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The Omen #5
The Abomination: Omen V
Brother Francis tries to warn the world about Damien's son, Damien Thorn II, who has come to continue his father's satanic work
224 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published July 2, 1985
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Displaying 1 - 25 of 25 reviews
November 24, 2019
Spook-A-Thon: Read Something You Won't Normally Read
2.5 Stars
Possible spoilers if you haven't watched The Omen!
I found this at a used bookstore this weekend and it was only 48 cents. So I had to buy it. Right?
Omen V: The Abomination is what it is. If you've ever seen the movie The Omen(the original not that awful remake) then you know its about Damien who is the Antichrist will bring about the end of the world.
Confession Time: I've seen every movie in The Omen series(I'm not proud of this). You may be saying
"I never knew there was more than one movie ?"
To which I say lucky you because those movies are terrible. And The Abomination keeps up that same quality.
As I said at the beginning of my review this book cost 48 cents so I got what I paid for and I'm not mad I read it. I knew it would be bad and it was but it was also a fast read.
The Abomination picks up after the Armageddon and the death of Damien. Some may say that the story should have ended there but The Devil like the Patriots takes no days off. So this book revolves around Damien's secret son also named Damien who no one knew about and who just so happens to be continuing the family business as the Antichrist. But Damien Jr. unlike his father has no charisma and is rather boring.
I don't understand what the purpose of this book was but Gordon McGill is obviously a talented writer. It just seems like he wasn't given much to work with.
If you enjoy bad and cheesy 1980's horror books maybe pick this up if you can find it for cheap.
2.5 Stars
Possible spoilers if you haven't watched The Omen!
I found this at a used bookstore this weekend and it was only 48 cents. So I had to buy it. Right?
Omen V: The Abomination is what it is. If you've ever seen the movie The Omen(the original not that awful remake) then you know its about Damien who is the Antichrist will bring about the end of the world.
Confession Time: I've seen every movie in The Omen series(I'm not proud of this). You may be saying
"I never knew there was more than one movie ?"
To which I say lucky you because those movies are terrible. And The Abomination keeps up that same quality.
As I said at the beginning of my review this book cost 48 cents so I got what I paid for and I'm not mad I read it. I knew it would be bad and it was but it was also a fast read.
The Abomination picks up after the Armageddon and the death of Damien. Some may say that the story should have ended there but The Devil like the Patriots takes no days off. So this book revolves around Damien's secret son also named Damien who no one knew about and who just so happens to be continuing the family business as the Antichrist. But Damien Jr. unlike his father has no charisma and is rather boring.
I don't understand what the purpose of this book was but Gordon McGill is obviously a talented writer. It just seems like he wasn't given much to work with.
If you enjoy bad and cheesy 1980's horror books maybe pick this up if you can find it for cheap.
August 17, 2018
3.0 Not a bad read, but not that great. Just seemed like it was lacking. Could have been more descriptive in many areas, and Damien was not even in the book much it seemed. Was still better than #4, and definitely came to an end now. Just wished it was a bit better than it was, but good enough I guess.
April 2, 2019
Well, that's that. It's over. Mostly this drags, as it spends a great deal of the narrative just rehashing what happened in all the other books as a writer investigates the Thorn legacy for a book he plans to write. And, as usual, McGill's writing is kind of sloppy and rushed. But, if you're patient enough, there's fun to be had, especially in the third act. The climax is whack as hell, and the epilogue does tie up the series quite neatly.
August 27, 2024
2.3 - This book was the most dull, and honestly, unnecessary one of the whole series. It felt like this book, as well as the previous one, were trying to simply rehash the events of the first three books/movies. I was just really let down by this one and I feel like it failed to really build the world the series apparently created. For the world being at war, we really never heard about anything happening.... The focus was on book writing and trying to find out why tragedy follows the Thorns, which we as the readers are well aware of already. It was just a let down and especially moreso because it's meant to conclude the series and I feel like it should've been left at The Final Conflict.
April 22, 2009
This book was an abomination.
December 1, 2009
Thank god this is the last one, because these books (especially the ones not based on the films) were not good. Plus, he manages to fuck up his own continuity from the previous book.
June 7, 2013
Weak if not downright terrible. Why didn't they just end this story in part four?
