Review – The Occupied

Craig Parshall’s intriguing new “Trevor Black” suspense series, “The Occupied” released September 1 from Tyndale House Publishers. The complex thriller wraps mystery, murder and spiritual warfare into a thought-provoking, faith-filled story that gives new meaning to the term “occupied.” The story was inspired by an experience Parshall writes about in Mystery and True Crime News, Prose n’ Cons, “He Scared the Wits Out of Himself and Out Came a Novel.”

And what a novel of suspense it is once characters are drawn and the stage set that lifts the veil on unseen spiritual forces only understood through the Holy Spirit’s “gift of discernment.” However, that would come 25 years later from seeds sown by Trevor and Augie when they were bored and innocent teens in this book of three parts, “the Flesh, the World and the Devil.”

There might not have been a story to tell if Trevor and Augie hadn’t gone to creepy old Mason Krim’s corner mansion after he died. If they hadn’t tried to recite the Latin incantations from Krim’s aged book that led Trevor to ask, from the living room of his musty, very creepy corner mansion, “Is anyone there? Is anyone listening?”

That’s when the “jangling of the telephone” began, Augie went bug-eyed and Trevor thought Why doesn’t it stop? Why is it still ringing? When he picked up the receiver Trevor heard a masculine voice say back to him, “Is anyone there? Is anyone listening?”                                                                                                                    

Then Augie “grabbed the phone” and listened intently before he very slowly “placed the receiver back onto the base.” Even though Trevor asked him what he had heard many times “Augie would never tell him” then or ever.

Thus begins a modern spiritually based crime thriller of good versus evil that keeps pages turning long after lights should go out. Complete with brutal murders, detectives, demons, and a bit of romance and divine truth wrapped in a story of spiritual warfare and belief in God.

Belief in Christ and other Scriptural truths weave throughout a “clean-read” story that contains no bad language, sexual scenes or grim and gory crime scenes. It’s simply a well-written mystery that leaves readers wanting more. The sequel hasn’t been announced but I’m sure there is one in the not too distant future because of the way “The Occupied” ends.

Fans of Frank Peretti, Ted Dekker or Steven James would enjoy “The Occupied.”