http://perfect-praise.com/

The first book in the series, Cloak of the Light, tells the story of Drew Carter, a young man whose life has been fraught with tragedy and misfortune. The story of his childhood is described in an interesting way and lays the perfect backdrop to understand the magnitude of the lab accident that leaves him with the fascinating ability to see into the dimension of the spirit world. Lacking the spiritual knowledge to understand what he is witnessing as he watches angels and demons at war, he and his partner get caught up in what he believes is the most significant sci-fi investigation of all time. Drew’s journey continually crosses paths with believers (especially one young lady named Sydney Carlyle) who understand spiritual warfare yet are unable to enlighten Drew due to his scorn of all things religious. As Drew’s story unfolds, the reader gets the sense that there is a special purpose for his life and that he is being protected by God despite his ignorance and rejection of Biblical truth.

Next in the series comes Rise of the Fallen, which takes the reader all the way back to the foundation of history with a fascinating recount of the creation of the world from the perspective of one of God’s created angelic beings. Rise of the Fallen is not only an historical account of the history of mankind from an angel’s perspective, but also has the continuing saga of Drew Carter woven throughout the book. This novel allows the reader to relive some of the events of the first book, Cloak of the Lightthrough the eyes of the angelic beings that were guarding Drew Carter and engaging in the spiritual warfare surrounding his life. The fascinating descriptions of the battles and struggles between angels and demons in this book are not only enlightening but also very thrilling to read.

The third book in the series, Light of the Last, wraps up the entire story and allows the reader to fully grasp the meaning of the earlier events written in the first two books. In this novel, an all-out war in the spirit realm is raged to keep Drew Carter from understanding the things of the Lord, becoming a child of God, and fulfilling his purpose on this earth. Dramatic events take place that showcase the full extent of the spiritual warfare surrounding the last days, not only in Drew Carter’s personal life, but also in the media and United States government. Several surprising twists take the reader on a suspenseful ride through the book, although in hindsight, the reader can see the clues that were left as crumbs by the author throughout the story. The creativity of the composition of this writing is a masterpiece. Through an engaging and thoughtful fictional presentation, the author is inspiring people to study spiritual warfare and walk closer to God in their daily living.

Although this is a fictional work, the writing is based on accurate Biblical doctrine regarding the roles of angels, demons, and spiritual warfare. The author freely enhances the storyline where he can, making the fictional characters and their story believable and relevant, yet does not sacrifice true Bible doctrines for the sake of a sensational story. Each book contains a chapter-by-chapter study guide in the back that references Bible verses to help the reader understand what is Biblical doctrine and what is fictional to the story.

We highly anticipated reading and reviewing this series, as our entire family has long been fans of Chuck Black’s writing. After receiving the books, we faced the challenge of every member of the family trying to read them at the same time—once you start one of these books, it is very difficult to set it down until you’ve finished, yet finishing it makes you sad that the story is done and there’s no more to read! Every member of our family lavished praise on these books, from the teens to the adults.

Reading the stories together as a family brought out some very interesting questions and discussion regarding spiritual warfare and its impact on our daily lives and ministries. Even though these books are fictional stories, they are based on the truth of the reality of spiritual warfare in the lives of Christians—especially those living in the end times. They have made a strong impact on our family’s approach to our daily Christian walk, and they have emphasized the importance of prayer over all that we do. As a family, we find ourselves referring to the books almost daily, as the awareness has helped us to recognize the signs of spiritual warfare surrounding us. I highly recommend these books to any believers, and especially to young people who are curious about the spirit realm.

The series is available through the website. The books currently sell for $10.79 each or $28.80 for the three-book set, which is my recommendation. Once you read one book, you will want to read them all. The books are also available as audio dramas.

-Product review by Erica Beyea, The Old Schoolhouse® Magazine, LLC, September 2017

Another Reviewer's Perspective:

Wars of the Realm Series - Cloak of the Light / Rise of the Fallen / Light of the Last

Chuck Black

Multnomah Books

1-800-603-7051

12265 Oracle Boulevard, Suite 200

Colorado Springs, Colorado 80921

http://perfect-praise.com/

Cloak of the Light, Rise of the Fallen, and Light of the Last are all part of a series entitled, Wars Of The Realm. This fictional series is intended to construct the battle between good and evil, or what scripture would call spiritual warfare. The publisher has its target audience for these books at 7^th grade and up or age 12 and over. Each of these books can be purchased in paperback for $11.99 or in eBook form for $9.99.

