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The Divine #1
Balance
My name is Landon Hamilton. Once upon a time I was a twenty-three year old security guard, trying to regain my life after spending a year in prison for stealing people's credit card numbers.
Now, I'm dead.
Okay, I was supposed to be dead. I got killed after all; but a funny thing happened after I had turned the mortal coil...
I met Dante Alighieri - yeah, that Dante. He told me I was special, a diuscrucis. That's what they call a perfect balance of human, demon, and angel. Apparently, I'm the only one of my kind.
I also learned that there was a war raging on Earth between Heaven and Hell, and that I was the only one who could save the human race from annihilation. Dante asked me to help, and I was naive enough to agree.
Sounds crazy, I know, but he wished me luck and sent me back to the mortal world. Oh yeah, he also gave me instructions on how to use my Divine 'magic' to bend the universe to my will. The problem is, a sexy vampire crushed them while I was crushing on her.
Now I have to somehow find my own way to stay alive in a world of angels, vampires, werewolves, demons and humans that all want to kill me before I can mess up their plans for humanity's future. If that isn't enough, I also have to find the queen of all demons and recover the Holy Grail.
It's not like it's the end of the world if I fail.
Wait. It is.
------------------------------------
Balance is an Urban Fantasy set in New York City. It is approximately 100,000 words and is suitable for adults both young and old.
Now, I'm dead.
Okay, I was supposed to be dead. I got killed after all; but a funny thing happened after I had turned the mortal coil...
I met Dante Alighieri - yeah, that Dante. He told me I was special, a diuscrucis. That's what they call a perfect balance of human, demon, and angel. Apparently, I'm the only one of my kind.
I also learned that there was a war raging on Earth between Heaven and Hell, and that I was the only one who could save the human race from annihilation. Dante asked me to help, and I was naive enough to agree.
Sounds crazy, I know, but he wished me luck and sent me back to the mortal world. Oh yeah, he also gave me instructions on how to use my Divine 'magic' to bend the universe to my will. The problem is, a sexy vampire crushed them while I was crushing on her.
Now I have to somehow find my own way to stay alive in a world of angels, vampires, werewolves, demons and humans that all want to kill me before I can mess up their plans for humanity's future. If that isn't enough, I also have to find the queen of all demons and recover the Holy Grail.
It's not like it's the end of the world if I fail.
Wait. It is.
------------------------------------
Balance is an Urban Fantasy set in New York City. It is approximately 100,000 words and is suitable for adults both young and old.
444 pages, Kindle Edition
First published January 27, 2013
315 people are currently reading
1934 people want to read
About the author
M.R. Forbes
165 books1,009 followersM.R. Forbes is the author of a growing number of science-fiction series including Rebellion, War Eternal, Chaos of the Covenant, Stars End, and the Forgotten novels. Having spent his childhood trying to read every sci-fi novel he could find (and write his own too), play every sci-fi video game he could get his hands on, and see every sci-fi movie that made it into the theater, he has a true love of the genre across every medium. He works hard to bring that same energy to his own stories, with a continuing goal to entertain, delight, fascinate, and surprise.
He maintains a true appreciation for his readers and is always happy to hear from them.
To learn more about M.R. Forbes or just say hello:
Visit his website:
mrforbes.com
Send him an e-mail:
michael@mrforbes.com
Check out his Facebook page:
facebook.com/mrforbes.author
Join his Facebook fan group:
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He maintains a true appreciation for his readers and is always happy to hear from them.
To learn more about M.R. Forbes or just say hello:
Visit his website:
mrforbes.com
Send him an e-mail:
michael@mrforbes.com
Check out his Facebook page:
facebook.com/mrforbes.author
Join his Facebook fan group:
facebook.com/groups/mrforbes
Follow him on Instagram:
instagram.com/mrforbes_author
Find him on Goodreads:
goodreads.com/mrforbes
Follow him on Bookbub:
bookbub.com/authors/m-r-forbes
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 128 reviews
July 11, 2018
Balance
The Divine Book One
By: M.R. Forbes
Narrated by: Jeff Hays
I really like this new series! A young man that is working at the museum gets killed by a demon, that's right, a demon that is stealing a chalice. He goes to an in-between place. Finds out he is has equal parts demon and angel. He gets a mission to go back, if he wants to continue living. This is one check of a ride! Not only angels, demons, but vampires, werewolves, trolls, and more! He makes friends and enemies along the way. Quite the adventure! Never a dull moment.
The narrator is super awesome and performs this flawlessly!
The Divine Book One
By: M.R. Forbes
Narrated by: Jeff Hays
I really like this new series! A young man that is working at the museum gets killed by a demon, that's right, a demon that is stealing a chalice. He goes to an in-between place. Finds out he is has equal parts demon and angel. He gets a mission to go back, if he wants to continue living. This is one check of a ride! Not only angels, demons, but vampires, werewolves, trolls, and more! He makes friends and enemies along the way. Quite the adventure! Never a dull moment.
The narrator is super awesome and performs this flawlessly!
July 6, 2013
Brainycat's 5 "B"s:
blood: 2
boobs: 0
bombs: 2
bondage: 0
blasphemy: 1
This book has a great premise, but I was only able to get 40% of the way through the book before I gave up. I believe the author has a great imagination and a strong sense of where s/he wants to go with the story. Unfortunately, I didn't feel like his/her authorship skills are as well developed, to the degree that I gave up on the book.
In the tabletop roleplaying world (Dungeons and Dragons, etc) there's a term for a type of game called "Monty Haul". This is a style of game where low level, undeveloped characters are granted extremely potent items that are way too powerful for them, and the storyline allows them to defeat opponents of a much higher caliber than they honestly have a chance against. This story felt like this type of game. The main character, Landon, discovers upon his death he's an extremely rare type of divine creature, somehow a perfect blend of angelic and demonic lineage. He's absorbed into a supernatural organization dedicated to making sure neither demons nor angels win the war for mankind's souls, thereby guaranteeing mankind maintains it's free will.
Like I mentioned, a great premise. But it falls apart in the execution, immediately and with prejudice. The author clearly believes that the angelic traits are "good", "noble" and "proper" and anything that is tainted by demons is outright evil and chaotic. I didn't appreciate this oversimplistic breakdown. Within a couple of days of our intrepid hero's return to the plane of existence of mankind, he's: met ahooker vampire with a heart of gold, allied himself with an angel (virgin, in a 14yo body - with strong overtones of pedophilia), a "normal" human who's unfazed by learning about the divine world (and is a master fighter), defeats a high ranking demon, learns how to control his powers reasonably well... The list goes on. Painfully.
There is always something happening to the protagonist. I mean, every time he goes out to get something to eat, he gets in a fight or something. Usually, I like fast paced action, but this wasn't "fast paced" as much as "incessantly episodic". Reading this felt like watching someone else play a video game - solve puzzle, defeat boss, get reward, expository cut scene. Over and over again.
The other issue I had with this, and ultimately the reason I finally gave up on it, was the voicing of the characters. They all sound the same. The author tries to mix it up with some different accents or vocabularies, but every character feels like they're being portrayed by the same third tier actor - they show up, they move through the blocking while delivering their lines, and then they exit the stage to make room for the next puzzle/boss fight/reward.
And finally, the auther shies away from strong language, eg "...named after Samuel L. Jackson, motherf**ker." and "...went ape-crap crazy...". Gosh, thanks for saving my virginal eyes from anything that could possibly be offensive in this book that's purportedly about DEMONS! It gets one star for the premise, but sadly that's about the only redeeming factor in this book.
blood: 2
boobs: 0
bombs: 2
bondage: 0
blasphemy: 1
This book has a great premise, but I was only able to get 40% of the way through the book before I gave up. I believe the author has a great imagination and a strong sense of where s/he wants to go with the story. Unfortunately, I didn't feel like his/her authorship skills are as well developed, to the degree that I gave up on the book.
In the tabletop roleplaying world (Dungeons and Dragons, etc) there's a term for a type of game called "Monty Haul". This is a style of game where low level, undeveloped characters are granted extremely potent items that are way too powerful for them, and the storyline allows them to defeat opponents of a much higher caliber than they honestly have a chance against. This story felt like this type of game. The main character, Landon, discovers upon his death he's an extremely rare type of divine creature, somehow a perfect blend of angelic and demonic lineage. He's absorbed into a supernatural organization dedicated to making sure neither demons nor angels win the war for mankind's souls, thereby guaranteeing mankind maintains it's free will.
Like I mentioned, a great premise. But it falls apart in the execution, immediately and with prejudice. The author clearly believes that the angelic traits are "good", "noble" and "proper" and anything that is tainted by demons is outright evil and chaotic. I didn't appreciate this oversimplistic breakdown. Within a couple of days of our intrepid hero's return to the plane of existence of mankind, he's: met a
There is always something happening to the protagonist. I mean, every time he goes out to get something to eat, he gets in a fight or something. Usually, I like fast paced action, but this wasn't "fast paced" as much as "incessantly episodic". Reading this felt like watching someone else play a video game - solve puzzle, defeat boss, get reward, expository cut scene. Over and over again.
The other issue I had with this, and ultimately the reason I finally gave up on it, was the voicing of the characters. They all sound the same. The author tries to mix it up with some different accents or vocabularies, but every character feels like they're being portrayed by the same third tier actor - they show up, they move through the blocking while delivering their lines, and then they exit the stage to make room for the next puzzle/boss fight/reward.
And finally, the auther shies away from strong language, eg "...named after Samuel L. Jackson, motherf**ker." and "...went ape-crap crazy...". Gosh, thanks for saving my virginal eyes from anything that could possibly be offensive in this book that's purportedly about DEMONS! It gets one star for the premise, but sadly that's about the only redeeming factor in this book.
March 3, 2014
Good basis, poor execution
I don't want to give up any spoilers about the plot, but I will say that the basic structure of the plot was very interesting. the flaws come with the actual execution and and attention to details. there were times when the plot made no sense; this was either due to a lack of explanation or a focus on details which would later become irrelevant. I liked the story overall, but wish that the author had taken more time to develop certain characters, plot details, and how everything would fit together. At this point I am unsure if I will continue the series.
I don't want to give up any spoilers about the plot, but I will say that the basic structure of the plot was very interesting. the flaws come with the actual execution and and attention to details. there were times when the plot made no sense; this was either due to a lack of explanation or a focus on details which would later become irrelevant. I liked the story overall, but wish that the author had taken more time to develop certain characters, plot details, and how everything would fit together. At this point I am unsure if I will continue the series.
August 23, 2022
Finished Reading June 11, 2013
Boring & weird.
Oh, and don't expect any sex scenes.
All & all, disappointing.
Prch Amz June 11, 2013
Boring & weird.
Oh, and don't expect any sex scenes.
All & all, disappointing.
Prch Amz June 11, 2013
June 4, 2013
Landon is a pretty average guy. And this story starts with his death.
We follow him to Purgatory, and to the revelation of his destiny. To be a champion for humankind, and be able to wield all manner of magic and bend the world to his will. The downside - he's not fighting for good or evil; he's in fact fighting to make sure there is no outright winner, because if either side wins, humans will pay the price. Which means that both sides consider him the enemy, and he has no allies.
Landon is sent back to earth to restore the balance. The war is currently tipping in the demons' direction, and he needs to find a way to set them back.
This involves angels, vampires, weres and marines.
I downloaded this for free from Amazon a while ago, and eventually got round to reading it. I'll be honest, I wasn't overly drawn to it by the description, and I am always sceptical of high reviews, but thought I'd give it a go.
The first couple of chapters were ok, but I felt like I was reading the book accompaniment of 'The Matrix', which was only compounded by references to the film. I was worried that the rest of the book would continue to rely on established media. And do you know what, it did - but I am going to have to eat my words; because as it went on, the little references to The Matrix, Star Wars, Captain America (and any others I might have missed) were all really funny and made my geek side smile.
As soon as Landon is sent back to earth, he stumbles along from one incident to another, gradually learning what he is capable of and how to control it. He gathers an unlikely team to help him, as we learn more about his enemies.
Balance is a perfect mix of action, adventure, angels and demons. It is a thrilling ride as Landon tries to keep some sense of direction in the war he has been thrown into the middle of. There is magic, sword fights and gun battles, and they are all expertly written, never feeling clumpy or overdone.
So all in all, I turned from a sceptic to being absolutely blown away. It was so exciting that even my usual glass of wine was completely neglected as I was so wrapped-up in reading just one more chapter. I'm not sure how that translates into Goodreads stars, but I'm going to give it a 5 without doubt.
I cannot wait to read the rest of the series and see how it all unfolds for Landon.
We follow him to Purgatory, and to the revelation of his destiny. To be a champion for humankind, and be able to wield all manner of magic and bend the world to his will. The downside - he's not fighting for good or evil; he's in fact fighting to make sure there is no outright winner, because if either side wins, humans will pay the price. Which means that both sides consider him the enemy, and he has no allies.
Landon is sent back to earth to restore the balance. The war is currently tipping in the demons' direction, and he needs to find a way to set them back.
This involves angels, vampires, weres and marines.
I downloaded this for free from Amazon a while ago, and eventually got round to reading it. I'll be honest, I wasn't overly drawn to it by the description, and I am always sceptical of high reviews, but thought I'd give it a go.
The first couple of chapters were ok, but I felt like I was reading the book accompaniment of 'The Matrix', which was only compounded by references to the film. I was worried that the rest of the book would continue to rely on established media. And do you know what, it did - but I am going to have to eat my words; because as it went on, the little references to The Matrix, Star Wars, Captain America (and any others I might have missed) were all really funny and made my geek side smile.
