The Darkest Tool

by Gerald Barnes

This is the account of a troubled youth and his guardian, a demon. Jonathan Night is unaware of his purpose as he is shaped and guided by Arioch's unseen hand. Through dreams and darkness Jonathan is stimulated to ensure his destiny as the savior of the fallen. Through Arioch we see the fall and how he came to be at Lucifer's side. This is a story of lost love and regret. This is a story of rebirth and evolution.

Genres: Paranormal

Kindle Edition

First published May 24, 2012

About the author

Gerald Barnes lives in California with his wife, two sons, a dog, and two cats. When he is not writing he runs the rat race to provide for his family. Gerald works in sales and hates it because he has to work weekends. He admits that he feels blessed to have the job regardless but still dreams of weekends by the pool. On his days off he likes to BBQ and be with his family. Barnes is currently working on his next book that should be released sometime before the aliens get here. He would like to thank his family and friends that have encouraged him even through the roughest drafts. Thank you also to Allison Itterly on being a great coach and teacher.

Reviews

[Margaret Millmore · Rating 4 out of 5]

The story begins with Jonathan Night, a young man in his last year of high school. He has it all, but it wasn't always like that. Jon lived in a series of foster homes growing up and came to know love and loss all too quickly. He was finally adopted by a great couple who supported and loved him through thick and thin. As Jon continues his growth into adulthood, he finds himself immersed in his own dark thoughts, turning to drugs and alcohol, and eventually much worse. Jon seems torn between what he knows is right and what his mind is telling him, throughout the story you’re convinced he’s gone mad… but instead he’s a pawn being used to wage war on Heaven by the demons that inhabit hell.

This was a truly complex story filled with suspense, twists and turns that kept me engaged and wanting more with each chapter. I was surprised, yet pleased with the ending.

Side note: I found the authors interpretation of Heaven and Hell original and very interesting.


This book was provided to me for free for an honest and unbiased review (see all our reviews at http://www.bookexplosions.com/)

[Rachael · Rating 4 out of 5]

I don't normally read books based on Christianity. However, this book grabbed my attention from the first page. There were a few slow parts but they did not detract from the book as a whole. On the contrary, this is one of the best books I have read recently.

[Heather · Rating 4 out of 5]

Plot/Story:
This story starts out like a YA novel. I half expected it to continue that way, but I caution the reader, this is not YA. The story starts out with Jonathan, a young man who has finally found a home. His mother died giving birth and he didn’t know his father. He has been in the system for 12 years before the Braces took him in. Life takes him on a journey of poor decisions and a love that destroys him once it ends. You follow Jonathan through his life.

Then the tables turn and you are following the demon that is Jonathans guardian, Arioch. Arioch tells the story of Lucifer’s fall from heaven and the angels that followed him to earth.

This is probably the first book I have read with this kind of story. It reminded me a lot of a Stephen King novel, minus all the ramblings that Stephen King is known for. It was straight to the point and I was hooked from the beginning. Probably because it starts with a love story and when there is romance, I am all over it.

Characters:
The two main characters go through a lot of growing through this book. The problem with most books is that the characters go from A to B with no middle ground, no explination as to how they got to point B. This book does an amazing job showing the transition from the person Jonathan was, to the person he became. While Arioch’s development wasn’t as focused on, his end is understood and you can see the progress of who he was to who he became.

Romance/Kills:
This book was full of romance! The most glaring one was between Jonathan and his high school sweet heart Alyssa. It is a lovely story, until it’s not. It becomes the love story that brings Jonathan down, making his life take a new direction.
As for kills, you will just have to read the story, but believe me there is plenty of blood.

Writing:
I had no issues reading this book. I did try to pay attention to grammar and spelling while reading this book. There was only one issue that I saw and it was simply where one word was repeated. Other than that, the writing was well edited and didn’t distract from the story. I was able to lose myself in the story.

Beginning:
The beginning was perfect. You meet Jonathan and almost instantly there is a love story brewing. Not to mention the horrible background of Jonathans past and the horrible things he had seen.

Ending:
The ending was so perfect! It was a happy ending, which this story needed. There was so much going on in the novel and so many horrible things happening, the only ending to have was a happy ending. This could be a stand-alone novel as easily as it could be the first of a series. I did see on Goodreads that this will be a series but the series has been set aside for another novel.

Cover Art:
Had this been a YA novel, the cover would be ideal. But after reading the novel I don’t think the cover does it justice. The cover is dark, so is the story, but the cover gives the impression of a fluffy darkness. You know, the darkness that isn’t all that dark, but just dark enough to give YA readers a little rush. The darkness within the pages is the kind of stuff that may keep you awake at night. The cover needs to be re-imagined.

Blurb:
I think the blurb is perfect. It gives just enough detail to get your attention, but not so much that you know what is going to happen.


