little girl's life for which he gave his own.
Recommended reading, whether you are a -believer- or not. This abstract is about as long as the book; I read it in one night. Don't read it at night, you may get spooked.