Two men with miraculous one sworn to secrecy; one the focal point of the entire world. JON BLAKE Jon Blake doesn't trust the voices in his head, but they have proven they can give him everything he has ever dreamed, including the love of the beautiful deaf girl who has captured his heart. All they ask for in return is his complete submission. But the more they reveal their incredible power--not only to him, but to the whole world through him--the more the line between good and evil is blurred. As family secrets are revealed, Jon finds himself on a journey of discovery that will lead him to make a horrifying choice. DAVID CHANCE The dark forces in Boston are not done with David Chance. He has cut them too deeply. And for that, he must pay. When David’s son is abducted, he and his wife have to trust, one last time, in the author of the strange messages that appear in the sea of words around them. But will their faith survive when it is pushed to the breaking point?
Yes! Another great David Chance/Jon Blake story. Reading two other David Chance stories by John Hileman, "Messages" and "Voices", might be helpful to get the full background for this book, but I can still consider it a fascinating stand alone book. Just enough of Jon and Chance's history is brought out throughout the book so you're not left scratching your head wondering what the heck he's talking about. Hileman does it cleverly though, with the background coming out in conversation as the story progresses, rather than a lengthy narrative all at once. Chance, and now his wife, get messages which are not only helpful, but never steer them wrong. Jon Blake gets messages also, by way of many different voices. His, on the other hand not only lead him in wrong, immoral, or illegal directions, but they also lie to him...and he knows it. Yet they are so convincing, giving him just enough of an ego boost, or encouragement that he goes along with them. Jon is lead by these voices to do things his conscience and common sense should tell him otherwise. He doesn't like David Chance, and the voices are fine with that. They do everything they can to convince him that David's messages are based on old superstitions and destructive religious beliefs. Saying too much more would ruin the story for you. Worth the read especially if you're the kind who can't wait to see what happens next. The other two books in the series are especially good, full of intrigue, planes going down, terrorist plots and chase scenes. Loved them and thoroughly recommend them!
Editing oversights found in Kindle version of Lies:
Page 11, He repeated the little girls words / He repeated the little girl's words (possessive needs apostrophe) ; 29, Not wanting to make a mistake he gave in / Not wanting to make a mistake, he gave in ; 38, the two people who died in the fire were the arsons themselves / the two people who died in the fire were the ARSONISTS themselves ; 44, intervene at a moments notice / intervene at a moment's notice (ibid p. 11) ; 49, could have been a boxer when we wasn't playing poker / could have been a boxer when HE wasn't playing poker ;
Page 50, There were no jacks in his hand either / There were no jacks in his hand, either ; 51, Well that's it then, isn't it? / Well, that's it, then, isn't it? ; 53, inward panic from effecting his countenance / inward panic from AFFECTING his countenance ; 57, made her exit with discrete refinement / made her exit with DISCREET refinement ; 60, said Jon stunned / said Jon, stunned ; 60, I don't understand? But what about the dead girl? / I don't understand. But what about the dead girl? ("I don't understand" is a statement, not a question) ;
Page 63, Ben was laying peacefully in his bed / Ben was LYING peacefully in his bed ; 64, Emily's terrified, screeching face, caught his attention / Emily's terrified, screeching face caught his attention (remove comma after "face") ; 64, What is going on! / What is going on? (query needs ?) ; 83, they were protected in each others arms / they were protected in each other's arms (ibid p. 11) ; 92, And their skinny, orange cat, who fancied himself / And their skinny orange cat, who fancied himself (omit comma after "skinny") ;
Page 103, As good as can be expected / As WELL as can be expected ; 105, Wha? Seriously? / What? Seriously? ; 105, A Limo? Nice. / A limo? Nice. ("limo" does not need capitalization) ; 110, A policemen was walking up / A POLICEMAN was walking up ; 112, If so, why kidnap Ben?" / If so, why kidnap Ben? (remove quote) ; 117, Hello James, you're on the phone / Hello, James, you're on the phone ; 118, Canary smiled at the producers attempt / Canary smiled at the producer's attempt (ibid p. 11) ;
Page 138, said Roans, turning to look past / said ROAN, turning to look past ; 138, Roans interrupted / ROAN interrupted ; 138, Canary shrunk back ever so slightly / Canary SHRANK back ever so slightly ; 155, What if David got a message. / What if David got a message? (phrased as a question) ; 158, She shrunk back. / She SHRANK back. ; 163, Demon's are sinister / Demons are sinister (plural, not possessive) ; 164, If you want me dead you could do that / If you want me dead, you could do that ;
Page 180, He believes you're suffering makes you / He believes YOUR suffering makes you ; 182, How could I turn this up? / How could I turn this DOWN? ; 183, Why are you telling lies about David Chance. / Why are you telling lies about David Chance? (phrased as a question) ; 189, Let's get this done then. / Let's get this done, then. ; 191, drank as much as his high school friend had drank / drank as much as his high school friend had DRUNK ; 192, continued to wretch in dry heaves / continued to RETCH in dry heaves ;
