Monday, August 1, 2011

THE PARADISE PROPHECY: A GUEST REVIEW AND GIVEAWAY

 GIVEAWAY ENDED
 THE PARADISE PROPHECY
BY ROBERT BROWNE

ABOUT THE BOOK:
A spectacular thriller inspired by John Milton's Paradise Lost in which the final chapter of the War in Heaven is about to play out on Earth, with the fate of humanity hanging in the balance.

The Myth

When God cast the archangel Satan into Hell, ending the War in Heaven, peace prevailed on Earth. Until the fallen angels took revenge in the Garden of Eden. Ever since, mankind has been in a struggle between good and evil, paradise and apocalypse: the fall of Rome, The Crusades, World Wars, nuclear proliferation, the Middle East Crisis... The War in Heaven never really ended-it just changed venues. For millennia, God's angels have been fighting Satan's demons on Earth, all in hopes of bringing about Satan's greatest ambition, the Apocalypse.

The Reality

Satan has never been closer to his goal than right now.

Agent Bernadette Callahan is a talented investigator at a shadowy government organization known only as Section, on the trail of a serial killer with nearly supernatural abilities. Sebastian "Batty" LaLaurie is a religious historian who knows far too much about the other side- and that hard-earned knowledge is exactly what Callahan needs. This unlikely duo pair up for a race across the globe, decoding clues left in ancient texts from the Bible to Paradise Lost and beyond. In the process they stumble upon a vast conspiracy-one beyond the scope of mankind's darkest imagination.




ABOUT THE AUTHOR:
Robert Browne is an AMPAS Nicholl Award-winning screenwriter who ran screaming from the movie industry and jumped into writing novels.

His first novel, KISS HER GOODBYE, was recently produced in Chicago as a pilot for a CBS Television series tentatively titled THE LINE, by Sony Pictures and Timberman/Beverly Productions, with a script written and directed by Michael Dinner.

Before the jump, he developed screenplays for Showtime, Viacom, Saban/Fox Kids, Krost-Chapin, and Marvel. He was also staff writer for Fox Kids’ Diabolik, and a contributing screenwriter for Spider-Man Unlimited.

Post jump, Rob has written four thrillers for St. Martin’s Press in the U.S., Macmillan in the UK, Droemer Knauer in Germany, with books also published in Russia, Bulgaria and the Netherlands.

His books KISS HER GOODBYE (2007) and WHISPER IN THE DARK (2008 UK/2009 US), are critically acclaimed. Bookfinds.com proclaimed, “This is a writer whose name will soon be a household word” and Publisher’s Weekly gave WHISPER IN THE DARK a starred review: “The deeply satisfying story moves at a furious pace, packed with unexpected and original clues and plot twists.”

His third novel, KILL HER AGAIN, was released by Macmillan UK in May of 2009 and July in the U.S.

DOWN AMONG THE DEAD MEN was released in May, 2010 and has been nominated for a 2011 ITW Thriller Award.  Winner to be announced.
His short story, BOTTOM DEAL, can be found in Lee Child’s KILLER YEAR: Stories to Die For, which was released in the U.S. by St. Martin’s and in the UK by Mira. The story has been optioned for television.

His new thriller, THE PARADISE PROPHECY, was just released last week.

GUEST REVIEW:
Thanks once again to Steve Capell. The following review is written by Steve, a frequent reviewer. He currently lives with his wife in Kansas City metro area. 

I really didn’t know what to expect when I opened this novel and started to read and more I read the more I wished the plot would start to gel. Robert Browne opened his novel with many characters, different locations and different plots. He made a lot of dots; however, the dots were not connected. On page 122 of this novel two of the dots finally came together.  The biggest complaint I have with this novel is the complex exposition part of the novel that didn’t allow major conflict of the novel to materialize until much later in the reading. I’m not saying that there wasn’t action and conflict early on, but I am saying the action and conflict between the two principle protagonists didn’t occur until much later in the novel.
 

My second complaint is that frequently throughout this novel Sebastian “Batty” Lalaurie is named differently and sometimes within the same dialog with same character. Most of time he is named in the text of book as Batty; however, several times he is named Lalaurie. I find this a somewhat disconcerting especially within the dialog with same character. I am reading an advance reading copy so this may be corrected on the final publication.
 

I found Robert Browne’s propensity to using vulgar language in this book really seemed to me to be a distraction. I am sure he was trying to bring the reader into the street culture that he was trying to portray; however, I found this language to be offensive and not something I enjoy reading.
 

I found Robert Browne’s descriptive writing to be remarkable and the character development was also very well done. The absolutely rich dialog between the characters really was the glue that held this novel together.
 

I have read other reviews of this novel and for the most part this novel is given much higher remarks than what I care to give it – so you may want to take my review with a grain of salt. I will be first to admit that I may of missed something; however, I did go back and read the first part of this novel again and I will leave my constructive criticism as stated. While this novel had some shortcomings I can still recommend this novel as it really starts to rock and roll after page 122.
 

I am giving this novel a 3 out 5.
 

Who should read this novel?
 

Anyone that loves a mix of fantasy and action will love the descriptive writing of Robert Browne. Although this novel has a good and evil component, I would not classify this writing as Christian Fiction as there are many areas that would not stand up to biblical scrutiny.

