7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Non-stop suspense and action, a Great Read, February 5, 2000
Kyle Mills has created an interesting character in Mark Beamon - a suffering, slightly edgy, moral man who refuses to back down, kind of like a pit bull who will protect til the end. The introduction of a cult-like religion was a twist. This book was so well written, planned out, it had you rooting for Mark Beamon (along with a cast of characters that were irritating, frightening and endearing). There were so many surprises and the premise of our privacy being invaded by a group of people with a different agenda was definitely not a far fetched idea.
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5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
The Vatican gets a break, July 31, 2002
When it comes to pesky conspirators that cause headaches for literature's pantheon of fictional heroes, some have been around for so long that they're passe: ex- SS members, the KGB, and the Vatican. In STORMING HEAVEN, none of these are at the root of All Evil, and the Vatican gets a breather for once.
This time around, our hero is Mark Beamon, the troublesome but brilliant FBI agent exiled to the position of agent-in-charge of the bureau's Flagstaff office, an out-in-the-stix outpost of the Big House down in Phoenix. Mark is investigating the gunshot deaths of Eric and Patricia Davis and the disappearance of their teenage daughter Jennifer. (It's not apparent, or ever explained, why the local cops aren't a presence and the Feds have been brought into the case. It's uncertain at the outset that Jennifer was kidnapped, much less taken across state lines, the only rationale for FBI involvement.) In any case, before the storyline progresses too far the reader knows, and Beamon suspects, that the hierarchy of the Kneissians, a global religious cult, is up to no good in the affair.
Mark is the best reason to bother with STORMING HEAVEN. He's intolerant of nonsense emanating from the Front Office, unlucky when it comes to women, physically unprepossessing, and waging a losing battle with cigarettes, alcohol and a middle-age waistline. And he's irreverant. At one point in his investigation, he's asked by an ally to pray with her for their success:
"She pulled at his sleeve and he sank to his knees next to her wheelchair. She squeezed her eyes shut and began moving her lips soundlessly. Not really knowing what to do, he bowed his head and waited for her to snap out of it."
And he's realistic about the strengths of the character flaws laid at his door by his superiors, as when he's questioning a difficult suspect:
"It was time to make a decision on how to play this. There was the smart way, of course ... But that seemed kind of boring. The other option was to shoot himself in the foot and see if he could make the ice princess sweat a little."
I'd give the book three stars except for Beamon, who elevates it another click. Otherwise, the storyline is only marginally inventive, and the Kneissians aren't in the same league as the Vatican when it comes to truly insidious plotting. Where's a good renegade Cardinal when you need one?
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7 of 8 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Kyle Mills...A new writer with guts., January 20, 2000
By A Customer
Storming Heaven was one of the best contemporary thrillers I have read in years. Whereas most current popular novels of this genre deal with such oft-used threats as neo nazism, islamic terrorism, missing weapons as a result of Soviet breakup, or conspiracies within our own government, Mills has the boldness to deal with what is to me the most insidious and overlooked threat: "Christian" fanaticism, and its desire to control the lives of others. While clearly a work of fiction (I can't say I know enough about Scientology to draw any conclusions), this book is to me, far scarier than anything even Steven King could write since it deals with events that are entirely plausible. Large ideas aside, it is also an excellent crime/kidnapping story and while it does contain potentially objectionable language, the sex and violence are comparatively minimal so the book can be enjoyed by a wide audience. Definitely a winner along with Rising Phoenix, his previous novel which also tackles religious conspiracy.
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