Page 192, His stomach wretched once more / His stomach RETCHED once more (retch = vomit, wretch = an unfortunate person) ; 193, The timber of the voice made it reverberate / The TIMBRE of the voice made it reverberate (timber = wood, timbre = vocal tone and quality) ; 193, He could make it in few seconds / He could make it in A few seconds ; 195, Because he was able to fashion an expectorant / Because he was able to fashion an EMETIC (expectorant makes you spit, emetic makes you vomit) ;
Page 200, What was that all about! / What was that all about? (phrased as a question) ; 200, But you didn't / But you WEREN'T ; 201, The harder the challenge the stronger you will become / The harder the challenge, the stronger you will become ; 201, it will be healed. / it will be healed." (needs end quote) ; 201, Anything was better than what had been / Anything was better than what HE had been ; 206, if you kids are up for it. / if you kids are up for it." (needs end quote) ;
Page 208, with shaking fingers sunk it into place / with shaking fingers SANK it into place ; 208, Because if he had he would have been / Because if he had, he would have been ; 221, How would the insurance company know you've come here to kill yourself! / How would the insurance company know you've come here to kill yourself? (phrased as a question) ; 221, said his voice, continuing in a soothing timber / said his voice, continuing in a soothing TIMBRE (ibid. p.193) ;
Page 223, Why are you doing this to me! / Why are you doing this to me? (phrased as a question) ; 226, He was simply, gone / He was simply gone (omit unnecessary comma) ; 227, There are camera's in the elevator / There are cameras in the elevator (plural, not possessive) ; 235, All right then / All right, then ; 238, If we do that the unifier will simply make his speech / If we do that, the unifier will simply make his speech ; 238, take him to the police now can we / take him to the police, now can we :
Page 239, who worked there a couple years ago / who worked there a couple OF years ago ; 246, Assalamu Alaikum. / Assalamu alaikum. ("alaikum" does not need to be capitalized) ; 246, Jon gripped the envelop in his hand / Jon gripped the ENVELOPE in his hand ; 246, Anyone who breaths this gas / Anyone who BREATHES this gas ; 247, We won't allow that / We won't allow that." (needs end quote) ; 249, You told him, no, right / You told him no, right (omit comma after "him") ;
Page 252, Book five page thirty-five / Book five, page thirty-five ; 253, Freedom should not be highly rated. / Freedom should not be highly rated." (add end quote) ; 257, If I show you right now you won't understand / If I show you right now, you won't understand ; 258, All right then. / All right, then. ; 262, you would be able to breath through air pockets / you would be able to BREATHE through air pockets ; 262, But its all smoke and mirrors / But IT'S all smoke and mirrors ;
Page 263, said Sharon dumbstruck / said Sharon, dumbstruck ; 265, I am thankful though that he waited / I am thankful, though, that he waited ; 265, The recent loss of my husband's son, has left a great hole / The recent loss of my husband's son has left a great hole (omit unnecessary comma) ; 266, Love mother. / Love, Mother. ; 267, objects like tables, phone lines even the vehicle / objects like tables, phone lines, even the vehicle (add comma after "lines") ; 267, much to go on either / much to go on, either ;
Page 271, Where is the ladies room / Where is the LADIES' room ; 271, see you in a few minutes then / see you in a few minutes, then ; 271, As she scanned her mind attempted / As she scanned, her mind attempted ; 274, When she got to the corner of the large hall she scanned / When she got to the corner of the large hall, she scanned ; 280, Jon gripped the briefcase handle tighter and walk down the hall / Jon gripped the briefcase handle tighter and WALKED down the hall ;
Page 282, By the time this unit it fully charged / By the time this unit IS fully charged ; 284, Jon's muscle's tightened / Jon's MUSCLES tightened ; 290, And I won't tell anyone by the way... / And I won't tell anyone, by the way... ; 292, You're not going to disappear are you / You're not going to disappear, are you ; 292, but can I just get one picture. / but can I just get one picture? (phrased as a question) ; 296, If you would follow me please / If you would follow me, please ;
Page 297, Can you get someone else to go next. / Can you get someone else to go next? (phrased as a question) ; 298, And you son, are the strongest of us / And you, son, are the strongest of us ; 301, "What are you looking at right now," said Canary / "What are you looking at right NOW?" ASKED Canary ; 303, If she didn't find it she would be / If she didn't find it, she would be ; 304, The next guys up / The next guy's up ; 312, Before we give you the grand tour there is something / Before we give you the grand tour, there is something ; 314, the young man from Milford Massachusetts who wowed / the young man from Milford, Massachusetts, who wowed .
Normally I send my lists directly to the author, but I couldn't find a "Contact" for Mr. Hileman.
1st book was interesting, 2nd was alright but if I had known what direction the story would take in book three I would have skipped the 3rd book and just let the story be done after two. I am most upset that the David Chance character who is star of the first book is scarcely given lip service in the last.
Confusing personal relationships in a framework of possible insanity, religious zeal and the occult. Interesting relationship development and very good conclusion. A good read.
