Product Description

LONDON, 2038 The once-great city lies in ruins. A massive gash in the fabric of our reality roils against the horizon as it blends into a permanently darkened sky. The world as we know it has come to an end. Demons, the visions of our nightmares, walk the Earth. Mankind, driven in retreat to the sanctuary of the Underground, struggles to survive the Hellish apocalypse. Among the survivors are those who foresaw the coming of the darkness, those who see it as an opportunity to improve the standing of man, and those who seek revenge for what was lost. All are now banding together in the shadows, arming themselves with futuristic weapons and arcane spells designed for one purpose -- to battle the demonic hordes and take back their world.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #21215 in eBooks
• Published on: 2007-06-26
• Released on: 2007-06-26
• Format: Kindle Book
• Number of items: 1

About the Author
Mel Odom has written over sixty books which include the novelisation of the movie BLADE and original novels for both the Buffy and Angel series. He has written fantasy, game related fiction, science fiction, movie novelisations, horror, young adult, juvenile, computer strategy guides, action-adventure and comics.

Excerpt. © Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved.

ONE

FYNBOS BIOME

OUTSIDE CAPE TOWN, SOUTH AFRICA

Loud gunshots woke Simo Cross from a too-short slumber and threw him directly into the path of a killer hangover. He sat up in the tent, automatically reaching for the hunting rifle beside his sleeping bag. He tried to figure out where the gunshots had come from, but had to admit that he might have dreamed them.

Or hallucinated them. He groaned and cursed as he forced himself to his feet. You know better than to drink like that, you stupid git.Especially while you're out in the brush.

Bright sunlight lay in wait outside the tent and the mosquito netting. No one else was up and about. The three other tents comprising the group of vacationing tourists he'd brought out to view the flora and fauna of the Fynbos grasslands for the last two weeks hadn't stirred.

Simon listened intently but the gunshots weren't repeated. You dreamed it. Go back to bed. Get what little sleep you've got coming to you and be glad of it. With all that alcohol in your system, you're going to be sweating your bleeding guts out today.

With a sigh, he turned back to the sleeping bag. Last night Saundra hadjoined him. Sometimes she did, but she liked to be out of his tent before their clients got out of bed.

Saundra McIntyre was long and lean, five foot ten if she was an inch, but he still towered seven inches above her and made her look small because he was so broad-shouldered. She wore her long auburn hair pulled back in a ponytail. Freckles spattered her cheeks and nose.

He held a great affection for her, but it wasn't love. He'd been truthful about that. They'd been conducting safaris in the South African wilds together for the last sixteen months. Long enough to get to know each other really well. And to develop great affections for each other.

Neither one of them wanted to risk continuing the relationship anywhere else. Simon, if he ever went home again, lived in London. Saundra lived in Sidney, Australia. Both of them had family ties.

Simon figured he could leave his family -- his father was it, more or less -- behind easier than Saundra could, but he was unwilling to do that at this point. He preferred an...extended absence from England, he supposed, rather than a more permanent separation. That was the kindestway to put it. Saying it like that didn't feel so grim and so final.

He sighed. You're thinking way too much. Dreaming strange things you've no business dreaming about. Imagining things. Then there's that huge hangover you're going to have to pay for last night's festivities.

That had been a definite mistake. He'd told everyone when they'd left Cape Town that there weren't to be any unnecessary items in their gear. He and Saundra hadn't checked their clients' gear. If they hadn't beengetting paid so well, Simon might have pressed the issue and looked tosee who carried contraband. But they hadn't.

Jarl Klinker, the photographer from Dusseldorf, had brought in bottles of Russian vodka. He was part of the film research team. The other two claimed to be a director and a writer.

Simon put the hunting rifle down and climbed back into the sleeping bag. It was cool now, but the day would be hot.

"You're awake?" Saundra mumbled.

"Only just." Simon closed his eyes and lay back. Saundra snuggled up against him.

"Can't sleep?"

It was true that sometimes he couldn't. Too many unresolved complications, he supposed. "I can sleep."

"Are you sure you want to?" Saundra's voice held a throaty giggle. She kissed his ear.

