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Dark Trinity: Prophecy / Burnt Offerings / Dark Rite
Three Smart, Suspenseful, Action-packed Thrillers with a Dark Religious Edge!
3 complete novels by 3 bestselling, highly acclaimed mystery/thriller authors.
From New York Times and USA Today bestselling author J.F.Penn . . . Prophecy
The prophecy in Revelation declares that a quarter of the world must die and now a shadowy organization has the ability to fulfill these words.
Can one woman stop the abomination before it's too late?
ISRAEL. A victim of Jerusalem Syndrome jumps to his death from the top of the Western Wall, his body smashed on the ancient stones. Another disembowels himself under the scrawled figure of the Pale Horse of the Apocalypse with the chilling words, "God told me to do it."
Dr Morgan Sierra travels to Israel to investigate the deaths and becomes embroiled in an international conspiracy that will use cutting-edge technology to carry an ancient curse to mankind, and threaten those she loves.
Morgan joins agent Jake Timber at ARKANE, a secret government agency investigating the supernatural. Together they must hunt down the Devil's Bible, pursued all the way by the evil forces of Thanatos.
From the catacombs of Paris to the skeletal ossuaries of Sicily and the Czech Republic, Morgan and Jake must find the Devil's Bible and stop the curse being released into the world before one in four are destroyed in the coming holocaust. Because in just seven days, the final curse will be spoken and the prophecy will be fulfilled.
From award-winning and bestselling author Michael Lister . . . Burnt Offerings
The scratch of a single match—spark, heat, chemical reaction, fire being born—and an intense thriller begins.
Terror reigns over the North Florida National Forest, the coastal town of Bayshore, and the barrier island of Pine Key—a fiery terror whose flame threatens to consume the whole world.
An exacting and methodical killer whose weapon is fire is working on his masterpiece, and only a wounded and scarred FDLE agent and a retired ritual crimes expert hiding from the world in a cabin in the woods have any hope of stopping him.
Rich and textured, yet fast-paced and pulse-pounding, BURNT OFFERINGS will leave you breathless right up until its heart-stopping conclusion.
From critically-acclaimed authors David Wood and Alan Baxter . . . Dark Rite
A small mountain town hides a dark secret…
When his father’s death brings Grant Shipman to the Appalachian town of Wallen’s Gap, he believes his biggest problem will be dealing with the slow pace and odd townsfolk. But something sinister is at work. A dark power rises, an echo of the town’s bloody past. A book of blood magic offers an unspeakable horror a gateway into the world of the living, and only Grant stands in the way of their Dark Rite.
3 complete novels by 3 bestselling, highly acclaimed mystery/thriller authors.
From New York Times and USA Today bestselling author J.F.Penn . . . Prophecy
The prophecy in Revelation declares that a quarter of the world must die and now a shadowy organization has the ability to fulfill these words.
Can one woman stop the abomination before it's too late?
ISRAEL. A victim of Jerusalem Syndrome jumps to his death from the top of the Western Wall, his body smashed on the ancient stones. Another disembowels himself under the scrawled figure of the Pale Horse of the Apocalypse with the chilling words, "God told me to do it."
Dr Morgan Sierra travels to Israel to investigate the deaths and becomes embroiled in an international conspiracy that will use cutting-edge technology to carry an ancient curse to mankind, and threaten those she loves.
Morgan joins agent Jake Timber at ARKANE, a secret government agency investigating the supernatural. Together they must hunt down the Devil's Bible, pursued all the way by the evil forces of Thanatos.
From the catacombs of Paris to the skeletal ossuaries of Sicily and the Czech Republic, Morgan and Jake must find the Devil's Bible and stop the curse being released into the world before one in four are destroyed in the coming holocaust. Because in just seven days, the final curse will be spoken and the prophecy will be fulfilled.
From award-winning and bestselling author Michael Lister . . . Burnt Offerings
The scratch of a single match—spark, heat, chemical reaction, fire being born—and an intense thriller begins.
Terror reigns over the North Florida National Forest, the coastal town of Bayshore, and the barrier island of Pine Key—a fiery terror whose flame threatens to consume the whole world.
An exacting and methodical killer whose weapon is fire is working on his masterpiece, and only a wounded and scarred FDLE agent and a retired ritual crimes expert hiding from the world in a cabin in the woods have any hope of stopping him.
Rich and textured, yet fast-paced and pulse-pounding, BURNT OFFERINGS will leave you breathless right up until its heart-stopping conclusion.
