Audio Book Review: Light of the Last by Chuck Black

I really enjoyed this conclusion to a Christian story with a threat of biochemical contamination.
Light of the Last
by Chuck Black
Narrated By: Katie Leigh, Michael Orenstein, Leanne Bell

Written By: Chuck Black
Narrated By: Katie Leigh, Michael Orenstein, Leanne Bell
Publisher: Christianaudio.com
Date: May 2016
Duration: 12 hours 5 minutes
Genre: Christian Action, Fantasy, Romance, Young Adult
My Rating: 4.0 of 5.0 Overall; Story 4.25; Narration 3.75.

Summary:
To Fight What Others Can’t You Must See What Others Don’t
After an accident left him temporarily blind, Drew Carter didn’t just regain his sight. He now sees what others can’t imagine–an entire spiritual realm of mighty beings at war.
Forget the gift, Drew just wants his life back. Part of that involves Sydney Carlyle, a woman he is inexplicably drawn to. When he’s offered the chance to become a CIA agent, it seems the way to redeem his past. The only problem–his visions of the supernatural realm are increasing in frequency.
It’s up to the warrior angel Validus and his hand-picked team of heavenly agents to protect the unbelieving Drew. Validus now knows that the young man is at the epicenter of a global spiritual war, and the angels must use a millennia of battle experience keep Drew alive, for the Fallen want him dead.
Surrounded by spiritual warriors and targeted by demons, Drew’s faced with an impossible decision that will forever alter the destiny of America...and his own soul.

Review:
Drew Carter has a special gift that allows him to see ‘invaders’ in a spirit realm. He has figured out there are good forces fighting evil forces but he doesn’t understand them. He just knows that he would be thought crazy if he reveals the things he’s seen. Although he saved a warehouse full of students, Drew has been arrested for attacking the FBI in his determination to get into the building and rescue Sydney. Drew is looking at a lengthy prison sentence until a man in a black suit, Mr. Ross, offers him a career with the CIA rather than prison. Drew sees this as an opportunity to serve his country like his father did.

Drew trains at the farm and tries to hide his unusual strength and speed from the trainers. Ross suspects Drew is hiding something. Through a twisted series of circumstances, Ross isolates Drew making him an undercover agent responding only to Ross. As Drew carries out his secret assignments, the spiritual warriors continue to try to protect Drew. The angels are also trying to get Drew and Sydney’s paths to cross knowing it is important for Sydney to continue to share her faith with Drew.

I enjoyed the fast-paced tension and the heavenly battle portrayed in this story. I was a little frustrated that Drew didn’t figure out sooner who the ‘invaders’ were. I was rooting for Drew and Sydney and the angels of course. I recommend this trilogy to readers who enjoy Christian suspense.

Audio Notes: Katie Leigh, Michael Orenstein, and Leanne Bell did a good job with the narration. They provided good voices and emotions. There is music in the background chapter breaks that added to the suspense nature of the story. My only difficulty with the production was that there were portions that were so quiet I couldn’t hear or decipher them. Still, I enjoyed the listening experience.

Source: 5/4/2019 Audiobooks.com two credits. This qualifies for 2020TBR, 2020Audiobook and 2020Alphabet goals.

#NetGalley Book Review: Rise of the Fallen: Wars of the Realm, Book 2 by Chuck Black

This is a fascinating tale from the perspective of a warrior angel.
Rise of the Fallen: Wars of the Realm, Book 2
by Chuck Black

File Size: 4213 KB
Print Length: 319 pages
Publisher: Multnomah (February 17, 2015)
ASIN: B00N6PFBKA
Genre: Action & Adventure, Christian, Fantasy,
My Rating: 4.75 of 5.0

A six thousand year war rages and now the demonic Fallen are coming for him—the one man shrouded in mystery. Only Validus stands in their way.
Validus is the last and least of God’s angels, but he’s seen much across the millennia since his creation. Empires have risen and fallen as angelic and demonic forces battle in a raging war that will determine humanity's fate – and the fate of his defeated brothers.
Eventually called to be an earth-bound warrior, Validus rises to a position of power and respect, commanding legions of angels through impossible battles and overwhelming odds. But when orders arrive from the Creator's most elite Messenger, he finds himself suddenly demoted to a task of apparent insignificance considering the fierce war they are waging against the demonic Fallen – the covert protection of one unbelieving man.
Validus soon finds himself on a mission that will push him beyond his abilities as he battles to protect Drew Carter, for the Fallen are coming for him. Legions of them.
As Validus races against time to discover why Drew is so important to humanity's survival, can he stand between Drew and all who would destroy him?