Cloak of the Light is book one in the Wars of the Realmseries. Drew Carter’s life begins a series of life-altering events when he suddenly loses his father, a Special Forces soldier, while deployed. Jake, who was with Drew’s father when he died, promised that he would care for Drew and his mother. He followed through with that promise and became an integral part of Drew’s life. Over the years, Jake took Drew on camping trips where he would teach him survival skills learned over his years as a Special Forces soldier. Just when life seems to be back on track, Drew’s mother loses her job. At the height of his high school football career, Drew is devastated. After the move, Drew tries to fit in. He befriends Ben, the school geek, while trying to maintain his place among the football jocks. Tragedy strikes yet again when Drew gets into a car accident and a passenger dies. Thinking he can get a fresh start, he pursues a college education far away from home. Ben, the high school geek, and the “church chick,” Sydney, attend the same college that Drew decides to go to. Life is going pretty well when a huge explosion in the science lab changes everything. Drew is temporarily blind and develops heightened senses. At this point in the book, the battle between good and evil begin to take a more center stage. Ben and Drew are convinced that the evil is actually aliens from another planet. The rest of the book chronicles Sydney’s pleas for Drew to hear God’s truths while Drew is caught up in trying to take down the “dark invaders” as he calls them. Unbeknownst to Drew, the “light invaders” and the “dark invaders” are not what he thinks them to be.

I really enjoyed book one in this series. Once I started, I didn’t want to put it down. I will say that the book was somewhat dark and wasn’t the happiest read. With that said, due to the subject matter, it was to be expected. Chuck Black is a great writer and makes his readers feel like they are right there alongside the characters. The book is quite suspenseful, and as a reader, you are constantly trying to think ahead to what is going to happen. My 11-year-old began reading it but stopped about halfway through because she said it was just too depressing. As she read the book, we discussed what was going on. My almost-15-year-old read the book and enjoyed it but did say that it definitely was not a happy read. She said that it was a real eye opener to the reality of what is going on in the world every day. She has not had the opportunity to read the next two books but fully intends to read them.

Book two in the series, Rise of the Fallen, has a different story setup verses book one. The book begins by providing a list of the “Cast of Characters” as well as a “Time Line and Major Events” list. This list is very helpful when reading book two. It can be very confusing when all the names are being thrown back and forth from the archangels, angel commanders, fallen commanders, humans, etc. The chapters go back and forth between present day and the past, all the way back to 4010 BC. Validus, who is the last and least of God’s angels, has seen and experienced so much over time. Readers are taken back to learn about the rise and fall of the angelic and demonic forces throughout the millennia. In the present, Validus is chosen to be Drew Carter’s protector against the Fallen who are out for his life.

I really tried to like this book but had such a hard time getting into it with the constant back and forth between millennia ago and present time. I found all the details of the past storyline to be somewhat monotonous and boring. I found myself skimming through the chapters in the past and reading the chapters that were a continuation of the story from book one. I felt kind of let down and sad. I was so excited to start book two but found myself wondering why this huge shift.

Halleluiah, book three is a winner! And just so you don’t feel slighted about my negativity about book two, read on to see my revised opinion.

Book three, Light of the Last, again gives the readers a list of the “Cast of Characters.” The story of unbelieving Drew Carter continues. Having had accosted FBI agents in book two, Drew now finds himself in a sterile, white interrogation room. It is in this room that he is able to get a reprieve from sensory overload. “For now, there were no invaders, neither light nor dark.” Drew is invited to become a secret agent. Readers discover that Drew Carter is at the center and forefront of the global spiritual battle raging. The angels and protectors must use every bit of knowledge they have gained over the millennia to keep Drew alive. Drew continues to be very drawn to Sydney Carlyle. The visions of the supernatural realm that Drew has been plagued by since book one continue to increase in frequency. Dark secrets unfold. Validus, the main angel, learns from a Fallen that Drew Carter was foreseen to be the last salvation initiating the End of Days. What does this mean for Drew? How will this book end? I will leave you in suspense to find out for yourself.

Book three goes back to the style of writing of book one. It doesn’t go back and forth between time periods. This book does talk about the past in order to relate to what is happening in the present, and this is necessary for the story plot to unfold. I really enjoyed book three. Most importantly, I did see why it was important to do the entire back and forth in book two once I began reading book three. The forces of good and evil needed to set the stage in order for the full spiritual warfare in book three to be understood and followed.

Much like in the first and second book I often found myself wanting to scream at Drew to “wake up and see the truth that was staring him right in the face.” Knowing that it is only God who can open the eyes of the blind, I found myself yearning for Drew to see the light. Time and again truth comes at him like a roaring freight train and he never sees it. Drew reminds me so much of society, always running from the truth and thinking that Christians are pathetically ignorant. Drew is the perfect example of the lonely, dark, and hopeless life of an unbeliever constantly running in the wrong direction—striving for truth, happiness, and contentment and never finding it.

I had a hard time putting this book down. It wasn’t as dark and depressing as book one, but it definitely has a lot of heavy things going on. This series is definitely not a lighthearted read. If I had to explain this book in one word, that word would besuspenseful. I would highly recommend this series to others.

-Product review by Jennifer Ladewig, The Old Schoolhouse® Magazine, LLC, July 2017