Book Review: A Deafening Silence In Heaven (Remy Chandler #7) by Thomas E. Sniegoski

A Deafening Silence In Heaven (Remy Chandler #7)
by Thomas E. Sniegoski

Paperback, 448 pages

October 6th 2015 by Roc

From the New York Times bestselling author of the Fallen series comes a new Remy Chandler novel.

He was once known as the angel Remiel. But, generations ago, Boston PI Remy Chandler renounced Heaven and chose to live on Earth, hiding among us humans, fighting to save our souls…

Remy Chandler is hovering on the brink of death, surrounded by friends who are trying to ward off those who would take advantage of his vulnerability. Unbeknownst to them, the greatest threat to Remy is one they can’t fight—God himself. The Almighty dispatches Remy far beyond their reach, to an alternate universe where there has been an apocalyptic catastrophe: the Unification.

Only as he hunts down the source of this calamity, it becomes clearer and clearer that the person responsible for the tragedy may have been none other than Remy himself.

And while he searches for a way to stop his world from following in the footsteps of the doomed alternate reality, enemies are massing in his universe. For the Unification is at hand and, this time, Remy may be powerless to affect its outcome.

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Wow, this story went epic pretty quick. Of course the Unification of Heaven, by forgiving the Morningstar and all that followed him, tends to be an epic sort of event. If you've been following this series since the beginning then you are gonna read this...you have to! The end of book 6 left Remy dying from the Bone Master's poison. Do I really need to convince you to read it? This is what all the other books have led up to. Is this the last Remy Chandler book? I have no idea, but it seems like it might be. It is a long one, and all the people from Remy's past make an appearance, but it is a sprint from beginning to the end.

This is not the book to start with...but you could. The books have strong story arcs that can stand on their own and you get enough info that you aren't lost in the series arc, but why miss out on the amazing adventures of Remy and Marlowe (his dog). I want to encourage you to start this series. It is urban fantasy at its purest. I started with book 6, Walking in the Midst of Fire, I could kick myself for not starting this one from the beginning.

Male and female written urban fantasy is different and each have qualities that appeal to different people, but Sniegoski impressively combines the best of both types. So don't shy away from the fact that the author is male. There is a lot of physical action going on, but he also writes with all the emotions you usually get in female written urban fantasy, and no this isn't a romance so don't shy away from it because I said it has feels. There were scenes in A Deafening Silence in Heaven that kicked you in said "feels"—hard. This isn't light reading. You have to pay attention because there are enough POVs to make your head spin, but each is important as all the character's actions begin to merge towards the climatic event. You even get the POV of Marlowe, Remy's dog, like I said...feels! There are humorous characters and a perfectly crafted villain, the Forever Man.

This is a must read and the sexy guy on the cover doesn't hurt either...

5 "Unified" Sheep

SharonS

About the Author:

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THOMAS E. SNIEGOSKI is the author of more than two dozen novels for adults, teens, and children. His teen fantasy YA series Fallen was adapted into a trilogy of monstrously successful TV movies by ABC Family Channel. His other books for teens include Sleeper Code, Sleeper Agenda, Legacy, and Force Majeure, as well as the series The Brimstone Network. The author's first adult novel, A Kiss Before the Apocalypse, developed into a series of novels about the character Remy Chandler.

Sniegoski's work for younger readers includes the Billy Hooten: Owlboy series and the fantasy quartet Magic Zero, which he co-authored with Christopher Golden.Magic Zero is in development as a film at Universal. Sniegoski and Golden have also collaborated on the adult dark fantasy series The Menagerie, and multiple creator-owned comic book series, including The Sisterhood, which is being prepped for a feature film by InterMedia, and Talent, currently in development at Universal after a major bidding war.

As a comic book writer, Sniegoski's work includes Stupid, Stupid Rat Tails, a prequel miniseries to international hit Bone. Sniegoski has also written the Bone: Quest for the Spark novels. Sniegoski collaborated with Bone creator Jeff Smith on the prequel, making him the only writer Smith has ever asked to work on those characters. Sniegoski and Golden also wrote the graphic novel BPRD: Hollow Earth, a spinoff from Hellboy.

Sniegoski was born and raised in Massachusetts, where he still lives with his wife LeeAnne and their dog, Kirby.