As soon as Landon is sent back to earth, he stumbles along from one incident to another, gradually learning what he is capable of and how to control it. He gathers an unlikely team to help him, as we learn more about his enemies.
Balance is a perfect mix of action, adventure, angels and demons. It is a thrilling ride as Landon tries to keep some sense of direction in the war he has been thrown into the middle of. There is magic, sword fights and gun battles, and they are all expertly written, never feeling clumpy or overdone.
So all in all, I turned from a sceptic to being absolutely blown away. It was so exciting that even my usual glass of wine was completely neglected as I was so wrapped-up in reading just one more chapter. I'm not sure how that translates into Goodreads stars, but I'm going to give it a 5 without doubt.
I cannot wait to read the rest of the series and see how it all unfolds for Landon.
August 14, 2018
Forbes has a couple of decent series, and I typically enjoy reading his books, but this particular story line is so deeply flawed that I can't help but rate it one star.
There is objective good and evil in the world, however the author plays with the concept that all things must exist in a balance, and as such allowing a demon to painfully kill a few innocents (or doing so yourself) is fine as long as some demons suffer next. This concept is dirty, immoral, and deeply odious to me.
What we are left with is a universe in which no one is really good, or really evil. Angels are rigid, preachy, and looking for a way to stab you in the back within the constraints of their rules. The good ones recognize this about their kind, and throw morality to the winds, colluding with demons who hunt people for sport, and performing impressive mental gymnastics to write off the deaths of those mortals as simply required for the "Balance".
Demons tear people to pieces with glee one moment, but - it is revealed - are really just just flawed beings like you and me. They are capable of love, so that makes them noble, and also "balanced".
The end result is a nihilistic main character who slaughters mortals, demons, and angels alike, one moment agonizing over his deeds, and the next shrugging off the deaths of hundreds like some sort of schizophrenic psychopath. The good guys are revealed as bad, the bad guys, no matter how twisted and evil, are allies the next.
This thinking that "anything is justifiable from a certain point of view" is deeply troubling, deeply immoral, and I find that the story that arises from such an abominable abandonment of principles is too twisted to be worth reading.
There is objective good and evil in the world, however the author plays with the concept that all things must exist in a balance, and as such allowing a demon to painfully kill a few innocents (or doing so yourself) is fine as long as some demons suffer next. This concept is dirty, immoral, and deeply odious to me.
What we are left with is a universe in which no one is really good, or really evil. Angels are rigid, preachy, and looking for a way to stab you in the back within the constraints of their rules. The good ones recognize this about their kind, and throw morality to the winds, colluding with demons who hunt people for sport, and performing impressive mental gymnastics to write off the deaths of those mortals as simply required for the "Balance".
Demons tear people to pieces with glee one moment, but - it is revealed - are really just just flawed beings like you and me. They are capable of love, so that makes them noble, and also "balanced".
The end result is a nihilistic main character who slaughters mortals, demons, and angels alike, one moment agonizing over his deeds, and the next shrugging off the deaths of hundreds like some sort of schizophrenic psychopath. The good guys are revealed as bad, the bad guys, no matter how twisted and evil, are allies the next.
This thinking that "anything is justifiable from a certain point of view" is deeply troubling, deeply immoral, and I find that the story that arises from such an abominable abandonment of principles is too twisted to be worth reading.
February 3, 2016
I had one reservation about Balance, which will become obvious in the course of this review. It was a book that I chose to buy although I could have borrowed it for free with Amazon Prime. I chose to do that because it looked like the sort of fantasy I would enjoy again and again. I was not disappointed. The book is well written, professionally presented and is full of action throughout. It has an interesting premise about a war between Angels, Demons and a Diuscrucis, and the author tackled it well in my opinion. Minor quibble - I was a little surprised that the villain had a "British English" accent. Personally I think "English accent" would have sufficed. Other than that I had no technical quibbles at all. The only reason it fell short of the 5* mark for me was that I found the ending too abrupt and it keeps you hanging like a soap opera would. I am not a fan of the soap opera style, preferring movies or series with distinct episodes, so I felt disappointed that the ending left me high and dry. Never mind, if "Betrayed" is on Amazon Prime I will borrow it. If you are a fan of this sort of series that should present no problem though.
August 27, 2015
Finally! An angel / demon / vampire / werewolf book for adults. No teenage angst, no whining, giggling girls ogling yellow eyed, pale faced vampires.
We have our reluctant hero?? Who has just been killed and is now walking the earth / purgatory as a diuscrucis. Yes I've never heard of it either. Apparently it's part angel, part demon and part human. So Landon and his A-Team of an ex-marine (human with some upgrades), vampire goddess (she's not like all the rest, yeah we've all heard that before) and an angel (who has a little trouble and gets booted out of heaven and becomes a fallen angel). Together they are on a quest to find the Demon Queen who actually was the one who killed Landon initially, who has stolen the Holy Grail, yes The Grail, and to restore the balance between Heaven and Hell.
The plot is not particularly deep, it's fairly predictable but that doesn't take away from the overall story. I still enjoyed the book and would recommend it to those who like a break from some of the heavier fantasies and like a good urban fantasy. It actually reminds me a bit of Jim Butcher's Dresden Files. I will definitely be continuing with the series.
We have our reluctant hero?? Who has just been killed and is now walking the earth / purgatory as a diuscrucis. Yes I've never heard of it either. Apparently it's part angel, part demon and part human. So Landon and his A-Team of an ex-marine (human with some upgrades), vampire goddess (she's not like all the rest, yeah we've all heard that before) and an angel (who has a little trouble and gets booted out of heaven and becomes a fallen angel). Together they are on a quest to find the Demon Queen who actually was the one who killed Landon initially, who has stolen the Holy Grail, yes The Grail, and to restore the balance between Heaven and Hell.
The plot is not particularly deep, it's fairly predictable but that doesn't take away from the overall story. I still enjoyed the book and would recommend it to those who like a break from some of the heavier fantasies and like a good urban fantasy. It actually reminds me a bit of Jim Butcher's Dresden Files. I will definitely be continuing with the series.
February 3, 2014
*****MAY CONTAIN SPOILERS*****
This book was very solid, M.R. Forbes did an excellent job of keeping Landon "balanced" between good and evil. All the characters felt well developed, except for Ulnyx and Josette who I feel could have had a little more of a personality.
This book was very solid, M.R. Forbes did an excellent job of keeping Landon "balanced" between good and evil. All the characters felt well developed, except for Ulnyx and Josette who I feel could have had a little more of a personality.
July 27, 2014
Love the story and love the concept but hate the characters.
I'm going to read the next book just because I feel I must but I don't expect much.
I'm going to read the next book just because I feel I must but I don't expect much.
June 4, 2019
I tried. I really did. I got through 55% of it and hit the wall. The author clearly has a good imagination, just doesn't have the writing skills to back it up. Bland characters with all the same voice, muddled story, repetative situations.
July 18, 2016
This review is of the audiobook edition, available from Audible.
