The Belial Stone

Belial #1

by R.D. Brady

ASIN moved from less recent edition

An ancient monolith uncovered in Montana
is the key to uncovering
the greatest secret in humanity's history...

Professor Delaney McPhearson's life is turned upside down when her best friend, archaeologist Drew Masters, is found dead. Before she can deal with the heartbreaking loss, she is viciously attacked in her home by a man with inhuman fighting abilities.

Former Navy SEAL and head of security for a global think tank, Jake Rogan drops everything when he hears his foster brother, Tom Jeffries, has gone missing. There seem to be no clues, no information about his whereabouts. He has just vanished. But Jake won't rest until he finds him.

Laney and Jake join forces when they learn that the fates of their loved ones are intertwined. And somehow all the danger that dogs their steps, revolves around an eccentric archaeologist's controversial work on Gobekli Tepe, and the search for an ancient source of power.

Their personal quest soon becomes a race to protect humanity's very existence. But how can they defeat a foe who has been planning his moves for millennia?

To save mankind, Laney and Jake know they must succeed. But to succeed, they must live long enough to fight.

Genres: Thriller, Mystery, Fantasy, Fiction, Science Fiction, Adventure, Action

372 pages, Kindle Edition

First published June 9, 2013

About the author

R.D. Brady is the bestselling author of over 60 science-based thrillers, cryptid adventure novels, and mythological conspiracy series that blend real-world science with nonstop action.

With a Ph.D. in Criminology and a professional background in counterterrorism and behavioral science, R.D. brings expert insight to her fast-paced fiction. Her stories are known for featuring fierce female leads, ancient secrets, and cutting-edge research that challenges what we think we know about science, history, and the unknown.

She is best known for the long-running Belial Series, a fan-favorite that explores archaeological mysteries and supernatural revelations—and continues with the high-stakes Belial Rebirth Arc.

R.D. is also the author of The Ancestral Code Series, starting with Hominid, a cryptid-meets-science thriller that reimagines the Bigfoot legend. Her other popular works include the A.L.I.V.E. Series, The Unwelcome Trilogy, and the latest addition, the Shadow Directive series, including Predator Dominion.

Whether it's a global genetic conspiracy, an ancient civilization buried beneath modern myths, or a killer storm trapping a wrongly accused man, R.D.'s books deliver the adrenaline, mystery, and emotional depth that fans of Michael Crichton, Douglas Preston & Lincoln Child, and James Rollins crave.

When not writing, R.D. teaches martial arts, runs with her dogs, and tends to her garden. Under the pen name Sadie Hobbes, she also writes sharp, fast-paced urban fantasy thrillers.

📬 Subscribe at rdbradybooks.com to get exclusive extras, free novellas, and first looks at upcoming books.

Reviews

[bitmaid · Rating 1 out of 5]

I was cheated by the 1000+ Amazon reviews! I wish I had read some of them that were honest one stars. I don't believe this book took 3 years to write, I believe this was written on a mobile phone a chapter at a time everytime the author had a cup of coffee. The entire book is FILLED with people drinking coffee- that's the activity that connects everything!

And NO! I DON'T BELIEVE THIS WAS EVER COPY-EDITED. Aside from hideous grammar and spelling mistakes, the book is littered with REPEATED, STUPID sentences. I already mentioned coffee, the only thing that reflects the normalcy in the characters' lives. Now, count HOW MANY TIMES they ask each other "You Ok" and "You Alright". I dare you. EVERYTIME. EVERY GODDAME FUCKING TIME. Everytime anything happens the male characters approach the protagonist with the exact same line "You alright"? "Yeah I'm fine." FUCK!

Turn to Chapter 53. The good guys went to the digging site and saw ex-cons being transported in SUVs. I'm reproducing the lines verbatim-
"I guess we've found the missing men," Yoni said grimly.
Now, turn merely 2 pages, the good guys spotted more ex-cons in the compound, and what do you read? Again, reproducing it verbatim-
"Well, I guess we found them," Yoni said quietly.
WTF!! You only need to find them once! WHAT THE FUCK!!

