Category Archives: Breaking News
Prepare for the Arrival of the 12th Demon!
A mysterious assassin from Jonathan Steel’s past surfaces at the worst time possible in the aftermath of the events of “The 13th Demon: Altar of the Spiral Eye”.
Josh Knight decides to emulate his new role model, Jonathan Steel, and save his girlfriend from a vampire clan.
Vivian D’Arbonne claims to have been married to the late Robert Ketrick and tries to take over his company and move up the corporate ladder of evil and assume the area once ruled over by the 13th demon.
Rudolph Wulf, the 12th demon, thwarts her plans and has other tasks for Vivian. Soon, he will assemble a vast army of vampires to carry out his arcane plans and he needs a sacrifice to fulfill his dreams.
Who will it be? What will happen to Josh Knight? Who is Raven and what does she know about Jonathan Steel’s past?
Racing against the clock as a celestial alignment of evil takes place, Steel finds himself caught between his desire to know more about his past and saving the life of those he cares about.
On October 16, 2012 you will discover “There is Power in the Blood!” with the release of “The 12th Demon: Mark of the Wolf Dragon”. And today, I am unveiling for the first time the cover of “The 12th Demon: Mark of the Wolf Dragon”.
Summer Reading Reviews Just for You!
And now, a plethora of book reviews and book review recaps. At the top of this list are some short reviews of some of my favorite books. So, for your summer reading pleasure, here are some books to pack up when going to the lake, to the beach, or to curl up with in a hammock on the back porch. At the bottom of this list are some of my favorite books and links to my lengthy reviews. Check them all out!
The Freethinker’s Child by Sean Phillips
Be warned. Sean tackles some sacred cow (which sometimes makes holy hamburger) in this chilling, fast paced novel about a small town dominated by a powerful individual who claims to be a Christian but is more than he seems. This is the key. He CLAIMS to be a Christian but something nefarious is going on and David Louther arrives in Carlsville and begins to unravel this growing mystery. It all leads to a climax of good versus evil and to give you too many details is to spoil the story.
What the reader needs to know is that Sean tackles the “once saved, always saved” paradigm among some Christians and exposes what very well can account for rampant “hypocrisy” among Christians. Let’s face it. One of the most powerful accusations leveled against Christians is our hypocrisy. Sean asks the question, “If you are saved, then why isn’t your life any different?” Do we play the “get of out hell for free” card to cover a multitude of sins and a life that is detached from Christ? It is an interesting question and provides the foundation for a very interesting and gripping story.
The book will definitely challenge your beliefs on this issue no matter which side you come down on and it will leave you thinking. If there is any minor criticism it is the occasional slowing down as Sean tackles some theological and apologetic issues but, frankly, you need those breaks to catch your breath!
Demon: A Memoir by Tosca Lee
This book has been out for a while and was Tosca Lee’s debut novel. And, what a powerful debut it was! I read this book and could not put it down. The story is about Clay, a book editor recently divorced and struggling with his job. He is invited to a series of personal interviews with a demon named Lucian. Lucian appears in each interview in a different body and personality and this is part of the delight of the story. Clay finds himself increasingly obsessed with the demon’s story. The story begins with God and the rebellion of Lucifer and ends in the present times.
Tosca Lee admitted in an online interview that she loves dance. You can tell when you immerse yourself in her lyrical, moving and hauntingly beautiful prose. Her description of the creation of the universe and the fall of the rebellious angels is one of the most incredible passages of prose I have ever read. Moving and filled with powerful imagery, I found myself reading it over and over again just to allow the images to bathe my mind with their beauty and the horror of eternal loss.
The story does not disappoint as the Clay’s life begins to fall apart thanks to his obsession with the demon. The ending is disturbingly haunting and will leave you breathless for days. Don’t miss this incredible debut novel.
When the Day of Evil Comes by Melanie Wells
I’ve been to Barton Springs in Austin and the water is COLD. It comes right up out of the ground and is somewhere in the 60s. In her debut novel. When the Day of Evil Comes, Melanie Wells starts out with a college psychology professor, Dylan Foster, meeting her friends at Barton Springs. But, she is not prepared to meet the strange, pale man with the scars on his back who stares at her relentlessly from the cold waters. Soon, the man is appearing with regularity in her life and she finds herself haunted by his presence and inexplicable spiritual events. She receives two strange gifts, one of which was buried with her mother!
A student comes to her for counseling and she is soon accused of inappropriate behavior with the student. Her career begins to crumble and her life begins to fall apart as she is falsely accused by the boy’s parents. She follows the student back to his home town in the northern section of the United States only to discover something horrible has happened to him. Throughout, the pale man calling himself Peter Terry relentless follows her and shows up abruptly over and over again. Something about the secrets in the boy’s family’s life is tied in with this demonic presence and his desire to destroy her.
The tension mounts as her life falls apart and her career and future are in jeopardy. Melanie Wells builds a slow, creeping state of tension and terror to a satisfying climax as Dylan faces off against the pale man “when the day of evil comes.”
Enoch by Alton Gansky
A strange man wanders onto a desert highway and is picked up an elderly couple. He is taken to a local small town where his behavior is very “old school”. He doesn’t seem to understand modern technology and is very simple in his ideas and interactions.