From critically-acclaimed authors David Wood and Alan Baxter . . . Dark Rite
A small mountain town hides a dark secret…
When his father’s death brings Grant Shipman to the Appalachian town of Wallen’s Gap, he believes his biggest problem will be dealing with the slow pace and odd townsfolk. But something sinister is at work. A dark power rises, an echo of the town’s bloody past. A book of blood magic offers an unspeakable horror a gateway into the world of the living, and only Grant stands in the way of their Dark Rite.
626 pages, Kindle Edition
First published October 17, 2014
2 people are currently reading
30 people want to read
About the author
J.F. Penn
58 books2,239 followersI'm the award-winning, New York Times and USA Today bestselling author of thrillers, crime, dark fantasy, horror, short stories, and travel memoir.
Reading order: https://jfpennbooks.com/pages/reading...
The fast-paced ARKANE thrillers weave together historical artifacts, global locations, a kick-ass protagonist and a hint of the supernatural. Described by readers as "Dan Brown meets Lara Croft."
The Brooke & Daniel Crime Thriller Series features British detective Jamie Brooke alongside museum researcher Blake Daniel, as they solve dark crimes around London.
The Mapwalker fantasy adventure trilogy is set between Bath, England and the Borderlands in a split world fantasy where Sienna and the Mapwalker team travel through maps to adventure ...
A Thousand Fiendish Angels is a collection of 3 short stories bound together by a book of human skin. Inspired by Dante's Inferno.
You can buy books directly from me https://jfpennbooks.com/
I have a blog and podcast at http://www.BooksAndTravel.page
I'm passionate about writing and I love reading. My favorite authors include James Rollins, Jonathan Maberry, John Connolly, Daniel Silva, and I also read a lot of travel books.
Reading order: https://jfpennbooks.com/pages/reading...
The fast-paced ARKANE thrillers weave together historical artifacts, global locations, a kick-ass protagonist and a hint of the supernatural. Described by readers as "Dan Brown meets Lara Croft."
The Brooke & Daniel Crime Thriller Series features British detective Jamie Brooke alongside museum researcher Blake Daniel, as they solve dark crimes around London.
The Mapwalker fantasy adventure trilogy is set between Bath, England and the Borderlands in a split world fantasy where Sienna and the Mapwalker team travel through maps to adventure ...
A Thousand Fiendish Angels is a collection of 3 short stories bound together by a book of human skin. Inspired by Dante's Inferno.
You can buy books directly from me https://jfpennbooks.com/
I have a blog and podcast at http://www.BooksAndTravel.page
I'm passionate about writing and I love reading. My favorite authors include James Rollins, Jonathan Maberry, John Connolly, Daniel Silva, and I also read a lot of travel books.
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Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews
October 20, 2014
I was given this set of books to read for advanced review, and did I ever get lucky on this one. It's not often one gets the opportunity to travel the world with a gutsy and smart heroine, then retreat to a remote area of Florida where the South still lives but is grumbling against the stones of change, then up to the Appalachian Mountains where demons still haunt the dense folds of the hills. It was a great ride. Let's take each ride one at a time.
PROPHECY
This was the second time I got to travel with J.F. Penn across the globe, and I never once felt that the read was tedious or had lost anything since the first reading and the continuing kick-ass development of this author. This is still my kind of book--erudite, action-packed, mesmerizing, and a thrilling blend of what is and how it can turn deadly. I was very slow in reading this book, even the second time through (note: I rarely read a book twice), because it was so thoroughly enjoyable. The author takes the reader on a journey through secrets of religion, jaunts across the globe, believable action, and evil. She approaches the Bible with a tremendous amount of scholarship, yet never leaves the reader feeling as if they've been lectured; she uses her scholarship as servant of storytelling. When the character of Natasha bends down and quotes Ecclesiastes before her act of violence, it is a chilling moment of biblical interpretation, accomplishing what too few writers do--entertain and inform. Penn pulls it off beautifully.
While in university, I came across a book (the title now forgotten) about the scholar as adventurer of thought. As Morgan Sierra is remembering her father, she smiles when she thinks of his approving of her as a warrior academic. I read that late at night and woke up my husband when I yelled, "Yes!" to both Morgan's reflection and the writing of Joanna Penn: there it was, the scholar adventurer. When I told him what I was reading this past week, he asked for fair warning if I was going to be hooting and hollering this time around. I was, and he was prepared. Penn's scholarship is seamlessly woven into the story, and although this is not the first in this series, she keeps new readers up to speed with skill and anxious to know more. Is there anything better than uncovering the secrets behind what we consider the ordinary? Or traveling from one exotic city to the next, always just one step ahead of a villain who seems destined to succeed, and then coming to our senses with the warrior academic in a tomb of bones heaped upon centuries of bones? Not on my reading list.