This book is so fucking poorly written I took other notes. Let's go over the proverbial tip of the iceberg, shall we?

The prologue. It's said that Egypt and Central America are "ancient places". There is no logic anywhere else in the book, by the way, so I gave up noting stuff like this.

Somewhere in the middle, the good guys just found out some ex-cons were taken and made slaves. This is one of the good guys' reaction:
"Slave labor? But why take them only from New York?"
The swiftness and peculiarity of how their minds work (all of them) is beyond absurd.

2/3 down the book or further, something that hints the lack of common sense that filled the book.
"His name is Gideon Wright. From all reports, he goes just by Gideon."
WELL NO SHIT!!! What other names should he go by? WHY THE FUCK DO YOU NEED "ALL REPORT" TO GET THIS WHAT THE FUCK!!

Other than the writing, the plot is extremely painful to fathom as well because it's so awkward and forced. The author tries to create tension and action but every time when a shootdown is about to go down some of the characters decide to tell a lore about secret agencies, archeology findings or stories about fallen angels LMFAO. Disrupted flow everywhere. No wait, there is no flow. Just garbage piled up and pieced together on a landfill.

I can't go on. This book is of the most poorly written ones I have ever read.

[Dianne · Rating 3 out of 5]

The battle between good and evil will follow an action-packed path as two people join forces to uncover the fates of those they care about. The common thread that binds their quests lay in the archaeological digs of Gobekli Tepe, where an ancient source of power may lie.

THE BELIAL STONE by R.D. Brady has all of the ingredients for a riveting and intriguing tale involving, myths, mysteries and religion. Hardcore action, over-the-top at times, seem to overshadow the brilliance of the rest of this tale. I love a good fight scene, (bring ‘em on), but for me, the rest of the story was overshadowed just a little too much. I wanted more fleshing out of all of the meat and potatoes of this story, letting the fight scenes be the gravy.

Strong-willed characters, a constant hint of possible romance and all of the possibilities of uncovering the unknown and all it holds for mankind, all great draws in my book, but this time out, it just didn’t come together for me, but I can say for certain that this author has a gift that should not be ignored!

Series: Belial - Book 1
Publisher: Scottish Seoul Publishing LLC (January 13, 2014)
Publication Date: January 13, 2014
Genre: Action & Adventure
Print Length: 388 pages
Available from: Amazon | Barnes & Noble
For Reviews, Giveaways, Fabulous Book News, follow: http://tometender.blogspot.com

[Dana Griffin · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wow! This book was non-stop action filled with archeological history. The premise of the plot is written in such a way I found myself often thinking this might’ve actually happened. The author’s knowledge of criminology and interest in archeology comes through in this page turner of a story.

Laney McPhearson is an awesome protagonist. Well rounded with the skill set to make her actions and knowledge in this fast moving story believable. She’s not perfect. Can you say stubborn? Although this might seem a defect in her character, it’s fitting to make the situations she gets into believable.

Jake Logan, the Navy SEAL Laney teams up with is just a believable. There are times I wanted to shake Jake and tell him to not go Neanderthal and listen to the woman. The chemistry between the two is drawn out throughout the book. I hoped that if they survived the ordeal they were in, they’d get together as a couple.

The cast of supporting characters are excellently portrayed. I loved Yoni. I hope there is someone like Henry Chandler and his think tank.

You’ll hate the villain, Gideon. Whenever I read his scenes, I found myself looking over my shoulder and checking the locks on my doors.

Clear your schedule when you get to the climax. Its heart-thumping action will cause you to ignore crying children and work deadlines.

I look forward to the next R. D. Brady book.

[S’s Reading World · Rating 4 out of 5]

What a pleasure to read! This is a true non-stop thrill ride of a book. It is a mix of science fiction, christian fiction, and be prepared to rethink about myths of Atlantis and the history of Fallen Angels we have learned from the Books of Enoch.

As a fan of fallen angel "history," I thoroughly enjoyed this suspenseful thriller. The book takes many twists and turns and the characters are very real. I loved the care taken to develop them, so that as the reader I was rooting for or against them with such an intense passion. I look forward to more books by R.D. Brady in the future.