Balance is a very good and unique entry in the already overly crowded urban fantasy genre. Balance is the first book of a 6 book series (so far, as of 7/16). If you are tired of the same old story of a magic using private investigator, give Balance a try. It is an enjoyable and interesting take on Good vs Evil and explores the possibility and responsibilities of a third party in that two party fight. I can see how there are going to be significant moral quandaries in future installments as one party or another gains the upper hand and the protagonist and his allies return balance to the conflict. It will be interesting to see how the protagonist and his allies handle them these moral dilemmas and where it takes them in their personal development.
Just a few minutes into the story our protagonist, Landon, gets killed. He wakes up in Purgatory and soon learns that he is unique: he is exactly equal parts angelic, demonic, and human and, as such, is needed to represent the cosmic force of balance in the ongoing battle between Heaven and Hell. His mission is to make sure neither party, Heaven or Hell, ever gets the upper hand because if they do, humanity will be the real loser. He is soon thrown, untrained, into the thick of things on Earth and learns that both of the forces of Heaven and Hell agree on only one thing: the representatives of Balance are universally hated and killed on sight. Landon has powers but no idea what they are or how to use them and it is interesting to see how he adapts to his circumstances. Along the way Landon picks up a few allies and their inclusion promises depth and character growth in subsequent adventures. The plot is fast-paced and easily held my attention as I finished this almost 10 hr audiobook in a day and a half. I *greatly* appreciated that the author refrained from making this an angst-ridden novel of “o woe is me, am I Good or Bad?” and had the protagonist accept his role and move on.
The narration by Jeff Hays was superb. He demonstrated remarkable skill with his voice. For example, a 10 year old girl sounded like a 10 yr old girl, not a man trying to sound like a girl (I am still trying to figure out how he did it!). There were plenty of opportunities for him to show off his talents: cultured Italian accented English, demonic and angelic voices of both sexes, rage, grief, remorse. There were several instances of appropriate and intentional overdubbing (for ex, a giggle/chuckle in the background as the character spoke) and several examples of the use of electronic voice modulation as a were-beast or angel or demon raged and it was said in the text how the character’s voice reverberated… This was an excellent example of how an audiobook experience can be more than just a book read aloud. This was simply a superb performance and it elevated a good book to very good status. I have added Mr Hays to my “Narrators-to-be-watched” category and would gladly base a buying decision on his choice as narrator/performer of that audiobook. The production quality was above average and showed an attention to detail that I normally associate with Audible Studios or Blackstone Audio productions; for production quality, a compliment doesn’t get much better than that!
Balance is a worthy entry into the urban fantasy genre and a promising start to a series with unlimited potential. The real stars of this book were the interesting premise and the excellent narration. With a lot of the character development and world building out of the way, I anticipate successive novels will be difficult for the listener to hit pause. I am definitely going to be exploring more of this interesting world and conflict Mr Forbes has given us.
I received this audiobook for free courtesy of Audiobook Jukebox in exchange for a fair and unbiased review and doing so has no effect on my review, positive or negative.
Balance is a very good and unique entry in the already overly crowded urban fantasy genre. Balance is the first book of a 6 book series (so far, as of 7/16). If you are tired of the same old story of a magic using private investigator, give Balance a try. It is an enjoyable and interesting take on Good vs Evil and explores the possibility and responsibilities of a third party in that two party fight. I can see how there are going to be significant moral quandaries in future installments as one party or another gains the upper hand and the protagonist and his allies return balance to the conflict. It will be interesting to see how the protagonist and his allies handle them these moral dilemmas and where it takes them in their personal development.
Just a few minutes into the story our protagonist, Landon, gets killed. He wakes up in Purgatory and soon learns that he is unique: he is exactly equal parts angelic, demonic, and human and, as such, is needed to represent the cosmic force of balance in the ongoing battle between Heaven and Hell. His mission is to make sure neither party, Heaven or Hell, ever gets the upper hand because if they do, humanity will be the real loser. He is soon thrown, untrained, into the thick of things on Earth and learns that both of the forces of Heaven and Hell agree on only one thing: the representatives of Balance are universally hated and killed on sight. Landon has powers but no idea what they are or how to use them and it is interesting to see how he adapts to his circumstances. Along the way Landon picks up a few allies and their inclusion promises depth and character growth in subsequent adventures. The plot is fast-paced and easily held my attention as I finished this almost 10 hr audiobook in a day and a half. I *greatly* appreciated that the author refrained from making this an angst-ridden novel of “o woe is me, am I Good or Bad?” and had the protagonist accept his role and move on.
The narration by Jeff Hays was superb. He demonstrated remarkable skill with his voice. For example, a 10 year old girl sounded like a 10 yr old girl, not a man trying to sound like a girl (I am still trying to figure out how he did it!). There were plenty of opportunities for him to show off his talents: cultured Italian accented English, demonic and angelic voices of both sexes, rage, grief, remorse. There were several instances of appropriate and intentional overdubbing (for ex, a giggle/chuckle in the background as the character spoke) and several examples of the use of electronic voice modulation as a were-beast or angel or demon raged and it was said in the text how the character’s voice reverberated… This was an excellent example of how an audiobook experience can be more than just a book read aloud. This was simply a superb performance and it elevated a good book to very good status. I have added Mr Hays to my “Narrators-to-be-watched” category and would gladly base a buying decision on his choice as narrator/performer of that audiobook. The production quality was above average and showed an attention to detail that I normally associate with Audible Studios or Blackstone Audio productions; for production quality, a compliment doesn’t get much better than that!
Balance is a worthy entry into the urban fantasy genre and a promising start to a series with unlimited potential. The real stars of this book were the interesting premise and the excellent narration. With a lot of the character development and world building out of the way, I anticipate successive novels will be difficult for the listener to hit pause. I am definitely going to be exploring more of this interesting world and conflict Mr Forbes has given us.
I received this audiobook for free courtesy of Audiobook Jukebox in exchange for a fair and unbiased review and doing so has no effect on my review, positive or negative.
April 10, 2016
Angels and demons walk the earth and most people are lucky enough to not know this. However, our main character, Landon Hamilton, becomes rudely aware of this when he learns his own heritage. Yeah, he’s no saint, having done a little prison time for his money theft via computer. He stole from little old ladies and kids’ future college funds. Now he’s out on probation and not allowed within 5 feet of a computer for several years. But he’s got bigger issues in his life, like both demons and angels wanting him dead. He learns of all this when he ‘dies’ and he meets another that was once like him. He’s given a choice and he chooses to return to Earth with his new powers.
This is an interesting new take on an age-old conflict: Good versus Evil. The only person who can save humanity is this mix of devil and angel, and throughout this tale he befriends members on both sides of the conflict. Landon collects an eclectic group of allies along the way. There’s Obi, an ex-military paranormal specialist who is also a computer hacker and weapons specialist. Then there’s Rebecca, a vampire with a few secrets that could be our hero’s undoing. Josette, an angel, starts off wanting Landon dead but is eventually swayed to give him an assist in his quest to find the Grail (yep, that one!) and maintain the balance. Also, she has a dirty little secret that surprised the hell (or heaven) out of me.
