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AngelKiller (The Angelkiller Triad #1)

by H. David Blalock (Goodreads Author), Amanda DeBord (Editor), Matthew Perry (Goodreads Author) (Illustrator)

3.52 of 5 stars 3.52 · rating details · 25 ratings · 15 reviews

Why do bad things happen to good people? Simple. In the ancient war between the Angels of Light and Darkness, the Dark won. Now it is the job of an undercover force simply known as The Army to rectify that.

Using every tool available, The Army has worked to liberate our world from The Enemy for thousands of years, slowly and painfully lifting Mankind out of the dark. On the...more

Paperback, 207 pages

Published 2011 by Seventh Star Press

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Dec 05, 2012 Sheila rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: cultural, current_issues, paranormal, relationships, scifi-fantasy, suspense

First in the Angelkiller Triad, David Blalock’s Angelkiller stands alone on its own merits and draws readers quickly and enticingly into a near-future world of ecological risk, governmental control, virtual reality, and… the great Conflict. The blend of slightly changed real-world and curious technology is pleasingly low-key, adding an almost surreal realism to the tale. Time’s running out. The bad guys, who won when the Enemy was thrown down to earth, are almost ready to make their victory fina...more First in the Angelkiller Triad, David Blalock’s Angelkiller stands alone on its own merits and draws readers quickly and enticingly into a near-future world of ecological risk, governmental control, virtual reality, and… the great Conflict. The blend of slightly changed real-world and curious technology is pleasingly low-key, adding an almost surreal realism to the tale. Time’s running out. The bad guys, who won when the Enemy was thrown down to earth, are almost ready to make their victory final. And the Army is out to stop them.

Except, of course, in this dark age it’s hard to tell who's good and who's bad. Called an Angelkiller for his long years of service in this Conflict, Jonah Mason seeks to balance the needs of his colleagues against the needs of the Good and finds himself making deals with the devil.

Future history is nicely given with short intriguing details—the “fall of Israel in 2037 to… the new Persian Empire” for example; political analysis is wisely kept to a minimum; and the Enemy has made its grab for “the power structure of humanity itself, increasingly a tool” in its hand. In this battle between Good and Evil, Evil won long ago and Good is fighting a rearguard action, but the elusive Master demands a curious mix of faith and obedience—a mix Jonah struggles to correctly attain.

When Knights step in, the Conflict ratchets up. Lives might be lost. Virtual betrayals might become real. And somewhere behind it all a wondrous truth might shine through the veil—too bright for human eyes. The blend of gritty conflict with spiritual insight and human struggle is seamless, making this the sort of book that grabs you from line one and won’t let go, leaving you gasping for air at the end and wondering, with one of the characters, just what it was you’ve just experienced. “Judgement,” muses Mason, is after all “not something imposed, but something accepted… the awareness of one’s failings and strengths.” This book has many strengths—cyber-war, angels and demons, mystery, intrigue and more—and makes an excellent read.

Disclosure: I got this in a deal and can’t think why I waited so long to read it!(less)

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Mar 20, 2012 Daniel Cann rated it 3 of 5 stars

This is an enjoyable urban fantasy romp with a plot set in the twenty second century that also takes place across the ages. With virtual reality generators, programs and multi-player online games Blalock could be talking about today but this novel has its twists and surprises.

‘Angelkiller’ is also interesting as speculative future history and I enjoyed learning what direction Blalock’s world of the future takes.

This is also full of technology, espionage, intrigue, and scheming especially of how...more

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Mar 09, 2012 Jessica rated it 4 of 5 stars

This is a book that has had me curious. The blurb alone is interesting and while many a story is based on the basic premise of good v evil in this case the evil having won and are still waging the battle.

How curious to think that we live our lives and what with wars and religion being such big players in the lives of humans that we assume that good has won when in fact they have lost. You start to think of the world differently. I love that the story played with my head that way. I love that it’...more

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Oct 07, 2012 Eric rated it 1 of 5 stars Recommends it for: Fundamentalist Christians with minimal SF exposure

Shelves: ebooks, fantasy

AngelKiller is a book with an interesting premise that fails on multiple levels.

"Why do bad things happen to good people? Simple. In the ancient war between the Angels of Light and Darkness, the Dark won." Wow. That's a great set-up. Thinking about the balance of power in the world for the last 1000+ years, it has some seriously subversive implication. I was hooked by the idea.Sadly, the book fails to deliver pretty much every aspect of this promise.