I received this as a first-reads giveaway from Goodreads and am very glad I entered this one. It certainly generated a lot of discussion in this household during my reading of it!

[Chris · Rating 3 out of 5]

I wanted to like this book because it falls into a category that generally interests me, lost civilizations and technology, but I just can't say that I liked it. It was ok and fast paced enough to keep me reading in the beginning but there is a lag in the middle and by then I couldn't deal with the amount of errors in both grammar and logic. It's also one of those two-people-meet-and-trust-each-other-unquestioningly-in-like-three-minutes kinds of stories and those always set off my BS meter. I give it a 3 out of 5 but I won't read more in this series.

[Jefrois · Rating 1 out of 5]

OPINION:
BOOK STINKS.
.
O!

M!

G!

I wish I were a woman!!!!

“…one of the new guys made a snarky comment about women getting black belts due to affirmative action, and she was in. She smiled. The victory was good….”
.
I really need to read more books BY women and ABOUT women!! They hold so many surprises and things I never knew!!!

Lots of “sipping” and “sipped,” and “sips,” in this one (extremely annoying,) and lots of crying and weeping and tears.

MY GOD, wish I were a woman!!!!

“…Drew's dead. The words crashed through Laney’s mind over and over again. He was gone. She rolled over and stared at the ceiling, a sharp sting in her eyes. She was cried out. There were simply no tears left….”

JAY-ZUS-HUH!! Do you get it yet?

DO YOU GET IT????

Because I am tarred of all this here a’ cryin’ an’ a’ weepin’ !!!

AN’ A’ REPETITION!!

AN’ A’ REPETITION!!

AN’ A’ REPETITION!!

AN’ A’ REPETITION!!

TARRED!!!

“…She curled up on the overstuffed chair she…had found at a garage sale a few years back....”

SHE “curled up” on a chair to read after all these tears and crying and weeping??

SHE CURLED UP????

THE FRIEND IS DEAD AND SHE CURLED UP?????

Author goes out of her way to say that the detective is “good looking,” and Cleo is too.

WHY WOULDN’T THEY BE???????

OH…and it turns out that the evil basterds behind this evil plot are “extremely conservative.”

I quit reading and dumped the book as more Hollywood bllsht.

I quit at Page 62. I don't care what else this author MIGHT HAVE to say.

I can waste my valuable time in other ways.
.

[Tara · Rating 2 out of 5]

Maybe I've been reading too many similar books recently, but this one seemed too bland. There's a plot, but it seems more like a skeletal vehicle for non-stop action scenes rather than having much focus. Instead there are convenient info dumps between action scenes and not really enough thinking to convince me that they should successfully discover answers. Basically I felt that, overall, everything was just a too convenient. Especially including the budding "love" story. If an author has to say, "I don't know why I feel this way," because of some sudden unfounded love for another character, probably they should rethink things. In my opinion, the story would have been stronger without the love interest because it predisposed me to be less convinced by other things.

[Ally · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book has all the plot and excitement of a Dan Brown novel, with FAR better writing. The archaeological details are fascinating, and sent me on many side trips to Wikipedia for more information! You definitely won't want to put it down once you've started it. I highly recommend it for fans of occult thrillers or for anyone who wants a high-stakes, action-packed read.

[Nancy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent read, hard to put down. Lots of action, mystery and a touch of romance, can't wait to get into the next. Loved it!

[Darth · Rating 1 out of 5]

smh

[John T · Rating 2 out of 5]

Well.

This is actually a pretty good read, but half-way through I realised that, for no discernible reason, I just didn’t want to finish it. I couldn’t say why. Maybe I didn’t care enough about any of the characters?

Don’t let this put you off having a read.

Not that it will. Cos nobody will ever read this review. Though if they did then I’d be happy to get 2 stars for my 2 star review. As long as you don’t stop half-way through. Or something.