February 21, 2024
Omen 5 - The Abomination had a lot of potential to lean into being a full-on horror novel. As announced in the back-of-book blurb, limited-scale nuclear war has just been unleashed.
The anti-christ, in the form of the new, young Damien Thorn, should be straining at his leash to finish the job.
Instead what we get is a decidedly lacklustre retread of the last novel, as he's investigated by a sceptic (this time by a journalist, a seasoned writer and his researcher) and the aftermath of his interpersonal dealings starts to become a lot more inconvenient than the nuclear wasteland that's apparently sitting in the Middle-East.
That plot-defining exchange of nukes is always kept at arms-length, so that it feels like something you've read in a newspaper or in a history book. It never grows any sense of reality, and even when McGill fills a key scene with refugees, they don't feel very vivid or real. The young Damien also seems a bit too distant from it all, viewing it on TV and exerting some malicious influence, but otherwise once again sitting in his mansion.
We get some nice texture in the plot when it comes to seeing how the actions of the last novel affected his closest circle of followers, and a running theme of how the background influence of Christianity and goodness seems to begin to affect the satanists just as they get the opportunity to do their worst - but while McGill manages to sell the credibility of that quite realistically, he falls flat on other elements. Scenes that should be sinister and full of suspense and build-up don't feel very emotionally charged, and once again - like the last novel - anything that should be a truly shattering or horrifying set-piece seems to just kind of...happen...without any real impact.
The ideas are good, there's just no panache in the delivery.
Also, once again, the idea of the world marching to war on a path of unstoppable self-destruction is once again kept very much in the distant background and never acquires any real feeling of threat beyond a couple of passingly mentioned troop build-ups.
Damien is allowed a little more influence this time - but not by much. He gets a scene where he rather perversely and absurdly kills someone early on, and a scene where he malevolently influences a protest, but even the latter feels a little weak, and also feels shoe-horned in as a plot device just to draw someone's suspicion to him.
His followers feel absurdly weak, gathering in some numbers and then appearing to do next to nothing, when they could have been used to make a frightening and eerie point about mass hysteria and mob violence, while the ending plays out in a way that feels a little too similar to the last novel, before devolving into one of the silliest, most ridiculous climaxes imaginable.
Not only is the imagery very silly, but even the physics of the major event that follows are so beyond disbelief that they pull you out of the book, thinking 'but that literally couldn't happen'.
To be thinking 'that literally couldn't happen' in a book about supernatural possession and the anti-christ reborn must seem silly, but in a novel where normal rules of the real world and physics have been otherwise respected, having a climax that defies them through sheer carelessness (there's no hint that anything special has happened as a plot-convenient explanation) tells you just how ridiculous the final stages get.
Perhaps even more gallingly, throughout the two novels in this storyline, we've been repeatedly told that the second coming of Christ is walking the earth and he's been tantalisingly hinted at by at least one major character, but despite that he makes no appearance whatsoever, and exerts no direct influence upon a single scene in either book. It's hard to describe how much of a missed opportunity this feels, and you come away feeling a little cheated, as if you've been shown only one side of a sports match or a battle, and the other major player was left off camera the entire time.
I get it that the influence of goodness is supposed to be so intrinsic and fundamental that McGill doesn't feel he needs to be shown - but then don't repeatedly tease the presence of the character throughout both books!
As an end-cap to the Omen movies, it's an intriguing novel. It also does have good moments of character writing and dialogue. But as a horror centred around the anti-christ and the legacy of Damien Thorn, it falls a very long way short of the threat and terror promised by that title 'The Abomination'.
For that, you expect something that pushes the boundaries further, involves far more dramatic or nefarious machinations by the lead character, and, quite frankly, a bit more demonic fear and gore.
In comparison, this is almost offensively 'fine'.
The anti-christ, in the form of the new, young Damien Thorn, should be straining at his leash to finish the job.
Instead what we get is a decidedly lacklustre retread of the last novel, as he's investigated by a sceptic (this time by a journalist, a seasoned writer and his researcher) and the aftermath of his interpersonal dealings starts to become a lot more inconvenient than the nuclear wasteland that's apparently sitting in the Middle-East.
That plot-defining exchange of nukes is always kept at arms-length, so that it feels like something you've read in a newspaper or in a history book. It never grows any sense of reality, and even when McGill fills a key scene with refugees, they don't feel very vivid or real. The young Damien also seems a bit too distant from it all, viewing it on TV and exerting some malicious influence, but otherwise once again sitting in his mansion.