At the same time, strange messages begin appearing in the most odd places: at the end of an action movie; in the middle of an “I Love Lucy” episode; over the radio during a traffic jam. Where do these messages come from? Why are they seen and heard throughout the country? And, who is this strange man who seems to exude goodness and innocence in a world that is going to hell in a handbasket?
Pick up this exciting and intriguing book by Alton Gansky and find out if the real Enoch who “walked with God and didn’t die” has returned. He has a message to deliver and you don’t want to miss it!
Konig’s Fire by Marc Schooley
Do NOT read this book in the dark. Marc’s novel won the top prize for the best speculative fiction novel of 2011 and it is easy to see why. This story is one of the most unusual stories I have ever come across in “Christian” fiction. It is dark. It is disturbing. It is filled with horrific creatures. And it is MERSMERIZING! I could not put this book down as disturbing as it was. Because, it is powerfully redemptive.
Marc Schooley takes us deep into a cave in the mountains of Eastern Europe at the start of World War II and tosses us into a mix of Nazi scientists, demonic forest creatures, and the world’s hottest oven. The main character, Sascha Konig is charged with developing the perfect oven for destroying anything placed within. The reader knows where this development is headed for the reader has the perspective of history. But, Konig has no idea of the purpose of the oven. As the creeping horrors of the primeval forest relentlessly attack the occupants of the cave, sealing them, Konig develops a hotter and hotter fire in the oven. When he discovers the fires true purpose, he must make a decision.
And, here is where the novel triumphs in its embrace of redemption. What does it profit a man if he gains the whole world but loses his soul? Konig and his two colleagues must decide between following the edicts of their Nazi commandant or following their conscience and doing what is right. To counter the commandant is to end up in the fire.
Filled with unforgettable imagery and a growing sense of anxiety and urgency, this novel deserves the accolades and awards it garnered. Marc Schooley has done a masterful job of putting the reader right in the middle of a moral dilemma that challenges our every precept of human decency, “turning the other cheek”, and our need to merely survive. You will not soon forget your visit to Konig’s Fire!
The Restorer by Sharon Hinck
Susan Mitchell is an ordinary mother who wishes to find a little peace in her life. Her husband has set up an area in the attic as her “retreat”. Unfortunately, when she decides it is time to relax, she finds herself pulled through a “portal” into another world. In the world of Lyric, Susan discovers she is fated to become a guardian, a “restorer” and she must learn how to survive in this strange world. She is trained in the use of weapons and a sword and never really grows accustomed to her new role. But, the people of this land look up to her for triumph over a growing and deceptive evil.
Sharon Hinck has written a richly detailed story about a land filled with good and evil; loyalty and betrayal; politics and deception. Her prose sings with details that fill your senses with joy. And, her characters are complex and compelling. To give away any more details is to spoil the joy of exploring this rich world. Join Susan as she finds her destiny as the Restorer!
Night of the Living Dead Christian by Matt Mikalatos
The Strange Man by Greg Mitchell
http://www.613media.com/journal/2011/4/17/the-strange-man-by-greg-mitchell-a-book-review-day-1.html
Enemies of the Cross by Greg Mitchell
https://brucehennigan.com/2012/03/18/enemies-of-the-cross-will-take-your-breath-away/
The Resurrection by Mike Duran
http://www.613media.com/journal/2011/3/20/the-resurrection-by-mike-duran-a-book-review-day-1.html
The God Hater by Bill Myers
http://www.613media.com/journal/2011/2/20/the-god-hater-by-bill-myers-a-book-review-part-1.html
Beckon by Tom Pawlik
https://brucehennigan.com/2012/05/21/beckon-by-tom-pawlik-book-review-day-one/
Frantic by Mike Dellosso
https://brucehennigan.com/2012/04/30/frantic-a-book-review/
The Realms Thereunder by Ross Lawhead
https://brucehennigan.com/2012/02/19/the-realms-thereunder-by-ross-lawhead-a-book-review/
Corus, the Champion by D. Barkley Briggs
https://brucehennigan.com/2011/12/04/a-book-review-day-1-corus-the-champion-by-d-barkley-briggs/
Oh, and don’t forget to add MY book to your list: The 13th Demon: Altar of the Spiral Eye.
WAITING!!???!!!
I hate waiting.
My father, who will turn 98 tomorrow, was in the ER twice in the past week. Both times, he was in congestive heart failure which means his lungs were full of fluid. I had been in the same ER the week before that with a possible heart attack (all was normal). But, I was getting tired of sitting around and WAITING for something to happen. Turns out my father had eaten two cans of potted meat and each can had 890 milligrams of sodium. His daily limit is 100! All that salt had thrown him in fluid overload.
I had a trip planned last week with my daughter and two sisters to Disney World in Orlando to experience Star Wars Weekends. Both of my sisters decided to stay in town and take care of my father. I had promised my daughter a trip so just the two of us went.
I am a veteran of Disney World and when I tell you that the parks were more crowded than I had ever seen them, that is saying a lot! Rides that no one would get on that usually had no line were upwards of 20 to 30 minutes wait time! I was WAITING again!
To make matters worse, it was raining when we landed on Tuesday evening and it rained continuously until Sunday morning. The last morning in Animal Kingdom was hot and sunny and we only had two hours! But, the real WAIT for me was WAITING for yesterday to arrive.