Given that Christian powers have heavily domi...more AngelKiller is a book with an interesting premise that fails on multiple levels.

"Why do bad things happen to good people? Simple. In the ancient war between the Angels of Light and Darkness, the Dark won." Wow. That's a great set-up. Thinking about the balance of power in the world for the last 1000+ years, it has some seriously subversive implication. I was hooked by the idea.Sadly, the book fails to deliver pretty much every aspect of this promise.

Given that Christian powers have heavily dominated the world and its politics for a millennium, give or take, the implication is that they represent the victorious Dark. The reality of the book, however, it boringly predictable in its orthodoxy. It is clearly demonstrated (though never explicitly stated) that the side of Good is Jehovah and his angels and their mortal servants.

In addition to the dull adherence to standard roles of good and evil, the author gives some very problematic examples of the historical Army of Light. An attack on the child-rape apologist Vatican is clearly the work of the Enemy. The Conquistadors "still remembered who their Master was." There are predictable screeds against Middle Eastern terrorists, and no attempt to address the fact that they are also Jehovah worshiping monotheists.

The idea that the Army of Light lost and was now a bunch of freedom fighters also failed to surface beyond shallow appearances. The Army is divided into cells, and the like. But once the conflicts start, (view spoiler)

The characters themselves were lackluster, with a few moments to shine.

Finally, a great deal of the book takes place in virtual reality, or deals with computers and data. The author is clearly ignorant in this field and did very little research. In addition there has been a couple of centuries of advancement from our time, but little indication of that in the technology.

I really wanted to like this book, but it just didn't live up to its potential.(less)

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Feb 21, 2013 Herika Raymer rated it 4 of 5 stars

Ever wonder why bad things happen to good people? Well, what if it was because the Dark won in the Great Angelic War, and the forces of the Light are constantly battling to beat back the Dark?

This is a great story of a near future wherein a rebellion, called The Army, fights to defeat the Dark. The stages of battles are not only in reality but also in cyberspace! Through MMO's and other interactive digital scenarios. The Dark does not wish to relinquish its hold, and the Light has heard the crie...more

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Mar 27, 2012 Kriss Morton rated it 5 of 5 stars

Recommended to Kriss by: Stephen Zimmer

Shelves: seventh-star-press, cabin-goddess-review-intention

4.75 stars truly

"Nature is, after all, a series of cycles: seasons without end, life and death and life again"- location 55

A primary example of the beautifully written prose you will find within the pages constructed throughout this engaging read. AngelKiller` maybe 200 pages long, but this is no Sunday Shorts read. The book is thick, full of a wonderfully wrought world that is feasible to the mind's eye as a definitive reality very near in our future. The reality of the world we live in today,...more

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Jan 07, 2012 William Bentrim rated it 4 of 5 stars

Angelkiller by H. David Blalock

This is a story of good versus evil. Angels and Demons so to speak are the main characters in this story. However they aren't the traditional Angels and Demons. It is the Army versus the enemy, but again not the traditional Army or the traditional enemy.

Jonah Mason is described by some as an Angel killer. And reality of the story Angels are the enemy, the minions of evil. Jonah may not be immortal but he did fight for the Roman Empire. He and his army self find the...more

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Jan 13, 2012 Urban Fantasy Reviews rated it 4 of 5 stars

To read this review and more like it check out my site www.ufreviews.com

I was very intrigued by the idea behind Angelkiller when it was sent to me for review. There were two reasons for why I was so interested. In the world that Blalock created the war between Light and Dark ended with the Dark winning. I found this to be an interesting way to start the book because it meant the the world was living in a darker set of circumstances and it made the Light side basically a bunch of rebels. The sec...more To read this review and more like it check out my site www.ufreviews.com

I was very intrigued by the idea behind Angelkiller when it was sent to me for review. There were two reasons for why I was so interested. In the world that Blalock created the war between Light and Dark ended with the Dark winning. I found this to be an interesting way to start the book because it meant the the world was living in a darker set of circumstances and it made the Light side basically a bunch of rebels. The second reason I was interested was because The Army (the rebels in this book fighting against the Dark) has taken this fight into a virtual reality type setting. This was interesting to me because I have seen a lot of books recently incorporating this into their plots. Cyberspace is a world where there are almost no limits, so I thought this was an interesting way to incorporate the fight into a new and fresh realm.

