By D. M. Lichterman
"Green Gauntlet" continues the saga of Christian freelance journalist Don Lamplighter as he faces off against a Satanic cult bent on global domination. This time all Lamplighter wants to do is enjoy the week before Christmas with his wife until a robbery, riot and mass shooting get in the way. What will Lamplighter need to do to put the pieces together in time to have a Merry Christmas for his family and the towns in which he works?Don Lamplighter is a lovable Christian freelance journalist who works part time at the Walmart in the Seasonal section, and part time as a bell-ringer for the Salvation Army. He is a large bear of a man, who walks with a cane and is driven everywhere by his doting wife and others in his life.
In this book, he runs up against his old archenemy Absalom, the leader of a local Satanic cult, and a new enemy named Jacob Glass, a diminutive meth addict who is supporting his habit by robbing the Salvation Army buckets around town. He tags Lamplighter as his own personal enemy and vows to take him out, creating a pair of vicious green work gloves with tacks glued across them to take out his nemesis.
This was my first foray into the Lamplighter series. I found Don Lamplighter to be a very likable, positive influence on the communities he frequents. The way he calmly handled the robbery at the beginning of the story drew me in, but his daily activities didn't keep me going. The story dragged for me until I got to the boring town meeting, which was suddenly interrupted by a tragic mass murder.
From that moment on, I was invested in the story to the exciting conclusion.
Content:
Violence:
Quite a bit, actually. Some of it a bit graphic, especially when the mass murder occurs and a scene or two when Glass attacks kindly Salvation Army bellringers with his evil gloves. None of it is gratuitous, though.
Language:
The meth addict drops a couple expletives in the course of the work, but I would label the language as mild.
Sexual Content:
There are several parties thrown by Absalom and his cohorts which involve prostitutes. However, there is no actual sexual content in the novel. One of Absalom's top people is a Madame, and she mentions having some designs on Lamplighter.
Spiritual Content:
Every morning and evening, Don and Gloria, his wife, have a devotional. Key verses in the readings are applied to Don's harrowing scrapes. Don spends much of his time singing Christmas carols and wishing everyone around him a Merry Christmas. It's obvious he's trying desperately to spread the love of Christ and stay in the spirit of the season. However, the burdens of the mass slaying, the robberies, the riots, and the plot to fleece and take over the world wear down on him, and he becomes greatly discouraged. His wife and others around him encourage him. People in this book have to deal with death, crime, and senseless violence. It is unclear whether good prevails, though for the most part the bad guys 'get theirs'.
Bottom Line:
Mass murder, muggings, robberies, large-scale riots, and elaborate setups abound in this adventure, with several plot twists to keep you guessing. Lamplighter and Absalom were pretty well developed characters, although Glass was sidelined to more comedy relief, even though the title indicated he would be the main villain. Because of some pacing issues I had to give this a lower score than I would have liked. I found the story intriguing, the characters believable, and some of the situations humorous. Three stars.
*I received an electronic copy of this novel for an honest review.
About the Author:
Dean M. Lichterman is the author of the Don Lamplighter series, a pre-apocalyptic thriller series starring lovable Don Lichterman, a freelance journalist reporting on and fighting crime in an era poised on the brink of Revelation.
No comments:
Post a Comment