We get some nice texture in the plot when it comes to seeing how the actions of the last novel affected his closest circle of followers, and a running theme of how the background influence of Christianity and goodness seems to begin to affect the satanists just as they get the opportunity to do their worst - but while McGill manages to sell the credibility of that quite realistically, he falls flat on other elements. Scenes that should be sinister and full of suspense and build-up don't feel very emotionally charged, and once again - like the last novel - anything that should be a truly shattering or horrifying set-piece seems to just kind of...happen...without any real impact.
The ideas are good, there's just no panache in the delivery.
Also, once again, the idea of the world marching to war on a path of unstoppable self-destruction is once again kept very much in the distant background and never acquires any real feeling of threat beyond a couple of passingly mentioned troop build-ups.
Damien is allowed a little more influence this time - but not by much. He gets a scene where he rather perversely and absurdly kills someone early on, and a scene where he malevolently influences a protest, but even the latter feels a little weak, and also feels shoe-horned in as a plot device just to draw someone's suspicion to him.
His followers feel absurdly weak, gathering in some numbers and then appearing to do next to nothing, when they could have been used to make a frightening and eerie point about mass hysteria and mob violence, while the ending plays out in a way that feels a little too similar to the last novel, before devolving into one of the silliest, most ridiculous climaxes imaginable.
Not only is the imagery very silly, but even the physics of the major event that follows are so beyond disbelief that they pull you out of the book, thinking 'but that literally couldn't happen'.
To be thinking 'that literally couldn't happen' in a book about supernatural possession and the anti-christ reborn must seem silly, but in a novel where normal rules of the real world and physics have been otherwise respected, having a climax that defies them through sheer carelessness (there's no hint that anything special has happened as a plot-convenient explanation) tells you just how ridiculous the final stages get.
Perhaps even more gallingly, throughout the two novels in this storyline, we've been repeatedly told that the second coming of Christ is walking the earth and he's been tantalisingly hinted at by at least one major character, but despite that he makes no appearance whatsoever, and exerts no direct influence upon a single scene in either book. It's hard to describe how much of a missed opportunity this feels, and you come away feeling a little cheated, as if you've been shown only one side of a sports match or a battle, and the other major player was left off camera the entire time.
I get it that the influence of goodness is supposed to be so intrinsic and fundamental that McGill doesn't feel he needs to be shown - but then don't repeatedly tease the presence of the character throughout both books!
As an end-cap to the Omen movies, it's an intriguing novel. It also does have good moments of character writing and dialogue. But as a horror centred around the anti-christ and the legacy of Damien Thorn, it falls a very long way short of the threat and terror promised by that title 'The Abomination'.
For that, you expect something that pushes the boundaries further, involves far more dramatic or nefarious machinations by the lead character, and, quite frankly, a bit more demonic fear and gore.
In comparison, this is almost offensively 'fine'.
April 20, 2024
There is so much potential to continue and end this series beyond the movies.
In omen 3 the new Christ is born.
Omen 4 should have been about keeping that child safe from the antichrist. I mean… the beast and his disciples hunting down a child before he or she comes into their power. Easy horror there. King practically wrote it in his sequel to the shining.
Omen 5 should have been about the final face off between good and evil. Where Christ resurrected learns he or she is supposed to be the one ending the Thorn legacy. Some biblical prophecies, a major sacrifice to save humanity…. Bam. An ending that makes sense.
Why do we never meet Christ resurrected?
Why is Damian hardly in this book?
Why is this just a neverending rehash of all the killing from omen 1 to 4?
There was potential. But they took it in the wrong direction to come to a satisfying conclusion.
In omen 3 the new Christ is born.
Omen 4 should have been about keeping that child safe from the antichrist. I mean… the beast and his disciples hunting down a child before he or she comes into their power. Easy horror there. King practically wrote it in his sequel to the shining.
Omen 5 should have been about the final face off between good and evil. Where Christ resurrected learns he or she is supposed to be the one ending the Thorn legacy. Some biblical prophecies, a major sacrifice to save humanity…. Bam. An ending that makes sense.
Why do we never meet Christ resurrected?
Why is Damian hardly in this book?
