BOOK REVIEW: NIGHTMARE ACADEMY BY FRANK PERETTI

Nightmare Academy is the story of two teenage twins who, in their attempt to solve a mystery, follow a stranger and find themselves engulfed in a nightmare from which there seems to be no escape. At the start of the book, readers are introduced to a teenager in a hospital, Alvin Rogers, who has lost his mind. Alvin is asked various questions such as ‘what is your name? Where are you from? etc, but all he can reply is: ‘I don’t know’. The doctor is alarmed by his response and the faraway look in his eyes and decides to call Mr Morgan, a private investigator, for help. Mr Morgan then enlists the help of the Springfields [Nate and Sarah together with their twin teen children, Elijah and Elisha] to investigate the case further. Alvin is later murdered in the hospital.

Posing undercover as vagrant teenagers, Elijah and Elisha are offered shelter by a business-like lady named Margaret Jones at a place called Light of Day Youth Shelter. Inside the shelter, they’re given food to eat while conversing with Margaret. She tells them about an academy she thinks they might be interested in- the Knight-Moore academy, which is a free summer camp for teenagers. The twins signal their interest and afterwards start feeling sleepy. They are sent off to bed but wake up the next day in a strange place- Knight-Moore Academy. Meanwhile, their parents who had been following them all night were asked to leave their parking spot by a police officer, so they had to park elsewhere and stay there for the night. By the next day, Light of Day was no longer existing. In its place was a hotel; Dartmoor hotel. The twins had been kidnapped.

At the Academy, the twins meet other teenagers who have also been kidnapped. They are informed that they can do whatever they like but there’s just one catch: they are not allowed to go inside The Mansion. The twins later find out that Alvin was the only person who ever tried to enter the mansion - and was never seen again. They do all they can to leave the Academy but one thing becomes clear as time goes on: it is usually easier to get into a place than to get out of it and only an external intervention can get them out of the Nightmare Academy.

Nightmare Academy is a novel written by Frank Peretti, best-selling author of several books like the Oath, Visitation, Prophet, The Veritas Project, etc.

MY THOUGHTS ABOUT THE BOOK…

I love it. Not only is the book suspenseful and engaging, it also addresses deep issues and teaches lessons. It’s a very good book for parents who are security conscious; if you have been telling your children to be careful of where they go, where they eat, and whom they talk to, this book will help make your job easier. Parents can get their kids to read the book and ask questions like: what do you think would have happened to Alvin if he had stayed at home, not followed the woman anywhere, not eaten from a stranger, etc. This will ensure that children are not only entertained by the book, but educated as well. 

Also, Frank Peretti makes the case for truth throughout the book, pointing out the fact that without some absolute truths, the person who has the most money, power or influence will decide what is right and wrong in the society. The concluding paragraph as written by Nate Springfield to the president via Morgan sums it pretty well: 

‘…We are a free people because we live according to what we know is Right or Wrong. If Truth is taken from us, then Right and Wrong are taken from us as well. If we don’t know Right and Wrong, then we can’t…control ourselves but will look to someone else to bring order through brute force and raw power. We will be controlled by a tyrant…and don’t count on that tyrant to be kind or merciful. He has no sense of right or wrong, either, and will do to us whatever he wants….The conclusion: take away truth and a tyrant will rule’.

This is a good book for parents who wish to teach their children to be security conscious as well as parents who are interested in starting the morality discourse with their children.

BOOK REVIEW: PIERCING THE DARKNESS

Bacon Elementary School seems to be like any other school except that the school offers non-traditional subjects, such as a curriculum called ‘Finding the Real Me’; where pupils are taught to find their ‘true selves’ by connecting with inner spirit guides and channelling spirits. 

The problem begins when a student, Amber Brandon, transfers from Bacon Elementary School to Good Shepherd Academy. Amber is a ten year old girl with a spirit guide called Amethyst who often exhibits animal characteristics by prancing like a horse and making animal sounds in class. This upsets the school’s headmaster, Tom Harris, who regards Amethyst as a demon; and so one day he attempts to cast the demon out of Amber. 

Amber’s mother is infuriated when she learns of the attempted ‘exorcism’, and she, backed by big organizations like the American Citizens Freedom Association and the National Coalition on Education, files a lawsuit against Good Shepherd Academy. The school hires an attorney, Wayne Corrigan, to represent them in the lawsuit, but what they don’t know is that they are entangled in a conspiracy that is bigger than what they could ever imagine.

 In attempting to gather information that will help them win the case, Tom and Wayne find themselves fighting against forces that are not just physical but spiritual as well. In the race against time, Tom and Wayne discover that the battle is also over spiritual territory, and only with the help of a mysterious woman, Sally Beth Roe, the writer of the ‘Finding the Real Me’ curriculum, can the pieces of the puzzle finally fall into place.

Frank Peretti

 Piercing the darkness is a novel written by Frank Peretti, best-selling author of several books like the Oath, Visitation, Monster, Prophet and The Veritas Project.

MY THOUGHTS ABOUT THE BOOK…

Love, love, love. This is my favorite book for the moment. While I found it a bit difficult connecting with the first book in this series [This Present Darkness], I was hooked on this book from start to finish. 

If you love suspense, this is the book for you. It will keep you on the edge of your seat-you just can’t wait for Peretti to break the suspense. The story plays out neatly and beautifully and the characters are intricately woven into the story. Peretti is a master of the thriller genre, and I found the book to be quite interesting, entertaining, captivating and engaging.

In addition to being entertaining though, the book contains lessons. First, it serves as a grim reminder to parents to be aware of what’s going on in their children’s school. What subjects are they taking? For non-traditional subjects, what does the curriculum entail? Are your children being taught values that are in line with what you want them to know? Be involved in your child’s school. Know the curriculum.

The book also highlights the need for schools to have a system of checks and balances-Know your students before enrolling them at your school. Extensive detailed information about each student should be obtained where possible as this can save a school in the event of a lawsuit.

I heartily recommend this book to those who are yet to read it, particularly church leaders, parents and educators.

BOOK REVIEW: THIS PRESENT DARKNESS

Something strange is happening in the little town of Ashton. A dark, sinister force is at work. A college professor, Professor Juleen Langstrat, has come to town with some ideas on Eastern mysticism and the New Age religion, and suddenly, the once peaceful town has become rocked with unpleasant occurrences like murder and the expulsion of many of the town’s inhabitants. This makes the local church pray more earnestly while newspaper editor, Marshall Hogan, and his reporter, Bernice Krueger, whose sister died under very mysterious circumstances, try to get to the bottom of the mystery. What they don’t know is that their battle is not against flesh and blood but against principalities and powers in the heavenly realm. Marshall and Bernice unearth a series of cataclysmic truths that catapults them into a world of greed, lust and occultism even as angels and demons battle furiously for the life and soul of the town itself.

Frank Peretti

This Present Darkness is a novel written by Frank Peretti, best-selling author of several books like the Oath, Visitation, Prophet, The Veritas Project, etc.

What I love about the book:

The novel makes readers more cognizant of the fact that there’s a spiritual battle going on in the world at any given time. It offers a fascinating glimpse into the world of angels and demons and emphasizes the importance of prayer in a person’s life. The book also projects quite sharply the importance of angels in the life of the Christian and makes the bible verse: ‘For we battle not against flesh and blood but against principalities and powers’ come alive for the reader.

What is not so good…

I am a great fan of Frank Peretti, however I must admit that I have ambivalent feelings about this book. While I like the way it highlights the spiritual struggle going on in the world today, I must admit that I found some aspects a bit implausible or too convenient; such as the way virtually every enemy of the Universal Consciousness Society in Ashton town was run off the town, and the way Hogan’s wife, Kate, returned to him at the end of the story. It was just too easy. 

I also wish some parts of the story were more developed. For instance, providing background details about Juleen Langstrat and what led up to her becoming steeped in the occult would have helped readers understand her character better.  Also, one gets the feeling that Peretti was trying to focus on too many things at once- at a point one has to wonder if the story is about angels and demons or about a man almost having an affair with his newspaper reporter.  Peretti also almost failed to deliver the punch line, thank God this finally happened towards the end of the book.

In the end though, these flaws are forgivable when you remember that this was Peretti’s first published novel for adults; especially seeing as his other books like Oath and Visitation were more plausible and interesting. While I will not recommend this book to someone who has never read any of Peretti’s books, for those who are used to his style of writing, read on-you just might like it better than I did.