Balor

by Mark Carver

Don't Let Him Win. The brutal world of mixed martial arts is no place for cowards and weaklings. Danny Fitzgerald knows he has the guts to compete, but the success he craves keeps slipping through his fingers. Juggling a complicated relationship along with a dead-end job on the docks of Jackson, Mississippi, Danny yearns for domination in the sport that literally saved his life. And he will do anything to attain it. Anything. Balor is brutal, vicious, and carries with it a strong do not play with forces that are beyond your control.

244 pages, Paperback

Published July 12, 2017

About the author

MARK CARVER writes edgy, intense Christian fiction that illuminates the truth of the Gospel while not shying away from dark and challenging topics. He also writers lighter, more inspirational stories under a pen name to avoid confusing his readers. Mark lives with his family in north Georgia, where he enjoys art, literature, nature, and gardening.

Reviews

[Parker Cole · Rating 5 out of 5]

Balor is a wild ride. It's gritty, it's dark, and it's signature tale of Mark Carver.

We follow the life of Danny Fitzgerald, a guy with anger issues, hatred, and the sincere desire to do something better with his life. He had good intentions but as they say, good intentions lead the road to hell. And in Balor, it's a literal thing.

Would you do anything to win? That's a question the reader has to ask for his or her own self as they explore this book. Mark Carver does it again! I received an ARC copy of this book and the review I write is my own that I wrote freely.

[Story Blogger · Rating 5 out of 5]

Mark Carver's latest book is a new segue for his interests but I can appreciate any author like that. Seamless writing, good pacing, and solid characterization, good fight scenes. It has a lot of darker elements, and includes heavy themes of racism and satanic determination, but it reads smoothly like an R-rated movie. The protagonist, Danny, is faced with hard life situations with his family and with his job in Mississippi, making him even more angry than usual. He's the kind of guy that wants everything now, and while he is ready to put in the work, he wants everything to come immediately. He has a girlfriend, Carlee, who has a young son, DJ, but their relationship is alternatively rocky and intense. After dosing on "Hot Sauce," a performance-enhancing drug he uses to fight better, Danny starts to see a strange hand slinking around every corner. He soon learns there is a more powerful option. He meets two strange characters named Alpha and Omega, who offer him a chance to get what he wants. He ends up making a deal with a demonic creature and gains the power to win. After Danny gets a shot at a big fight, DJ tells Danny that the demon wants Danny to lose. Overall, the book has a good message (lots of tough stuff, bad language and graphic violence) about the chance and choice for redemption for everyone, no matter how far lost.