Sunday, January 14, 2018

The Empowered, A Trevor Black Novel #2 by Craig Parshall

Book description:

Just when a mysterious death in Washington, DC, appears to have voodoo connections rooted in New Orleans, Trevor Black also receives an invitation to speak at the national ABA convention in the city.

He knows he'll be in enemy territory, both as a disbarred attorney and as a follower of Jesus, but he determines to travel there and confront the supernatural element. Right after a grisly murder in his hotel room puts him on the suspect list, his daughter disappears, leaving a note that suggests a connection to the local cult religion. Now Trevor must not only crack the case but try to protect Heather from forces of darkness clutching at her soul as well. And just as he discovers that his ability to sniff out the supernatural has its limitations, Trevor learns that this web of evil extends far beyond isolated murders, enslaving scores of innocent children, with its head perhaps linked to the highest seats of power.


My review:

   This series is a bit reminiscent of Frank Peretti's earlier books, but with more of a suspense angle. If you're wanting a gentle soothing read, this book nor the one it follows is for you.

 This was not what you'd call an easy book to read. Though it is not graphic, it deals with voodoo, the occult, human sacrifice, human trafficking, and sexual abuse. It is a riveting story with non-stop action, yet shows how God can protect us from anything and that He can step in and work good out of bad.

 In this book, the main character has his 22 year old daughter tagging along, whose existence he has only recently found out about. I enjoyed the dynamic between the two as they got to know each other, and Heather learned more about her father's Christian ways and beliefs, and his ability to see the evil around them.

 This was the kind of book you didn't know what was going to happen next, nor who the good guys and bad guys were. There were a lot of surprises along the way, and the book had more than its share of suspense and tense situations for the main characters.

 There is a world around us that we don't see, a battle between good and evil. Though this was a fictional novel written by a human guy, he does a great job of showing what that might look like if we could see that other world.

 I felt the book had a slow start, but the rest of it more than made up for that. I enjoyed the book, in spite of the topics it addressed, and was happy to see good win in spite of all of the hindrances and bad guys. Hopefully Parshall will write more in this series.

 A side note: Trevor Black resides in my favorite vacation spot, the Outer Banks of North Carolina. Though we don't stay where he resides, Okracoke Island, we have visited that island and its lighthouse many times.

I was given a copy of this book  in exchange for my honest review.

About the author:

Craig Parshall is a bestselling fiction author with twelve suspense novels to his credit. His tales of human drama and spiritual encounter have garnered rave reviews from critics and readers alike. Craig is also a Washington insider serving as special counsel to the American Center for Law and Justice on matters before the US Supreme Court, on Capitol Hill, and before state supreme courts. As a constitutional lawyer, Craig has testified frequently before committees of Congress and the FCC, and has been interviewed on a wide range of cultural issues by most of the major media networks and newspapers nationwide.

Check out his website at CraigParshallauthor.com


The Empowered is available from Tyndale Publishing.

Thanks to Tyndale for the review copy.

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