Review: The Place of Voices (Time Drifter #1) by Lauren Lynch

The Place of Voices 

by Lauren Lynch 

Anna is devastated by a fire that left her orphaned, dependent on an uncle she never knew existed and far from the only home she has ever known. Brendan struggles with a life limited by crippling illness and a family torn by the loss of his mother. Tzutz Nik faces an arranged marriage to the prince of a ruthless dynasty in order to unite their fractured kingdoms. A mysterious invitation gives them each an opportunity to escape their struggles for a while and view their lives from a new perspective. Deep in a remote jungle, amid long-forgotten ancient ruins, they discover the true meaning of sacrifice. In the shadows, a relentless evil presence lurks, threatening to lead them astray. Will they triumph over their adversary or be trapped in his web of lies?

My Take:

 Anna faces an uncertain future at the hands of an uncle she never knew she had, all because a mistake of hers caused a fire that destroyed her home and killed her parents. Brendan has faced a life of near immobility thanks to the polio ravaging his body that took his mother. Tzutz Nik is about to face an arranged marriage to the prince of a ruthless dynasty, to avoid the destruction of her people. In each of their lives, a mysterious invitation pulls them to a jungle sanctuary, a Place of Voices where these three go on a vision quest together. Assisting them is a talking elk named Ben, but an evil enemy also is in this place and is bent not only on Ben's destruction but on their own downfall as well. To each of them, this tempter presents a web of lies geared to make them betray all they hold dear.

Content:

Drug Content:

G - There is none.

Violence:

PG - Animal and human sacrifice is discussed. Someone is terribly mutilated as they are being murdered. This happens off-screen.

Language:

G - Squeaky clean.

Adult Content:

G - There is a hint of romance. 

Christian content:

This novel is full of Christian symbolism. The evil found in the enemy is obviously a typecast of satan. In one instance he speaks to the children from smoke as a snake, and laments how he was forced to travel on his belly. Ben is a typecast of Jesus, giving his life for the sins of others. The animal familiars who escort the children into the Place of Voices parallel the activity of angels. This book is loaded with content for healthy Christian discussion - the battle of good and evil, the need for a savior, the importance of repentance and forgiveness, and the power of praying for others.

Final analysis:

The Place of Voices is a good addition to any Christian's library, but especially those who are fans of fantasy and looking for clean reads, especially if they are looking for something on the level of C.S. Lewis's Chronicles of Narnia. The world-building was stellar. The character interaction was engaging and believable. Each character had their own issues and arc. The stakes were high and the action was gripping. Five Stars!

About the Author:

LAUREN LYNCH writes faith-infused historical fantasies created to challenge readers of all ages. After many years of focusing on visual arts, she found she could also paint with words and now enjoys dreaming up stories where the real world collides with the fantastic. She lives in a log cabin in North Carolina with her husband, teenage son, a feisty dog, three cats, two escape-artist goats and even the occasional bat. To learn more about Lauren and her other books, visit www.laurenlynch.com.

Review: Lost Hunters, Second Edition by Deanne Devine

Lost Hunters, Second Edition

by Deanne Devine

"Amberly County would be a great place to live if it weren't for this stupid curse."

Jake Nichols, televised interview, "Peculiar People and Places." WYOY TV, May 28, 1979.

The tale of John Barker's Hunt has been handed down for generations in Amberly County. Stories about the Hunt are mostly told around campfires, but there are some who claim it to be true. According to the old timers, the county is cursed, and once every generation the ghost of John Barker returns to hunt down the person who killed him. Oddly enough, roughly every 20 years the county does suffer a cluster of bizarre deaths. 

Nineteen years have passed since the last Hunt, but the citizens of the quiet town of Miltonville are too absorbed in their own problems to take notice. Cindy Swift is preoccupied with her upcoming suicide; Troy Ivers is worrying about the midnight ceremony he plans to hold in a rural cemetery; and Leslie Vickers is very concerned that the mannequin down the hall wants to kill her. 