My daughter, Casey, is now 25 and she has suffered from epilepsy since age 8. Our last neurologist in our home town basically “fired” us and refused to take care of Casey anymore because he was getting out of the business of treating epilepsy. Problem is, in this town with four universities, a nursing school, and a medical school there were NO other neurologists treating adult epilepsy! I could not believe it. It took us four months to find someone and the closest neurologist was in New Orleans, a five hour drive away. So, Casey had an appointment with this new neurologist yesterday. My wife had to stay at home with her mother (who lives with us) so she didn’t get to experience all the magical WAITING in Disney World in a drenching deluge. She drove down to New Orleans Sunday evening and I had to drop my daughter off at a different airport to catch a nonstop flight to New Orleans from Orlando. My flight back to Shreveport was at a different airport.
Watching my daughter, even at the age of 25, walk away from the car into the huge Orlando International Airport alone was one of the hardest things I had to do. Knowing she faced a new doctor the next day and a possible barrage of tests didn’t make it any easier. I was a basket case. I was WAITING again to make sure her flight made it; WAITING again to hear from my wife that she had picked Casey up at the airport. Let’s face it. In today’s world a single young woman traveling alone is ALWAYS at risk!
I arrived at home Sunday evening and my wife’s sister had returned from her vacation to come and stay at our house to take care of her mother. My wife called me later than I wanted her to and told me all was well. But, Casey had a major breakdown once she picked her up at the airport and the two of them spent an hour crying. They were WAITING as well for the next day.
Let me make it plainer. My daughter’s life is rough. She has these “auras” off and on during the day where her mouth will suddenly stop working and she can’t say what is in her brain. Sometimes this lasts for a minute; sometimes for 30 minutes. She has these flashes of light and feelings of “electricity” running through her brain. She has always suffered from the social stigma of being someone with “seizures” and her time in high school was mostly horrific. She worked her tail off just to graduate and every time she gets a break, it seems someone comes along and kicks her in the gut. But, she is a trooper and one of the strongest people I know. I just want my daughter to have a chance at a normal life. Is that too much to ask? It seems my entire family is WAITING.
My wife tells me over the phone that she had a breakthrough this past week. She was worrying and fretting over Casey and the new doctor. She and I had made the realization together that we had done everything possible a parent could do to help our child. Her breakthrough was in realizing that Casey is God’s child, too. And, that God is in control and loves her more than we can ever love her. When she made that breakthrough, she found peace. I was bitter. I had not had this kind of breakthrough. I was still mad and upset and, frankly, WAITING for God to do SOMETHING to help Casey! I did not have peace.
At that moment, another call came in and it was my co-author and one of my best friends in the world, Mark Sutton. Mark was our former pastor and is now retired in Orlando working with Haitians. I had seen him and his wife Donna just the Friday night before while in Orlando. I took his call and told my wife I’d call her right back. What did Mark have to say? Turns out our agent has some inside line to a possible “sequel” book to our “Conquering Depression”. Mark wanted to talk to me briefly about some work we needed to do on the concept because he was going out of the country the next day for his anniversary. I told him I was “discomboobilated” about the whole thing because I couldn’t think past the next day.
Guess what he told me? “Bruce, you need to stop worrying about this new book idea. God is in control. He knows what we need to do and I know you hate WAITING, but God will work it all out. He is in control!”
I almost started crying. Here, in less than two minutes, God had told me twice what I needed to hear. I am NOT in control. That is why I am always WAITING. God is in control and I needed to give up my anxiety to God and let him give me peace. Okay God, I get it!
Fast forward to Monday and a very hectic day back at work and once again WAITING to hear from my wife. She gives me a call at 3 PM that afternoon. And, she drops me a bombshell. This new neurologist is not 100% certain, but he believes that Casey doesn’t have epilepsy but has been suffering from migraines! I couldn’t believe my ears! Migraines? Really? We’ve been treating my daughter for years for epilepsy and all the time she has had migraines? In fact, her medicine for seizures can cause migraines!!!!
So, today, I am once again WAITING for the neurologist to call me and to look at all of Casey’s EEGs. But, this man is more knowledgeable than any doctor she has seen. He specializes in adult epilepsy. I am hoping and praying he is right. Because if he is, then Casey can get off of her epilepsy medicine and have a normal life. We can all stop WAITING.
Today, I am pausing to thank God. He is in control. Man has failed time and time again especially with regard to my daughter. The circumstances that led us to this doctor are phenomenal and clearly impossible without the intervening hand of God. It took years, but we may finally have an answer and an answered prayer.
WAITING? Join the club and remember my favorite verse in all the world:
But they that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint. Isaiah 40:31
Swinging on a Star
A tribute to Ray Bradbury
SWINGIN’ ON A STAR
by Bruce Hennigan
The wind whispered secrets down the cold, dark alleyway and Tasha listened. The secrets came from the lips of angels.
“Listen, Suzie, cain’t you hear the angels talking?” Tasha whispered.
Suzie pulled her little sister closer to her. “Ain’t no angels, Tash. Ain’t no angels anywhere in this world. Only devils. We got to get out of here.”
Tasha wiped her runny nose and glanced back down the alleyway. Mist swirled around the trash containers and pulsed with the red and green of exit signs. “But, they gonna tell us how to get home. We lost, ain’t we?”
Suzie stopped at the opening to the city street and her eyes were drawn to the huddled figures moving monotonously down the neon splashed sidewalks. Grizzled faces with tinted eyes bore down on them. “If we can just find the subway, we be all right.”
