If you happen to be Lucifer’s nephew you should expect life to be a little bit tough. Luckily for the ‘hero’ he does not have the horns (though a horn of sorts is alluded to on many occasions throughout the book), tail or trident of a devil. In fact, Frank (or Triggaltheron), as he is known, wants as little to do with devils and demons as possible. He wants to live a normal life, as long as that includes women and drinking. However, he is also a member of secret organisation, a collection of beings with a specialised skill set, whose job is to prevent Armageddon, the final destruction of the earth. To be honest, it is an aim which many of us, I suspect, have a lot of sympathy for.
Ranged against this group are the Angels and the Demons. Two factions that oppose each other at every turn. God and Lucifer have come to an agreement, possibly over a cup of Earl Grey and a biscuit. They have decided that nothing can save the earth and the human race – we just don’t do as we are told – and have given up. Both the Supreme Being and the Fallen Angel have left, gone away, vanished, without leaving any instructions. Free will runs the show.
The Angels think that Armageddon is the answer. Destroy the earth, wipe out the human race and start again. After all, that’s what God wanted in the Book of Revelations.
The Demons want Armageddon. Wipe out the angels, enslave humanity (if any happen to survive) and rule the smoking remains of the earth for all eternity.
Both wanting the same thing; the machinations, plots and conflicts are all about gaining an advantage, the upper hand.
And within those two factions, there are others fighting for or against the Armageddon. You get the idea, early on in Tim Marquitz’s book, that everyone has an ulterior motive. There is no such thing as a simple character here.
We follow Frank through the trials and tribulations of his attempts to prevent one faction or another gain the upper hand. Being Lucifer’s nephew, you’d expect Frank to be overpowered, for angels and demons to fear the very ground he treads on. Not a bit of it. Frank is the weakest of the characters in the book. He has no special powers, no magic or demon menaces with which to dispatch his foes. He is, apart from the demon part of him, a normal man relying on his wits and his guns.
The story and the set-pieces are well handled. They maintain the excitement and the pace – there are no wasted scenes and the story is always moving forward. The author develops the trusts, agreements, betrayals, complexities and foreshadowing well. Though you can be quite sure what will happen, there are enough moments of surprise to keep the interest up. Frank attacks his task with confidence and fear in equal measure. Even when the odds are against him, just like any ‘hero’, it is his notion of what is right that keeps him going.
A minor quibble would be the number of times that Frank loses his guns. Maybe, being part demon, he is cursed with butter fingers?
You know, there are times when I just want a book that grabs me and carries me along to a satisfying conclusion. A story where the worldbuilding is handled by the drip, drip of information, where the characters experience grants us insight and clues to the world. This is a book which doesn’t let up on the action and probably should come with at least an 18+ rating – Frank is very honest about his wants and desires.
Jennie Ivins