While writing his latest novel, Gainesville author Scott Lindquist, along with the characters in his new book "The Jesus Factory," went on a decidedly spiritual expedition.

The book was the fourth for Lindquist, but his first spiritual fiction novel.

"A lot of what comes through the book is based on my experiences, my wife's experiences and our own spiritual journey," said Lindquist, who took three years to write the book.

Through his journey, Lindquist's beliefs on the Christian church and the philosophies behind God and the Bible became even more solid and steeped in knowledge.

"My wife went through breast cancer, and the wife of the minister in the book, Peter's (Andrews) wife, goes through that whole experience. Of course, Peter's wife Ann (Park) also wants to be a minister, but she's not allowed to because she's a woman. So part of her story is how she fights against that but can't overcome that prejudice.

"So the book goes through historical things about how the church, for thousands of years, has kept (women) in a very secondary position and haven't allowed them to hold a position of power."

Lindquist's wife is the Rev. Sydney Magill-Lindquist, a pastor at Unity of Gainesville Church. Scott Lindquist works as a certified crime prevention practitioner and crime prevention specialist.

"‘The Jesus Factory' is a novel ... and is basically one man's search for truth," Scott Lindquist said. "He's a minister who rises to the height of fame, power and money and glory in a huge mega-church and it all destroyed him and his family. It puts him in a mental institution, and he wants nothing to do with God or the Bible. That's where the story begins, and from there we tell the story of what brought him to this point and how he is healed in the institution. He goes on a search for truth, to find the real truth behind his faith."

On Peter's and Ann's journey to find the truth about the Christian church, Lindquist says Peter learns the truth about the gospel.

"This is not just a story about Peter's search, it's also about truths that he learned that comes out as whole new ways to think about God and Jesus and his message," he said.

Through research for the novel, Lindquist delved into the true history of the Christian church and what the Apostles did with their lives after the ascension.

"I learned an awful lot about Philip; he was one of the Apostles of Jesus and is credited for having converted the first gentile in the Bible," Lindquist said. "It is interesting there is so little written about the Apostles and where they landed. We know a little about Paul, but the gospels were written by other men - Philip, Peter, James, Bartholomew - they all went off to preach the gospel, but we don't know anything about them."

So far Lindquist has been getting many positive reviews on his first try at spiritual literature.

"A number of people have been absolutely stunned by the power of the story and by the fact that once they pick it up, they can't put it down," he said

"The second thing I'm hearing is it really confirms to them that there's something missing in what churches are preaching today."