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Mercury #2
Mercury Rises
Fresh off their successful quest to thwart not one, but two diabolical plots to destroy the world, jaded reporter Christine Temetri and rough cherub Mercury find that mysterious powers outranking even the Heavenly bureaucracy seem intent on keeping the Apocalypse on track.
Mercury Rises continues author Robert Kroese’s tale of the heroic cherub Mercury, who is generally well-intentioned, rarely well-behaved, and always well-armed with a droll remark. While the world is plagued by natural disasters and nations prepare for war, crazed billionaire Horace Finch plots to use a secret device hidden beneath the African desert to discover the deepest secrets of the Universe – even if he has to destroy the Universe to do it. Meanwhile, unassuming FBI investigator Jacob Slater tries to find a rational explanation for the mysterious destruction of downtown Anaheim – a quest that ultimately brings him face to face with the unhinged Horace Finch. Together, Christine, Jacob and Mercury must stop Finch from activating the device and tearing reality to pieces.
Kroese’s rapid-fire sense of humor and razor-sharp wit keep Mercury Rises moving at breakneck speed, hurtling toward a climax that is as funny as it is satisfying.
Mercury Rises continues author Robert Kroese’s tale of the heroic cherub Mercury, who is generally well-intentioned, rarely well-behaved, and always well-armed with a droll remark. While the world is plagued by natural disasters and nations prepare for war, crazed billionaire Horace Finch plots to use a secret device hidden beneath the African desert to discover the deepest secrets of the Universe – even if he has to destroy the Universe to do it. Meanwhile, unassuming FBI investigator Jacob Slater tries to find a rational explanation for the mysterious destruction of downtown Anaheim – a quest that ultimately brings him face to face with the unhinged Horace Finch. Together, Christine, Jacob and Mercury must stop Finch from activating the device and tearing reality to pieces.
Kroese’s rapid-fire sense of humor and razor-sharp wit keep Mercury Rises moving at breakneck speed, hurtling toward a climax that is as funny as it is satisfying.
326 pages, Paperback
First published July 19, 2011
86 people are currently reading
748 people want to read
About the author
Robert Kroese
70 books632 followersRobert Kroese's sense of irony was honed growing up in Grand Rapids, Michigan - home of the Amway Corporation and the Gerald R. Ford Museum, and the first city in the United States to fluoridate its water supply. In second grade, he wrote his first novel, the saga of Captain Bill and his spaceship Thee Eagle. This turned out to be the high point of his academic career. After barely graduating from Calvin College in 1992 with a philosophy degree, he was fired from a variety of jobs before moving to California, where he stumbled into software development. As this job required neither punctuality nor a sense of direction, he excelled at it. In 2009, he called upon his extensive knowledge of useless information and love of explosions to write his first novel, Mercury Falls. Since then, he has written 18 more books.
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April 6, 2024
Mercury Rises
By Robert Kroese
I finally got back to this series! I'm so glad I did! I love the witty dialog, situations, and characters. The plot paired with this crazy characters is a winner! Nothing like fun action, humor, hilarious situations, and lots of witty banter to make a book great. But that's my opinion.
By Robert Kroese
I finally got back to this series! I'm so glad I did! I love the witty dialog, situations, and characters. The plot paired with this crazy characters is a winner! Nothing like fun action, humor, hilarious situations, and lots of witty banter to make a book great. But that's my opinion.
January 29, 2012
While not the equal of Mercury Falls, Mercury Rises is still ample evidence that Robert Kroese is the best humorist on the south side of Christopher Moore and one of the best social satirists since Douglas Adams. There is certainly a lot of influence from both writers. Kroese has a singular wit and a talent for lambasting both mythical warhorses and pop culture silliness in the same paragraph...
As the series continues, the cherub Mercury is in the Babylonian Empire of 2000 BC (I now know what a ziggurat is) These are some of the funniest moments in the novel and there are some clever exchanges between Mercury and Noah. Look for a bad pun about eating Ham. In the meantime, Christine is still in the now and is discovering her attempt to prevent the apocalypse is not yet complete.
But here is where problems occur. Mercury and Christine do not reunite until well in the second half of the novel. I relish their exchanges as much as I relish a Hepburn/Tracy movie. (Did I lose the reader under 30 with that sentence?) Also, there are quite a few other plots going on and the swift changeovers from chapter to chapter tended to bother me. But I suspect that will not bother a lot of readers. Overall, this is a very funny novel that mixes social satire, pop culture and metaphysical philosophy well. It is highly recommended with one warning. The author and some reviewer have implied that this is a stand-alone novel. It isn't. Read Mercury Falls first unless you enjoy being confused.
"Bigger than the Attache Cases of the Apocalypse?" asked Uzziel. "Like what? I've looked into the reports of M. Night Shymalian remaking The Greatest Story Ever Told and it's baseless.
As the series continues, the cherub Mercury is in the Babylonian Empire of 2000 BC (I now know what a ziggurat is) These are some of the funniest moments in the novel and there are some clever exchanges between Mercury and Noah. Look for a bad pun about eating Ham. In the meantime, Christine is still in the now and is discovering her attempt to prevent the apocalypse is not yet complete.
But here is where problems occur. Mercury and Christine do not reunite until well in the second half of the novel. I relish their exchanges as much as I relish a Hepburn/Tracy movie. (Did I lose the reader under 30 with that sentence?) Also, there are quite a few other plots going on and the swift changeovers from chapter to chapter tended to bother me. But I suspect that will not bother a lot of readers. Overall, this is a very funny novel that mixes social satire, pop culture and metaphysical philosophy well. It is highly recommended with one warning. The author and some reviewer have implied that this is a stand-alone novel. It isn't. Read Mercury Falls first unless you enjoy being confused.
February 20, 2013
4.5 Stars
Mercury Rises, book 2 in the Mercury series by Robert Kroese is not a disappointment. As a second book it was not quite up to the standards of Mercury Falls because of the lack of interaction between Mercury and Christine. This book does however ratchet up the humor and the wit.
There are so many great one liners that will have you laughing out loud. There are many incredible references that are equally hilarious. There are so many quibs that I am sure that I overlooked many of them.