This book was another good story about the man from the first two books in this series. He has to fight against another guy who claims to have his ability to hear from God but is actually hearing from demons.
This is Christian fiction. You will not find issues with language or sex in this book and it is refreshing. It has a good storyline but you really need to read this series in order if you want to become invested in the characters. This could be read as a stand-alone but you will not enjoy it nor "feel" it as much as you would if you had read the first two. The story is about David Chance who receives messages through the printed words he sees in various places. In this particular book Jon from book two) is back and struggling with the voices he hears in his head. David helps Jon out and keeps him from making a terrible decision. That is about all you can be told without it spoiling the story but enough that you may want to read it. The way the voices speak to Jon and the way David gets the messages keeps the story moving in a fast paced way that will cause you to read longer than you intended. All in all this is a good series and I may return to it once I get my reading list caught up some.
I loved the first two books in this series. And I still love the emphasis on trusting God when it's hard, and when we don't understand. I love the contrast between Jon and David. One is an apparent failure, shunning the limelight, conflicted about everything because there's nothing in it for him, he thinks. The other is grabbing for all the power and accolades he can. Then there are the two kinds of power -- one true, and strong, and good, and one manipulative and hurtful. But I just didn't see the inventiveness in this book. I didn't see the twists and surprises. And the ending seemed very Deus ex Machina, with so much unresolved. "It's all over"? Hardly. Is there more to come, or is the series over? What about Sam, for instance? It's quite a disappointment. It makes me sad, because the first two were so well done.
This book made me think of three things: the TV Series 'Heroes', the movie 'The Knowing' and Stephanie Meyer's 'The Host'. I loved the writing style in this novel, though I didn't agree with the things the 'voices' led Jon Blake to believe, and didn't quite like the vibe I got of people having manipulative/supernatural power. It seemed like David Chance was a bit paranoid, even though he turned out to be right in the end. Even though this is the third book in the series, I didn't feel like I was missing anything from the previous novels, I wasn't at all lost. Overall, the plot was very intriguing.
A disappointing end to what could have been a very exciting trilogy. The first two books were a very good satisfying read, this was a bit of a let-down, not as strong as the first two in the series, with a slightly confusing plot especially if you hadn't read the other two in the series. Having said that, it is well edited (except for the repeated use of "?!") and an interesting paranormal read with the "good verses evil" theme. It did not seem as if the series is complete, so I will buy more if he writes more in the series.
I read 'Messages' but didn't read 'Voices'. Not that I didn't want to, but I had this book, 'Lies' and figured I'd see if I could follow the storyline good enough. I wasn't completely lost, but there were a few things that I missed from Book Two. However, 'Lies' was full of action, suspense, mystery, thrilling scenes and quite a creative paranormal aspect. I thoroughly enjoyed this book. The characters were great. The ongoing battle between their beliefs whether it was God, Aliens or another entity was well written and well played out. Overall it was a great read.
David Chance stands strong in his beliefs when the devil comes to attract his family. Jon takes a wrong turn from the beginning of the book this time. He begins to use his gift to do evil and it doesn't take long for it to get out of hand. Canary finally reveals herself. She is a unique character. There is a lot of action in this book, which I found to be drawing me in more. All in all, another great book by John Hileman.
This was the last book in this series. Because I like books about good versus evil, I loved these books. I believe in God and I want God to be our great unified. This book, although fiction, showed that evil can give us fame and fortune for a price. I don't think it's worth selling my soul for same. I would read these again. Good books if you believe in God.
This is the second book in this series I have read and really enjoyed them both. The storyline is very representative of how deceptive the forces of evil can be. The book is well written and the characters are interesting. I especially liked David Chance and his wife.
Lies is a good book, but not as good as the first two books in the series. It would have been almost impossible to equal them. Last Vegas and other glamorous venues are simply not my thing...neither are extraterrestrials. However, I did finish reading Lies. Now, I am about to start another Hileman novel.
I almost waited too long to read the third in this series - I'd forgotten much of what was in "Voices". Still, I enjoyed the intensity and action of this one. I thoroughly enjoy Mr. Hileman's writing and rate this one 4.7 stars.
this book kept me reading from when I opened it until the end. I didn't read the other books in the series but I was able to get the nation idea. I would recommend this m book and series to anyone
Well written,kept me on the edge of my seat from book one till the end. I would love to see more books of this nature! God is in our lives if we just let him in, listen for the small still voice whispering to us.
John Michael Hileman writes a story that both inspires and keeps you in suspense. I loved how this book brought Good, from the first book, and Evil, from the second book together.
It moved from a man having a unique ability that made him stand out to a stunt about the whole family being gifted. And I'm still asking questions that I don't have direct answers to three books down the line - is God really the one talking to David Chance...? Aliens?
I agree with Mary's review! The ending was so strange and I'm not sure what happened?? Who killed Jakson? Didn't Jon die? Was he resurrected? I feel so lost and disappointed!!