Ed Philips is the one person in Amberly County who is aware that trouble is about to arrive. It approaches in the form of a phantom, walking in the body of a dead man. Ed knows the real story behind the legend of the Hunt, but has spent most of his life denying the truth. Now, with the fate of a young woman in his hands, he must decide whether to continue feeding his demons of cowardice and regret, or face them head on, and attempt to put an end to John Barker's Hunt. 

My Take:

Every 20 years or so, Amberly County experienced a brief and puzzling string of deaths, linked, at least in some people's minds, to the massacre of John Barker and his bizarre commune over 200 years ago. Legend has it that Barker returns every 20 years to hunt down and kill the descendants of his old rival, Lucas Vanderkellen. 

Only Ed Phillips knows the truth, a truth he has been denying his entire life, a truth involving Leslie, daughter of his best friend, who was brutally murdered in the last hunt. Entrusted with the only means to end the deadly killing sprees carried on by the tormented angry spirit of John Barker, Ed must confront his own inner demons and defeat John Barker once and for all, before Barker regains his life and releases a horde of demons on an unsuspecting world.

Content:

Drug Content:

R - There is a tremendous amount of underage drinking and drinking to excess by most of the cast. It would almost appear to be the norm in this county. Marijuana is almost as common as the alcohol, harder drugs also make their appearance, and a stolen drug shipment plays a pivotal part in backstory. 

Violence:

R - The ghosts possess individuals, who end up dying during possession. The ghosts continue to animate the dead until they are unable to move. Most of the deaths do not involve blood, and appear to be brain aneurysms. One character's neck is snapped, several are shot, but most just... die.

Language:

G - While some of the things said seem pretty violent, curse words are almost completely absent.

Adult Content:

PG-13 - A drug scene involves a man coming home to his naked girlfriend and her naked friend. Several couples pair off for a tryst, but their antics don't appear on screen. Several affairs are discussed, a marriage is dissolved because of infidelity. One minor character is addicted to porn and is heavily harassed by a flock of demons. 

Christian content:

YES. I originally would not have thought so, and much of the book seemed so dark it was irredeemably demonic, several characters overcome the demonic influences by the power of Christ. Demons and angels fight in the spiritual realm, the afterlife is clearly discussed, the existence of God and the power of forgiveness, redemption, and self-sacrifice play central roles. The perils of a life yielded to demonic influence and inebriation show up in stark relief, and satanic rituals, curses, tarot cards show up, but are cast in a negative light.

Final analysis:

Not gonna lie, this is a horror story, and is pretty dark. The people throughout the story are alcoholics, drug addicts, and seem almost hopeless in their meandering through life in this small town. The evil ghosts, the satanic ritual close to the beginning, the depression, almost had me put this one down. But several scenes in the story gave me a glimmer of hope for it, and I kept plowing through to the exciting and glorious end. Glad I kept at it.

While the story was good and the action was gripping, the stakes were very high and the scenery well-developed, I found the characters to be a bit two-dimensional, and the pace a bit slow. I found the second half to be gripping, and hard to put down. The pace was racing at the finish, and the action enthralling, but not enough to give this one more than Four Stars.

About the Author:
Deanne Devine is a native of southwestern Ohio, a region rich in the everyday peculiarities and ordinary oddness that make good food for an overactive imagination. Her short stories and poetry have appeared in several small press magazines, back in the day when such publications actually came from a small press, and the original editions of her novels Lost Hunters and Live Armadillos were published in trade paperback by The Lighthouse Press, Inc. Currently, she is working on the ebook version of Live Armadillos, as well as filling her desk drawers with screenplays and short stories.