I love that Mercury is a nearly insane rogue angel that has humanity at heart by being so incredibly selfish. He is fearless, witty, and so cool because he loves ping pong. This series is based on the end of days. The apocalypse. I love the weight of the story that is so well balanced by the humor.
The ending of this book had me in tears...I was laughing so hard. This is a great satire series that should be read by all!!!
Mercury Rises, book 2 in the Mercury series by Robert Kroese is not a disappointment. As a second book it was not quite up to the standards of Mercury Falls because of the lack of interaction between Mercury and Christine. This book does however ratchet up the humor and the wit.
There are so many great one liners that will have you laughing out loud. There are many incredible references that are equally hilarious. There are so many quibs that I am sure that I overlooked many of them.
I love that Mercury is a nearly insane rogue angel that has humanity at heart by being so incredibly selfish. He is fearless, witty, and so cool because he loves ping pong. This series is based on the end of days. The apocalypse. I love the weight of the story that is so well balanced by the humor.
The ending of this book had me in tears...I was laughing so hard. This is a great satire series that should be read by all!!!
January 29, 2012
Bite-sized Review
While not quite as fun as Mercury Falls, Mercury Rises still provided an interesting story with a sense of humor.
King-sized Review
I was really excited when I learned there was going to be a sequel to Mercury Falls, an incredibly hilarious and brilliant book about the Apocalypse. (Seriously, go check it out. It is completely worth it.) I mean, sure, the plot had seemed pretty nicely wrapped up at the end of the first book, but for more of Mercury and Christine and general ridiculousness, I was more than willing for this series to continue.
The problem was, there wasn't really much Mercury and Christine or general ridiculousness. I'm not saying it was a bad book, but it wasn't nearly as fun and light-hearted as the first one. What I loved best about Mercury Falls was its ability to point out the silliness of certain religious and philosophical standards without seeming angry or preachy. In Mercury Rises, there's less of that whimsy, and it feels more like the book is trying to make a point. Also the footnotes are much less fun.
This book is also about the Apocalypse. But since we already did the Revelations version in Mercury Falls, this one had to be different, with the result that the story, particularly the Ancient Babylon scenes, didn't really seem to have a point until the end (although I still wasn't entirely certain the Ancient Babylon scenes were necessary). And it is lucky I find theoretical physics interesting, because there is quite a bit of it in this book. The examples and analogies were actually pretty good, but if hearing about quarks and relativity makes your eyes glaze over, this may not be your thing. It's certainly not the entire book – you could easily skim over those parts without really missing much – but fair warning, there is plenty of it.
Even though Mercury Rises had a lot of Mercury and a lot of Christine, there wasn't very much Mercury-and-Christine, which as it turns out may have been key to the last book. When they finally did meet again, I think the book improved. Still not to the level of the previous one, but I did enjoy it more.
So. First, Mercury Falls is awesome and you should read it. Second, even though this book wasn't as good, it wasn't bad either. It had an interesting plot and was still pretty funny. It just sounds bad because I'm comparing it to the first one. And third, I will most definitely read book three when it comes out.
Check out the original review at Epic (Chocolate) Fantasy
While not quite as fun as Mercury Falls, Mercury Rises still provided an interesting story with a sense of humor.
King-sized Review
I was really excited when I learned there was going to be a sequel to Mercury Falls, an incredibly hilarious and brilliant book about the Apocalypse. (Seriously, go check it out. It is completely worth it.) I mean, sure, the plot had seemed pretty nicely wrapped up at the end of the first book, but for more of Mercury and Christine and general ridiculousness, I was more than willing for this series to continue.
The problem was, there wasn't really much Mercury and Christine or general ridiculousness. I'm not saying it was a bad book, but it wasn't nearly as fun and light-hearted as the first one. What I loved best about Mercury Falls was its ability to point out the silliness of certain religious and philosophical standards without seeming angry or preachy. In Mercury Rises, there's less of that whimsy, and it feels more like the book is trying to make a point. Also the footnotes are much less fun.
This book is also about the Apocalypse. But since we already did the Revelations version in Mercury Falls, this one had to be different, with the result that the story, particularly the Ancient Babylon scenes, didn't really seem to have a point until the end (although I still wasn't entirely certain the Ancient Babylon scenes were necessary). And it is lucky I find theoretical physics interesting, because there is quite a bit of it in this book. The examples and analogies were actually pretty good, but if hearing about quarks and relativity makes your eyes glaze over, this may not be your thing. It's certainly not the entire book – you could easily skim over those parts without really missing much – but fair warning, there is plenty of it.
Even though Mercury Rises had a lot of Mercury and a lot of Christine, there wasn't very much Mercury-and-Christine, which as it turns out may have been key to the last book. When they finally did meet again, I think the book improved. Still not to the level of the previous one, but I did enjoy it more.
So. First, Mercury Falls is awesome and you should read it. Second, even though this book wasn't as good, it wasn't bad either. It had an interesting plot and was still pretty funny. It just sounds bad because I'm comparing it to the first one. And third, I will most definitely read book three when it comes out.
Check out the original review at Epic (Chocolate) Fantasy
October 19, 2011
Ever since I read Mercury Falls earlier this year, I have been looking forward to the release of Mercury Rises. I even put the release date on my calendar and pre-ordered it, which is not something I do often.
Mercury is one of the best characters ever created and I can't get enough of his aloof attitude and ridiculous comments. My major complaint about this book is that it seemed short on Mercury. His story ark takes place mostly in the past (the way past), which means his interaction with Christine is limited. That was a disappointment because I loved their back-and-forth in Mercury Falls.
The book was still quite good and I laughed quite a few times at some of the absurdity that unfolded (see Mercury's conversations with Noah). The book was very much like the previous one in writing style and humor. I guffawed often (once again, that's the only word that works). Overall, the decision to purchase the book is an easy one. If you liked Mercury Falls, then you'll like Mercury Rises. Just maybe not quite as much.
Can't wait for Mercury Rests. Hopefully Mr. Kroese doesn't make me wait too long.
