Hell on Earth [Hardcover]

Michael Reaves (Author)

Product Details

• Hardcover
• Publisher: Ballantine (2000)
• ASIN: B000MVU62O
• Average Customer Review: 3.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (17 customer reviews)

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8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A deception of demons, December 5, 2002

By 

Arthur W. Jordin (Smyrna, GA USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Hell on Earth (Hardcover)

Hell on Earth is an occult detective story written by the author of the Shattered World novels. While Reaves has several other such stories to his credit -- including one featuring the reporter Liz Russell -- I believe this is his first based on traditional Judeo-Christian mythology.

Colin is an orphan trained at the Scholomance in Transylvania, a school of dark magic. He has a Door that can apport him to any place on earth, but won't retrieve him. He did have the Trine, a mystical token of great power, but something Fallen has stolen it and left a smell of brimstone behind. Moreover, he has Zoel, an Unfallen Angel, who has come to ask him to help with a little problem. It seems that a demon has been born, the undead are walking, and the apocalypse may be near. No big deal for a magic wielding detective with an Angel sidekick, right?

The remainder of the story is a matter of searching for the Trine, questioning the suspects -- demons and such -- and checking out the various locales -- Vlad Dracula's castle, for one -- and putting the clues together. Along the way he picks up a few more assistants: the demon Asdeon, reporter Liz Russell, and ex-ranger Terry Dane.

This novel is bloody and violent, but more like suspenseful mystery that a horror story. Recommended for Reaves fans and anyone who likes magical detectives and occult mysteries.

-Arthur W. Jordin

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars The habitation of devils (and an angel, too), June 14, 2001

By 

E. A. Lovitt "starmoth" (Gladwin, MI USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Hell on Earth (Hardcover)

"Babylon is become the habitation of devils, and the hold of every foul spirit." (Revelations)

Perhaps it was the advent of the new Millennium that inspired so many fantasies with Babylonian demons, but I've read three in the past year including "Hell on Earth." I think Michael Reaves originally wrote this book with Millennarians as a target audience, since it makes isolated references to Armageddon. However, if that was the original theme, it has been transformed into a generic (or perhaps I should say gnostic) battle of sublime Light versus demonic Darkness.

"Hell on Earth" is the type of professionally crafted fantasy that we've come to expect from Del Rey. The reader is subjected to more cliff-hangers than Pauline in all of her perils, and Pauline's exclamations of horror and disgust have been thoroughly modernized. The action never stops from the birth of a demon and the loss of a magical talisman, to the epilogue when a famous ball descends in Times Square.

Even though the author makes several biblical references, "Hell on Earth" is not at all preachy. Humorous and inventive touches abound, including a demon that likes to masquerade as Humphrey Bogart. The three major human characters are Colin the magician, Liz the author of a best-seller about a serial killer called 'The Maneater,' and Terry, ex-Army Ranger and current bodyguard. They are all likeable, vulnerable, feisty, and willing to fight for the Right Side in the battle against evil. Although all three are battling current dilemmas, the reader is also treated to lengthy flashbacks---so lengthy that I began to wonder if there was a prequel to "Hell on Earth" that I had somehow missed. The book drops definite hints about a sequel:

"He [Colin] had to find out. If there was even the faintest chance of Lilith [a character seen only in Colin's flashbacks] still being alive, he would do whatever it took to find out. Even if it meant going back to the one place on Earth he had sworn never to set foot in again."

Michael Reeves has also written "Darth Maul Shadow Hunter," which was spun off from a movie. His "Hell on Earth" is a book that could head in the opposite direction and end up on film. It's got snappy dialogue (especially between Zoel the angel and the Humphrey Bogart demon), strong visuals, likeable characters, lots of action, and a plot that easy to follow. The flashbacks that slow down the book's momentum would probably be shortened, eliminated, or treated as part of the current action if "Hell" goes to the movies.

Suggestion: if this book gives you an appetite for Babylonian demons, try Jonathan Aycliffe's "The Talisman." His demon, Shabbatil (Lord of the Flies) is totally horrific and has no sense of humor at all.

7 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Perpetual Motion, September 16, 2001

By 

Marc Ruby™ "The Noh Hare™" (Warren, MI USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Hell on Earth (Hardcover)

For some reason I bought this book well after it came out and then let it sit on the shelf for a time before reading it. Perhaps it was because of the millennial associations the book had in my mind. It certainly wasn't any doubt of Michael Reaves as an author. He has been writing for some time, and has always done a solid, workmanlike job. Having finally read it, I can honestly say that, whatever my reasons were, I was much mistaken. Certainly, any book that deals with demons and cataclysms will have a touch of the millennial about them, but this book would have worked just as well in 1986 or 2021.

The book start's out with a horrific beginning when, in a fashion reminiscent of "Alien," a demonic child is born to a 15 year old victim of incest. The demon promptly slaughters all attending the event and disappears. Quickly, the scene shifts to the Greenwich Village home of Colin, a young and potent mage who discovers he has been robbed. Three enchanted objects, which together make up the Trine, have been taken. Without the Trine, Colin's powers are significantly weakened. While planning his next steps a pounding on the door reveals the angel Zoel, sent from divine dispatching to help Colin along.

Across the continent, Terry Dane, a bodyguard, finds himself confronted with an attacker who doesn't register pain, and who likes to shred his victims. And, in Oregon, Liz Russell witnesses the execution of a serial killer she had written a book about and suddenly realizes that there may be life after death, and it might not like her. All of these threads come together in a wild sleigh ride through purgatory, hell and beyond. Colin's 'simple' quest quickly goes sour despite the help the angel Zoel and a friendly demon, Asdeon. The book is barely started before the reader is creeping through the catacombs of Paris and exploring the site of Dracula's burial.

Reaves proves himself quite adept in creating a magical world. Colin's travels, and his memories of his school days produce many striking images of the occult. I particularly liked the images of the Scholomance and the scenes at Lake Snagov in Transylvania. He also draws on a surprising amount of both classical and Babylonian demonology. For some reason the latter seems unusually popular this year, I believe this is the third book that I've read with some sort of Babylonian bad guy in it. The plot moves too quickly for there to be much character development, but there is enough to keep character from going flat.

Reaves moves between suspense, horror, and sarcastic humor in his writing, which can be jarring at times. This is the kind of book that is quite easily read in a couple of sittings. I was expecting something a bit more ponderous or horrible, instead I found I had a high speed tale of occult suspense told with a light entertaining touch. I am not normally a fan of books which are mostly plot, but "Hell on Earth" is one of the better examples of that writing style. I enjoyed it right through to it's rather splashy and overdone ending. I'm even hoping that there might be a sequel some day.