Review: Not Alone by Gaelyn Whitley Keith

Not Alone
by Gaelyn Whitley Keith

Find a comfortable chair and spend a few hours with Joe-and if you're blessed in a magnificent way, you may encounter a world that can change your life forever. Have a good visit! Have any of you suffered an injustice, been overlooked, ignored, rejected? Has anyone been denied, repudiated, negated, humiliated, devastated, infuriated, frustrated, or transgressed upon? You're a good person. So why have people disrespected, slighted, wounded, snubbed, oppressed, held down, discriminated against, beaten down, distressed, tortured, haunted, bullied, teased, tormented or talked smack about you? Why? And when it was over, did you think... I don't deserve this! Why me? I'm a good person! If someone is going to get divorced, have a heart attack, be mugged or raped, blown up by a terrorist, lose a limb in an accident, be swindled, slandered, foreclosed on, or fired, don't you think it should happen to someone who deserves it? It should never happen to me! I'm a good person! Well, if any of this has happened to you, I just want you to know that Joseph Michael Moretti has found the answer! www.TruthWins.com

My Take:
Joe Moretti has it all - a beautiful wife, a thriving business, a lovely home on the beach, and five kids who are successfully launched into life. He has a strong faith in God and a stellar future.

But in the spiritual realm, Satan has maligned him and petitioned God to remove the hedge of protection around the life of Joe and his family, and when he loses it all, Joe will curse God to His face. So God gives Satan carte blanc to attack Joe and his family, but denies him freedom to take his life. Will Joe retain his faith, or turn his back on God?

Content:

Drug Content:

PG - There is some heavy drinking at a party or two. 

Violence:

R+ - There is a very bloody scene where demon-driven Satan worshippers do something horrific to multiple people. One is beheaded, there is torture mentioned. There is rape and murder in that scene. The aftermath scene is described somewhat but not in explicit detail.

Language:

PG-13 - There's a significant amount of cussing, from demons, and from Christians as well. The F-bomb is not dropped, that I recall.

Adult Content:

PG-13 - As mentioned above, there's rape, torture, and murder briefly described. The description is somewhat disjointed but still disturbing. Several scenes occur where married couples have sex, but the description doesn't get too graphic.

Christian content:

This is a retelling of the story of Job, with a few twists. It has a bit of scripture in it, and the characters struggle with their faith under tremendous pressure. The depiction of the spiritual world is given as much airtime as the physical realm, and the battles between the angels and demons are violent and compelling. The characters are Catholic and seek help from a priest. Some of his advice is sound. There's a substantial amount of content that points to Word of Faith teaching. Parts of this novel are very dark, and delve into questions of sanity, evil, God's sovereignty, Satan's purpose and power, and our power over our circumstances and his attacks.

Final analysis:

There are parts of this novel that could use a good edit, but the characters and their struggles are very real, the questions raised and stakes compelling. The battles in the spiritual realm and the minions that wage them were exciting but a bit confusing. For the most part, this book was a good look into the circumstances, psychology, and spiritual struggle contained in Job, and as such has merit and value. I found the pace a bit slow. The settings were realistic, the emotions raw; four stars

Review: Trial of Injustice by T.K. Ware

Trial of Injustice
by T.K. Ware

On a Thursday morning in Banker, Alabama the body of a twenty-one year-old woman was discovered murdered. After the police and forensics inspected, with the help of eyewitnesses and fingerprints, the man responsible for the heinous crime was identified as Pastor Thaddeus Ganvis.

Charles 'Esquire' Everson, a man gifted with determination and an avenger of truth, became the most prestigious and sought after lawyer in the state of Alabama, due to his unwavering litigation skills. After finishing another victorious case, he returned to his office. As the day continued, he found himself logging into Facebook, and nearly dropped his phone when he discovered that his former pastor was arrested for first-degree murder.

Without a second thought, he flew to Banker, Alabama to prove the innocence of a godly man. Along the way he discovers the opposition that threatens.

My Take:
Corruption runs deep in the small town of Banker, Alabama, and with millions of dollars at stake, the pastor of a small church is about to take the fall for adultery and murder.

Charles Everson takes a case to save his old pastor, Thaddeus Ganvis, who seems to have been framed for adultery and murder. The more he digs, however, the more threads unravel in the small town of Banker Alabama and its corrupt legal system and police force. Through veiled threats, vandalism, kidnapping and attempted murder, Charles continues to uncover the truth, but as he does, he begins to wonder just how innocent his client actually is.

