This Present Darkness by Frank E. Peretti

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This Present Darkness by Frank E. Peretti
Series: Book 1 of 2
Publisher: Howard Books (February 14, 2012)

Review by Mae Clair

Decades ago, when I first discovered Christian fiction, one book set the bar for those that followed. I still have my first edition, trade paperback copy of Frank Peretti’s This Present Darkness. I’ve reread it numerous times over the years and recently purchased a copy for my Kindle. I’ve enjoyed most of Peretti’s other adult novels (he also writes for children and teens), but This Present Darkness remains my favorite. Some stories just never lose their appeal.

I’ve heard it was a hard sell at the time—rejected by fourteen publishing houses before Crossway Books took a chance on Peretti’s remarkable story about spiritual warfare in the small town of Ashton. Long before authors were writing tales about angels, Peretti introduced his readers to warrior angels led by Tal, Captain of the Heavenly Host. Backed by the prayers of believers, Tal’s angelic league battles a congregation of demons, led by Ba-al Rafar, the Prince of Babylon.

If this sounds like fantasy, it’s not. The novel is set in contemporary times and involves a secret Society planning to take over Ashton by gaining control of the local college.

Marshall Hogan, editor and owner of The Clarion, Ashton’s newspaper, begins to suspect something off-kilter when his lead reporter, Bernice Krueger, is falsely arrested after snapping a photograph at the community carnival. Bernice had the bad luck to catch a clandestine meeting in progress, an incident that sends her and Marshall delving into a conspiracy centered around the college. They soon learn Ashton’s Chief of Police, numerous college regents, a new-agey type pastor, and multiple elected officials are part of the Society, led (locally) by Juleen Langstrat, a psychology professor who espouses a philosophy of occultism and mysticism.

Bernice’s nineteen-year-old sister, and one of Langstrat’s former students, died at the college, her death ruled a suicide. Hogan’s daughter, Sandy, is a current student, enrolled in Langstrat’s class.

Hogan is a likeable guy, trying to hold his family together while trying to right horrible wrongs. He learns the previous editor of The Clarion was driven out of town after printing unfavorable articles about mismanagement of college funds.

Another pivotal character in the book is a young pastor named Hank Busche, who leads Ashton’s Community Church. The demons in the book fear him as “that praying man.”

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“Then Hank talked about Jesus, and showed Marshall that this Man whose name was so casually thrown around and even trampled upon in the world was far more than just a religious symbol, a lofty untouchable personality in a stained-glass window. He was the very real, very alive, very personal Son of God, and He could be the personal Lord and Savior of anyone who asked Him to be.

This Present Darkness, Frank E. Peretti

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With This Present Darkness, the reader gets three sets of characters—human, angelic, and demonic. Tal, and Rafar are old rivals, with Rafar out to settle a score after his last lost to Tal at Babylon. Unfortunately for Rafar, there is dissension in the demon ranks, namely from an high-positioned underling who wants to see Rafar fall after the other assumes his command.

Tal is a strong, heroic character, but also extremely wise and patient. The climatic battles at the end (angels vs. demons; humans vs. humans) are pulse-pounding and riveting. The book is a page-turning thriller from the get-go, but the last quarter reads at a blistering pace.

I’ve only touched on some of the plot threads in this book—there are more to be had, each weaving expertly upon the next for a powerhouse ending that carries a spiritual wallop.

This is an older title, but it’s stood the test of time. Translated into multiple languages, with over 2.7 million copies sold, it stands as a classic of Christian fiction. It remained on the Christian Booksellers Association Top Ten Bestsellers list for just shy of three years and still enjoys high sales volume. If you’ve never read this riveting thriller/suspense novel steeped in spiritual warfare, you’re missing a stupendous read. I’d give it far more than five fish if I could, but since that’s the highest honor I can award, I give This Present Darkness five OUTSTANDING fish!

I purchased the Kindle copy and paperback copy of This Present Darkness.