Jonah Mason, the main character is the Angelkiller, where the main title comes from. Everything is kind of opposite in this book, you would think an Angelkiller would be a bad guy killing the good, but it's opposite. The Enemy is made up of Angels and they are on the dark side not the light. Jonah has been in around for a very long time, centuries, and as a fighter it shows his ability to adapt to the situations at hand. I was curious to see how virtual reality was going to play a role within this book, and as it turned out it came in the form of online gaming.

I have a very small experience with gaming online (my husband is really the expert), so I have to admit there were times when I did have to ask my husband to clarify something for me. But even without a complete working knowledge of the technical speak I was still able to understand how the plot was moving alone as well as the benefits to conducting their work through this format, anonymity helps protect you.

I did have a couple things I had problems with in the book though. The book did jump around, which is fine with me, except I did find myself being confused sometimes. Although normally a quick re-read of the past page or so helped to clarify that my confusion. And my other issue was my connection with the characters. I am a reader who likes to really identify with the characters in a story, to really feel their emotions and pull for them. I found myself throughout this book still pulling for the main character but wishing I had a stronger connection to him. But both of these things are minor issues.

Overall I have to say the writing is good. The concept is fresh, creative, and well executed. I could easily see this book working for a lot of different readers, in fact I could see my husband reading this book and enjoying it, and he is one picky reader! People who have a background in computers or gaming might enjoy this book more than someone without that background, but I could see either enjoying it. This is a solid book, and I truly appreciate the freshness of the idea behind it. (less)

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Jan 07, 2012 ABookVacation rated it 3 of 5 stars

Angelkiller is an interesting take on the battle between heaven and hell, a battle that has been morphing along with society for thousands of years. And, as society evolves and moves forward, so do the tactics taken to fight The Enemy. Jonah Mason, the main character throughout this novel, has been fighting the Darkness for far too long to remember, meeting with his newest cell group through online gaming. This was a very interesting development within the story as it gives each member the anony...more Angelkiller is an interesting take on the battle between heaven and hell, a battle that has been morphing along with society for thousands of years. And, as society evolves and moves forward, so do the tactics taken to fight The Enemy. Jonah Mason, the main character throughout this novel, has been fighting the Darkness for far too long to remember, meeting with his newest cell group through online gaming. This was a very interesting development within the story as it gives each member the anonymity and privacy they need to discuss their plans for action against the Darkness without leaving the comfort of their own home.

I was originally interested in this novel because of this usage of cyberspace; I used to have friends really into gaming, and I wanted to see where Blalock was going with this concept. It turns out the terminology is a little bit beyond me, I’m not a gamer and I don’t know very much about all the logistics of it, but I was able to follow Blalock fairly well as the story progressed, explaining how everything worked while adding suspense to the story, especially once these gaming sessions are compromised and not everyone is who they seem to be.

Though the story jumped around a bit, Blalock does a good job bringing all the pieces of the puzzle together, referencing prior scenes and making them all fit together nicely. Yet, I didn’t feel as connected to the characters within the story as I had hoped, and I think the anonymity of the story overall has a lot to do with that. While I would have liked a lot more character development, I also don’t think it would have fit with the story, especially as the members of the cell are meant to give away as little information about themselves as possible. Thus, I wasn’t attached to any specific characters, but I enjoyed them nonetheless. I think readers especially interested in technology and the gaming world will really enjoy this story...

To see my full review upon release (2/19/12):
http://bookvacations.wordpress.com/20...

(less)

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Nov 12, 2012 Angelya (The Oaken Bookcase) rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: fantasy, paranormal, reviewed, science-fiction

Review originally posted at The Oaken Bookcase on November 12, 2012.

The Conflict between the Light and the Dark has been raging for centuries. Jonah Mason is a veteran in The Army, working to free mankind from the clutches of evil. Together with his fellow soldiers and an impressive array of high-tech wizardary, they are gradually gearing up for what could be the battle of their lives.

Set in the near future, Mason and the members of his cell have been using full-virtual-reality MMORPGs (online g...more Review originally posted at The Oaken Bookcase on November 12, 2012.