[Pamela Aidan · Rating 3 out of 5]

As with most stories that incorporate Christianity into stories that deal in the demonic, the "Christian" element in The Belial Stone is entirely overrun with human and demonic action and power. and New Age speculation. This makes for an exciting, action-packed story, but the discordant aspects make it cringe-worthy to those with even a minimum of biblical understanding. I guess what I'm saying is, if you are going to include Biblical themes, characters, and clergy in a story, DO YOUR HOMEWORK. It will very likely make for a more interesting story and improve the nature of the conflicts the characters encounter.

[Miss Fluffykins · Rating 4 out of 5]

Hard to put down. I did eye-roll occasionally at the romantic feelings, but that's just a me problem haha

[Nancy · Rating 3 out of 5]

I would really like to say I liked this book but the more I read, the less I liked it. It was disappointing. The book is more about the action and the entire story takes place in under a week. Everything is too easy for the characters ("good" and "bad" guys). There is no mystery or suspense, just action scene after action scene. No twist or surprise ending. The writer gives everything away early on. It is painfully obvious how it will end. All the bad guys die or go to jail and all the good guys live happily every after. This could have been a good story but it was poorly executed.

[Sharon Michael · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good action/adventure with a lot of the more current archaeology discoveries and mythic tales woven nicely into the plot line. Well researched, good action sequences and interesting characters.

[Clownmama · Rating 4 out of 5]

Nicely paced adventure

This book has a great pace, easily likeable characters and just enough not told to keep you wanting more. The characters aren't quite as well fleshed out, but seeing as this is like a 14 book series, I'm sure we get to know them better. I also worry there will be loss of these characters going forward, it seems inevitable.

I enjoyed the story drawing a bit from real world 'fact' and pure fiction. I won't bother debating that religion and the Bible are fiction, in MY OPINION. It is a nicely woven tale, and i will continue reading at least three next book. With most series as large as this one, I find they quickly wear out their welcome in a few installments, so I'll definitely not binge the whole series at once.

Ending thought... I'm not sure why they are so confused as to what Henry is. For people that were smart the whole damned book, the answer should be obvious. *shrug*

[Merewyn · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book was good fun adventure. Lol :) But I went into it thinking that it was going to be more of a thinking-through-the-mystery-type of book. So it was a little jarring to me at first once I realized it was an action/adventure type.
Don't get me wrong though! This is a fun romp of adventure and has all of those pleasurable bells and whistles that are standard adventure novel accoutrements. :)
:) I would recommend for anyone who needs a fun action packed fast paced novel without any heavy or hard thinking necessary to follow along - like when you're reading to relax and fall asleep. Which is exactly how I read this book. It's sort of like a Buffy the Vampire action type of book. I realize this might not be to everyone's tastes, but I sure enjoyed it (and I'll likely borrow the rest of the series from my friend to find out what happens next). :)

[Roger Charles · Rating 2 out of 5]

I found this book a struggle to read. I almost quit reading several times but stayed with it hoping for a spectacular finish. I was disappointed.

At times the book felt that it was written in amateurish fashion: wordy, descriptions and a lack of black op terms/communication.

I enjoyed reading the very end of the book about the author and RD's effort to fashion this story. Actually I like the use of facts, alternative historical events or cultural issues, creating characters to weave this into a fast paced, realistic and organized tale. For those reasons that's what disappointed me; too much was missing and it was too touchy/feely.

I'd say the author has a good idea of what should be in a great book but still needs to hon the craft; I truly wish you the best.

[Patrick H · Rating 2 out of 5]

Hugely disappointing. I wish I had read a review like the one I am writing now, prior to buying this book
This author is more concerned about being inclusive, politically correct, and checking off all the diversity boxes, than she is about writing a solid story.
Not surprisingly, the evil characters were a Republican senator and various other Very Conservative People.
The story itself draws heavily from the Terminator movies. Going so far as actually calling some of the villains Terminator.
I truly don’t mind a widely diverse cast of characters.....but what I can’t stand is when I’m unable to escape in my mind’s eye, watching the author check boxes off a list to ensure everyone is represented. Takes me out of the book and I completely lose the story.