Why is this just a neverending rehash of all the killing from omen 1 to 4?
There was potential. But they took it in the wrong direction to come to a satisfying conclusion.
October 3, 2021
Damien wanted power and control, Damien's son wants vengeance and destruction. Pereford once magnificent was now shabby, one might say an abomination. There is now global anarchy on the rise, the middle east is destroyed, a new person wants to uncover the mysterious deaths associated to anyone getting into the way of the Thorn corporation. A crucifix will be stuffed down the throat of a man, Damien's son will continue inducing hallucinations and madness over his adversities. His power is evil unlimited. Seven daggers will find their spot into the flesh and stop Armageddon this time. A fantastic series.
April 24, 2022
Not quite the novel it’s predecessor was. It has some creepy moments but most of its pages are concerned with rehashing things that happened in the previous novel. The structure is the same, a priest fruitlessly trying to convince a skeptic of religious claims. The skeptic not believing until it’s too late. Various victims running afoul of Damien 2.0 while he plays dice with international relations. The climax brings the sacrilegious horror that you expect but it’s preceded by a lot of waiting for the skeptic to put 2 and 2 together. It’s fine and it’s a quick read and still far superior to the film of Omen 4.
July 9, 2023
The final book in the series, the end of the world is looming... will China take Taiwan? How will the other parties react. The book is from 1985 but there are some amazing references to today's political situation. Damien is back and sure this time he will overcome the Nazarene and establish Satan's reign. Is he right? Is the end of the world in progress? Can he be stopped once and for all? Interesting follow up with multiple connection to former novels of the series. Many eerie motifs and Bible quotes. Mysterious, dark and haunting. A worthy end of a true horror classic. Highly recommended!
March 14, 2021
Literally don’t know what the point in “Damien Jr” was. This book focused heavily on bible references and less on plot. A violent ending that would be fulfilling for any horror fan but the plot of these two books continuing with Damien’s son was just to me a waste of time. This book especially was extremely far fetched and I honestly only read it because I had come so far in the series and wanted to see it out
June 25, 2025
I first read this book when I was about 15, I think. Hadn’t read it since. Today I finished it after having re-read the previous 4 books.
I enjoyed it very much but was a little disappointed by the ending. After all, in the series Christ has returned during the third book and I was hoping we’d see him by the end of this last book. Not so.
But it was worth reading just to see how it all ended.
I enjoyed it very much but was a little disappointed by the ending. After all, in the series Christ has returned during the third book and I was hoping we’d see him by the end of this last book. Not so.
But it was worth reading just to see how it all ended.
November 24, 2017
Took itself way too seriously. The prior book, Armageddon 2000, was fun but this one is a nope.
December 13, 2019
Sad, it didn't make to the screen. Perhaps, Omen IV and V are the best books of the series.
August 19, 2020
2.5. It's fun if you're in the mood for this sort of thing. There was a story line that would have made a good book if that was the entire story, and it was longer and more fleshed out.
March 11, 2017
A good finish to a great series. The first three books were the best but still the last two were a good read.
May 6, 2018
Plot:
Was it an accident that Damien II was born so close to the end of the world?
Was it a coincidence that Buher and the butler George turned against Damien II?
Was it murder that the world is suffering a near apocalyptic environment?
Or are all these more signs of Omens?
Review:
This is rinse and repeat the last two books with less murder and ominous things happening.
The ending is abrupt as usual. However, Jack Mason is one of the more interesting main characters. He starts off by trying to get a book written about the Thorns and soon he and his assistant (Anna) are thrust into this unholy world.
Other characters that are unfortunately forgettable include Paul Buher and Father DeCarlo whom are not in it long enough. The so-called Damien II doesn’t command the presence of the original Damien.
There is one scene that happens that is totally unforgivable. David Seltzer and even Richard Donner never wanted anything obviously supernatural to occur in this universe. Yet the scene where Damien controls the Jews to attack each other in a brutal riot through the television screen is so apparently his doing that it stinks of bad continuity. It’s a menacing scene but feels totally out of place in an Omen story.
Clichés riddle this book with tired twists. Anna is turned to Damien’s cult. Shocker, I didn’t see that coming. But there is one character (Maggie Brennan ‘whom was in the fourth installment’) who I was actually surprised by. When all hope seemed lost a twist turned in favor of them and me.