Once we have the set up, there are some parts of the story that are a bit predictable. However, with that said, I didn’t mind in the least because I quite enjoyed the characters. M. R. Forbes has wowed me with his other works (Starship Eternal and Dead Lucky among them), so I was expecting a lot from this story. While this story wasn’t quite as good as the other two series, I plan to continue on with it.
Landon has the most depth of character, being this guy who can see the benefits to being a bit selfish, a bit of a lawbreaker at times. Then he also has a code, lines that he won’t cross. Meanwhile, demons and angels alike want him dead because he’s seen as a threat or an impediment. The tale has plenty of fight scenes and not too much introspection. There’s also touches of humor here and there (points for the Star Wars references).
Towards the end, it’s Josette who steals the scene. Her choices at the end of this book really added weight to the tale. It will be very interesting to see what the ramifications are in the next book.
I received a copy of this audiobook at no cost from the narrator in exchange for an honest review.
Narration: Jeff Hays continues to wow me with his abilities. His female voices are simply uncanny. I know it’s him and him alone narrating this book but I still found myself double checking the credits. His voice for the angelic Josette was excellent. I also liked his rougher voice for the practical Obi.
This is an interesting new take on an age-old conflict: Good versus Evil. The only person who can save humanity is this mix of devil and angel, and throughout this tale he befriends members on both sides of the conflict. Landon collects an eclectic group of allies along the way. There’s Obi, an ex-military paranormal specialist who is also a computer hacker and weapons specialist. Then there’s Rebecca, a vampire with a few secrets that could be our hero’s undoing. Josette, an angel, starts off wanting Landon dead but is eventually swayed to give him an assist in his quest to find the Grail (yep, that one!) and maintain the balance. Also, she has a dirty little secret that surprised the hell (or heaven) out of me.
Once we have the set up, there are some parts of the story that are a bit predictable. However, with that said, I didn’t mind in the least because I quite enjoyed the characters. M. R. Forbes has wowed me with his other works (Starship Eternal and Dead Lucky among them), so I was expecting a lot from this story. While this story wasn’t quite as good as the other two series, I plan to continue on with it.
Landon has the most depth of character, being this guy who can see the benefits to being a bit selfish, a bit of a lawbreaker at times. Then he also has a code, lines that he won’t cross. Meanwhile, demons and angels alike want him dead because he’s seen as a threat or an impediment. The tale has plenty of fight scenes and not too much introspection. There’s also touches of humor here and there (points for the Star Wars references).
Towards the end, it’s Josette who steals the scene. Her choices at the end of this book really added weight to the tale. It will be very interesting to see what the ramifications are in the next book.
I received a copy of this audiobook at no cost from the narrator in exchange for an honest review.
Narration: Jeff Hays continues to wow me with his abilities. His female voices are simply uncanny. I know it’s him and him alone narrating this book but I still found myself double checking the credits. His voice for the angelic Josette was excellent. I also liked his rougher voice for the practical Obi.
September 3, 2016
[Just to be above board, I got a free copy from the narrator of the audiobook. I've tried not to let that fact sway my review.]
First off, the story: Balance is a very quick pace supernatural action story. The story starts where many finish: with the death of the main character. Upon dying he finds himself in purgatory before being told of an epic battle between Angels and Demons. Yes, the same one people have been writing about forever. But this is a little different, in that Landon is told there is actually a 3rd party that is in the battle - one who sole purpose is to ensure that neither of the other sides win and that the fight is always kept in balance. Landon is roped into being on this side (to me a rather depressing thing, because there is no way he can ever win. there is no end game for him). As an enemy of both angels and demons he is sent back to earth to keep the world in balance.
I found the characters all interesting and varying. the only one that struck me as too unbelievable was the most normal of them all. Or at least the only major non-paranormal one. The friend, Obi, is a ex-military drill sergeant, crack shot, computer hacker, paranormal specialist. There can't be many of those in the world. But then maybe there is only one and the fact that Landon found him is some sort of divine gift.
The action was great and (mostly) unrelenting. It did slow down at times for a few deeper conversations and moments. And also for a few "info dump" world building moments. The only one of these that felt really off and forced to me was one of the early ones contained in a letter/instruction book.
The only other annoyance (I'm mostly mentioning things that annoyed, but I really did enjoy the book) was the cliffhanger ending. There was some resolution to the book but not that much. It clearly is set up as part 1 of 3 or something, rather than a self contained book that happens to have a sequel.
Over all 3.5, edging towards a 4. Audible's lack of nuance in scoring makes me give it a 4.
Narrator (and audio production): This was really good. It was clear the narrator put a lot of effort into the narration and the production. Effects were used for monsters voices to give them a stronger sound, each character had a clear and distinguishable voice, and inflection on things like sarcasm or fear or anger were clear.
The only thing of it that I found a little off and jarring was laughter. When characters laughed the narrator did the typical chuckle that narrators do, but also added an additional laugh on top of the narration. Possibly to make the laugh sound more real, but if didn't really work for me.
Overall the annoyance with that was minor, so I would say narration etc is 4 / 5.
First off, the story: Balance is a very quick pace supernatural action story. The story starts where many finish: with the death of the main character. Upon dying he finds himself in purgatory before being told of an epic battle between Angels and Demons. Yes, the same one people have been writing about forever. But this is a little different, in that Landon is told there is actually a 3rd party that is in the battle - one who sole purpose is to ensure that neither of the other sides win and that the fight is always kept in balance. Landon is roped into being on this side (to me a rather depressing thing, because there is no way he can ever win. there is no end game for him). As an enemy of both angels and demons he is sent back to earth to keep the world in balance.
I found the characters all interesting and varying. the only one that struck me as too unbelievable was the most normal of them all. Or at least the only major non-paranormal one. The friend, Obi, is a ex-military drill sergeant, crack shot, computer hacker, paranormal specialist. There can't be many of those in the world. But then maybe there is only one and the fact that Landon found him is some sort of divine gift.
The action was great and (mostly) unrelenting. It did slow down at times for a few deeper conversations and moments. And also for a few "info dump" world building moments. The only one of these that felt really off and forced to me was one of the early ones contained in a letter/instruction book.
The only other annoyance (I'm mostly mentioning things that annoyed, but I really did enjoy the book) was the cliffhanger ending. There was some resolution to the book but not that much. It clearly is set up as part 1 of 3 or something, rather than a self contained book that happens to have a sequel.
Over all 3.5, edging towards a 4. Audible's lack of nuance in scoring makes me give it a 4.
Narrator (and audio production): This was really good. It was clear the narrator put a lot of effort into the narration and the production. Effects were used for monsters voices to give them a stronger sound, each character had a clear and distinguishable voice, and inflection on things like sarcasm or fear or anger were clear.