GIVEAWAY

THANKS TO ANNE AND THE GOOD FOLKS
AT AuthorsOnTheWeb AND THE BOOK REPORT
NETWORK, I HAVE ONE COPY OF THIS BOOK
TO GIVE AWAY TO ONE LUCKY READER
  
--U.S. AND CANADIAN RESIDENTS ONLY
--NO P. O. BOXES
---INCLUDE YOUR EMAIL ADDRESS
IN CASE YOU WIN!
--ALL COMMENTS MUST BE SEPARATE TO
 

COUNT AS MORE THAN ONE!

HOW TO ENTER:

+1 ENTRY: COMMENT ON WHAT YOU THOUGHT ABOUT WHAT YOU READ AND WATCHED ABOVE ABOUT THE PARADISE PROPHECY AND DON'T FORGET YOUR EMAIL ADDRESS

+1 MORE ENTRY: COMMENT ON SOMETHING YOU FIND INTERESTING ABOUT AUTHOR ROBERT BROWNE'S WEBSITE BY VISITING HERE

+1 MORE ENTRY: BLOG AND/OR TWEET ABOUT THIS GIVEAWAY AND COME BACK HERE AND LEAVE ME YOUR LINK, PLEASE

+1 MORE ENTRY: COMMENT ON ONE WAY THAT YOU FOLLOW MY BLOG. IF YOU FOLLOW MORE THAN ONE WAY, COMMENT ON EACH WAY SEPARATELY.

GIVEAWAY ENDS AT
6 PM, EST, AUGUST 16

41 comments:

lag123 said...

Thanks for the review Steve. I too like the dots to connect early. I am reading a book now which is basically the same in that respect. I know the dots are going to connect eventually but I get lost in all the detail. I would still like to read this and see what happens after page 122. Thanks!

lag110 at mchsi dot com

lag123 said...

I read the description of Browne's book Kill Her Again and I would love to read that as well.

lag110 at mchsi dot com

lag123 said...

Tweeted: https://twitter.com/#!/lag32583/status/97973018579578880
lag110 at mchsi dot com

lag123 said...

I am an email subscriber.

lag110 at mchsi dot com

lag123 said...

I subscribe via google reader.

lag110 at mchsi dot com

lag123 said...

I follow via gfc.

lag110 at mchsi dot com

lag123 said...

I follow via networked blogs.

lag110 at mchsi dot com

lag123 said...

I follow via twitter: @lag32583

lag110 at mchsi dot com

lag123 said...

I follow on facebook: Lisa Holmes Garrett

debbie said...

I do like the combination of myth and reality. I would like to read the book.
twoofakind12@yahoo.com

debbie said...

I am a email subscriber.
twoofakind12@yahoo.com

debbie said...

I am a gfc follower
debbie
twoofakind12@yahoo.com

debbie said...

I would also like to read his book, killer year- stories to die for.
twoofakind12@yahoo.com

Unknown said...

I would love to read this book. It sounds really like a really good thriller. Please enter me in contest. Tore923@aol.com

traveler said...

This book sounds captivating and unique. Many thanks.saubleb(at)gmail(dot)com

traveler said...

I would like to read his book Kill Her Again. saubleb(at)gmail(dot)com

petite said...

Excellent review and a book that would be enthralling. elliotbencan(at)hotmail(dot)com

petite said...

I am an e-mail subscriber. elliotbencan(at)hotmail(dot)com

petite said...

Down Among the Dead Men ounds great. His books are all compelling. elliotbencan(at)hotmail(dot)com

Reading said...

Thanks for the giveaway. This looks like a fun read. I think I would really enjoy the myth part.

lizzi0915 at aol dot com

Reading said...

I follow on GFC

lizzi0915 at aol dot com

Reading said...

I am an email subscriber

lizzi0915 at aol dot com

holdenj said...

I definitely appreciate Steve's comments, I know how disconcerting it is to have characters names even be confusing. Still, it looks worth a try and I find the cover to be very striking.
JHolden955(at)gmail(dot)com

holdenj said...

Although I haven't read any books by Brown, it seems he is friends with Allison Brennan and I've read a couple of hers!
JHolden955(at)gmail(dot)com

holdenj said...

I subscribe via RSS feed.
JHolden955(at)gmail(dot)com

bison61 said...

the fate of humanity-this book sounds so good

tiramisu392 (at) yahoo.com

Darlene said...

Please enter me in the giveaway!

darlenesbooknook at gmail dot com

Darlene said...

+1 following on GFC (Darlene)

darlenesbooknook at gmail dot com

Darlene said...

+1 like you on Facebook
(Darlene's Book Nook)

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Darlene said...

+1 following on Networked Blogs (Darlene's Book Nook)

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Darlene said...

+1 following you on Twitter
(@DarleneBookNook)

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Darlene said...

+1 subscribed by email

darlenesbooknook at gmail dot com

Darlene said...

+1 subscribed by RSS feed

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Darlene said...

+1 for why I want to win:

I love the "good vs evil" type of books! I'd love to read it!

darlenesbooknook at gmail dot com

Darlene said...

+1 for tweeting:

http://twitter.com/#!/DarleneBookNook/status/99678838908403712

darlenesbooknook at gmail dot com

mamabunny13 said...

I don't normally read this genre but my daughter loves it and I would love to win it for her.
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mamabunny13 said...

email subscriber
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mamabunny13 said...

I follow on twitter @mamabunny13
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mamabunny13 said...

I follow via gfc
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mamabunny13 said...

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