Book Review: Walking in the Midst of Fire (Remy Chandler #6) by Thomas E. Sniegoski

Walking In the Midst of Fire (Remy Chandler #6)
By: Thomas E. Sniegoski

Remy Chandler, angel private investigator, is trying his damnedest to lead a normal life in a world on the verge of supernatural change. He’s found a new love—a woman his dog, Marlowe, approves of—and his best human friend is reluctantly coming to grips with how...unusual...Remy’s actions can be. And he’s finally reached a kind of peace between his true angelic nature and the human persona he created for himself so very long ago.

But that peace can’t last—Heaven and the Legions of the Fallen still stand on the brink of war. Then one of Heaven’s greatest generals is murdered, and it falls to Remy to discover who—or what—might be responsible for the death, which could trigger the final conflict...a conflict in which Earth will most certainly be the beachhead.

The deeper he digs, the further he goes into a dark world of demonic assassins, secret brothels, and things that are unsettling even to a being who has lived since time began. But it is not in his nature—angelic or human—to stop until he has found the killer, no matter the personal price.

I will start out with this was a damned good story! There are warrior angels, snarky attitudes, epic smack downs, evil, suspense, and heart breaking realizations. Notice I didn’t say romance? The main character, Remy Chandler, does have a love life and it is important to his ability to hold onto his human façade, but this is an urban fantasy from a male POV with a male author. Now don’t go getting all offended. I am making a generalization based on my reading experiences. Female and male authors write UF differently, not better than the other… just different.

Here is a perfect description about who Remy Chandler is I found over at Innsmouth Free Press by contributor Paula R. Stiles. If you have read the books you can skip this paragraph.

The Remy Chandler series is about a seraph named “Remiel” who deserted Heaven after Lucifer and his rebel angels were thrown out. Remy now lives on earth and works quietly (or tries to) as a private eye in Boston. Life’s been tough these past few years, though, since his wife, Madeleine, died of old age and he’s found himself stuck with cases that always seem to end up with his averting the latest apocalypse of the day. It doesn’t help that Remy has what humans would term ‘Dissociative Identity Disorder’ on top of PTSD.

I hadn't heard of this series before and was a little nervous about jumping in at book #6, but I couldn't resist after reading the blurb. The author did a great job of providing relevant background info so I didn't feel lost, but I had to pay attention to everything. This wasn't a quick read, but well worth the effort. Apparently book #5 was the ending of a main series arc and book #6 is the beginning of a new one. There are a ton of characters in Walking in the Midst of Fire, and many are from previous books. The author has created a complex and intriguing world based on the Christian ideas of Heaven and Hell and adding his own twist and other fantasy elements (AKA monsters!). This is my kind of urban fantasy.

This book has brought in a new foe from Remy’s past. The story is told from their POV with flashbacks from both characters to catch us up on how their paths crossed and why this new enemy called “The Forever Man” has surfaced. This isn't a normal vengeful bad guy. He is smart and patient and you will find yourself sympathetic to his plight.

One of my favorite parts, besides getting to hear Remy’s dog Marlowe’s thoughts, was the scenes with some of the secondary characters as they try to hide the body of a one of Heaven’s greatest generals without the angels or Lucifer’s army of fallen finding out. The dialog exchanges were hilarious in a dark humor way. The story was a little slow in the beginning and I didn’t feel much chemistry between Remy and the new love in his life, but I don’t know the story between them from the previous books. Once the action started I was hooked. The story took unexpected turns, suspense was heart stopping and the ending caught me off guard breaking my heart right along with Remy’s.

I look forward to checking out the first 5 books and recommend this series to action oriented urban fantasy lovers.

Quot-a-licious-ness:

“The heavy set sorcerer looked up. “Fancy seeing you here. To what do I owe the occasion?”“I need a favor” Remy said.
“Let me guess” the rotund sorcerer started. “Something, something, something… the end of the world.” 
Remy smirked but with little humor.
“Yeah, a little something like that.”

“Taking down an angel of the Lord was all about surprise, and capitalizing on their sheer arrogance. As far as angels were concerned, nobody was as badass as they were.
Francis begged to differ.”
(this person might be a spoiler so if you want to see who said it you have to highlight the box)



4.5 “Forever” Sheep

Sharon Stogner