The only thing of it that I found a little off and jarring was laughter. When characters laughed the narrator did the typical chuckle that narrators do, but also added an additional laugh on top of the narration. Possibly to make the laugh sound more real, but if didn't really work for me.
Overall the annoyance with that was minor, so I would say narration etc is 4 / 5.
May 29, 2015
This was an okay book and considering it was a debut novel for an independent author it was well written and without many errors (that I could see). In spite of that and the fairly strong idea for this book, I felt that it was a little lacking in the development department.
Langdon (still not sure if that's a first, last or solo name) the hero of this book is killed in the early chapters and finds that he happens to be the perfect balance of good and evil to be a champion for the third side in the war, balance. He is sent back to earth with a mission to restore the balance between good and evil but before he can receive any kind of training things go bad and he ends up having to figure it out on his own.
We follow our protagonist from one adventure to the next, all of them happening so often that it started to feel that everyone on the planet was in on this secret battle and they were all out to get him.
To be honest it was a nice idea but there are a few areas I would love to see expanded on and developed more. The relationships could have done with a bit of work outside of life or death situations to allow the characters to have a chance to bond. We could have done with a little bit more time to get to know Langdon's powers before he was thrown in the deep end as the action sequences tended to overshadow his gifts somewhat. Basically I felt we could have done with a little more of everything.
What really made this a 3 star book for this reader though, was the fact that the character is a mixed character in terms of motivation. This time he is fighting on the side of good but there will come a time when the actions he needs to take in order to restore the balance is to fight on the side of evil. That's a hard pill to swallow in a protagonist. It's a nice idea but it is hard to still like someone when he might end up fighting for the dark side.
Overall though it is quite a good book. I don't think I'll be delving into the sequel quite yet but someday I might give this series another go.
Langdon (still not sure if that's a first, last or solo name) the hero of this book is killed in the early chapters and finds that he happens to be the perfect balance of good and evil to be a champion for the third side in the war, balance. He is sent back to earth with a mission to restore the balance between good and evil but before he can receive any kind of training things go bad and he ends up having to figure it out on his own.
We follow our protagonist from one adventure to the next, all of them happening so often that it started to feel that everyone on the planet was in on this secret battle and they were all out to get him.
To be honest it was a nice idea but there are a few areas I would love to see expanded on and developed more. The relationships could have done with a bit of work outside of life or death situations to allow the characters to have a chance to bond. We could have done with a little bit more time to get to know Langdon's powers before he was thrown in the deep end as the action sequences tended to overshadow his gifts somewhat. Basically I felt we could have done with a little more of everything.
What really made this a 3 star book for this reader though, was the fact that the character is a mixed character in terms of motivation. This time he is fighting on the side of good but there will come a time when the actions he needs to take in order to restore the balance is to fight on the side of evil. That's a hard pill to swallow in a protagonist. It's a nice idea but it is hard to still like someone when he might end up fighting for the dark side.
Overall though it is quite a good book. I don't think I'll be delving into the sequel quite yet but someday I might give this series another go.
January 30, 2018
Höllisch gut! Oder vielleicht doch himmlisch?
Landon stirbt als der heilige Gral gestohlen wird. Und er erwacht im Fegefeuer. Ja richtig, das gibt es und den Himmel auch. Und die Hölle und Dämonen und Engel und Vampire. Er ist ein Halbblut. Teils Mensch, teils Dämon und teils Engel. Auf jeden Fall ein Göttlicher. Und er soll nun das Gleichgewicht des Universums zwischen Gut und Böse retten. Denn das Böse ist auf dem Vormarsch.
Ich wusste nicht richtig, was mich bei diesem Buch erwarten würde. Die Beschreibung klingt einfach verrückt. Ich muss sagen, ich wurde wirklich überrascht. Schon auf den ersten Seiten hat sich gezeigt, dass diese Geschichte wirklich verrückt ist aber auf eine wirklich gute Art.
Der Schreibstil ist wirklich lässig. Er passt einfach zu dem abgefahrenen Typen Landon, der es irgendwie ziemlich schnell akzeptiert, dass es mehr gibt, als die Menschen glauben. Der Schreibstil lässt sich sehr gut lesen und hat wirklich einige Stellen mit etwas bissigem Humor, der mich immer wieder mindestens Schmunzeln ließ.
Die Figuren sind alle ziemlich gut erschaffen. Landon ist einfach nur cool. Er ist sympathisch und irgendwie ein Draufgänger, obwohl er manchmal doch ins Fettnäpfchen tritt und gerettet werden muss.
Seine Begleiter sind alle in ihrer eigenen Art anders und ziemlich speziell. Sie ergänzen diese Story sehr gut und geben ihr den richtigen Schliff.
Die Gegner sind so, wie man sich himmlische bzw. höllische Feinde eben vorstellt. Sie passen perfekt ins Bild und runden das Weltbild ab. Welches übrigens verdammt gut entworfen wurde. Es gibt Dimensionen, Welten, verschiedenste Wesen und unterschiedlichste Seins-Arten. Da hat sich auf jeden Fall einer was bei gedacht.
Die Spannungskurve wechselt von Ich-will-mehr-wissen-spannend zu Jetzt-geht-die-Action-ab-spannend. Eine gute Mischung, die mich auf jeden Fall hat weiterlesen lassen.
Und dann erst das Ende. Da hätte ich ja doch am liebsten ausrasten können. Gut, dass der zweite Teil in knapp vier Monaten erscheint. Ich werde ihn auf jeden Fall lesen!
Landon stirbt als der heilige Gral gestohlen wird. Und er erwacht im Fegefeuer. Ja richtig, das gibt es und den Himmel auch. Und die Hölle und Dämonen und Engel und Vampire. Er ist ein Halbblut. Teils Mensch, teils Dämon und teils Engel. Auf jeden Fall ein Göttlicher. Und er soll nun das Gleichgewicht des Universums zwischen Gut und Böse retten. Denn das Böse ist auf dem Vormarsch.
Ich wusste nicht richtig, was mich bei diesem Buch erwarten würde. Die Beschreibung klingt einfach verrückt. Ich muss sagen, ich wurde wirklich überrascht. Schon auf den ersten Seiten hat sich gezeigt, dass diese Geschichte wirklich verrückt ist aber auf eine wirklich gute Art.
Der Schreibstil ist wirklich lässig. Er passt einfach zu dem abgefahrenen Typen Landon, der es irgendwie ziemlich schnell akzeptiert, dass es mehr gibt, als die Menschen glauben. Der Schreibstil lässt sich sehr gut lesen und hat wirklich einige Stellen mit etwas bissigem Humor, der mich immer wieder mindestens Schmunzeln ließ.
Die Figuren sind alle ziemlich gut erschaffen. Landon ist einfach nur cool. Er ist sympathisch und irgendwie ein Draufgänger, obwohl er manchmal doch ins Fettnäpfchen tritt und gerettet werden muss.