4/5 Stars
Mercury is one of the best characters ever created and I can't get enough of his aloof attitude and ridiculous comments. My major complaint about this book is that it seemed short on Mercury. His story ark takes place mostly in the past (the way past), which means his interaction with Christine is limited. That was a disappointment because I loved their back-and-forth in Mercury Falls.
The book was still quite good and I laughed quite a few times at some of the absurdity that unfolded (see Mercury's conversations with Noah). The book was very much like the previous one in writing style and humor. I guffawed often (once again, that's the only word that works). Overall, the decision to purchase the book is an easy one. If you liked Mercury Falls, then you'll like Mercury Rises. Just maybe not quite as much.
Can't wait for Mercury Rests. Hopefully Mr. Kroese doesn't make me wait too long.
4/5 Stars
November 10, 2011
I'm not sure I liked this book as much as the first one, but it was still enjoyable. It was nearly half-way over before Christine and Mercury were reunited, and their banter was one of the things I was really looking forward to in the sequel. However, the plot continued on with some of the same characters, though I found the glimpses into the past somewhat confusing as I generally prefer a more linear narrative rather than one that's consistently interrupted by "flashbacks."
I am excited though that there seems to be a third installment in the works, given the semi-meta-literature nature of this book, and with the open ending that Kroese left the readers with.
I am excited though that there seems to be a third installment in the works, given the semi-meta-literature nature of this book, and with the open ending that Kroese left the readers with.
March 6, 2016
Even more fun than the first book, because it was a lot less clear how things were going to play out. Full of fun twists; though possibly less philosophical than the first. I especially enjoyed the glance back at the Noah story, and the clever way he found to make Noah contemporary with Old Kingdom Egypt and the first Babylonian empire.
April 6, 2018
3.5 stars really. This is a very funny book, not quite as good as the first, but pretty good. Because I am a Jesus follower, I struggle with the irreverent nature of this book. Having said that, if you liked the first book, you will like this one.
September 22, 2014
Loved it!!!
March 19, 2019
As he spoke, a giant, beautiful parrot alighted on his shoulder.It's 2000 B.C. and Mercury is building ziggurats in Babylon for a mysterious purpose he doesn't quite understand. Simultaneously, it's right after the events of Mercury Falls and Christine is dealing with the aftermath of the foiled Apocalypse. But to be honest, the plot doesn't matter all that much, because you're reading Mercury Rises for the satire and humour.
“Noah!” warbled the bird. “I am the LORD your God. The flood is over! Land the boat already! You want a cracker? That’s a good girl. Tell him, just like that. Don’t forget the first part. I am the LORD your God!”
A lot of reviewers seem to be saying that Mercury Falls is better than Mercury Rises but I will have to disagree. In all fairness, it was a while since I read the first book, but I remember mostly being confused and not fully understanding the plot line (maybe I was distracted). But book two has a tighter narrative, and still a lot of humour and just hilarious randomness. I laughed out loud several times. It's not "punchline funny", it'll be long jokes, referencing something that happened earlier in the chapter, or just a character being ridiculously dumb and dumb-founded. It's hard to explain but hilarious. Read it for your (often meta) jokes on religion, physics, pop culture, and everything in between!
“Oh, we have to do another book. Actually, a trilogy would be even better.”
“Hmmm,” replied Eddie. “You don’t think that the readers will feel like I’m stringing them along?”
Wanda laughed. “Oh, Eddie,” she said. “It’s so sweet of you to be concerned. Now about this book…”
June 12, 2013
Please note: I will not change my rating or review, as my reviews are based upon the book, but I will warn other bloggers that this author has recently treated a fellow blogger very badly and abusively when she politely declined his review request and advised him to follow submission guidelines in the future when requesting a review. I have removed myself as a fan of this author and will no longer support him through purchasing his books.
Book Info: Genre: Urban Fantasy, humorous
Reading Level: Adult
Recommended for: anyone who likes to laugh and doesn't take religion too terribly seriously
Trigger Warnings: book burning
Animal Abuse: A character feeds a stray cat liverwurst laced with gunpowder in an attempt to blow it up. It is poisoned but survives; however, it is later killed by the city pound. A goat is sacrificed by an tribe in Kenya.
My Thoughts: “Each time a Charlie Nyx book hit the shelves, the state of the world would deteriorate. Wars, earthquakes, flooding, epidemics, the Clash of the Titans remake... things were truly getting out of hand...” It's the end of the world as we know it, but it's okay, because you'll laugh your way into the Apocalypse. Mercury is back, and this time he's even more confused.
Some of the best parts of this book are the characters. For instance... Despite his attempts to blow up a cat when he was a kid, I rather liked Jacob Slater. He was diagnosed with Asperger's syndrome when he was a kid, which he describes as, “...a vaguely defined condition which, in the final analysis, meant that people gave him the heebie jeebies.... No one really knew what was wrong with Jacob Slater. The doctors who had analyzed him two decades earlier hadn't actually found anything definitively wrong with him. Yes, they had offered an authoritative-sounding diagnosis, but it wasn't as if they had discovered anything concrete like an imbalance of bodily humors or a band of angry dwarves living in his small intestine.”
I also enjoyed the flashbacks with Tiamat. “Never a hands-on leader, Tiamat rarely even bothered these days to make the occasional unscheduled appearance to berate the laborers for their stupidity and laziness and throw a few over the edge [of the ziggurat] as an examples for the others.” Watching her build up Babylon was great, and her entitled attitude is a hoot. “You don't know what it's like, trying to build a great civilization while abiding by all these ridiculous regulations. Did you know they've outlawed human sacrifice? How are the people supposed to express their devotion if they can't occasionally sacrifice one of their children to me.”
Then, of course, there is Eddie. “If there was any condition that gave a man carte blanche to lie down and take it easy for a bit, it was being shot five times in the chest with a nine-millimeter automatic pistol.” I could probably find hilarious quotes for every character in the book, and I haven't even addressed the main characters (Christine, Mercury, Horace Finch). The key word for this book is “hilarious”. I really do wish I'd been able to find my copy of Mercury Falls, because I've forgotten so much of it and thus am missing some of the references, but I managed to keep up okay.