Content:
Violence:
PG - This book has a lot of suspense, kidnapping, and vehicular attacks that hospitalize victims. Beatings, hatred, and thinly veiled racism run deep in this southern-fried legal thriller. But the violence is not gratuitous or graphic.

Language:
G - the language is pretty clean, almost squeaky clean.

Adult Content:
PG - The victim is a convicted prostitute, and there's some language to that effect concerning the pastor. The sheriff of the town has been involved in running prostitution rings in the city, or has plans to run one from the city. There is a little bit of interest between some of the main characters, but it's not pursued.

Drug Content:
PG - Drug running is mentioned, and is active in the small rural town. One character is given a bottle of crack, and her fingerprints on the bottle are used as a threat. One person is given pills that nearly destroy his mind. Alcohol and alcoholism are  mentioned, and some of the characters meet in a bar. Alcohol and drugs are portrayed in a negative light, and one character has recovered from alcoholism.

Christian content:
Quite a bit of it exists in the book. Scripture is quoted in several places, without being forced or seeming 'preachy'. Angels and demons make appearance, unseen and seen, in the book, and prayer is demonstrated as the vehicle for rescuing several people in trouble. The pastor exhibits faith, that wavers between very strong to weak and back. The gospel message is presented to one character. Others revile the faith. There is a lot of good vs. evil and faith vs. unbelief in the book.

Final analysis:
The southern city of Banker is depicted well, from an author who has lived in the south and knows its character. It's fading but racism exists in these small southern towns, on all sides of the racial lines. The main characters are pretty believable and the action is intense. The plot, setting, and characters are solid and it makes for a nice legal thriller with high stakes, enduring faith, and fast action. If the reader can look past the editing issues the story is an uplifting page turner. The main character would do well in a series of legal battle novels like this one. Four stars.


About the Author:


Tshombye Kentrell Ware was raised in Albany, Ga. In his earlier years, signs of the gift emerged through various arts. As the years progressed, so did his creativity, whereas he moved to the city of Macon, Ga. A few years later, following graduation of high school, everything changed when Christ entered his life. As if the lock to a rare treasure was opened, Kentrell launched forward in the spiral of inspiration, fueled by a burning passion of the gospel. This leading to the creation of a Christian CD entitled "L.O.C" The Love of Christ. As the door to inspiration continued to open, Kentrell became drawn toward writing; which led to his inspired creations.

T.K. Ware’s style of writing brings a fresh perspective of faith-based books, in which he calls, Suspense with Soul. His inspired writings weave together reality with the supernatural, in hope to plant a seed of the gospel.

www.tk-ware.com
www.insightfulcp.com
Facebook: TK Ware
LinkedIn: Tshombye Ware
Instagram & Twitter: @GospelWriter8

Review: Dark Destiny by Thomas Grave

Dark Destiny
by Thomas Grave

Great friends. A perfect girlfriend. Life is good for 17-year-old Sebastian until tragedy shatters his blissful existence, awakening a dark power inside him. Visions of a ghostly and broken world lead to a mysterious woman who tells him that he's the reincarnation of Death. With the title comes great power. Will he use it for good? Or, will he drown in the darkness of his own selfish purposes?

Sebastian Scott is just an average video-game loving seventeen year old living in a single-parent home with his police lieutenant mom. He has the perfect girlfriend, Sara, a great set of friends, and life is looking up his senior year. But when Sara hands him an ancient book she found in his attic, his life turns upside down.
That same night Sara is killed in a tornado that destroys her home, and not a natural one. One that destroys only her home, and leaves the neighboring homes untouched. Devastated, Sebastian descends into a fog of depression, one that somehow draws him back to the book she gave him.
Upon opening the ancient tome, Sebastian learns that he is a reincarnation of the Angel of Death, and has great power. Possibly even enough power to bring his dead girlfriend back.

Dark Destiny began with more flashbacks, plot twists and jump scares than a season of Lost, and the author kept me guessing about the true nature of the story up until the very end. The book was packed with anime-style overpowered battles between Sebastian and the Archangels, not to mention the Seals, shades, poltergeists, zombies, and the ghosts inhabiting Purgatory. The action in the book was gripping and I could see it making a decent anime.

