Rating: Summary: good book from a christain writer Review: i read this book because a friend told me about it and said it was pretty good (thanx jonathan). luckily jonathan was right. this book was a page turner. yes it doesn't make you think and it's not a masterpiece but, it's all action and it never gets boring.if you want an action/ thriller novel that doesn't have swearing and sex in it, then this is a novel for you
Rating: Summary: I'm being generous with the stars...... Review: If you are a teenage boy or a thirty year old burnout living in your parents basement then this book is for you. Otherwise I suggest reading the Exorcist for horror or watching Buffy and Angel for good drama and the laughs. This book plain *****.
Rating: Summary: Far too many genre's in just one book Review: James Byron Huggins tries to combine every genre you can imagine in this book. There is science fiction, action, adventure, mystery, devil worship, romance, and conspiracy theories. The book plays out as more of an action movie or video game. The only character with any real depth is soloman. I felt the book had an interesting plot, but never amounted to much. The ending turned out better than i had anticipated and saved it from only getting one star.
Rating: Summary: Excellent! Exciting non-stop action, suspense. Review: Loved it! This book will make a great action movie. Everything's well researched, very realistic with a touch of imagination where needed. Tactics/strategy, names and descriptions of actual military weapons, science, and religious lore -- James Byron Huggins has really done his homework!!! The author goes into detail to create a vivid scene, but not so much that it becomes boring. Kept me interested all the way through. I highly recommend this book to anyone who likes a good action packed "hero conqueres the great evil in order to save the world" type of story.
Rating: Summary: The best novel I have read so far! Review: Most everyone else here basically out lined the story so there is no point in repeating myself here! I just wanted to comment because this book was excellent, and I think everyone who likes reading novels should read this book! It was incredible! It had amazing action and the characters in there all seemed so real. It was very, very good! Definitely the best book I had read so far! I am reading though another book called the Hunter again written by Huggins and it does have the makings of being better than Cain! I don't know I might like that better when I finish it, but I would definitely recommend reading all of his books!
Rating: Summary: Remarkable...that such drivel actually got published! Review: PERSPECTIVE: sci-fi/fantasy/horror fan, unfamiliar with Huggins' work Its unfortunate that I come away from this book disliking it, as I tried hard... really hard... to find the goodness in it. What hooked me into initially picking it up was the cool concept - an evil being possesses the scientifically enhanced body of a dead former CIA operative, and just what those responsible were going to do about it. As I read, I was also intrigued by the pseudo-science surrounding just what makes Cain tick, and what ultimately needs to be done to stop him. Some things were done well, as some of the action sequences are reasonably thrilling, and Huggins' writing style is very straightforward and easy to follow. Unfortunately, that's all I can say from a positive standpoint. The novel is essentially a screenplay for a B-level action/horror movie. Both protagonists and antagonists have meaningful things to say at times, but every chapter, and towards the end, every section, seem to end with a snappy one-liner ("I'm going to see if a dead man can die", etc...) or some dramatic sub-cliffhanger statement that remind me more of a bad film script than a novel. The characters aren't completely static, but it is almost transparently predictable as to what the ultimate fate of every main character will be from early on in the book. A lot of the situations seem somewhat contrived, as Huggins seems to make some of the players do momentarily irrational things in order to advance the plot or further a situation. All of the above would have been more forgivable if it weren't set into a background of pseudo-science that, while convincing to the average layperson, is just plain inaccurate, coming from a biology/medical background. The same can be said for the religious ideas presented - it's okay "pop mythology" for a B-movie, but to have this as the basis for a novel just doesn't fly with readers with any theological training. All in all, this wasn't the worst book I've ever read, but the most disappointing aspect was that the cool ideas were only mediocrely researched and presented, and dragged down by contrived drama and a story that while fun at times, wasn't well-developed enough to make me care. FINAL WORD: Don't read this book - life's too short and there are too many good-to-great novels out there to waste your time on this.
Rating: Summary: A dissappointing action/horror experience Review: PERSPECTIVE: sci-fi/fantasy/horror fan, unfamiliar with Huggins' work Its unfortunate that I come away from this book disliking it, as I tried hard... really hard... to find the goodness in it. What hooked me into initially picking it up was the cool concept - an evil being possesses the scientifically enhanced body of a dead former CIA operative, and just what those responsible were going to do about it. As I read, I was also intrigued by the pseudo-science surrounding just what makes Cain tick, and what ultimately needs to be done to stop him. Some things were done well, as some of the action sequences are reasonably thrilling, and Huggins' writing style is very straightforward and easy to follow. Unfortunately, that's all I can say from a positive standpoint. The novel is essentially a screenplay for a B-level action/horror movie. Both protagonists and antagonists have meaningful things to say at times, but every chapter, and towards the end, every section, seem to end with a snappy one-liner ("I'm going to see if a dead man can die", etc...) or some dramatic sub-cliffhanger statement that remind me more of a bad film script than a novel. The characters aren't completely static, but it is almost transparently predictable as to what the ultimate fate of every main character will be from early on in the book. A lot of the situations seem somewhat contrived, as Huggins seems to make some of the players do momentarily irrational things in order to advance the plot or further a situation. All of the above would have been more forgivable if it weren't set into a background of pseudo-science that, while convincing to the average layperson, is just plain inaccurate, coming from a biology/medical background. The same can be said for the religious ideas presented - it's okay "pop mythology" for a B-movie, but to have this as the basis for a novel just doesn't fly with readers with any theological training. All in all, this wasn't the worst book I've ever read, but the most disappointing aspect was that the cool ideas were only mediocrely researched and presented, and dragged down by contrived drama and a story that while fun at times, wasn't well-developed enough to make me care. FINAL WORD: Don't read this book - life's too short and there are too many good-to-great novels out there to waste your time on this.
Rating: Summary: Sometimes fun--but there's better out there! Review: Reading this book is like gulping down a Big Mac and fries--it hits the spot, but it's not that good for you. I was really torn in reviewing this. Plot-wise and concept-wise it's simplistic but very effective. On the other hand, the prose is so amatuerish it's laughable. Huggins claims to have been a journalist but I'd have hated to be his editor! In fact, he also claims to have been a cop and in the military, but (as other reviewers pointed out) many of his details are equally bad. (A MYLAR vest?!?!?) Worst of all, his historical and philosophical grounding is as skewed as you'd expect from a "Christian" writer--just the sort of semi-truth they spew around about archeology or Hebrew language at the typical Bible college. (First of all, there were Stone, Copper, Bronze and Iron Ages--but no such thing as the "Silver Age," during Davidic times or any other. Second, there's absolutely no reason a Judeo-Christian demon would rant in "Silver Age" LATIN either, as opposed to, say, Hebrew.) I did enjoy this book at times, but I probably would have been easier on it if I hadn't just read EYES by Robert Subiaga, Jr. (Also sold on Amazon.com) Let me tell you, THAT'A a book that has it together in everything from philosophy and metaphysics to martial arts and weaponry. Go ahead and order CAIN if you must but then you owe it to yourself to read something like EYES and compare them.
Rating: Summary: That Darn Satan! Review: Satan inhabits the body of a rejuvenated super-soldier experiment gone awry. Sound familiar? Sure it does...but darn...it was pretty fun to read. Huggins can sure create a great unkillable monster. (Read Hunter as well) These books should be made into movies for "guys who like movies." This one has it all: blood, gore, love, hate, guns, and a cute little girl. What more could you ask for?
Rating: Summary: CAIN IS DISABLED Review: Tell Lion Gate Films about this book--it would make a great movie for their long list of "B" thrillers. CAIN is a rambling treatise on the eternal battle of good vs. evil. It also includes the drawbacks of man trying to be "gods" and how easy it is to lose one's faith--especially if you're a Catholic.
We have a monstrous giant who has been awakened from the dead by a group of scientists, headed by the lovely Dr. Maggie, who also has an angelic little daughter, Amy. This monster actually turns out to be possessed by none other than Satan himself. Enter Solomon, a war veteran whose wife and daughter were killed a few years back; he has retreated to the desert to get away from the world, but when he's approached by his former commander to help kill this monster, Cain, Solomon of course unretires.
Huggins has given us some viable action scenes, and a few creeps here and there, but he aimed a little too high. For someone as powerful as Satan, he sure takes it on the butt a few times from the human Solaman. Every time there's a confrontation, Satan comes out on the short end, and Solomon's macho dialogue is straight out of a comic book. Huggins also pads his book with rambling scenes of "waiting" that do little but stifle the pacing; Huggins needs to read Matthew Reilly if he wants to know how to make a book cook.
CAIN is not a complete loser; but it falls short of Huggins' heavenly aspirations.
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