Book Review: The Heavens Rise by Christopher Rice + Giveaway

The Heavens Rise
Author: Christopher Rice
Reading Level: Adult
Genre: Horror | Mystery | Supernatural
Released: October 15th 2013
Review Source: Gallery Books

New York Times bestselling author Christopher Rice brilliantly conjures the shadowed terrors of the Louisiana bayou—where three friends confront a deadly, ancient evil rising to the surface—in this intense and atmospheric new supernatural thriller.

It’s been a decade since the Delongpre family vanished near Bayou Rabineaux, and still no one can explain the events of that dark and sweltering night. No one except Niquette Delongpre, the survivor who ran away from the mangled stretch of guardrail on Highway 22 where the impossible occurred…and kept on running. Who left behind her best friends, Ben and Anthem, to save them from her newfound capacity for destruction…and who alone knows the source of her very bizarre—and very deadly—abilities: an isolated strip of swampland called Elysium.

An accomplished surgeon, Niquette’s father dreamed of transforming the dense acreage surrounded by murky waters into a palatial compound befitting the name his beloved wife gave to it, Elysium: “the final resting place for the heroic and virtuous.” Then, ten years ago, construction workers dug into a long-hidden well, one that snaked down into the deep, black waters of the Louisiana swamp and stirred something that had been there for centuries—a microscopic parasite that perverts the mind and corrupts the body.

Niquette is living proof that things done can’t be undone. Nothing will put her family back together again. And nothing can save her. But as Niquette, Ben, and Anthem uncover the truth of a devastating parasite that has the potential to alter the future of humankind, Niquette grasps the most chilling truths of all: someone else has been infected too. And unlike her, this man is not content to live in the shadows. He is intent to use his newfound powers for one reason only: revenge.

Set in the rural and mystical New Orleans, The Heaven’s Rise is a chilling novel. Rice, using a gritty and haunting tone, creates a world that rarely sees hope or sunshine. With grandiose characters that embody the New Orleans vibe, the author’s unique world is a fresh twist in the adult fiction genre. Suspension builds on almost every page making time seemingly fly by. As mentioned before the characters are very grand and connectable, but most of them tend to be static through out the novel. The language used flows very nicely and conveys the character’s emotion very well. Overall these qualities make for a very enjoyable book.

​Deep in New Orleans resides a mystery that is just dying to surface. For Niquette Delongpre and her family life will never be the same when they discover something on their property. Suddenly she and her family disappear, leaving her boyfriend and friends in disarray. Years past and things start to mysteriously happen in New Orleans causing buried memories to arise. Nothing about this book is dull or mediocre; actually it’s quite the opposite. With a unique flavor of writing, Rice creates a hauntingly majestic world that engages the reader from the very start. With intricate characters everything seems to fall into place nicely in the story. However, the only issue for me in this book was the static nature of most of the characters in the book. Since the story comes from multiple view points, I would have liked the characters show more growth through out the novel. This ,though, is my only issue and by no means hinders the enjoyment of reading this well written novel. 

Perfect for fall, The Heaven’s Rise is a book that is sure to send shivers down your spine and deliver haunting enjoyment.

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