[Jan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great read

I love books on archaeology and this one has a different twist. Characters were very likable and i enjoyed getting to know them. I also love books that make me want to learn more history of the background they are written about. Definitely will be checking out the book of enoch. And will be purchasing the next book in the series to find out more of henry's life and hopefully the other characters also. Was great to have a strong female lead who stayed strong and didnt crumble when the men were around. All in all a very enjoyable read.

[jboyg · Rating 2 out of 5]

Debut Novel, Thriller With Biblical Overtones

Having just finished the author's new novel and loving it I decided to sample her first outing. I found it quite disappointing , almost as if a different person had written it. It seemed cliched, weakly plotted with cardboard characters and just plain boring. It also has over a dozen sequels --the mind trembles! So how did she get so good in just seven years? Must have made a deal with the devil down at the crossroads--or maybe practice really does make perfect.

[Dian Beatty · Rating 2 out of 5]

Laney’s archeologist best friend is murdered just after emailing her information about his latest dig. Jake’s brother is abducted just after he’s gotten his life together after being paroled. The two crimes are closely related and being Jake, Laney, and a motley crew together to save the world from an ancient source of power.

It had a strong start, but for me it all fell apart quickly. The characters were blah, the story over-plotted. It was like an action movie with a bloated budget. Too much happening and not always for a good reason.

[Clay · Rating 3 out of 5]

Decent story but needs editing

The story is entertaining and I appreciated the historical details. But I think they could have used a little more development. Plus I liked that Laney is strong but her relationship with Jake is a bit stereotypical with the whole damsel needs protection stuff. Overall, there could be more depth. But then again, it's a fun read just like watching an action movie is fun. Last but not least though, there were a bunch of typos.

[Mary Pangle · Rating 5 out of 5]

Thoughts

This reading have me so many thoughts, I have always had leanings towards ancient civilizations, how could there not be. We build over and over and discover and discover, this is an old world with many secrets yet to be uncovered, I as I stated before lean towards that possibility. I have always wanted to do archeological digs, but alas I did not. I do enjoy reading of all discoveries, this has opened many eyes I would hope. Read it and discover.

[robyn dixon · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a good story...

...so good I apparently read it twice. When I downloaded it on my Kindle and opened it, the final page appeared -- indicating that that was the farthest I'd been in the story. I don't remember but that's not as horrible as it sounds. It was published several years ago (like 7 or 8) And I read A LOT. Certain scenes did seem familiar. Plus, well, I read it again. That's a pretty good recommendation, I think.
Respectfully,

[John Garrett · Rating 4 out of 5]

A good foundation for a long series

I think I'm going to enjoy this series, but I'm going to have to spread it out over a period of time, because it's so intense.

But the characters are well written, I really am intrigued by the premise, and I am looking forward to watching Laney's evolution in the later books.

And I REALLY admire her Uncle Patrick. A warrior priest! The world needs them!!

[Ernie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good Fun!

Atlantis and Religion and Fallen Angels. I enjoyed the ride. I also felt that the book makes for a good stand alone. I am going to read the next one but it really did strike me as a great book (no huge cliffhangers ect).

I had read some of Brady's other work and enjoyed it. I do hope however that the next books conitnue to be just as good.

[Ruthanne Taylor · Rating 5 out of 5]

I thoroughly enjoyed this book. It was well written with great, believable, for the most part, characters & a great plot. It is an excellent standalone book but is actually the first of a series. Not sure if I will pursue the series, but put it on my wish list. I have always loved archaeology & sci-fi & this is a great mix.

[Janet Brien · Rating 2 out of 5]

Written by an amateur, badly edited with glaring mistakes, and filled with factual errors. The author doesn't do proper research and thus, anyone reading who knows better will immediately throw this garbage in the trash. A waste of time...I cannot believe it is so highly regarded. What's more, I am staggered to know this is just the first in a series.

[Steve · Rating 4 out of 5]

A very clever concept for a book/series and well executed. Loads of action built upon a mystery that will likely play out over the course of several books. Characters that are extremely compelling. Readers will either love them or hate them, depending on their role in the story. And as it should be, readers are left wanting more.