The tinkle of metal and glass echoed from behind them. Tasha hugged her older sister’s leg. “The angels done gone, Suzie. They ain’t behind us no more. I’m scared.”
Suzie glanced over her shoulder at the menacing maw of the alleyway. Its dim eyes glowed in the mist and its jaws paused to close. She stepped out onto the open street into the arms of perdition.
The man jostled them and his smell encircled them in warm, redolent odor. His toothless grin shown through a cloud of gagging mist. Suzie pulled away from him with her hand gripped on Tasha’s. They ran. They bumped down the street from body to body, bouncing against the grim reminders of humanity caught between divinity and condemnation.
Suzie pulled them into an alcove. A dirty glass window was behind them plastered with obscenities.
“What we gonna do, Suzie?” Tasha sniffled.
“We ain’t going back, that’s for sure. Toby gonna sell us for drugs.”
“I miss Momma.”
Suzie pulled the tiny face against her stained overcoat. “Me, too, Tash. Momma up with the angels.”
Tasha’s face lit up. “If we listen to the angels, maybe Momma can tell us where to go.”
Suzie frowned. “Maybe so, Tash. But, we ain’t going back to Toby. We don’t even know if he our daddy.”
Tasha pulled her knit cap up to expose her ears and glanced skyward. “Maybe we ain’t listenin’ hard enough.”
Suzie’s eyes drifted upward, above the misted detritus of humanity shuffling down the street, above the crumbling bricks and mortar of a dream gone bad to the clear, star filled night. The space station arced in perfect serenity. She remembered the dead dreams of a tiny, idealistic girl, eyes drawn to the possibilities of worlds virgin with pristine future. Dreams that had died in a crack haze of insanity and evil.
“I think those angels done got tired of listening to us humans. We done worn out our welcome.”
“Tasha! Suzie!” A hoarse voice echoed down the street.
Suzie’s heart raced and she pulled Tasha to her. “Toby!”
They pulled back into the darkness of the alcove. Her feet were paralyzed with fear and suddenly the promising stars were eclipsed by chipped paint, crumbling brick, and misty haze. A hulking figure shadowed the sidewalk and Toby stepped out of the mist. His yellow eyes glowed with drug fever as he scanned the streets until they fell on the girls.
“There you heathens are. Why you run away from Toby?” He leaned forward and his rancid breath filled the alcove. “I got some candy for you.” His hands were behind his back.
Tasha looked up at Suzie. “We don’t want none of your candy.”
“Leave us alone, Toby. We don’t need you no more.”
Toby’s grin faded to a leer of insane resolution. “Then you won’t be needing this candy.” His hands came out and Suzie saw the glint of light on metal. A gun and a pair of handcuffs. “Now let’s put on these bracelets, little girls. I got some friends want to meet you.”
Light cracked somewhere inside Suzie’s mind; star light, hope light, angel light and through the cloying mist she watched a star move across the cityscape, promising hope and redemption. She kicked out viciously and drove into her foot all the anger and desperation of a world that had lost its promise, lost its heart. Toby collapsed in sudden pain and writhed on the ground. Suzie jerked Tasha behind her and they ran over Toby’s writhing body out into the mist.
“We got to run, Tash. We got to run and never stop.”
Tasha clambered after her as her eyes misted with tears. “But I can’t hear the angels, Suzie. We gotta stop and listen.”
“We ain’t stopping, Tash. We ain’t never gonna stop.”
Figures began to materialize out of the mist, down the street, across the street. Somewhere behind them, Toby’s angry cursing bounced from brick walls. Tash stumbled and Suzie lost her. The tiny girl disappeared into the mist. She slid to a stop and ran back along a chain link fence. No Tasha. Toby was coming. A gap in the chain link fence appeared from the mist. A tiny shred of fabric from Tasha’s coat was caught on the rusted metal. Suzie squeezed through the gap and pulled it back together. Furiously she knitted the rusted, twisted metal edges together. She backed away into the mist and prayed that Tasha was somewhere within the fence. Toby’s hulking figure rocketed by them, mist swirling behind him. She held her breath. Toby didn’t come back.
Suzie stood suspended in the low lying haze with her breath coming quickly and her heart racing. She calmed and paused to listen. To listen for an angel. A creaking sounded somewhere behind her. She stepped out of the mist into a clearing. A playground surrounded her. It was long abandoned filled with rusted metal frameworks like skeletons of dead beasts, dead hopes.
“Tasha.” She whispered loudly. The creaking continued. Tasha sat in an old swing with her head bobbing down and then up. “Tasha, what are you doing?”
Tasha turned her face and her eyes bright with hope. “The angels, Suzie. They told me to reach up.” The words waxed and waned as Tasha swung up and back. “See that star. See it way up there.”
Suzie squinted in the darkness and spied a bright, pulsing star halfway up the horizon hovering above the misty horror of this world. “They say if I can touch it with my foot, if I can swing high enough, I can go there. Momma’s there. She’s an angel and she’s helping them learn about God and goodness and all. They want us to go there, too.”
Suzie moaned in sorrow and collapsed on the ground. Tasha moved higher and higher. “Tasha, that ain’t gonna happen. Momma ain’t no angel. She ain’t on no planet in the sky. She dead. And, so are we. We can’t go on running.”
Tasha seemed not to hear, stretching her foot farther out on each upward swing. “I almost got it, Suzie. I almost touched it. Come on, you gotta go, too. Momma’s waiting. All you gotta do is try. Don’t give up hope now.”
Suzie felt the tears begin and the dam broke on months of hidden sorrow. Her heart fell as the cadence of the creaking swing increased. “There ain’t no hope, no more, Tash. There ain’t no angels.”
Light gushed around her, brighter than noonday sun, burning away the mist in a sudden gulp of warm air. A giggle echoed in the air and darkness returned. The swing tumbled down and was empty and stilled.
Suzie rushed to the empty swing. “Tash? Tash?” Her eyes darted around the playground. It was empty and barren. She blinked away the burning aftermath of light as her heart raced.
“No! Don’t leave me, too. Tasha, don’t leave me!” Tears clouded her vision. Behind her, out in the desperate street she heard metal screech. Toby had found her. She glanced up at the star pulsing with hope and promise in the night; the star holding out the welcoming hand of a future and a hope. She climbed into the swing.
Wreckage
Each weekend, I will post a short, short piece. This weekend comes courtesy of storypraxis.com and today’s prompt for writing “wreckage”.
Wreckage
“No life signs, sir.” I waved my sensor screen at my Captain.
“In this wreckage I hope not.” Captain Scarn motioned for the salvage team to move into the broken walls and shattered stained glass. “If you find anyone alive, I want to know.”
The salvage team consisted of five soldiers in gray and black hazard gear. As they moved into the collapsed building, I watched their beams swing back and forth in the darkness. Here and there, the beams played over the broken faces of icons, statues, and gargoyles.
“What do you think, Beal?” Scarn asked as he checked his blaster.
I studied my screen carefully. Five points of red moved across the 3D readout as the salvage team dispersed throughout the structure. “What do I think about what, sir?”
“About our mission.” Captain Scarn glared at me and even through his partially opaque helmet I could see the fury in his eyes.
“Sir, I’m just a soldier. I do what I am told.” I averted my gaze. That glare made me uncomfortable. Scarn was ruthless.
“Soldiers can think, Beal. You have my permission to speak. After all, you’re more than just a grunt. You’re a healer.”
The salvage team was nearing the far side of the large chamber before us. My heart began to race. I swallowed and was glad Scarn couldn’t see the sweat trickling down my face. “As a healer, I can never condone the taking of a human life. My job is to heal. My oath is to ‘do no harm’.”
Scarn’s laughter rattled over the speakers in my helmet. “Do no harm? Isn’t that what the occupants of this building were supposed to believe? Turn the other cheek. Love thy enemy. Do no repay evil with evil.”
I glanced at him. “I didn’t realize you knew scripture.”
Scarn leaned toward me and his face twisted in hatred. “I KNOW my enemy, Beal. I don’t love them. I destroy them. Intolerance will not be tolerated!”
I nodded and watched as the five red spots simultaneously disappeared from my sensor screen. I angled it away so Scarn would not see it. Now, it was my turn. “Sir, why do we kill these people?”
Scarn snorted. “They’ve killed millions over the centuries. They and their ilk. Doesn’t matter what their theology. Doesn’t matter who their god is. All religion leads to destruction. Fanaticism must be extinguished.”
I gazed over the debris of Notre Dame Cathedral. This had been my home. This had been my abode for a thousand years. This had been my purpose. And, now it lay broken and ruined beneath the Captain’s artillery. All destroyed in the name of Intolerance. Green pinpoints of light appeared at the edge of the screen and Scarn jerked his helmet in my direction.
“What is that?”
“There are over a dozen, sir. And, they are moving this way.”
“Those are not our men.”
I turned toward him and let the skin slide away from my face; felt the bones and muscles shift into stone and mortar and brick and vengeance. My snout and horns burst through my helmet and it fell away in pieces. I tossed the motion grid aside and my claws tore through the gloves. Scarn fumbled for his blaster and I swiped it away with one quick motion.
“We are the protectors, Scarn. We are the reason they can turn the other cheek. Because we don’t have to.” I slammed my clawed hand through his helmet and crushed his skull in one fluid movement. My brother gargoyles appeared behind me.
Scarn’s body collapsed onto the broken stones of Notre Dame Cathedral and a bit of prismed moonlight glimmered through the remnants of the stained glass to paint his broken face in reds and blues.
“Sorry. We couldn’t tolerate you anymore.”
The Inquisitor — A very tense thriller!
Torture does not a good story make.
After my ordeal in the hospital, I feel like I’ve had a taste of torture. I was confined to hospital bed with needles and lines all around me. I was poked, prodded, squeezed, deprived of food and sleep for twenty four hours. I must confess, I would have sold out pretty easily if someone had questioned me.
But, after reading “The Inquisitor” I am glad that Geiger was NOT one of my doctors.
“The Inquisitor” has created a lot of buzz on the book review circuit. It even got a good review on fictionaddict.com so I decided to give it a read. It is Mark Allen Smith’s debut novel and I must admit, I had a hard time putting it down after starting the book. I was even reading it while strapped into my hospital bed waiting for my heart catheterization.
First, let me state that this book is NOT a Christian fiction book. It has plenty of questionable language and violence. However, it is a redemptive story with an interesting plot development with multiple characters.
So, here are the characters:
Harry is a once homeless man down on his luck who made a living by being very good at research. One day while being beaten up in Central Park, a strange man comes by and rescues him. He later starts to work with Geiger in the IR (see below). Harry has a schizophrenic, quite insane sister, Lilly.
Dr. Corley is a psychiatrist suffering from extreme loneliness after his wife of many years has left him. He is intrigued by his very strange and enigmatic client, Geiger. Geiger came to him to help with understanding a series of strange dreams. But, Geiger will ONLY talk about his dreams, not his life.
Carmine is a mobster type who needed information one day and Geiger offered to help. Geiger was so effective at IR (Information Retrieval) that he became one of Carmine’s main clients and now gets referrals from Carmine on a regular basis.
Cat is Geiger’s one eyed cat.
Geiger is the central fascinating character of this story. He is known as “the Inquisitor” for his uncanny ability to retrieve information through a modified form of torture. His technique is simple and normally does not involve physical pain. In fact, Geiger is torture. He has the most bizarre personality of any character I have read lately.
He has no memory of his childhood and has become a self made man in the field of IR. He lives in a strange house with no windows and a four by four foot closet in which he routinely assumes the fetal position while recovering from his frequent crippling migraines.
His appreciation of the real world and regular life is limited. He is isolated and very eclectic. The story begins with a session of IR for Geiger and we quickly see and appreciate his unusual form of “torture”. There is only one other alternative for his clients, a man who uses much more extreme forms of physical torture from which the victims do not recover. Geiger has more “finesse”.
The opening section of the book is fascinating as we meet Geiger and see him from the different points of view of those who work with him. And, we see him from the point of view of two “clients”. The story takes its exciting turn when Geiger is asked to retrieve information from a man and the client shows up with a box containing the man’s 12 year old son. For reasons that eventually become apparent are absolutely essential to understanding Geiger’s backstory, Geiger takes the boy and goes on the run. His clients turn against him. He becomes a fugitive as he tries to protect the kid.
There are wonderful scenes with this 12 year old and Geiger in his home. Culture clash is inevitable and the chemistry between the two is well written. The story moves on with quick action and, of course, Geiger ends up the focus of IR and, of course, the torturer is his rival.
The story does move to a satisfying, if not strange conclusion and the reader is left to wonder if Geiger will continue to succeed in IR or has his life changed forever by his encounter with this young boy.
The story is gripping. The action is unrelenting. The characters are very well developed and the chemistry between Geiger and the boy are well written, believable scenes. This is a good debut novel and I highly recommend it to anyone interested in action or thriller type stories. Just remember the language my be offensive to some readers and the torture scenes are very tense, if not overtly gory.
The author’s website is: http://markallensmith.com/
All Hearts Eventually Stop!
Mortality versus morbidity.
Strange words unless you are in the health care field.
Morbidity is the bad things that happen during a disease.
Mortality is death, pure and simple.
Some diseases have high morbidity but low mortality. They have really bad symptoms but you can get over them. Some diseases have low morbidity and high mortality because you die so quickly, you don’t suffer.
A month ago my nephew, Ronald Ennis, M.D. died suddenly at the age of 48. He was a pathologist in Dennison, Texas and was well respected and well loved by his friends and family. Ronald is one of those rare success stories of children who have a difficult childhood but rise above it to excel. Ronald was one of the kindest people I have ever known. Even though he lived hours away in Dennison, Texas every Christmas he would come to see my mother and daddy and bring them a fruit basket. He loved my mother and father.
I’m not sure what happened to Ronald. His father’s family history is rife with early deaths in the fifties of his uncles from heart disease. And, his father has had heart disease. So, it seems he took a shower and was getting ready for work and just dropped dead. His wife and daughter found him. This is never a good thing for any wife or child to remember. But, I will recall and remember Ronald fondly as one of the nicest, most motivated, hardest working people I ever knew.
That is why this past Tuesday while walking in the heat I felt the call of mortality. No morbidity, just mortality. I started having chest pains during my walk and they were not getting any easier. I’ve never had such pains and I stopped to ask a yard man if I could use his cell phone. Within 45 minutes, I was in the ER with a dozen or so health care personnel swarming over me. I knew I had already beaten the odds. Most massive heart attacks never survive the first thirty minutes. My chest pain was getting better on its own before I ever got the first shot of morphine. But, quite a bit of thinking occurred during those hours.
Have I really done for God what I should do? For, I believe with all my heart and mind and soul that only work done for God that has eternal consequences and that touches people is worth your time and effort. All else will fade.
Do my friends and family know I love them? I’ll never forget taking my kids to Sears when they were preteens and having the check out lady ask them if I had told them “I love you” today. I was proud when both of them said yes. For, that is something I say to my kids every time we talk. “I love you” can be the hardest words to utter and yet the most powerful.
What will be my legacy? We all wonder if we will be remembered. I was in the middle of finishing up a major rewrite on my fourth book. I left the manuscript open and unsaved when I went for a walk. What would happen if I did not return to finish it? Would anyone know what I was trying to say in my book? Would anyone care? I realized that the most important legacy I can leave is to know that I responded to God’s invitation to join Him in His work, not MY work. I learned a hard lesson when I went through my depression and my daily prayer is that I do what God wills for me to do today! I hope that is what people will remember about Bruce Hennigan. I know my books will never be “literature” and will never be required reading. But, through my writing, God has used me to touch people’s lives and has used those words to change people.