The Conflict between the Light and the Dark has been raging for centuries. Jonah Mason is a veteran in The Army, working to free mankind from the clutches of evil. Together with his fellow soldiers and an impressive array of high-tech wizardary, they are gradually gearing up for what could be the battle of their lives.

Set in the near future, Mason and the members of his cell have been using full-virtual-reality MMORPGs (online games, for the uninitiated) as the most secure meeting points. At least, they did until their security is breached and a Minion of the Enemy pays them a visit, offering a deal that could strike a decisive blow in the Conflict.

I’ll admit, the cover and title of Angelkiller did not entice me to pick up a copy of this one during Seventh Star’s open day a couple of months ago, but I’m so pleased I took part in this tour because I really enjoyed reading these two books. They are both fairly short reads which did make them feel a little like one longer work that was broken up into parts, but in the case of this first part, that is not a problem. Occasionally I felt the descriptions of events did not flow as smoothly as I would have liked, but in general the writing style is very enjoyable. There are even a few black and white drawings dispersed throughout the story to aid in visualisation of events!

In Angelkiller, We’re dropped into the action right away with only a few flashbacks to give us context about the cell and their activities in the Conflict. This is a Good versus Evil story on a grand scale, and the author has done a fantastic job of creating the history of the Conflict through the characters and their stories. Even though there are angels and demons involved and plenty of references to “the Master”, this is not a preachy story.

The tension in Angelkiller is brilliant – gradually building up to a tense showdown that was described in loving detail. I was very pleased to have Traitor Angel on hand to carry on with right away!(less)

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Nov 10, 2012 Cassandra (The Book & Movie Dimension blogger) rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: fantasy, sciencefiction

--Full, review courtesy at Book & Movie Dimension a Blog--

Angelkiller! What a book title this book has and it story background when first saw it on Seventh Star Press enticed me very much. Once I actually read it did enjoy its story and found a very quick attachment to the characters.

First off with Angelkiller the story begins with Mason a fighter for The Army's side who has lived for centuries. He has been in conflict with the supposed bad side known as The Enemy. The Enemy are conspiring t...more

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Nov 09, 2012 Robin Blankenship rated it 4 of 5 stars

This was a great good vs. evil story. This was a short read but by no means a light one. It was pretty intense. It was very plot driven and I am looking forward to more in the series for more character development. I am stickler for in depth characters which sometimes I found myself wondering more about some characters and I am betting that was a way for them to be aloof and mysterious. Which is what they felt like to me and which drew me in wanting to know more. I loved that this was a futurist...more

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Aug 09, 2012 Alis Bookshelf rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: review-books-from-authors-publisher, reviewed

As soon as I read the synopsis of this book I knew I wanted to read it. I knew right away that this one was going to be very different from all the other angel books out there that I had been reading recently. I needed different and was glad that this book was just that.

Cyberspace mixed with angels and demon's....well that's defiantly different. That would be the first reason I really enjoyed this book. Another thing I really enjoyed in this book is how well thought out the plot is and the descr...more

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Dec 20, 2011 Shan Winslow rated it 4 of 5 stars

As I read this short novel, I really became immersed in the world that Blalock has created and began to care for the characters that inhabit it. It's an interesting twist on the whole light versus darkness theme, with aspects of the story being in the relatively new arena of the internet and virtual reality.

Anyhow, I'm glad there's more to come and I will be checking out the rest in the series, to see what Jonah Mason and the rest of his cell are up to.

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Aug 29, 2012 Patricia Graham rated it 5 of 5 stars

Drawing on Jewish folklore and levels of angels, David has exemplified the battle of angels. This book will grab your attention, and I found it quite intriguing. Very well written and organized. Great Job David

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About H. David Blalock

Born in Texas, David spent the majority of his formative years in Jacksonville, Florida. In his late teens, his family moved to the Panama Canal Zone where David finished school and entered employment with the Department of Defense as a Powerhouse Electrician.

Hiring into the FAA, he returned with his wife and two daughters to the States and settled briefly in Gulfport, MS. Then on to Memphis, TN,...more

More about H. David Blalock...

Books by H. David Blalock

The Burning House: Book Two of the Thran Chronicles

The Tower at Moorkai: Book Three of the Thran Chronicles

Thran Reborn: Book One of the Thran Chronicles

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AngelKiller (The Angelkiller Triad #1)

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