If you enjoy laughing, and if you don't take your religion too seriously (the Tawanis, for instance, make up a number of gods and goddesses just to mess with Horace Finch, such as Buwandanta—god of that thing where you are half awake and can feel yourself lying in bed but you can't move), then you'll really enjoy this series of books. I recommend them.
Series Information: Mercury Rises is the second novel in the Mercury series.
Prequel One: Mercury Begins, review linked here where formatting allowed
Prequel Two: Mercury Swings, review linked here where formatting allowed
Book 1: Mercury Falls, read in September 2010, review linked here where formatting allowed
Book 3: Mercury Rests, to be read soon.
Disclosure: I received a paperback copy of this book from Amazon Vine in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.
Synopsis (from the back of the book): Fresh off their successful quest to thwart not one, but two diabolical plots to destroy the world, jaded reporter Christine Temetri and rogue cherub Mercury find that mysterious powers outranking even the Heavenly bureaucracy seem intent on keeping the Apocalypse on track.
Mercury is generally well-intentioned, rarely well-behaved, and always well-armed with a droll remark. While the world is plagued by natural disasters and nations prepare for war, crazed billionaire Horace Finch plots to use a secret device hidden beneath the African desert to discover the deepest secrets of the Universe—even if he has to destroy the Universe to do it. Meanwhile, unassuming FBI investigator Jacob Slate tries to find a rational explanation for the mysterious destruction of downtown Anaheim—a quest that ultimately brings him face to face with the unhinged Horace Finch. Together, Christine, Jacob, and Mercury must stop Finch from activating the device and tearing reality to pieces.
Book Info: Genre: Urban Fantasy, humorous
Reading Level: Adult
Recommended for: anyone who likes to laugh and doesn't take religion too terribly seriously
Trigger Warnings: book burning
Animal Abuse: A character feeds a stray cat liverwurst laced with gunpowder in an attempt to blow it up. It is poisoned but survives; however, it is later killed by the city pound. A goat is sacrificed by an tribe in Kenya.
My Thoughts: “Each time a Charlie Nyx book hit the shelves, the state of the world would deteriorate. Wars, earthquakes, flooding, epidemics, the Clash of the Titans remake... things were truly getting out of hand...” It's the end of the world as we know it, but it's okay, because you'll laugh your way into the Apocalypse. Mercury is back, and this time he's even more confused.
Some of the best parts of this book are the characters. For instance... Despite his attempts to blow up a cat when he was a kid, I rather liked Jacob Slater. He was diagnosed with Asperger's syndrome when he was a kid, which he describes as, “...a vaguely defined condition which, in the final analysis, meant that people gave him the heebie jeebies.... No one really knew what was wrong with Jacob Slater. The doctors who had analyzed him two decades earlier hadn't actually found anything definitively wrong with him. Yes, they had offered an authoritative-sounding diagnosis, but it wasn't as if they had discovered anything concrete like an imbalance of bodily humors or a band of angry dwarves living in his small intestine.”
I also enjoyed the flashbacks with Tiamat. “Never a hands-on leader, Tiamat rarely even bothered these days to make the occasional unscheduled appearance to berate the laborers for their stupidity and laziness and throw a few over the edge [of the ziggurat] as an examples for the others.” Watching her build up Babylon was great, and her entitled attitude is a hoot. “You don't know what it's like, trying to build a great civilization while abiding by all these ridiculous regulations. Did you know they've outlawed human sacrifice? How are the people supposed to express their devotion if they can't occasionally sacrifice one of their children to me.”
Then, of course, there is Eddie. “If there was any condition that gave a man carte blanche to lie down and take it easy for a bit, it was being shot five times in the chest with a nine-millimeter automatic pistol.” I could probably find hilarious quotes for every character in the book, and I haven't even addressed the main characters (Christine, Mercury, Horace Finch). The key word for this book is “hilarious”. I really do wish I'd been able to find my copy of Mercury Falls, because I've forgotten so much of it and thus am missing some of the references, but I managed to keep up okay.
If you enjoy laughing, and if you don't take your religion too seriously (the Tawanis, for instance, make up a number of gods and goddesses just to mess with Horace Finch, such as Buwandanta—god of that thing where you are half awake and can feel yourself lying in bed but you can't move), then you'll really enjoy this series of books. I recommend them.
Series Information: Mercury Rises is the second novel in the Mercury series.
Prequel One: Mercury Begins, review linked here where formatting allowed
Prequel Two: Mercury Swings, review linked here where formatting allowed
Book 1: Mercury Falls, read in September 2010, review linked here where formatting allowed
Book 3: Mercury Rests, to be read soon.
Disclosure: I received a paperback copy of this book from Amazon Vine in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.
Synopsis (from the back of the book): Fresh off their successful quest to thwart not one, but two diabolical plots to destroy the world, jaded reporter Christine Temetri and rogue cherub Mercury find that mysterious powers outranking even the Heavenly bureaucracy seem intent on keeping the Apocalypse on track.
Mercury is generally well-intentioned, rarely well-behaved, and always well-armed with a droll remark. While the world is plagued by natural disasters and nations prepare for war, crazed billionaire Horace Finch plots to use a secret device hidden beneath the African desert to discover the deepest secrets of the Universe—even if he has to destroy the Universe to do it. Meanwhile, unassuming FBI investigator Jacob Slate tries to find a rational explanation for the mysterious destruction of downtown Anaheim—a quest that ultimately brings him face to face with the unhinged Horace Finch. Together, Christine, Jacob, and Mercury must stop Finch from activating the device and tearing reality to pieces.
October 19, 2011
Finch went on, "If these people spent as much time trying to develop a written language as they did making up deities, they wouldn't be in this jam. they've got rain gods, cloud gods, sun gods...I've documented three hundred different deities so far, and I'm not even close to covering them all. At this point there are probably more Tawani deities than there are Tawanies."
In fact, the Tawani only had seven gods and goddesses in their pantheon; the remainder they had made up just to screw with Horace Finch. Finch had made it his mission to debunk their mythology, one deity at a time, and the Tawani had cleverly responded by manufacturing an unlimited number of deities. At first it had been an enjoyable diversion, but as Finch showed no sign of tiring his debunking, it had become something of a chore. More worrying, they were on the verge of running out of natural phenomena that could be used as an excuse for supernatural intervention. Lately they had devised gods of acid indigestion, night sweats, and chafing, respectively. ...
