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AVALON: Quantum Spacetime Portal
Andrew was both surprised and delighted to inherit a house from his aunt, Hilary. After she moved to New York, he hadn't seen or heard from her for years. He moved in with his girlfriend, Rachel, and when two friends came to stay, they discovered the house was haunted.
Unknown to Andrew, his aunt had also arranged for Leonard and Sonia to assist him in dealing with the haunting. Unfortunately, Rachel knows Leonard from a past love affair, which complicates both their relationships.
Andrew eventually recalls that Hilary had caused him to forget their time together. As his past begins to resurface, he remembers living there and being part of her occult group. When he understands why she made him forget, he becomes entangled in a deadly encounter in which he and his friends are confronted by Azazel, one of the most powerful of the fallen angels.
Unknown to Andrew, his aunt had also arranged for Leonard and Sonia to assist him in dealing with the haunting. Unfortunately, Rachel knows Leonard from a past love affair, which complicates both their relationships.
Andrew eventually recalls that Hilary had caused him to forget their time together. As his past begins to resurface, he remembers living there and being part of her occult group. When he understands why she made him forget, he becomes entangled in a deadly encounter in which he and his friends are confronted by Azazel, one of the most powerful of the fallen angels.
291 pages, Kindle Edition
Published May 1, 2025
4 people want to read
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Displaying 1 of 1 review
October 26, 2025
One technique of good paranormal writing is to create a distinct magical setting with clearly defined rules. Then the author can set up an effective and believable conflict within that context. One disadvantage of the Internet is that authors have access to a great variety of magical environments, and there is a temptation to dabble in a whole lot of them.
“Avalon” is a very modern paranormal novel, with characters casually looking up summoning rites on the internet and taking cell phone pictures of ghosts and demons. There are also influences from traditional religion (Old Testament, Christianity, and Apocrypha). Eastern meditation techniques and an alien computer from before the Flood. There is even a recording device called a “Spirit Box” that “picks up radio and other frequencies,” which one character orders up on the Internet for a next-day delivery. A little too much of a good thing.
The story divides neatly into three novellas that are too closely tied to make three separate books.
The first half of the novel is where the problems lie. It simply takes the author too long to settle into his stride. The plotline and the motivation of the characters are hazy, and the expected atmosphere of mystery and fear does not show up.
Part of the problem is a matter-of-fact writing style that is emotionally flat. There is too much discussion about who is staying at the mansion and who is going back to town, creating fuss unrelated to the plot that the reader doesn’t need. It is only after the first hundred pages that the Book of Horus and the Avalon Splinter show up as points of conflict, and the suspense begins to rise.
In the second section the magic settles down, the antagonists become clear, and the conflict is more straightforward. We get a hundred pages of reasonable suspense with a clear partial ending.
Then something called the Spirit Anchor takes precedence, and off we go again. Another hundred-page episode with a slightly less focused plotline, but a good climax with better suspense.
The author tosses in a pinch of infidelity to spice it up, but the relationships are entered and broken with such a lack of intensity that no real conflict arises.
This writer uses a scattergun approach and gives us a book that is more interesting than emotional, which is not what that average paranormal reader wants.
This review was originally posted on Reedsy Discovery
“Avalon” is a very modern paranormal novel, with characters casually looking up summoning rites on the internet and taking cell phone pictures of ghosts and demons. There are also influences from traditional religion (Old Testament, Christianity, and Apocrypha). Eastern meditation techniques and an alien computer from before the Flood. There is even a recording device called a “Spirit Box” that “picks up radio and other frequencies,” which one character orders up on the Internet for a next-day delivery. A little too much of a good thing.
The story divides neatly into three novellas that are too closely tied to make three separate books.
The first half of the novel is where the problems lie. It simply takes the author too long to settle into his stride. The plotline and the motivation of the characters are hazy, and the expected atmosphere of mystery and fear does not show up.
Part of the problem is a matter-of-fact writing style that is emotionally flat. There is too much discussion about who is staying at the mansion and who is going back to town, creating fuss unrelated to the plot that the reader doesn’t need. It is only after the first hundred pages that the Book of Horus and the Avalon Splinter show up as points of conflict, and the suspense begins to rise.
In the second section the magic settles down, the antagonists become clear, and the conflict is more straightforward. We get a hundred pages of reasonable suspense with a clear partial ending.
Then something called the Spirit Anchor takes precedence, and off we go again. Another hundred-page episode with a slightly less focused plotline, but a good climax with better suspense.
The author tosses in a pinch of infidelity to spice it up, but the relationships are entered and broken with such a lack of intensity that no real conflict arises.
This writer uses a scattergun approach and gives us a book that is more interesting than emotional, which is not what that average paranormal reader wants.
This review was originally posted on Reedsy Discovery
Displaying 1 of 1 review