Review:
The first book, The Cloak of Light, follows the growth of Drew Carter, a good young man who lost his father as a youth and later is injured during a lab accident. Initially it was thought that he was blind, but he recovered his sight and can see between realms. He thinks he is seeing aliens, not realizing that he is seeing demons and angels.

Validus is a warrior angel who has now been reassigned to guard the human, Drew Carter. Initially Validus thinks this is a demotion as he doesn’t know why Drew is important. The man isn’t even a believer in Christ, although he has a close female friend who is.As Validus and his charge become pursued by the 'fallen' he begins to recognize the urgency of this assignment.

The wonderful thing about this, book two, is it tells the perspective of history, from the beginning of creation, including the fall of Lucifer, many battles over the years and even the birth of Jesus, all through the eyes of Validus. Chuck Black does a remarkable, imaginative job developing very believable scenes consistent with Biblical and historical stories. I enjoyed the character of Validus and his friends as they interact with the humans of each event. There is exciting, detail in the scenes, including blow by blow descriptions in the human and spiritual battles.

The book also has a strong, thought provoking discussion guide. I enjoyed this book two even more than book one and look forward book three. I recommend this to readers who enjoy action and enjoy stories of the angelic realm.

Source: NetGalley 2017. This qualifies for 2018 NetGalley, TBR and Alphabet Challenges.

Audible Book Review: Cloak of the Light by Chuck Black

This is an engaging Christian story full of strong action.
Cloak of the Light
Wars of the Realm, Book 1
By: Chuck Black
Narrated by: Michael Orenstein, Katie Leigh

Series: Wars of the Realm, Book 1
Length: 9 hrs and 25 mins
Unabridged
Release date: 03-21-16
Language: English
Publisher: christianaudio.com
Genre: Action and Adventure, Religious, Sci Fi
My Rating: 4.25 of 5.0

Publisher's Summary
Drew is caught in a world of light - just inches away from the dark.
What if...there was a world beyond our vision, a world just fingertips beyond our reach? What if...our world wasn't beyond their influence?
Tragedy and heartache seem to be waiting for Drew Carter at every turn, but college offers Drew a chance to start over - until an accident during a physics experiment leaves him blind and his genius friend, Benjamin Berg, missing.
As his sight miraculously returns, Drew discovers that the accident has heightened his neuron activity, giving him skills and sight beyond the normal man. When he begins to observe fierce invaders that no one else can see, he questions his own sanity, and so do others. But is he insane or do the invaders truly exist?
With help from Sydney Carlyle, a mysterious and elusive girl who offers encouragement through her faith, Drew searches for his missing friend, Ben, who seems to hold the key to unlocking this mystery. As the dark invaders close in, will he find the truth in time?
©2016 eChristian (P)2016 eChristian

Review:
Drew has had no church or religious training but he received a sense of honor through the military commitment of his father. Drew was 12 when his father died. His father’s best friend, Jake, became Drew’s mentor, training him in the arts of defense and other skills of the special services.

Drew’s mother has to move them to a new place and new high school. He befriends a science geek, Ben, in spite of opposition by some bullies. He also strikes up a tentative friendship with a reclusive, minister’s daughter, Sydney. A careless moment of high school fun leads to tragedy and Drew feels that he carries a dark cloud wherever he goes.

Drew is trying to move on in college when his friend Ben drags him into his professor’s lab to show him ‘shadow people”. Drew sees the dark man through Ben’s experiment but the lab blows up leaving Drew unconscious and Ben gone. Drew wakes in the hospital to discover his hearing and other senses are heightened but he has lost his sight. Initially Drew withdraws into his dark cloud even as Sydney and Jake try to encourage him. Surprisingly Drew’s sight returns and Drew discovers that he can see beings beyond the normal person’s sight. Although Drew finds himself in the midst of battles he doesn’t realize what he really is seeing.are not aliens but demons and angels.

I really enjoyed the engaging story and the perspective from a character who didn’t know what he was seeing. The writing moved well with plenty of action. I am definitely looking forward to more in this series.

Audio Notes: Michael Orenstein and Katie Leigh do a good job with narration. The male voice is more prevalent and he manages to convey the story from the view of a teenager. Ms. Leigh also adds to the performance with strong accents for the female characters. I enjoyed the background sounds and music of the performance although it took a little getting used to. It made the story come even more alive.

I have book two through NetGalley so I decided to listen to book one. (Audible credit purchase in May, 2017.) This qualifies for my 2017 Audiobook Challenge.