Other Stuff

Opening Line: Prologue: He was running scared. Chapter 1: I opened my eyes to the impending darkness.

Highlights: The progression of the story was perfect in keeping my attention.
Lowlights: I can’t really think of anything.

Final Thoughts: I feel like if you like Stephen King you may like this novel as well. I know I loved it.

[Reading Harbor · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was definitely not what I expected in a good way. I don't usually read paranormal thrillers because a lot of them are too predictable to me. They try to compete to be "dark" "brooding" and "tragic" for shock value purposes without seemingly having a point. Maybe I have watched too many TV shows. After a while, the big box stories seem to rip off one another. They tend to be massed produced because some executive has an idea of what consumers want to read, instead of trying to explore a different intellectual space.

The Darkest Tool is not just a paranormal thriller. It has philosophy behind it and probes some interesting thoughts about Good and Evil, humanity and what it means to be human, and who would choose to be human. It is also a follows the life journey of Jonathan, an orphan whose life seems to be surrounded by misfortune and demons (figurative and literal), as well as that of Arioch, his demon-angel protector. The story starts with Jonathan narrating, describing his life events as they unfold from the loss of his mother to his adoption, the brutal loss of his sister, and what seems to be resignation with whatever life hands him. He talks of violence, love, and loss very candidly. The story becomes interesting when you see Arioch's point of view, as he witnesses the exact same events but is able to add additional detail from an outsider perspective. You see that there is meaning beyond the events in Jonathan's life. You can even say there is an epic battle between Good and Evil, going on behind the scenes.

From childhood to the loss of his loved ones and other tragedies, Jonathan and his life serves as a focal point for this grander conflict. There are many dark and complex themes going on here, including dealing with sanity/insanity, judgment, and redemption. It is not for light-hearted reading but rather a more complex study. Without giving anything away, the ending is a twist that few can expect.

[Lora Cumbie · Rating 4 out of 5]

The story is of a young man, Jonathan Night, who, unbeknownst to him, is being groomed to become the savior of the dark realm. He is a street-smart teen who has experienced heartache and tragedy in his life. Orphaned young, with no family to love him, he learns to cope with heartache and death, and to survive. Jonathan, despite the heartache he has endured, is just a guy. He wants to be cool, accepted, liked by his friends, and loved by a family. He likes girls, like crazy, and has those teenage hormones to go with it.

But in the shadows, there is someone watching, waiting.

The story is told in first person narration, from 2 perspectives: Jonathan, and that of Arioch, his demon guardian. The most stunning thing about this book is the author's ability to capture the "voice" of the 2 main narrators. I was able to switch my brain from character to the other with ease. Jonathan sounds like the street-smart, sex-crazed young guy that he is, although a little hardened, dark, and brooding due to his experiences. Arioch is ancient, otherworldly, and deeply thoughtful. His "voice" perfectly portrays the direness of the epic battle he has been tasked to take part in.

The author's writing is strong: intelligent, descriptive, with excellent imagery and varied sentence structure. It was very easy to watch the entire story in my head as I read. The plot was unpredictable, original, and engaging with action and psychological thrills. Depth of the 2 main characters is very evident. In some of the otherworldly parts, the prose moved me to tears! And finally, the ending was very satisfying.

This is a good one!

[Catherine Collier · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is terrific, unbelievably so for a first book. The story of a boy-to-man’s life told in comparsion to the war in heaven is so well written that I wasn’t sure which was the “true” story and which was the metaphor. It had me scrambling through my old sources on myths to review the war in heaven and the meaning and roles of the characters. Portraying God as female gives even more depth to the story. The names of the characters in the book are meaningful also. The main character’s name, Jonathon, means “gift of God” or “God has given.” The choice of names for two of the other characters are symbolic also. One means “wanderer”; the other, “beloved.” You’ll have to read the book to find out which is which.

[Bizzles1 · Rating 4 out of 5]

What a refreshing, thoughtful, well written story about redemption. The story skips between Jonathan, a human falling down the path of darkness,& Atrioch, his guardian demon. Both characters learn that destiny cn change when we're given a second chance.

[Theresa · Rating 5 out of 5]

I found this to be one of the most thrilling books I have read. I loved books that will keep your attention and make you feel like you are a part of the story. This is one of those books. It is definitely well worth reading. I loved every second from the first page to the last.

[Jolene Ko · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good, different

This is a good book if you are wanting to ‘cleanse your palate’ in between genres. It is a slow read but I enjoyed reading something different.

[Kathy · Rating 2 out of 5]

Gotta say, not impressed. The first 80% of the book was fairly ordinary and slow, with hardly any supernatural elements. Then in the last 20% the story picked up but was very confusing. It's very rare for me to give a negative rating or review, but I had to for this one.