That having been said, the flashbacks got me quite confused early on, and I found it a bit difficult to keep reading until I hit about chapter 3. After that point the action was constant, and I was pretty well hooked to the exciting showdown at the end. I'd recommend reading this, with that in mind.

Content:

Violence:
R - Wow, there was a lot. Ripping souls out of chests and eating them, destroying buildings and wiping out neighborhoods, a gang beating someone to death, a demon breaking into a peaceful home and killing everyone in it. Lots of anime-level violence between the angels and Death, and other lesser beings.

Language:
PG-13 - I don't recall seeing the F-bomb, but there was a scattering of other curse words, even by some of the angels.

Adult Content:
PG - several scenes involved kissing, and one of the bad characters is a girl who dresses very provocatively. There's some teen angst, and a girl is threatened in a bad neighborhood by some thugs who aren't interested in her money.

Christian content: (Catholic?)
Well, where do I begin here? From a Catholic standpoint, there's not as much to object to, so I'll hit this from that perspective. There are the basic archangels Michael, Gabriel, Raphael, but they dress in black and have badditudes. They obviously don't like humans and for the most part don't want to deal with them. At least at the beginning, this casts them in a negative light. Raphael is softer to the fallen humans than the others. But they sometimes drop a cuss word, which just struck me as out of character. Then, there's Purgatory, a shifted copy of our world but Zombified, and broken into rubble. Judging by the fights over there, I'm not surprised... For the most part the view of Purgatory lines up with what I know of it, a chance to process and get to heaven, or wait to end up in Hell.
The seven Seals from Revelation are depicted here as characters, rather than as wax seals, and they are more powerful than the archangels, it seems, though not more powerful than Michael. God does not intervene at all in the story, other than through the characters and events.

My biggest yellow flag I would drop here is the concept of Souls being destroyed or absorbed by those in Purgatory that want to advance in rank. That's obviously counter to Scripture, as each person gets to stand in judgement for an eternity somewhere, Heaven or Hell.
So I'll close this by saying it's a good read, but be aware of these deviations, it's not meant to be a devotional, just an entertaining read.

Final analysis:

I gotta admit, the idea of a Teen who discovers he's Death was intriguing, and kept me reading, though I had to plow through multiple flashbacks in order to get to the meat of the story. The content of the flashbacks was important but could have been (and was) touched on later in the story.
Sebastian was a Good guy turned Bad turned Good, and as he re-learned who he was and his powers, he had to make some tough decisions and learn from some rough mistakes. His character and those of the archangels were real and well-defined. Most of the supporting cast were... not so much. The principle antagonist also had dimension, but for the most part just seemed all bad.
The book was entertaining and reasonably well-written, with plenty of action and a few meaningful emotional scenes in the mix, with a touch of teen romance to spice things up a bit. Four Stars.

About the Author:
Thomas Grave stepped straight off his yacht in a crisp, pink Ralph Lauren polo, pressed khakis (no pleats), and a pair of Sperry Topsiders that gleamed in the bright sun. He'd paid $12 for that shine. Surveying the treeline, he slid the Ray Bans down his nose, leaving them just at the bridge. He said, "I'm going to write a book about Death today." After sliding the Ray Bans back up, he nodded once. He turned around, walked back up the ramp onto his luxury yacht, down the steps into his leather and mahogany study, and got to work.

Review: The Extraordinary Temptation by Patrick McCusker

The Extraordinary Temptation
by Patrick McCusker

While on a routine sewer line dig near a thousand-year-old monastery in Ireland, the crew unearth an unmarked cubic meter of white marble. Young archaeologist Ed Weaver, assigned to the dig, finds funding from a Texas billionaire, arranges for the marble cube to be broken and its contents stolen.

Ed's girlfriend Jennie is murdered in process of the theft, and he is bent on finding the murderer, retrieving the stolen contents, and bringing the perpetrators to justice. But how can you trace a stolen artifact when you don't even know what was stolen?