This book is apocalyptic in the literal sense of the word as explained by the author. Apocalypse means "unveiling, an uncovering of secret knowledge about heavenly realms." It's a wonderful and disturbing adventure. She touches on topics spoken of often in the 1970s as the only solution to the world's problems, and rouses disturbing realizations in the reader. Where do we stand on such issues of population control as a means of ending violence, environmental disaster, and placing meaning on life while deciding which lives are of value. I was certain I'd find disappointing flaws reading this for a second time, but that absolutely was not the case. Now I'm jealous of those who might be experiencing this series for the first time.
BURNT OFFERINGS
Samantha Michaels has returned to the small Florida town she grew up in after a breakup with a lover and a bold decision about her body no woman should ever have to make. She is scarred physically and emotionally and needs time to heal. She doesn't get that time. As an agent with the Florida Department of Law Enforcement, she's quickly called by her boss and former lover to have a look at a badly burned body found in an area technically out of her jurisdiction. Reluctantly, she agrees to help out, and from that point on, there's no turning back. Not for Sam, and not for the reader in this heart-pounding thriller.
This isn't just a badly burned body Sam is investigating, it's the barely distinguishable remains of something that was once human and now burned beyond all traces of identity. One of her former professors at Florida State University, an expert in pyromania and a victim of crippling panic attacks, is called in on the case, and the tension of this thriller is amped up with his knowledge and personal demons. The panic Daniel Davis experiences quickly spreads to the reader. Every character in the book has a trauma or a twist of the mind that makes them suspect, even Daniel.
Even Daniel's friends, Ben and Rachael--documentary filmmakers Daniel is working with as he tries to unwind the fear that grips his life--are suspect. As with every good thriller, the reader never knows who to trust, who to latch on to as the sure bet for the UNSUB (ha-ha, Author Dearest, I beat you to it), and most disturbing of all, always wondering if there is anything the reader has in common with the suspects that makes them doubt themselves, if pushed to the wall one more time, with just the right amount of force.
As with Penn's book, extensive knowledge of religious history and traditions are seamlessly woven into the story and propels it forward. The rich traditions of Judaism take center stage in the plot as everything begins to spin the tension ever tighter. The roots of antisemitism are also touched upon and made understood, but never at the cost of slowing down the action and the urgency of solving this crime...and the ones that are to come, and the shocking conclusion. It was fascinating, but that's the limit of what I'll say for fear of adding any spoilers.
I will say that this is more than a story about a crime with a religious theme. It's about the clashes of the past with the present, unfounded hatred and the sacrifices made in coping with the hatred. It's a novel of healing and redemption set against both the terror and nightmares of fire, as well as the cleansing it can bring. At heart, it is a love story that can only happen when fear is eased. But is it possible to ever leave behind the fear? What are the consequences of remaining in its grips?
DARK RITE
Enjoy a good horror story written on the extremes of imagination by two writers riffing off each other? Yes? Then you're going to love Dark Rite by Alan Baxter and David Wood. I found myself alternating between loving the terror of a small town in a lost fold of Appalachia, and disappointment at the lack of a fully fleshed out story with characters I could believe and identify with.
I like horror that sneaks up on me and takes me by surprise (a good cardio workout while sitting in a chair). I didn't get it with this book. The hint of horror to come flashed too soon for my tastes, but my tastes belong to me. This could be just the kind of thrilling horror tale a reader who likes the spooky stuff right from the beginning will love. It does touch on the spiritual, but not in the same way as the other two books in this set. I read those without having nightmares, but I'm not so sure about this one. These authors go directly for the throat and grab hold tight. Except for one finger. Which finger?
My lips are sealed. You'll have to read it to find out.
PROPHECY
This was the second time I got to travel with J.F. Penn across the globe, and I never once felt that the read was tedious or had lost anything since the first reading and the continuing kick-ass development of this author. This is still my kind of book--erudite, action-packed, mesmerizing, and a thrilling blend of what is and how it can turn deadly. I was very slow in reading this book, even the second time through (note: I rarely read a book twice), because it was so thoroughly enjoyable. The author takes the reader on a journey through secrets of religion, jaunts across the globe, believable action, and evil. She approaches the Bible with a tremendous amount of scholarship, yet never leaves the reader feeling as if they've been lectured; she uses her scholarship as servant of storytelling. When the character of Natasha bends down and quotes Ecclesiastes before her act of violence, it is a chilling moment of biblical interpretation, accomplishing what too few writers do--entertain and inform. Penn pulls it off beautifully.