The big “ah ha” moment was spoken of throughout the series and is why Damien came back in two more forms of a form of the devil. It involves all seven daggers and not just one.
As I said, the book ended abruptly but it was so abrupt that I thought the world would actually be doomed with only ten pages and zero hope left. It’s a good thing for the surprise,
Gore:
Very minimal. There aren’t many kills in this book (None that are even worth mentioning) and that is upsetting.
Overall Thoughts:
If you wanted a better climax turn to part four, if you were satisfied with part three’s conclusion then end it there.
This is nothing new and lack the energy of the first four. It’s tired yet somehow McGill’s writing is still entertaining.
It keeps continuity pretty well. It says that the first omen took place in the 1950’s (1950 to be exact) so we can assume the second takes place in the early to mid 1960’s and the third takes place in 1981 making Damien Thorn thirty-one. Therefore The Omen 3, 4 and 5 can take place the year the books were released. This works because the first two films don’t feel entirely 70’s.
This is my least favorite Omen book. Not to say it’s bad it’s just not particularly all there. Void of thrills, kills and any kind of energy…. I’d have to say that.
Overall Rating: 2.5 out of 5 (Thankfully it's closer to a 3 out of 5 than a 2 out of 5)
Was it an accident that Damien II was born so close to the end of the world?
Was it a coincidence that Buher and the butler George turned against Damien II?
Was it murder that the world is suffering a near apocalyptic environment?
Or are all these more signs of Omens?
Review:
This is rinse and repeat the last two books with less murder and ominous things happening.
The ending is abrupt as usual. However, Jack Mason is one of the more interesting main characters. He starts off by trying to get a book written about the Thorns and soon he and his assistant (Anna) are thrust into this unholy world.
Other characters that are unfortunately forgettable include Paul Buher and Father DeCarlo whom are not in it long enough. The so-called Damien II doesn’t command the presence of the original Damien.
There is one scene that happens that is totally unforgivable. David Seltzer and even Richard Donner never wanted anything obviously supernatural to occur in this universe. Yet the scene where Damien controls the Jews to attack each other in a brutal riot through the television screen is so apparently his doing that it stinks of bad continuity. It’s a menacing scene but feels totally out of place in an Omen story.
Clichés riddle this book with tired twists. Anna is turned to Damien’s cult. Shocker, I didn’t see that coming. But there is one character (Maggie Brennan ‘whom was in the fourth installment’) who I was actually surprised by. When all hope seemed lost a twist turned in favor of them and me.
The big “ah ha” moment was spoken of throughout the series and is why Damien came back in two more forms of a form of the devil. It involves all seven daggers and not just one.
As I said, the book ended abruptly but it was so abrupt that I thought the world would actually be doomed with only ten pages and zero hope left. It’s a good thing for the surprise,
Gore:
Very minimal. There aren’t many kills in this book (None that are even worth mentioning) and that is upsetting.
Overall Thoughts:
If you wanted a better climax turn to part four, if you were satisfied with part three’s conclusion then end it there.
This is nothing new and lack the energy of the first four. It’s tired yet somehow McGill’s writing is still entertaining.
It keeps continuity pretty well. It says that the first omen took place in the 1950’s (1950 to be exact) so we can assume the second takes place in the early to mid 1960’s and the third takes place in 1981 making Damien Thorn thirty-one. Therefore The Omen 3, 4 and 5 can take place the year the books were released. This works because the first two films don’t feel entirely 70’s.
This is my least favorite Omen book. Not to say it’s bad it’s just not particularly all there. Void of thrills, kills and any kind of energy…. I’d have to say that.
Overall Rating: 2.5 out of 5 (Thankfully it's closer to a 3 out of 5 than a 2 out of 5)
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
October 2, 2022
I found this one distinctly underwhelming. I mean it's not even anticlimactic (that would have been an advantage at least) for there is no exciting or impressive series of events leading to any sort of climax. Very disappointing.
January 1, 2023
Damien's son...Damien...is a hot-headed jerk who is trying to fill his father's place, but he has not the charm his father had. One again, a major missed opportunity. There's still no epic confrontation, and it's just more of the same. Memorable deaths, but little else of note.
August 3, 2013
Not a bad conclusion to the Omen series. Kinda wish the ending wasn't so abrupt though...
Displaying 1 - 25 of 25 reviews