In truth, they had started inventing deities in an attempt to determine whether Finch could tell the difference between a real god and a fake god, a test that he decisively failed in their eyes. ...
The Tawani had also concluded that anyone who wanted so badly to believe that the gods did not exist must have done something very evil in their sight.
This sequel to Mercury Falls picks up after journalist Christine and rogue angel Mercury have stopped Armageddon from happening. And it picks up in Babylon around the time of Noah where we see just what Mercury's relationship with Tiamet was and why she's so interested in ziggurats. Following a dual timeline, we get the long ago backstory and the ongoing new attempt to destroy the world, where a few new characters get added to the mix.
This is clearly a transitional novel and Kroese is working toward a third book that will pull everything together where we eventually will see who is really running things in Heaven, whether free will is integral or a mistake, and if there is an ineffable plan that will leave Earth in one piece. I sped through this book which was almost as entertaining as Mercury Falls. Sometimes though, as Stephen Tobolowsky termed his role in Heroes, we feel as if we are still stuck in Act I. We've seen everyone try to stop the end of the world before. The dual timelines do not always transition gracefully and the number of characters left me sometimes feeling that the story was choppy.
Make no mistake, I still enjoyed reading this book. Kroese is clever, witty, and makes many good points about the people on both sides of religious belief (as we see in the excerpt above). I'm looking forward to seeing what the third book in the trilogy brings as Christine, Mercury, and the gang hopefully can finish their task of putting the kibosh on an immediate apocalypse.
September 9, 2011
One of the first thing I did when I got my Kindle? Find an indie author to try out, I didn't want my first experience with unknown authors to be bad. After much searching, I finally ventured into the world of the indies by downloading Mercury Falls I was not sorry. I loved it.
So when this popped up in the Vine program, the only disappointment for me was with Amazon having not yet showing this to me in the coming soon for you section on their site. I surely would have pre-ordered this baby on Kindle had it not been a Vine offering. I would not have disappointed. Though like most follow ups it's not quite as good as the first, that's okay though, it'd be tough to live up to that hype. Everyone I know who read it loved it (okay so it was about 3 other people but still).
I would definitely not recommend this book to someone without first having them read the first. The author gets bonus points from me for not spending half of the book replaying the first - something it seems too many authors do now with books that are part of a series. More bonus points for totally making fun of itself for being part of a trilogy as it seems like so many authors feel like they have to make their books a three parter. That said, the characters in this series are ones you want to keep seeing so I'm not offended by a trilogy here. In fact, that's probably the one thing holding me back from giving this book 5 stars. The characters seem to get so lost in this plot. Now, I'll give you it's one hell of a plot (literally at times). Start to get to know one character in one time and bam we're off to another character in a whole 'nother time and plane. Things that could be explored more aren't - like Christine's issues with the rival paper. While some are over explored - okay the ziggurat workers had poor working conditions, got it.
Still despite a few issues with the book and it falling just a little short of Mercury Falls, it's still an excellent follow up even if the basic storyline is the same - some angels are naughty + heaven and hell must work together even if they don't really want to when a major disaster is about to disrail both of their own plans. I'm ready for the third bite of the apple... err well maybe not that, but you know...
So when this popped up in the Vine program, the only disappointment for me was with Amazon having not yet showing this to me in the coming soon for you section on their site. I surely would have pre-ordered this baby on Kindle had it not been a Vine offering. I would not have disappointed. Though like most follow ups it's not quite as good as the first, that's okay though, it'd be tough to live up to that hype. Everyone I know who read it loved it (okay so it was about 3 other people but still).
I would definitely not recommend this book to someone without first having them read the first. The author gets bonus points from me for not spending half of the book replaying the first - something it seems too many authors do now with books that are part of a series. More bonus points for totally making fun of itself for being part of a trilogy as it seems like so many authors feel like they have to make their books a three parter. That said, the characters in this series are ones you want to keep seeing so I'm not offended by a trilogy here. In fact, that's probably the one thing holding me back from giving this book 5 stars. The characters seem to get so lost in this plot. Now, I'll give you it's one hell of a plot (literally at times). Start to get to know one character in one time and bam we're off to another character in a whole 'nother time and plane. Things that could be explored more aren't - like Christine's issues with the rival paper. While some are over explored - okay the ziggurat workers had poor working conditions, got it.
Still despite a few issues with the book and it falling just a little short of Mercury Falls, it's still an excellent follow up even if the basic storyline is the same - some angels are naughty + heaven and hell must work together even if they don't really want to when a major disaster is about to disrail both of their own plans. I'm ready for the third bite of the apple... err well maybe not that, but you know...
July 19, 2012
Purchased Mercury Rises a month or two ago and got through the other 3-4 books that were in my queue. Just finished reading it, and it brings back such great memories of Robert Kroese's writing style (which is why I bought the sequel in the first place), but I found that I should have re-read Mercury Falls to refresh all of my angel/demon names. I caught up quickly and thoroughly enjoyed reading another installment in the escapades of Mercury and Christine.
With the death/disappearance of Harry Giddings, Christine Temetri finds herself out of a job when The Banner, the Christian news magazine where she worked, closes. She winds up in the middle of Africa helping a charity group, Eternal Harvest--also a subsidiary of Harry's endeavors, in the midst of a tribal goat sacrifice, a volcanic eruption, and a conspiracy around a 7,000-year-old, shiny, glass apple. Meanwhile, Mercury assists in the Babylonian ziggurat craze, meets Noah and his dysfunctional family, and gets to hear some awesome lyric information by Toto from Uzziel--his immediate supervisor--in the past, but presently thwarts the Archangel Michael's kidnapping by demons, extracts an FBI consultant imposing as a dead guy from a sizzling rogue elevator, and hangs around a fire in a barrel (more lyric information ensues here--thank you, Billy Joel).