While in university, I came across a book (the title now forgotten) about the scholar as adventurer of thought. As Morgan Sierra is remembering her father, she smiles when she thinks of his approving of her as a warrior academic. I read that late at night and woke up my husband when I yelled, "Yes!" to both Morgan's reflection and the writing of Joanna Penn: there it was, the scholar adventurer. When I told him what I was reading this past week, he asked for fair warning if I was going to be hooting and hollering this time around. I was, and he was prepared. Penn's scholarship is seamlessly woven into the story, and although this is not the first in this series, she keeps new readers up to speed with skill and anxious to know more. Is there anything better than uncovering the secrets behind what we consider the ordinary? Or traveling from one exotic city to the next, always just one step ahead of a villain who seems destined to succeed, and then coming to our senses with the warrior academic in a tomb of bones heaped upon centuries of bones? Not on my reading list.
This book is apocalyptic in the literal sense of the word as explained by the author. Apocalypse means "unveiling, an uncovering of secret knowledge about heavenly realms." It's a wonderful and disturbing adventure. She touches on topics spoken of often in the 1970s as the only solution to the world's problems, and rouses disturbing realizations in the reader. Where do we stand on such issues of population control as a means of ending violence, environmental disaster, and placing meaning on life while deciding which lives are of value. I was certain I'd find disappointing flaws reading this for a second time, but that absolutely was not the case. Now I'm jealous of those who might be experiencing this series for the first time.
BURNT OFFERINGS
Samantha Michaels has returned to the small Florida town she grew up in after a breakup with a lover and a bold decision about her body no woman should ever have to make. She is scarred physically and emotionally and needs time to heal. She doesn't get that time. As an agent with the Florida Department of Law Enforcement, she's quickly called by her boss and former lover to have a look at a badly burned body found in an area technically out of her jurisdiction. Reluctantly, she agrees to help out, and from that point on, there's no turning back. Not for Sam, and not for the reader in this heart-pounding thriller.
This isn't just a badly burned body Sam is investigating, it's the barely distinguishable remains of something that was once human and now burned beyond all traces of identity. One of her former professors at Florida State University, an expert in pyromania and a victim of crippling panic attacks, is called in on the case, and the tension of this thriller is amped up with his knowledge and personal demons. The panic Daniel Davis experiences quickly spreads to the reader. Every character in the book has a trauma or a twist of the mind that makes them suspect, even Daniel.
Even Daniel's friends, Ben and Rachael--documentary filmmakers Daniel is working with as he tries to unwind the fear that grips his life--are suspect. As with every good thriller, the reader never knows who to trust, who to latch on to as the sure bet for the UNSUB (ha-ha, Author Dearest, I beat you to it), and most disturbing of all, always wondering if there is anything the reader has in common with the suspects that makes them doubt themselves, if pushed to the wall one more time, with just the right amount of force.
As with Penn's book, extensive knowledge of religious history and traditions are seamlessly woven into the story and propels it forward. The rich traditions of Judaism take center stage in the plot as everything begins to spin the tension ever tighter. The roots of antisemitism are also touched upon and made understood, but never at the cost of slowing down the action and the urgency of solving this crime...and the ones that are to come, and the shocking conclusion. It was fascinating, but that's the limit of what I'll say for fear of adding any spoilers.
I will say that this is more than a story about a crime with a religious theme. It's about the clashes of the past with the present, unfounded hatred and the sacrifices made in coping with the hatred. It's a novel of healing and redemption set against both the terror and nightmares of fire, as well as the cleansing it can bring. At heart, it is a love story that can only happen when fear is eased. But is it possible to ever leave behind the fear? What are the consequences of remaining in its grips?
DARK RITE
Enjoy a good horror story written on the extremes of imagination by two writers riffing off each other? Yes? Then you're going to love Dark Rite by Alan Baxter and David Wood. I found myself alternating between loving the terror of a small town in a lost fold of Appalachia, and disappointment at the lack of a fully fleshed out story with characters I could believe and identify with.
I like horror that sneaks up on me and takes me by surprise (a good cardio workout while sitting in a chair). I didn't get it with this book. The hint of horror to come flashed too soon for my tastes, but my tastes belong to me. This could be just the kind of thrilling horror tale a reader who likes the spooky stuff right from the beginning will love. It does touch on the spiritual, but not in the same way as the other two books in this set. I read those without having nightmares, but I'm not so sure about this one. These authors go directly for the throat and grab hold tight. Except for one finger. Which finger?
My lips are sealed. You'll have to read it to find out.
October 24, 2014
I've read two of the stories in this set so far, and gotta say if you're looking for something to keep you up at night, this will do the trick!