Seine Begleiter sind alle in ihrer eigenen Art anders und ziemlich speziell. Sie ergänzen diese Story sehr gut und geben ihr den richtigen Schliff.
Die Gegner sind so, wie man sich himmlische bzw. höllische Feinde eben vorstellt. Sie passen perfekt ins Bild und runden das Weltbild ab. Welches übrigens verdammt gut entworfen wurde. Es gibt Dimensionen, Welten, verschiedenste Wesen und unterschiedlichste Seins-Arten. Da hat sich auf jeden Fall einer was bei gedacht.
Die Spannungskurve wechselt von Ich-will-mehr-wissen-spannend zu Jetzt-geht-die-Action-ab-spannend. Eine gute Mischung, die mich auf jeden Fall hat weiterlesen lassen.
Und dann erst das Ende. Da hätte ich ja doch am liebsten ausrasten können. Gut, dass der zweite Teil in knapp vier Monaten erscheint. Ich werde ihn auf jeden Fall lesen!
January 9, 2015
I started reading this book because i like fantasy novels and romance novels with huge conflicts and this book just so happened to be already downloaded as an ebook on my iPad. When i started to read, i didn't know what to expect, i didn't even know if i would get past the first chapter without abandoning the book. Well, i didn't abandon the book, instead i finished the whole series, all 4 books!
Plot Line:
One thing in this book that impressed me was how the author could just change the entire story by just one single plot twist. There were so many betrayals and turn of events that i was really surprised. For example, (spoiler alert) when Landon was about to die, i thought he would go on to another plot, but then Josette offered her soul to him. When that happened, i was really glad and so happy, but i was also really sad that she died. Josette gave everything to Landon because she knew he would save the world, as said in page 424, "I will protect you fellow. i will save you, so that you can save your world. i believe it is his will." This shows that Josette really believed in Landon to give herself up to him.
The overall significance of this book to me isn't really that big. This book is just a book to be read for fun. But i certainly recommend it.
441 pages
Plot Line:
One thing in this book that impressed me was how the author could just change the entire story by just one single plot twist. There were so many betrayals and turn of events that i was really surprised. For example, (spoiler alert) when Landon was about to die, i thought he would go on to another plot, but then Josette offered her soul to him. When that happened, i was really glad and so happy, but i was also really sad that she died. Josette gave everything to Landon because she knew he would save the world, as said in page 424, "I will protect you fellow. i will save you, so that you can save your world. i believe it is his will." This shows that Josette really believed in Landon to give herself up to him.
The overall significance of this book to me isn't really that big. This book is just a book to be read for fun. But i certainly recommend it.
441 pages
August 5, 2013
I have to hand it to Forbes - he wrote the book of my childhood imagination.
The landscape of using religious imagery/mythology to play out an actual battle happening on Earth was enjoyable and fun. However, the brilliant stroke of genius was having the realm of purgatory act as the hero. That is something different than your standard religious fantasy and it kept my interest going until the end.
The world building is excellent and the characters feel real. It's obvious a lot of time went into fleshing out this world completely.
My only qualm is the pacing. The book moved at a great pace until the ending, which felt rushed. I understand the ending is setting up to the sequel, but it seemed to end a little too quickly. However, even though the ending felt rushed, the book didn't fall apart from it - which is why I kept the rating at 5 stars.
This isn't your typical urban fantasy world (although there are elements of it here), but if you have a fascination with religious imagination, you will enjoy it.
The landscape of using religious imagery/mythology to play out an actual battle happening on Earth was enjoyable and fun. However, the brilliant stroke of genius was having the realm of purgatory act as the hero. That is something different than your standard religious fantasy and it kept my interest going until the end.
The world building is excellent and the characters feel real. It's obvious a lot of time went into fleshing out this world completely.
My only qualm is the pacing. The book moved at a great pace until the ending, which felt rushed. I understand the ending is setting up to the sequel, but it seemed to end a little too quickly. However, even though the ending felt rushed, the book didn't fall apart from it - which is why I kept the rating at 5 stars.
This isn't your typical urban fantasy world (although there are elements of it here), but if you have a fascination with religious imagination, you will enjoy it.
January 31, 2014
Good story, well written. The characters have enough depth for a Book One, and the layout of the plot and premises of the book works for me. The action was fast-paced enough and the story didn't feel like it bogged down at any point.
I will say that the naivete of the protagonist is sometimes wearing, especially at the end of the book. Like most such stories, he survives through the sacrifices of others. For a supposed former "cracker," his ability to think things out or through to logical conclusions is quite poor. Hackers/programmers/crackers have need of a mind that thinks through logic points and draw conclusions based on available data until new data comes along to change things. The Prot's ability to do even that much is highly questionable.
Still, overall, a story-line/plot/saga worth spending the money on to be entertained. You can't ask for more than that in today's world...I guess.
I will say that the naivete of the protagonist is sometimes wearing, especially at the end of the book. Like most such stories, he survives through the sacrifices of others. For a supposed former "cracker," his ability to think things out or through to logical conclusions is quite poor. Hackers/programmers/crackers have need of a mind that thinks through logic points and draw conclusions based on available data until new data comes along to change things. The Prot's ability to do even that much is highly questionable.
Still, overall, a story-line/plot/saga worth spending the money on to be entertained. You can't ask for more than that in today's world...I guess.
July 31, 2016
"This audiobook was provided by the author, narrator, or publisher at no cost in exchange for an unbiased review courtesy of AudiobookBoom dot com."
Balance is probably one of the best books I have read in a while. I hate you M.R. Forbes because of the ending. Never in my life did I see that one coming. Actually got a little pissed. And that is the way to keep readers coming back for more. I will certainly do that.
So, there is this guy that dies and goes to Purgatory. To redeem himself, he has to keep the balance between Good and Evil. So whoever has the upper hand on things, he fights for the opposite side. Love the concept. So he meets some demons, meets some angels, meets some blessed and others along his journey. Problem is, he did not get a manual on what each could do and they all want to kill him. So much for the guy that is trying to keep everything in Balance.
Read it, get mad at it, cry with it, laugh at it and cuss the author out at the end. 5 stars.
Balance is probably one of the best books I have read in a while. I hate you M.R. Forbes because of the ending. Never in my life did I see that one coming. Actually got a little pissed. And that is the way to keep readers coming back for more. I will certainly do that.
So, there is this guy that dies and goes to Purgatory. To redeem himself, he has to keep the balance between Good and Evil. So whoever has the upper hand on things, he fights for the opposite side. Love the concept. So he meets some demons, meets some angels, meets some blessed and others along his journey. Problem is, he did not get a manual on what each could do and they all want to kill him. So much for the guy that is trying to keep everything in Balance.
Read it, get mad at it, cry with it, laugh at it and cuss the author out at the end. 5 stars.
December 27, 2020
Definitiv ein Glücksgriff für mein Bücherregal!