This book is lighthearted fun through and through. If you don't chuckle at least once while reading, then you're doing it wrong! Thanks Robert Kroese for this second glimpse in the adventures of Mercury, our favorite cherub who doesn't take himself too seriously! Please make sure there is another one coming where this one left off.
With the death/disappearance of Harry Giddings, Christine Temetri finds herself out of a job when The Banner, the Christian news magazine where she worked, closes. She winds up in the middle of Africa helping a charity group, Eternal Harvest--also a subsidiary of Harry's endeavors, in the midst of a tribal goat sacrifice, a volcanic eruption, and a conspiracy around a 7,000-year-old, shiny, glass apple. Meanwhile, Mercury assists in the Babylonian ziggurat craze, meets Noah and his dysfunctional family, and gets to hear some awesome lyric information by Toto from Uzziel--his immediate supervisor--in the past, but presently thwarts the Archangel Michael's kidnapping by demons, extracts an FBI consultant imposing as a dead guy from a sizzling rogue elevator, and hangs around a fire in a barrel (more lyric information ensues here--thank you, Billy Joel).
This book is lighthearted fun through and through. If you don't chuckle at least once while reading, then you're doing it wrong! Thanks Robert Kroese for this second glimpse in the adventures of Mercury, our favorite cherub who doesn't take himself too seriously! Please make sure there is another one coming where this one left off.
September 26, 2011
The cover blurb says "the most highly anticipated sequel to `Mercury Falls' ever published"
Having been a fan of Mercury Falls I was looking forward to reading the sequel. Once again we meet Mercury the "renegade" Angel as he tries once again to stop a premature Apocalypse . The action picks up after the first novel where he again teams with the religion reporter who covered the Apocalypse beat. Considering the silliness of Harold Camping this novel fits right in. This time though the Harold Camping like publisher is gone and in place we have the atheist editor and his efforts to bring about the end of the world.
I enjoy Robert Kroese humor and his world populated with Angels and Demons done in a fresh way and while you are reminded of Neil Gaiman, Terry Pratchett "Good Omens" it is not derivative of it, but its own book. The plot alternates between modern day and Mercury at the time of Noah. Much that was developed in Mercury Falls is carried on here and the setup for the third novel is in place. One of the funniest bits in the book was a Vonnegut like reference to the trilogy. Kroese has been doing his homework on Quantum physics to create some of the plot elements, as he is doing the same for the next book.
Ultimately I enjoyed Mercury Falls more than the latest book as it suffers some of the common problems in a transitional novel in a series. Still though a fun read.
Having been a fan of Mercury Falls I was looking forward to reading the sequel. Once again we meet Mercury the "renegade" Angel as he tries once again to stop a premature Apocalypse . The action picks up after the first novel where he again teams with the religion reporter who covered the Apocalypse beat. Considering the silliness of Harold Camping this novel fits right in. This time though the Harold Camping like publisher is gone and in place we have the atheist editor and his efforts to bring about the end of the world.
I enjoy Robert Kroese humor and his world populated with Angels and Demons done in a fresh way and while you are reminded of Neil Gaiman, Terry Pratchett "Good Omens" it is not derivative of it, but its own book. The plot alternates between modern day and Mercury at the time of Noah. Much that was developed in Mercury Falls is carried on here and the setup for the third novel is in place. One of the funniest bits in the book was a Vonnegut like reference to the trilogy. Kroese has been doing his homework on Quantum physics to create some of the plot elements, as he is doing the same for the next book.
Ultimately I enjoyed Mercury Falls more than the latest book as it suffers some of the common problems in a transitional novel in a series. Still though a fun read.
March 14, 2013
KOLL.
This was good, but not nearly as good as the first book. In the first everything was leading somewhere, moving toward something. This one was more than halfway through before the narrative started having some direction. Up to that point it was a series of disconnected follow-ups. Christine is doing nothing in particular in Africa, waiting to set things up. Jacob is doing nothing in particular in LA, waiting to become a lynchpin. Present-day Mercury doesn't show up for the first two-thirds of the book, instead we get 4,000 years ago Mercury doing nothing in particular in Babylon. It was all story threads plodding uselessly along waiting to be excitedly bound together in the final section. But it's not enough to have a great conclusion, getting there needs to be interesting as well.
The author spent so much time on build-up and foreshadowing and laying groundwork that he forgot to include story. Also, in the first book having mysterious angels on the wrong side worked because it could be any number of characters the reader had met. Having Finch be guided by a shadowy angel doesn't work here because the only mentioned angels are Uzziel, Michael, Mercury, and Michael's guard. Clearly the falling angel isn't Mercury, and with the introduction we had to Michael at the end of the last book it was clear that's not who it was, so there's little tension wondering who's the renegade.
This was good, but not nearly as good as the first book. In the first everything was leading somewhere, moving toward something. This one was more than halfway through before the narrative started having some direction. Up to that point it was a series of disconnected follow-ups. Christine is doing nothing in particular in Africa, waiting to set things up. Jacob is doing nothing in particular in LA, waiting to become a lynchpin. Present-day Mercury doesn't show up for the first two-thirds of the book, instead we get 4,000 years ago Mercury doing nothing in particular in Babylon. It was all story threads plodding uselessly along waiting to be excitedly bound together in the final section. But it's not enough to have a great conclusion, getting there needs to be interesting as well.
The author spent so much time on build-up and foreshadowing and laying groundwork that he forgot to include story. Also, in the first book having mysterious angels on the wrong side worked because it could be any number of characters the reader had met. Having Finch be guided by a shadowy angel doesn't work here because the only mentioned angels are Uzziel, Michael, Mercury, and Michael's guard. Clearly the falling angel isn't Mercury, and with the introduction we had to Michael at the end of the last book it was clear that's not who it was, so there's little tension wondering who's the renegade.
October 17, 2013
3.5 stars.
Ah, the Apocalypse. Good times! With all the hype it's been getting lately, this version is refreshingly snarky and cynical. Although the humor is getting a little old this go-round.
"Dad!" called a shrill voice from somewhere below deck. "Shem is trying to cut me with a carving knife again!"
Noah turned back to the boat. "Shem!" he hollered, "What did I tell you about eating Ham?" [bada bum]
"Wow, look at that!" Noah exclaimed.