Bill Bronoski, the Texas billionaire, discovers that the stolen artifact is none other than the Crown of Thorns placed on the head of Jesus Christ. Attached to a thorn is a tiny piece of mummified flesh, and Bill uses a team of experts in his biotech labs to attempt to clone Christ.



My Take:
The idea behind this book is both riveting and revolting. From the perspective of a Christian, murder and theft pale in comparison to the heinous blasphemy of attempting to clone the Savior. The author reflected this in the extreme deliberation the antagonist went through before taking advantage of the singular opportunity his crime provided. The protagonist, Ed, uses his wits and training and his expert contacts to prove who was behind the murder of Jennie and theft of the artifact, even determining through evidence what was stolen. The pursuit by Ed and the struggles the biotech team have to accomplish the impossible make for a reasonable read. But, it didn't end there...

Content:

Drug Content:
PG-13 - There's a bit of drinking in this book, and several references to hallucinogens.

Violence:
R - The murder of Jennie is not very graphic, but there is a fatal automobile accident that is described in horrific detail. There is a description of a raider attack in a flashback that is quite graphic.

Language:
R - The Lord's name is taken in vain throughout the book, several characters seem to have difficulty communicating without it... The F-bomb is dropped a few times, and there is a scattering of other curse words here and there. The language was obviously intentional to depict the characters as they are.

Adult Content:
R - One of Ed's American friends spices up each contact with oblique and direct innuendos, sometimes even hinting at bestiality. There are multiple references to women as objects. I do not recall any actual sex scenes.

Christian content:
Sigh. From a Christian perspective, the book gives a clear and winning testimony of the deity of Christ, of His power and Godship. Of God's eternal power, omniscience and omnipotence. Evil spirits are very present and allowed to attack and harass the antagonist and the staff on his ranch.

On the other hand, it also depicts all other beliefs and paths as equally valid and saving, which does not agree with Christ's own claims to be the only Way (John 14:6) (John 15:5). While the book's request that the church return to simple origins and eschew opulence is valid, some of its points don't align with scripture.

Final analysis:

The first half of this book was an excellent and engaging read. I was riveted by the action and struggle of Ed to discover the truth, of the scientists in their attempts to do the impossible, even the terrorizing of the villain. The book could have been a five-star if it had ended when Ed retrieved the crown, or with Bill's punishment. Unfortunately, it didn't end there, and the second half of the book devolved into a second coming advented by the cloning, and a message to the global church by God to simplify and go back to its roots. This was almost a book in itself, when it could have been a few chapters, even though it spanned a few decades. I loved the first half of this book, and really wanted to like it as a whole, but just couldn't. Three Stars. (Really, three and a half, but I'm not given that option...)


About The Author:

Patrick McCusker is a published author, lecturer and nature conservationist.

My first book "Planet Dancing" is about conserving nature on large scale and was published by Open Gate Press, London in 2011.

My second book entitled "FEAR" is an American Medical thriller with a young Japanese-American doctor as the heroine. The story opens in China but then moves to the USA, Boston in particular. Something in a river that flows through Harbin, a city in NE China, is killing people: not just killing them but reducing them to dry husks.

My latest release, "The Extraordinary Temptation" is a science fiction medical thriller where a piece of mummified skin is discovered in a medieval monastic settlement in Ireland. A wealthy American attempts to clone a human from this flesh and unsettling things happen to all those who become involved in this work.

I have won a number of prizes for short stories and at the moment I am attempting to write a stage play. I expect it will be a complete disaster - but here's hoping!

When I was younger I lived in the USA and Canada. While in Canada I stayed for four months in a First Nation's village. I tasted real clam chowder on Vancouver Island and Florida introduced him to my first bowl of homily grits.

I now live in Wicklow, Ireland, with a lump of a cat that chases big rabbits without success. But she insists on prowling the one hectare garden that one day ...!

