Here are some quotes from the reviews posted at Amazon:
• … The book has accomplished the task of educating me further on the topic so that i can hopefully reason better with believers in this theory and be able to show them the truth of a design.
• … I had recently finished a DVD course … titled Understanding the Universe…. This was a series of 96 half hour lectures on the cosmos, which Paul Roman managed to succinctly compress into a very understandable half hour read.…

You could see another professional review at OnlineBookClub:
http://forums.onlinebookclub.org/viewtopic.php?f=24&t=32159
few more on Amazon:
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0991839935/
and Goodreads:
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/24108862-essence-of-existence#other_reviews
Thanks for visiting my page, Paul

Essence of Existence: A Brief Story of Matter and People is a non-fiction science and education book written by Paul Roman. Roman is a retired architect and author specializing in the natural sciences and human development. In Essence of Existence, the author takes the reader on a journey from before the Big Bang through to the early development of human society some 14 billion years later. Along the way, he describes how the highly concentrated matter, and the energy which compressed it, gave way to a massively expanding space that was filled with minute particles. He then describes how those particles collided and formed larger groups of particles. Roman shows how first suns were formed, and then, much later, planets, including the earth. He then delves into earth science, into the drawing in of the superheated matter, known as magma, into the center of the earth, covered with a thin layer of matter and a gaseous atmosphere. His narrative then tracks the progress of the first stirrings of life in the primordial soup and on to the development of plants, animals, primates and then hominids.

Paul Roman's non-fiction science and education book, Essence of Existence: A Brief Story of Matter and People, gives a lot of information and insights into matters that took billions of years to happen in a relatively short text. His subject matter is impeccably organized, allowing the reader to visualize each phase of development as it unfolds. I was especially fascinated by the astronomical aspects he covers as well as his look at life on the atomic level. I appreciated seeing his references for further reading and the more detailed appendices included in this book. Essence of Existence is a remarkable work. It's written in an accessible, conversational style that is neither pedantic nor overly simplified, and it's a marvelous launching point for one's own study of matter and people. I finished this book understanding a lot more about the origins of man and the cosmos, and that's a very good thing. Essence of Existence: A Brief Story of Matter and People is most highly recommended.

We all have theories and conflicting beliefs about the beginning of life. Some believe in God as the source of all life and choose to ascribe the unanswered questions to Him while others like Paul Roman seek an explanation from science. In his book titled Essence of Existence - Brief Story of Matter and People, Paul Roman attempts to answer the question of where we came from, from a scientific point of view. Drawing on different scientific theories and experiments, Paul Roman gives his views and beliefs on the beginning of the universe and life as we know it. He goes into deep details like DNA and the brain, for example, but still does so in simple enough language that an ordinary person can understand it.

In Essence of Existence - Brief Story of Matter and People, Paul Roman offers a scientific explanation to the question of how the universe came into being and where we came from. It is a comprehensive coverage of the subject of the beginning of life and yet written in a language and style that is both interesting and easy to understand. If you are a believer in the theories of science then you will find Paul Roman's explanations captivating, and if you are a believer in God and a higher power, this will still be an interesting read and a chance for you to see what others believe, an opportunity to see things from their perspective. We all have our views and beliefs on this complex subject and in this book Paul Roman presents his. Whether you agree with his theories or not, you will still find Essence of Existence an intriguing and captivating read.

Essence of Existence: Brief Story of Matter and People by Paul Roman takes the reader through “14 billion years of nature’s history,” a story that begins with the question that has often baffled even the brightest minds: What was there before the beginning? Now the author unveils the origin of the cosmos, matter, life, the human person, and early civilizations. Here is a book that is both interesting and informative, one that will appeal to those who love anthropology and anyone interested in life and its origins. Written in a language that is very accessible and with some illustration, this is the kind of book that will read like fiction for many readers. It is interesting to see someone pose questions and attempt an explanation about the origins of the world, but there are many questions and answers in this well-written book.

Although Essence of Existence: Brief Story of Matter and People is purely scientific theory, it is interesting as a work; however, there is a lot of mystery that is unexplained by the scientific tests and claims the author makes. Read as fiction, it is imaginative and arresting. One of the huge questions that isn’t answered is the one posed by the author himself at the very beginning of the narrative: What was there before the beginning? And if there is matter, no matter how small the particle of that matter, it must have come from something. The question is: What is that thing? Can the cosmos be explained without allusion to a Divine Being who creates “ex nihilo?” This is not the type of book that will sit well with those who believe in God, but there is a lot of interesting stuff in it. Paul Roman seems to have put a lot of research into this work and he writes with fluidity, asking questions that will help many readers think more seriously about where they come from and where they go to from here.