"It's just a rainbow," Mercury stated. "Water vapor in the sky refracting different wavelengths of light at different angles."
Noah smiled and shook his head. " You know, for an angel, you're not very bright," . . .
We have two plots occurring in this second installment of the Mercury series. One, circa 2000 B.C., is the equivalent of a "twisted fairy tale" story of the great flood, where pre-demonic Tiamat and her second-in-command Mercury are in charge of the Seraphic Civilization Shepherding Program in Babylon. Tiamat is obsessed with building ziggurats, which tie in with: Two, the apocalypse storyline from Book 1 continues with the aftermath of the "Anaheim Incident".
This middle book of the trilogy is kind of nebulous. Not much actually happens; I guess it's a set-up for book three. Maybe someday I'll get around to finishing the series. I should probably do it sooner rather than later, before I forget the details of the complicated and convoluted plot and the Host of characters. Get it? Host? : P
Ah, the Apocalypse. Good times! With all the hype it's been getting lately, this version is refreshingly snarky and cynical. Although the humor is getting a little old this go-round.
"Dad!" called a shrill voice from somewhere below deck. "Shem is trying to cut me with a carving knife again!"
Noah turned back to the boat. "Shem!" he hollered, "What did I tell you about eating Ham?" [bada bum]
"Wow, look at that!" Noah exclaimed.
"It's just a rainbow," Mercury stated. "Water vapor in the sky refracting different wavelengths of light at different angles."
Noah smiled and shook his head. " You know, for an angel, you're not very bright," . . .
We have two plots occurring in this second installment of the Mercury series. One, circa 2000 B.C., is the equivalent of a "twisted fairy tale" story of the great flood, where pre-demonic Tiamat and her second-in-command Mercury are in charge of the Seraphic Civilization Shepherding Program in Babylon. Tiamat is obsessed with building ziggurats, which tie in with: Two, the apocalypse storyline from Book 1 continues with the aftermath of the "Anaheim Incident".
This middle book of the trilogy is kind of nebulous. Not much actually happens; I guess it's a set-up for book three. Maybe someday I'll get around to finishing the series. I should probably do it sooner rather than later, before I forget the details of the complicated and convoluted plot and the Host of characters. Get it? Host? : P
November 27, 2011
I think Robert Kroese wrote a sequel to Mercury Falls so he could use lines from songs as dialog.
I think that Robert Kroese wrote a sequel to Mercury Falls to increase the level of entropy in the universe.
I think that Robert Kroese wrote a sequel to Mercury Falls to include a number of bizarre plot twists that make Mercury Rises a Monkee Romp of a novel leading to the inevitable conclusion that there must be another sequel.
I think that Robert Kroese wrote a sequel to Mercury Falls as a clever marketing ploy to make me buy Mercury Swings.
I would like to thank him for all of the above.
I think that Robert Kroese wrote a sequel to Mercury Falls to increase the level of entropy in the universe.
I think that Robert Kroese wrote a sequel to Mercury Falls to include a number of bizarre plot twists that make Mercury Rises a Monkee Romp of a novel leading to the inevitable conclusion that there must be another sequel.
I think that Robert Kroese wrote a sequel to Mercury Falls as a clever marketing ploy to make me buy Mercury Swings.
I would like to thank him for all of the above.
September 20, 2011
Don't tell the publisher but I was able to get an Advanced Reader Copy of Mercury Rises even though I'm only in the 80th percentile of Moderately Above-Average Readers. I enjoyed this book just as much, if not more than, Mercury Falls, the first book in what the author promises will at least be a trilogy. The pace is fast and the humor sneaks up on you before you realize it and what you thought were a couple paragraphs of exposition or lines of snappy dialogue turn out to be not only that but a very clever humorous observation concerning either modern theological thought or the state of American popular culture or something altogether smart and/or silly.
Filled with historical, biblical, popular culture, and scientific references along with an array of engaging characters in interesting situations and varied locals, this book keeps you thinking, laughing, snickering, and wondering how Kroese is going to pull it all together in the final chapters and then being happily surprised at how he pulls it off.
Mercury Rises is set to be released October 18th. You can read teaser chapters at Amazon here: http://www.amazon.com/Mercury-Rises-R...
Filled with historical, biblical, popular culture, and scientific references along with an array of engaging characters in interesting situations and varied locals, this book keeps you thinking, laughing, snickering, and wondering how Kroese is going to pull it all together in the final chapters and then being happily surprised at how he pulls it off.
Mercury Rises is set to be released October 18th. You can read teaser chapters at Amazon here: http://www.amazon.com/Mercury-Rises-R...
April 6, 2015
Robert Kroese's "Mercury Rises" is the 2nd in his "Mercury" series of book. Unfortunately, it suffers a bit from sequelitis. Specifically, it's got all the elements of the first book: irreverent humor, constant japes and wisecracks, and a nicely intertwined plot. But, it's just missing something. It feels just a tad less clever than the first book. My biggest issue with the book, though, isn't really with that lack. Instead, unlike the first book, this one definitely requires the later books. Now, I'd read the first three books once before. From that vantage, I can see that the first book really wasn't complete. But, it "felt" complete. This book doesn't end in a cliff-hanger. But, it's very obvious that there's more that needs doing. These aren't huge issues. But, they're enough for me to drop the rating to merely an OK 3 stars out of 5.
The novels in Robert Kroese's "Mercury" series are:
1. Mercury Falls (Mercury Series Book 1)
2. Mercury Rises (Mercury Series Book 2)
3. Mercury Rests (Mercury Series Book 3)
4. Mercury Revolts: (Book Four of the Mercury Series)
The novels in Robert Kroese's "Mercury" series are:
1. Mercury Falls (Mercury Series Book 1)
2. Mercury Rises (Mercury Series Book 2)
3. Mercury Rests (Mercury Series Book 3)
4. Mercury Revolts: (Book Four of the Mercury Series)
November 5, 2011
A sequel to the hilarious Mercury Falls, Mercury Rises gives readers a insightful backstory on Mercury and his relationship to Tiamat who vows to make Lucifer's rebellion look like a toddler tantrum. I can see satan kicking and screaming now.
And who would have guessed the ark had a name? Noah makes a wonderful appearance with his big boat and been-cooped-up-too-long family and we learn what really happened to certain mystical creatures.
The apocalypse looms large yet again and much-loved characters return. This installment in Mercury's story is rife with plot lines moving faster than a particle collider and more twists and turns than a Tawani mountain crevice.
Kroese's whimsical version of Biblical events is pure genius. But will the world survive his next book? Beware the sparkly apples.
And who would have guessed the ark had a name? Noah makes a wonderful appearance with his big boat and been-cooped-up-too-long family and we learn what really happened to certain mystical creatures.
The apocalypse looms large yet again and much-loved characters return. This installment in Mercury's story is rife with plot lines moving faster than a particle collider and more twists and turns than a Tawani mountain crevice.
Kroese's whimsical version of Biblical events is pure genius. But will the world survive his next book? Beware the sparkly apples.
November 6, 2020
Perhaps it is easiest to have you read my review of the first book in the series, Mercury Falls.
This one is also just pure delightful silliness and I probably even snorted a few times reading this one.
I don't think I could read them one after the other after the other, and I see there's at least a 4th out there now, but my forgetful brain does need to keep them reasonably close as I'll forget the major characters and what's happened to them in the previous book.
Wonderful mindless entertainment and it would be fun to have some wine with Mr. Kroese - he must be a very interesting person.
If slapstick and irony and just outright goofiness are your bag, you need to read these - but I doubt they are going to change your life.
This one is also just pure delightful silliness and I probably even snorted a few times reading this one.
I don't think I could read them one after the other after the other, and I see there's at least a 4th out there now, but my forgetful brain does need to keep them reasonably close as I'll forget the major characters and what's happened to them in the previous book.
Wonderful mindless entertainment and it would be fun to have some wine with Mr. Kroese - he must be a very interesting person.
If slapstick and irony and just outright goofiness are your bag, you need to read these - but I doubt they are going to change your life.
July 10, 2012
This sequel picks up right where the end of Mercury Falls left readers. Maintaining the same light-hearted and amusing tone, this book is another fun and engaging read. I must say, though, I think I enjoyed the “flashback” chapters of Mercury’s life more than the more contemporary plotline. After a while, some of the long-running jokes like Charlie Nyx being synonymous with Harry Potter, become a bit trying, but other long-lasting gags work quite well - like the cursed Culain. This is an entertaining series, and maybe not as strong as some of the books that it is so similar to, but it remains a solid enough series that I do plan on following it.
August 13, 2012
Four stars (instead of five for Mercury Falls) because Mercury Rises is better. WHAT?
Yes, book two is better because Robert Kroese has matured as a writer, but some of the (silly) humour got lost upon the way, and I miss it.
I wonder if you can enjoy this novel if you are not interested in religion at all or if you're a religious nutter. I am an atheist myself, but very much interested in the subject, so I'm fine.
I will most definitely read the third book in the trilogy.
Yes, book two is better because Robert Kroese has matured as a writer, but some of the (silly) humour got lost upon the way, and I miss it.
I wonder if you can enjoy this novel if you are not interested in religion at all or if you're a religious nutter. I am an atheist myself, but very much interested in the subject, so I'm fine.
I will most definitely read the third book in the trilogy.
August 27, 2021
I finally decided to continue with book 2 of the Mercury Falls series several years after reading the first book. I recall the first book being laugh out loud funny at times, which is why I was keen to continue the series. This book did not quite live up to it's predecessor, although it was okay. Parts of it had me cringing, as they have not aged well to the current social climate. The cliffhanger ending was a bit predictable and expected, as the fact that there would be a third book was alluded to several times directly within the text (assuming you were not already aware). In fact, there are currently three more books. I will press on, if only to see in how many more different ways the world can be *almost* destroyed and the main characters *almost* killed.
December 9, 2011
After reading Mercury Falls, I couldn't wait to get my hands on this book! I'm so glad that I was able to stumble upon Robert Kroese' work.
The story is about what happens after the apocalypse is thwarted by Mercury and Christine, with a side of flashbacks into Mercury's past. Kroese has a great sense of humor that shows itself in his writing. I don't generally read satire or humor novels, but in this case I'm looking forward to the next book!
I definitely recommend that you check out this book. It's worth the read. I did spend awhile reading it, but only because I was only reading on my lunch breaks at work. Otherwise I feel this could've been a good weekend read.
The story is about what happens after the apocalypse is thwarted by Mercury and Christine, with a side of flashbacks into Mercury's past. Kroese has a great sense of humor that shows itself in his writing. I don't generally read satire or humor novels, but in this case I'm looking forward to the next book!
I definitely recommend that you check out this book. It's worth the read. I did spend awhile reading it, but only because I was only reading on my lunch breaks at work. Otherwise I feel this could've been a good weekend read.
July 9, 2018
Gotta take one star off this for some sexist comment about angels not choosing physical forms because women have "complicated emotions" . Firstly what has physical form got to do with emotions, secondly, do women have complcated emotions? No women I know do. How about "angels usually chose male forms because it was much easier through most of history to be respected" then you can have what every author wants, a justification to have a disproportionatly male cast and and not being weird and sexist about it.
April 10, 2015
This was an improvement over the first book, it had a lot of very funny moments. But I have to give it 3 stars because there were just too many plot lines to follow at the same time. Each chapter jumped back to a different plot line. This may work ok if you read the book in one sitting, but if you only read a few chapters a day, it becomes hard to follow. I am still looking forward to reading more in the series, so I did like this.
January 29, 2012
Wonderful romp. While Mercury Falls was full of *nudge-nudge* moments that I felt distracted from the story, Mercury Rises lets the story dictate more of the comedy. There are still some of those moments that Rob can't help but throw in, but overall this is much better storytelling. Looking forward to the third!
June 2, 2012
A cast of returning characters from the first book and the same snappy dialogue made this a pretty great read. Not the startling, slap-in-the-face read that the first book was but very enjoyable nonetheless. I'm looking forward to continuing tales of the almost-apocalypse.
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