Am I about to die? As I was placed on the cardiac catheterization table, I was crying. I am a physician. I know all too well every conceivable outcome and consequence. I know the morbidity and the mortality! I prayed a simple prayer. “God give me the courage to face this with the faith and knowledge that Your will is done whether I wake up after the procedure; wake up after surgery; or wake up in heaven.” And, as the nurse was giving me my Versed, I knew that I would remember nothing of the subsequent test and would awaken an hour or two later hopefully in my hospital room with good news.
As the Versed kicked in, nothing happened. Nothing. My memory did not fade. I recalled everything that happened. I remember my cardiologist telling me each step of the procedure and I felt the contrast in my aorta and in my coronaries. I recalled him saying everything was normal. I recall him asking me if I wanted to have pressure applied to my groin puncture or an angioseal (a plug that does not require holding pressure to stop the bleeding) and how painful it was when he put in the angioseal. I recall him squatting down so he could look me in the eye and tell me my test was normal and he was going to go tell my wife. I did not have to wake up. I was awake and, frankly, grateful for it. For, I heard and saw the professionalism and care of the team that took care of me.
That evening, as my wife was taking us home from the hospital, I marveled at how good God is. I had faced my own mortality and found that everything about my heart was stone cold normal. But, why hadn’t that been true for my nephew? Why hadn’t he had the chance I had? I cannot know God’s will and I cannot know God’s plans. But, this one thing I do know. I must make every moment; every opportunity count for God. He has given me more time and that is the one precious gift we can give back to Him. So, I am hoping that I will now finish this book and, hopefully, more books.
Morbidity 1.
Mortality 0.
If you are planning a gift to the American Heart Association, give in memory of Ronald Ennis, M.D. He was a good man!
Book Review — Beckon by Tom Pawlik Day Three
I have been writing the rough draft of next book, “The 10th Demon: Children of the Bloodstone” for five straight days as of yesterday. I decided to take a walk outside for a change instead of on my treadmill. Forty minutes into the walk, i start experiencing chest tightness and a very rapid heart rate. I had never hurt like that before and a yard man allowed me to use his cell phone to call my wife. We ended up rushing to the local hospital where I work at my day job.
Here’s the deal. I was hurting and the pain wasn’t letting up. No matter how hard I prayed; no matter how many times I tried to calm my breathing; no matter how much I tried to ignore the pain, it wasn’t getting any better. In fact, at that moment in time I would have done ANYTHING to stop the pain.
George and Miriam are an elderly couple who come to Beckon for help. I don’t want to give away Miriam’s problem, but let’s just say that Mr. Vale and his strange assortment of “professionals” living in Beckon, Wyoming could help Miriam with her problem and relieve George’s pain. He signs away his life and, literally his soul and soon Miriam is cured. When I first read “Beckon” I wasn’t as impressed with the immediacy of George’s need. After Tuesday evening, I had a new angle on his “pain”.
I don’t want to give away the plot of this book, but once George and Miriam appear in the story Jack and Irina become integral to the uncovering to Vale’s secret; his connection to the people living in the caves; and the need to send “sacrifices” down to the spider creatures. I kept waiting for a frankly Christian message to surface, but the message here is very subtle.
What does it prophet a man if he gains the whole world and loses his soul. The story of Beckon and its inhabitants comes to a gruesome, but satisfying conclusion and it is worth the read. Just prepared to be scared witless.
Oh, by the way, I am reclined in my hospital bed right now having had a cardiac catheterization that revealed my heart is absolutely normal. It seems the problem was the heat! Thanks to everyone for your thoughts and prayers.
Beckon by Tom Pawlik, a Book Review Day Two
Welcome to Beckon. You’re not here by chance.
Elina Gutierrez is running for her life. She is being chased by men with guns and manages to actually mortally one of them with her pistol. She’s not a mercenary. She is an FBI agent looking for her lost cousin, an illegal immigrant who was taken by a van to the mysterious town of Beckon.
Beckon’s motto: “Welcome to Beckon. You’re not here by chance.” Soon she is taken captive by the very men she has just tried to kill and one of them, the man who should be dead, seems to have made a miraculous recovery. She is taken to a huge house on a hill overlooking the small mountain town of Beckon, Wyoming. There she is escorted deep into the bowls of the house to a dungeon and thrown into a holding cell. In the pitch black, she hears the voice of her cousin and realizes there are many prisoners here in this dungeon.
She soon learns that the man who rules over Beckon, Mr. Vale is a ruthless businessman determined to keep the outside world out of his small town. Why? Because there are secrets here the world can never learn about.
After we have spent time with Jack in the first part of “Beckon” and found out the horrible secrets beneath the town, we now meet the men and women behind the veil of, well, Vale and his little town. Elina serves to bring power and ruthlessness to those who would oppose Vale. Jack represents the knowledge to appreciate the science and history behind Beckon. Elina represents the gunpower, the raw power to bring justice to this horrific situation.
I can’t say more than that right now. By this point in the book, I was glad to be out of the caves and the underwater tunnels. But, to meet the ruthless Vale was equally disturbing for Pawlik has created a truly horrific villain, a man with an easy, deceptive smile who loves to eat raw meat. And, he has no qualms at the thought of killing an FBI agent to protect his secrets.