First, Prophecy by J.F Penn: Once again, I am totally freaked out by fiction that feels so real, I'm convinced it's actually happening. Like now, today. The idea that someone could destroy a 1/4 of humanity is chilling enough (and by the looks of the evening news, people are trying!) but to use something that's meant to help people to instead brainwash them into becoming the weapon of destruction? OMG. Especially because they use binaural beats, which I listen to quite often.
This story blends religious history, mystical occult and modern mayhem to create a tale that's exciting to read. If you like Dan Brown, you'll love this. You might like it even MORE than Dan Brown because the historical info isn't over done. It's woven into the story in an elegant way. And the protagonist is an intelligent woman who loves history and wants to save the world.
Next, Dark Rite:
This story scared the crap out of me. It's so creepy and I could totally see it happening in the small towns I used to live in. Seriously...satanic, demonic, scary...perfect for Halloween. If you're looking for something to get your pulse pounding, this is it. Truly.
First, Prophecy by J.F Penn: Once again, I am totally freaked out by fiction that feels so real, I'm convinced it's actually happening. Like now, today. The idea that someone could destroy a 1/4 of humanity is chilling enough (and by the looks of the evening news, people are trying!) but to use something that's meant to help people to instead brainwash them into becoming the weapon of destruction? OMG. Especially because they use binaural beats, which I listen to quite often.
This story blends religious history, mystical occult and modern mayhem to create a tale that's exciting to read. If you like Dan Brown, you'll love this. You might like it even MORE than Dan Brown because the historical info isn't over done. It's woven into the story in an elegant way. And the protagonist is an intelligent woman who loves history and wants to save the world.
Next, Dark Rite:
This story scared the crap out of me. It's so creepy and I could totally see it happening in the small towns I used to live in. Seriously...satanic, demonic, scary...perfect for Halloween. If you're looking for something to get your pulse pounding, this is it. Truly.
May 17, 2015
I have not yet finished the 2nd and 3rd books in the series, but I had to comment on Prophecy. Get this book! Penn's interest in the macabre aspects of religion is on full display in this fast paced and engrossing thriller. As a lifelong Catholic myself with a keen interest in the some of the more horrifying aspects of Catholic iconography, I found myself wishing I had written this book. The key to Penn's talent to dropping you into the center of her scenes so you can visualize the majesty and terror of what she sees in her mind's eye is in her ability to weave fiction and historical truth together so tightly that it's hard to tell where reality ends and fiction begins. She makes some interesting comments on these "real" elements of her work at the back of the book and they are well worth the read. I eagerly look forward to reading the final two books and hope to have positive comments on those as well.
October 31, 2014
Having read Prophecy before, I decided to re read it something i rarely do even with the best of books.This book is the second i the series and sees Morgan relationship with Jake develop and her involvement with ARKANE become official. This time they are pitted against an organisation know as THANATOS and its crazy leader who wants to possess the Devils Bible to start kill according to the Apocalypse under the guise of his research company. Joanna has the ability to whisk the reader around exotic locations letting the reader feel that they are there, she writes with flair and whilst giving the reader a history lesson takes them on a roller coaster thrill ride. Totally recommended and as always eagerly awaiting the next instalment.
October 21, 2014
I have been a huge fan of the David Wood Dane Maddock's series, so I was excited to try this new book. I quickly became enthralled with the story. It had just right amount of mystery and supernatural intrigue. The story revolves around Grant Shipman, who returns home to settle his estranged fathers affairs. Within days of his arrival Grant realizes that the town of Walden Gap is not what it appears. A dark evil lives in this town and Grant soon finds himself right in the middle of it. I loved this book. While I am very familiar with David Wood I have not read any of Alan Baxter. I will definately rectify that. I would highly recommend this book to anyone who likes a dark supernatural story involving cults.
October 22, 2014
I received a review copy of the box set and my review is for Prophecy by J.F. Penn. Prepare yourself for excitement as Morgan Sierra along with her partner Jake from the ARKANE society seek to find a religious artifact, the Devil's Bible, before a dangerous fanatic religious organization, Thanatos, finds it and uses it to initiate the Apocalypse of the book of Revelation. You will not be bored as the story moves fluidly from one action sequence to the next and the tension builds. You will definitely want to read her other books in the ARKANE series and perhaps, like me, Morgan Sierra will become one of your favorite fem fatales.
October 20, 2014
Nice combination of books. I read all three in a matter of days, it was hard to put it down. Three very different heroes in three fast paced stories. I enjoyed them so much I will have to read some of their other novels.
Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews