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Devil Glass
To the casual observer Joyce Robbins has it all. Her beauty is unmarred by her forty-eight years and her education in Archaeology is the foundation for a rewarding career with a well-respected museum in the Midwest. Yet the ironclad financial base, which alone supports her comfortable lifestyle, goes unseen. Other, less sustaining attributes go unseen, also. Locked away in a dark corner of her mind are the memories of three best friends, the tragedy in Vietnam that ripped them apart, and the pain she’s refused to acknowledge for thirty years. Something has stirred those memories from her college years, a time when three best friends lived together, bound by love, friendship, and a dangerous secret. It’s the whisper of a warning she doesn’t hear. As an archaeologist, Joyce is about to discover an ancient artifact with a horrid appearance. Captured within the framework of the artifact is the only example of Antitheus Vitrum the world has ever seen. Antitheus Vitrum, an aberrant crystalline structure predicted to exist by an archaic Numerology-based science, has finally been discovered. Antitheus Vitrum has a dark secret. Pray we don’t find out.
322 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 2000
1 person is currently reading
12 people want to read
About the author
C. Robert Cales
7 books19 followersC. Robert Cales a.k.a. ScaryBob, author of paranormal thrillers dishes up healthy servings of the jitters, the creeps, the willies and the heebie jeebies.
Devil Glass
A beautiful archaeologist is about to discover an ancient artifact with a horrible secret and potential to relegate humanity to a prey species.
The Bookseller
A bookstore across from Boston Common operated by a lovable rare book dealer and his wife becomes the acquisition target of a violent South American drug cartel with a new high tech smuggling process.
Devil Glass
A beautiful archaeologist is about to discover an ancient artifact with a horrible secret and potential to relegate humanity to a prey species.
The Bookseller
A bookstore across from Boston Common operated by a lovable rare book dealer and his wife becomes the acquisition target of a violent South American drug cartel with a new high tech smuggling process.
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Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews
April 9, 2014
I'm not sure what it is about this book that I don't like, I just know I don't.
I only read the first half before I had to give up. I think part of my problem is the jumping between characters in a way that I was struggling to figure out who I was reading about. This ruined the flow of the story for me.
The story itself was ok, but having reached 50% nothing really scary had happened yet. The only thing 'abnormal' so far was that they found a large crystal that looked like a mirror with scary frame that has lots of carved faces on it. This seems to be some sort of portal to a different reality filled with scary creatures. But although I want to see what happens (maybe the second half of the book is really exciting?) I just can't read any more. Maybe I will finish it at some point and I will edit this review, but for now I've had enough.
I only read the first half before I had to give up. I think part of my problem is the jumping between characters in a way that I was struggling to figure out who I was reading about. This ruined the flow of the story for me.
The story itself was ok, but having reached 50% nothing really scary had happened yet. The only thing 'abnormal' so far was that they found a large crystal that looked like a mirror with scary frame that has lots of carved faces on it. This seems to be some sort of portal to a different reality filled with scary creatures. But although I want to see what happens (maybe the second half of the book is really exciting?) I just can't read any more. Maybe I will finish it at some point and I will edit this review, but for now I've had enough.
April 1, 2007
Devil Glass
Genre: Horror
C. Robert Cales (322 pages, hardcover; PublishAmerica, 2000, $34.95)
ISBN #1-59286-202-0
I've read other reviews, and they do the story some credit. First, forget that it's PublishAmerica. Yes, there are the occasional spelling gaffes in the text. DEVIL GLASS draws you right in, with sharpened talons, and it won't let go. Trust me on this one--I just finished reading it. If I had to reduce it to a simple equation (and if you have ever read THE OTHER), it's Stephen King meets Tom Tryon.
Antitheus Vitrum.
When someone contracts to have a swamp drained in their back yard, so they can install a pool, this strange totem ploe-like structure is uncovered. Nightmarish faces are carved into the crystal surface. The rought surface separates this from other crystals. Its black heart, contained by the nightmarish carvings etched on the fossilized wood that surrounds and contains it, unnerves anyone who comes close enough to peer into its darkened recesses. Its discovery coincides with a chain of mysterious deaths and disappearances that only seems to grow as the mystery shrouding the artifact deepens.
Joyce Robbins seems to have it all. She's starting work as a college professor, Native American Studies. She also works at the museum. She is highly respected by the people she works with--well, with the exception of Rudy. She's also, as of late, overwhelmed with memories, and feelings that she had ignored for some twenty-odd years. When Joyve and Kim Lee received word that Randy Lippencott had died in Vietnam, she and Kim lost contact as they tried to come to terms with Randy's passing. What will happen when she comes into contact with the artifact? What dark secret xould lie behind its enigmatic architecture?
Kim Lee is an enigma on to himself. He's got this knack for things--it's a bit difficult to pin down, until you read the book. Let's just say he's a bit of a clairvoyant. Well, maybe more than a bit. After they had heard that Randy died, and Joyce lit out on her own, he engaged in a journey which brought him to a Master, who would help him cope with his own grief, and to learn many things, in order to prepare...
Randy Lippencott is remarkably alive and relatively well, for someone who died in Vietnam. For three weeks, he was in a coma, misidentified as a fellow soldier, the only survivor of his platoon. He could find neither Joyce not Kim on his return to the U. S. He's now a geologist.
Together, the three of them must face the nightmare, dug up from beneath the ground, when someone wanted to install a pool. A nightmare called Antitheus Vitrum.
Devil Glass.
Genre: Horror
C. Robert Cales (322 pages, hardcover; PublishAmerica, 2000, $34.95)
ISBN #1-59286-202-0
I've read other reviews, and they do the story some credit. First, forget that it's PublishAmerica. Yes, there are the occasional spelling gaffes in the text. DEVIL GLASS draws you right in, with sharpened talons, and it won't let go. Trust me on this one--I just finished reading it. If I had to reduce it to a simple equation (and if you have ever read THE OTHER), it's Stephen King meets Tom Tryon.
Antitheus Vitrum.
When someone contracts to have a swamp drained in their back yard, so they can install a pool, this strange totem ploe-like structure is uncovered. Nightmarish faces are carved into the crystal surface. The rought surface separates this from other crystals. Its black heart, contained by the nightmarish carvings etched on the fossilized wood that surrounds and contains it, unnerves anyone who comes close enough to peer into its darkened recesses. Its discovery coincides with a chain of mysterious deaths and disappearances that only seems to grow as the mystery shrouding the artifact deepens.
Joyce Robbins seems to have it all. She's starting work as a college professor, Native American Studies. She also works at the museum. She is highly respected by the people she works with--well, with the exception of Rudy. She's also, as of late, overwhelmed with memories, and feelings that she had ignored for some twenty-odd years. When Joyve and Kim Lee received word that Randy Lippencott had died in Vietnam, she and Kim lost contact as they tried to come to terms with Randy's passing. What will happen when she comes into contact with the artifact? What dark secret xould lie behind its enigmatic architecture?
Kim Lee is an enigma on to himself. He's got this knack for things--it's a bit difficult to pin down, until you read the book. Let's just say he's a bit of a clairvoyant. Well, maybe more than a bit. After they had heard that Randy died, and Joyce lit out on her own, he engaged in a journey which brought him to a Master, who would help him cope with his own grief, and to learn many things, in order to prepare...
Randy Lippencott is remarkably alive and relatively well, for someone who died in Vietnam. For three weeks, he was in a coma, misidentified as a fellow soldier, the only survivor of his platoon. He could find neither Joyce not Kim on his return to the U. S. He's now a geologist.
Together, the three of them must face the nightmare, dug up from beneath the ground, when someone wanted to install a pool. A nightmare called Antitheus Vitrum.
Devil Glass.
May 1, 2014
Alright, critiques first. It was not scary. Not in the least. Were there parts that made me make the "ew" face? Yes. A couple times, but I wasn't scared. Another annoyance was the going back and forth between past and present. It came out of the blue when it happened with no separation that you would normally see in a book. That kind of drove me nuts. There is also the mass amount of dipping into so many character's lives. I get who the main ones are. While the bouncing around didn't actually bug me (as a personal preference, I'm cool with that. Seeing into many lives does entertain some readers. You either like it or hate it), I can see where people may have gotten lost. It was a complex story. I would have loved to have seen Joyce get Randy back into the pic sooner. Personal want, though. I would have loved to have had a better understanding of the Devil's Glass. The why's and the what's of it. Honestly, I also would love to see if there would be a sequel. It feels like it ended abruptly, as if we are missing what the purpose of Kim, Joyce and Randy really is. Are they destined to work together to protect the world from icky evil? Critiques being said, I actually really liked this book. There wasn't any part I had to force myself to read. The plot and idea was uniquely entertaining. I really hope he decides to continue this story. I feel we should know so much more, not just about the Devil Glass, but about the trio involved in it. And the girly girl in me wants to see how Randy and Joyce pan out. :) Not to mention Kim and his destiny. We know what he can do...now why? I'd definitely read more by this author.
April 14, 2008
This is the first effort by C. Robert Cales (otherwise known as ScaryBob!) and as his first novel, it is fantastic! Well written with detailed characters and an intricate plot that does not wander in the least. It has something for archeology fans. It has something for fans of alternate dimensions and it has something for people who just like to have their socks scared off![return][return]I could rave on and on but I'm afraid of giving the story away if I do. All I can say is that you will do yourself the greatest favor of the year by going out and buying this book.[return][return]NOW![return][return]Buy two and give the other copy to a friend. They'll love you for it!
April 14, 2014
I had a hard time getting into this book and honestly I never really did. For me it's too slow at the start and try as I might I couldn't get into any of the characters. I got about 75% through the story and skipped to the end and still do not understand all the 5 stars and raves about it being scary. I received this book from the author for an honest review. It simply was not what I expected and not my cup of tea.
January 28, 2012
This is a great book for any lover of horror! We included an excerpt Devil Glass on our http://www.fantasyreaders.com website for free and the vast majority of ratings were GREAT!
Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews