The Final Hour 
is the fourth and final book in the Homelander series, an action-packed yarn about love for country, family, and values - and the cost of standing against terrorists who would have them obliterated.
is the fourth and final book in the Homelander series, an action-packed yarn about love for country, family, and values - and the cost of standing against terrorists who would have them obliterated. Ever since falling into Charlie West's story last year, I have been anxious to see how it ends... and if the poor fellow ever gets to rest!
On the surface, these books are about a fairly normal high school kid running away from terrorists, solving the mystery of a forgotten year of his life, and putting his top-notch karate skills to use. Oh, and getting wounded and wearied beyond belief in the process.
I was in Abingdon State Prison. Locked away for a murder I didn't commit. Waiting for the men who were coming to kill me. With nowhere to run.
What keeps him going, besides the fact that he's the hero in an action/thriller book?
The answer, my friend, is all that flows beneath the surface in his patriotic and God-fearing veins.
Make no mistake - this book, like its predecessors, is first of all a thrilling read. I knew when it came in the mail that I had better be careful about opening the cover. I have sped through the other books like my life, instead of Charlie's, depended on it.
But it is the heroic and noble character of Charlie West that makes me want to sneak a set of these books into the room of every adventure-loving boy I know.
Charlie respects life and, however nasty the villain, he chooses to never kill needlessly. He hates to lie (old fashioned, eh?). He values freedom and morality. He takes full responsibility for his actions. And when left by all allies, facing impossible odds, he presses on to his last breath.
"You're not alone, Charlie. You're never alone"
These books were written particularly for teen guys, for whom too little quality fiction is written these days. I'm thankful to Andrew Klavan for seeing the need, and for writing a series that is anything but wimpy or dull.
But I can attest that even 26-year old ladies can enjoy Charlie's story. It may not be Homer, Tolkien, or Dickens, but between the fast action scenes, explosions, and karate moves lies a tale every lover of freedom may embrace.
*Thank you, thank you to Thomas Nelson for the free reviewer's copy of this book! You did not pay me, nor did I have to give a good review. I just liked it that much.*
I quite agree with it all. =) Hooray for Charlie West, the normal highschool student with the guts to do what needed done! Dad and I were talking about it the other day, it's the little people like that, who are brave and do what is needed, that move history. Like Ohmaha Beach, where the Allies were pinned down by German gunfire, and it was one little Private Smith, or whoever the low rank was, that took his gun and ran towards the enemy. And then another did it. And another. And they won the battle, and D-Day was a success because of it! That's what I liked about these books, they express that kind of heroics, AND point you to why a person can have the heroics like that; it stems from beleif. A good review, my dear, well done! ~Catie~
ReplyDeleteEnjoyed pursuing your books, and reading many lovely reviews. I'm always on the lookout for new reads!
ReplyDelete