Contact me, or the cat to collaborate at: mccusker.patrick@gmail.com

Review: An Arrow in Flight by Jane Lebak

An Arrow in Flight
By Jane Lebak

Ever since Adam left the garden, Gabriel has known why humans sometimes act irrationally, and he helps them without hesitation whenever God gives him an assignment. All seven Archangels of the Presence do as much, sometimes even without orders — whether it's redirecting a lovesick princess, encouraging a terrified hero, or dealing with an amulet-wielding old man who's compelling an unlikely service from the angel least likely to give it. But after a brutal attack during one assignment, Gabriel starts getting touchy and harder to deal with. The other angels love him, but it's been going on for centuries, and he won't take redirection. Then God gives Gabriel an assignment that could result in the destruction of Jerusalem, and Gabriel makes the wrong decision. God forces Gabriel out of Heaven. He's got one year now to make things right between him and God, except he can't possibly do enough. He's isolated from the other angels and being propositioned by demons. Even worse, as Gabriel wanders the Earth trying to change others' lives for the better, it's becoming more and more obvious that the one thing he needs to change is the only one he never wanted to risk. An Arrow In Flight features each of the seven Archangels of the Presence in their own short stories, from Abraham to the fall of Nineveh, all leading up to a long-story crisis that requires each working in unison to help Gabriel when he doesn't seem to want their help at all.

An Arrow In Flight is a series of vignettes concerning the Seven Archangels and various missions they are sent on, beginning with the investigation and destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah. The interactions between the angels are believable and the characters well-developed. The interactions they have with humans are realistic and the instances recorded are usually reflecting biblical accounts. Halfway through the book, the vignettes drop and the second half of the book concerns Gabriel, who hesitated to destroy Jerusalem when ordered to by God, and therefore was sent out of God's Presence for a year. The remainder of the book chronicles his experiences when severed from connection with the Holy Father.

Gabriel's account is poignant and raw, believable; and sinners can identify with the shame and conflict he feels, attempting to reconcile himself to his state, the fear of ultimate destruction in the hands of an angry God, the sorrow of loss of fellowship with Him.

Satan as an antagonist is depicted in a believable manner. His character is three-dimensional if a bit shallow, with some of the flavor found in Paradise Lost, but with much less airtime. The main antagonist in this story seems to be Gabriel's flaws, which his character successfully works through in the course of the novel.

Perhaps it's my Protestant viewpoint, but I had some issues with Gabriel starting out female, though I concede the point that angels can appear to be any human in disguise form. Also, the timeline points, especially in the early chapters, could use some work, as the time lapse between the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah and the fall of Jericho is a bit longer than 400 years, considering the period Israel spent in Egypt is recorded as 400 years in Gen 15:13.

Content:

Violence:
The story opens up with a brutal attack of two angels by the men of Sodom, involving a near-rape and brutalization, and the shock this causes to the victim. There is a depiction of the destruction of Jerusalem and a battle between a Babylonian soldier and Michael the Archangel.

Language:
Very clean.

Adult Content:
PG. As mentioned above, there is a near-rape scene. There is a chapter involving a woman whose husbands never make it to the marriage bed because of a demon's infatuation with her.

Christian content:
This book is clearly Christian in nature, Catholic in denomination. Some of the book pulls from the Book of Tobit, one of the apocryphal books included in the Catholic bible and omitted from the Protestant canon. The handling of salvation by grace, the plight of the sinner, the idolatry of the people and its consequences, and the holiness of God, are fully explored and crystal clear.

Final analysis:

I found it uplifting and poignant, reading a story from the perspective of angels trying to keep humans on the path to heaven, while battling demonic forces. While I had a few qualms from the outset concerning the timeline and treatment of Gabriel as 'half-fallen', I was pleasantly surprised by the content. Five Stars.

About the Author:

Jane Lebak talks to angels, cats, and her kids. Only the angels listen to her, but the kids talk back. She lives in the Swamp, writing books and knitting socks, with the occasional foray into violin-playing. You'll also find her blogging at QueryTracker.net, a resource for writers seeking agents and small publishers.