Die Story hat mich sofort begeistert und auch der Hauptcharakter Landon ist mir ziemlich schnell ans Herz gewachsen. Generell sind die Charaktere ein großer Pluspunkt, ich fand alle interessant und es gab niemanden der unwichtig für die Story war. Das Thema mit Engeln, Dämonen etc. fand ich auch gut umgesetzt, es gibt zwar ein paar Klischees aber passen in das Gesamtbild und wirken nicht erzwungen. Der erste Band lässt auch genug Fragen für die nächsten Bände offen, sodass es nicht langweilig wird. Am Ende wartet ein mieser kleiner Cliffhanger, der einen sofort nach Band 2 greifen lässt...
Wenn es in den nächsten Bände so weitergeht, werden die "Divine Chronicles" auf jeden Fall einen Platz bei meinen Lieblingsreihen bekommen.
Die Story hat mich sofort begeistert und auch der Hauptcharakter Landon ist mir ziemlich schnell ans Herz gewachsen. Generell sind die Charaktere ein großer Pluspunkt, ich fand alle interessant und es gab niemanden der unwichtig für die Story war. Das Thema mit Engeln, Dämonen etc. fand ich auch gut umgesetzt, es gibt zwar ein paar Klischees aber passen in das Gesamtbild und wirken nicht erzwungen. Der erste Band lässt auch genug Fragen für die nächsten Bände offen, sodass es nicht langweilig wird. Am Ende wartet ein mieser kleiner Cliffhanger, der einen sofort nach Band 2 greifen lässt...
Wenn es in den nächsten Bände so weitergeht, werden die "Divine Chronicles" auf jeden Fall einen Platz bei meinen Lieblingsreihen bekommen.
June 20, 2013
At first when I started reading this book I was not drawn into the world at all. I didn't particularly like the characters either, I found them slightly boring. I started enjoying the book somewhere 60% into it, when Obi was introduced and the main character was beaten up less often. I agree with other reviews that the ending was a bit disappointing and I am not sure if I would read the next books in the series, but it was an enjoyable read.
I enjoy different authors concepts on Good vs Evil, Angels and Demons and putting in along with all of those other supernatural creatures such as vampires and werewolves created an interesting story.
I enjoy different authors concepts on Good vs Evil, Angels and Demons and putting in along with all of those other supernatural creatures such as vampires and werewolves created an interesting story.
June 27, 2013
This was one of the coolest surprises I have picked up in a long time!
M.R.
Forbes a self published writer who's freshman effort knocked
it out of the park! Usually even really good freshmen authors
reviews are filled with shows great promise, or a few more
years, but not here! This book rocked!!!!
The last time I was completely untreated with a twist on the
Catholic take on Heaven, Purgatory & Hell was "Memnoch the
Devil" by Anne Rice's. Forbes focus is on Purgatories
relevance to humanity to keep the balance between Good and
Evil in the world. Demons, Angels and Landon Hamilton who is
the Earth bound agent of Purgatory.
M.R.
Forbes a self published writer who's freshman effort knocked
it out of the park! Usually even really good freshmen authors
reviews are filled with shows great promise, or a few more
years, but not here! This book rocked!!!!
The last time I was completely untreated with a twist on the
Catholic take on Heaven, Purgatory & Hell was "Memnoch the
Devil" by Anne Rice's. Forbes focus is on Purgatories
relevance to humanity to keep the balance between Good and
Evil in the world. Demons, Angels and Landon Hamilton who is
the Earth bound agent of Purgatory.
July 4, 2016
Found this series after reading John Conroe's Demon Accords series.
I was/am intrigued by the story and the way the author stands religious beliefs on their ear.
This series certainly has a new approach to the good/evil battle.
After reading thousands of books throughout my life it gets harder and harder to not anticipate certain things coming up in a book while reading one. While there was some of those instances where you could see the train coming a from a mile off. I was pleasantly surprised a few times when that same train snuck up and squished me flat.
overall a decent book series (up to book 4 currently)
I was/am intrigued by the story and the way the author stands religious beliefs on their ear.
This series certainly has a new approach to the good/evil battle.
After reading thousands of books throughout my life it gets harder and harder to not anticipate certain things coming up in a book while reading one. While there was some of those instances where you could see the train coming a from a mile off. I was pleasantly surprised a few times when that same train snuck up and squished me flat.
overall a decent book series (up to book 4 currently)
July 30, 2014
Lousy job and he dies doing it, but then Purgatory sends him back as their special agent. His new powers are not something Q could provide Mr. Bond. His job? Make sure neither Heaven nor Hell brings an end to the world. (this could take a few books). Well written and not formulaic.
My rating system (* = star)
1* couldn't finish book
2* finished book, but didn't like it
3* a good read
4* a very good read often with a novel concept or unusual plot
5* an exceptionally good read, a prominent example of the genre
My rating system (* = star)
1* couldn't finish book
2* finished book, but didn't like it
3* a good read
4* a very good read often with a novel concept or unusual plot
5* an exceptionally good read, a prominent example of the genre
March 15, 2013
This was an intersting and enjoyable first book in a new series about the battle between good and evil and the balance that must be maintained to prevent armageddon. I found the supporting characters a touch underdeveloped but I'm hoping that will be remedied in the next book in the series, but aside from that small gripe I would have to say I did enjoy this book enough to get book 2 in the series.
May 20, 2013
This book was fantastic! The detail and the plot line were superb and it always kept you guessing in what direction the book was going to turn next. The story line was unique, the concept new, and kept the reader interested in it so much that it was hardly put down! Recommend the book to anyone looking for a good read that is interested in the supernatural and something they won't put down for some time. I was lucky to receive this book free from goodreads and the author.
June 27, 2014
Excellent Paranormal Fantasy
With overtones of the Matrix, Balance begins this series about a man caught in a war between Heaven and Hell. Landon was a security guard in life but after his death he discovers that he is much more. The writing is engaging and the book is exceptionally well edited for a self published author. This is the second book I've read of his and it won't be the last.
With overtones of the Matrix, Balance begins this series about a man caught in a war between Heaven and Hell. Landon was a security guard in life but after his death he discovers that he is much more. The writing is engaging and the book is exceptionally well edited for a self published author. This is the second book I've read of his and it won't be the last.
March 13, 2013
Oh man! My list of 5-star authors is getting crazy! I loved this book. As you can tell, the books I read have every critter, good and bad, that you can possibly imagine. The main character in this book falls under the "And Then Some" category. My only complaint is that I'm going to have to wait awhile for the second book.
April 15, 2013
Very nice new fantasy series.
It could have used a bit more editing as there was bits especially in the beginning where it didn't flow as well as it could. That said it picked up quite well through the book, and definitely had me hooked at the end. It builds on a lot of ideas used before, but it all connects very well. Really looking forward to the sequel.
It could have used a bit more editing as there was bits especially in the beginning where it didn't flow as well as it could. That said it picked up quite well through the book, and definitely had me hooked at the end. It builds on a lot of ideas used before, but it all connects very well. Really looking forward to the sequel.
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