Once again, the book moves quickly and decisively into the realm of suspense and keeps the stakes high. Elina soon finds herself in a hopeless situation and you’ll have read part three tomorrow to find out how George and his wife, Miriam come to their rescue.
Strengths of this second part: The chase scene is fast paced and very believable. Elina knows her guns. The mystery of how a man could be mortally wounded yet return in hours seemingly unharmed, hints at some mysterious secret behind Beckon. And, Vale is a particularly delicious villain. I couldn’t wait to find out what was at the bottom of this town, this mystery, this man.
Beckon by Tom Pawlik, Book Review Day One
My ex-brother in law would pick up “Granddaddy Long Legs” and throw them on me as a child. These long legged, spindly spiders are technically not a real spider according to Wikipedia. But, there was no such thing as Wikipedia when I was five. I was scarred for life. To this day, I hate spiders. I hate spiders! I have arachnaphobia! Snakes don’t bother me. But, spiders?
Beckon by Tom Pawlik has the grandaddy long leg of all spiders. And, he manages to combine my fear of spiders with one of my other great fears, drowning! And all of that is in the first few chapters!
Listen, this is no book for the faint of heart. It was dark. It was disturbing. It was deadly. The body count built up very quickly and many of the deaths were unexpected and sudden. I recalled a certain character portrayed by Samuel Jackson getting eaten by a giant shark in the first act of that ill fated shark movie.
So, let me divide my book review into three sections, one for each of the main characters. We’ll start with Jack Kendrick, a college student who lost his father at an early age and is now about to set out on an adventure with his best childhood buddy, Rudy, to Wyoming. There, Jack hopes to track down the markings on a strange artifact left by his father at the time of his disappearance. Along the way, they meet up with Ben Graywolf, a North American Indian familiar with the mysterious waterfalls through which his father evidently disappeared. Ben takes them into the caves in search of the elusive N’Watu people and their “Soul Eater”.
They end up climbing through the waterfall and into all kinds of endless caves until they find a hidden world in which these horrific spider creatures live. These crab like spider things are huge and quite ravenous and are being raised and herded by a hidden race of mysterious entities beneath the mountain. As Jack and his friends watch, they realize that someone, somewhere is bringing human beings into the caves as sacrifices for this hidden race of beings in exchange for some kind of precious commodity. And, the sacrifices are well, fed, to the . . .
Sorry, I don’t want to give away too much of the opening plot. Suffice it to say that Jack is almost attacked by one of these creatures; almost discovered by a fierce warrior of this hidden race; and almost drowns trying to escape from the caves. And, when he does escape, he discovers that returning to civilization is only the beginning of his woes.
The positives about this first section are the fast pace and obvious strong and surprising horrific elements. And, this author is not afraid of killing off major characters for the sake of the story so be prepared for a number of disturbing deaths. Did I say it before? The bodies pile up very quickly. Also, Tom Pawlik definitely excels at creating atmosphere from the creepy moving things in the dark cavern to the claustrophobic passages through underwater tunnels. I found myself holding my breath more than once and frankly, I had a few nightmares the first night.
Of course, this is just the beginning of a very involved story so come back tomorrow for part two.
Book link – http://www.amazon.com/Beckon-Tom-Pawlik/dp/1414338732/
Author’s Web site – http://www.tompawlik.com/
Author Blog – http://tompawlik.blogspot.com/
Author Facebook page – http://www.facebook.com/pages/Tom-Pawlik/42692434035
Author Twitter account – https://twitter.com/#!/TomPawlik
Participants’ Links:
http://noahsreads.blogspot.com/ Noah Arsenault
http://kinynchronicles.blogspot.com/ Julie Bihn
http://www.oerkenleaves.blogspot.com/ Thomas Clayton Booher
http:/tulipdrivenlife.blogspot.com/ Thomas Fletcher Booher
http://rbclibrary.wordpress.com/ Beckie Burnham
http://kittycrochettwo.blogspot.com Brenda Castro
http://tweezlereads.blogspot.com/ Theresa Dunlap
http://www.thehahnhuntinglodge.com/ Nikole Hahn
http://realmofhearts.blogspot.com/ Ryan Heart
http://thequietpen.wordpress.com/ Janeen Ippolito
http://jessebecky.wordpress.com/ Becky Jesse
http://www.spoiledfortheordinary.blogspot.com/ Jason Joyner
http://carolkeen.blogspot.com/ Carol Keen
http://www.slygames.net/ Leighton
http://blackanddarknight.wordpress.com/ Rebekah Loper
http://www.shannonmcdermott.com/?page_id=189 Shannon McDermott
http://www.domesticdissident.blogspot.com Karen McSpadden
http://rebeccaluellamiller.wordpress.com/ Rebecca LuElla Miller
http://linalamont.blogspot.com/ Nissa
http://www.bookwomanjoan.blogspot.com/ Joan Nienhuis
http://labornotinvain.blogspot.com/ Faye Oygard
http://justanotherbookbag.blogspot.com/ Crista Richey
http://reviewsfromtheheart.blogspot.com/ Kathleen Smith
http://jessicathomasink.com/blog/ Jessica Thomas
http://christiansf.blogspot.com/ Steve Trower
http://frederation.wordpress.com Fred Warren
http://www.shanewerlinger.com/ Shane Werlinger
Bruce Hennigan 
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