Simon rolled over to face her. "Well, I still think that sleep is overrated. And no one is up, so -- "

Two quick gunshots cracked the quiet morning again.

Saundra's eyes widened and Simon knew he hadn't imagined the gunfire. They both surged up from the joined sleeping bags. Three more gunshots followed.

Simon dove for his khakis and pulled them on. "How far away, do you think?"

"A half-mile. A mile." Saundra pulled her sleeveless shirt on. Worrypinched her face. "Too close."

Simon nodded. He stepped into his calf-high boots and quickly laced them. "I'll go investigate. You take care of the camp."

"Be careful." Saundra leaned back and pulled on her brush pants. Her stomach muscles corded up. "Take a radio."

Another two shots rang out.

Simon cursed the shooter as he shrugged into a beige t-shirt. He picked up the rifle and one of the small radios he carried for short-range communications. He dropped the radio into the backpack he slid over one shoulder. First rule of the wilderness was to never go anywhere without supplies.

"Take care of 'em." Simon unzipped the tent flaps and pushed through. "I'll be back quick as I can."

"I will."

Outside in the open area, Simon checked the compass built into hiswatch. The shots had come from the east, toward the interior and awayfrom the coast.

"Mr. Cross." Rupert Dalton's balding head poked from one of the other tents. "Were those gunshots?"

"Yes."

"I thought you said it was illegal to hunt in this area." Dalton was in his late forties, a wiry man with an awkward way about him.

"It is," Simon assured the man.

Another couple of gunshots echoed over them.

Voices came from the other tents now. That was good. Saundra wouldn't have to wake everyone, and she'd have help waking those who were reluctant.

"Then whoever is doing the shooting must be a -- "

"Stay with Miss McIntyre, Mr. Dalton." Simon took the rifle in both hands and headed out of camp at a jog.

Perspiration quickly covered Simon as the grasslands grew hotter with the rising sun. It peeked through the rose and cream mass of clouds to the east.

His head and stomach protested the strenuous exercise at first, but -- as always -- his body became regulated and he moved effortlessly. Once again, all the harsh conditioning his father had compelled Simon to do came to his aid.

When he'd been younger, he'd enjoyed the runs and the martial arts, especially the sword training. But that had been back when he was a boy and still believed that demons lurked somewhere out in the world just waiting for an opportunity to take it over again.

He didn't believe that anymore. One of his main problems was that he didn't know what to believe. All his life he'd been brought up to fight demons, trained in arcane ways and even taught limited mystical abilities. None of which could be talked about outside the Underground labyrinth where the Templar skulked in the shadows.

Simon had tired of all of it. Two years ago, at twenty-three, he'd leftthe Templar, his father, and all of London.

Talking about the training he'd received, about the cult-like atmosphere he'd been brought up in, would have done no good. Few left the ranks of the Templar, and only those who knew to keep their mouths shut escaped a date with the loony bin.

Simon pushed those thoughts away and concentrated on running. No hunting was allowed in the grasslands these days. He and Saundra carried hunting rifles only for self-protection and to protect their charges. Occasionally a lioness that had gotten too old to hunt and had beenabandoned by her pride developed a taste for blood. But the biggest worry was from poachers.

Only minutes later, something less than two miles from camp, Simon foundthe shooters.

There were five of them. They were a scruffy lot, from their early twenties to their forties or fifties. All of them had the permanent sunburned look of men who had spent their entire lives in the bush.

They drove two four-wheel-drive Land Rovers strapped with extra tires, jerry cans of fuel, and water. Evidently they'd settled in for the long haul.

Five adult elephants lay on the sun-baked scrubby ground. Blood leaked into the dry dust. Overhead, vultures circled, waiting for the predators to leave.

A baby elephant tugged pitifully at its mother, wrapping its trunk around its mother's head and crying out. One of the hunters raised his rifle to his shoulder and fired. The baby elephant dropped in its tracks.

The killing happened before Simon knew it would. If he'd had a chance to stop it --

You don't know what you'd have done, mate. Simon concentrated on the men, working on seeing through the death. Settling into the shady protection of a camel-thorn acacia tree, he shrugged out of his backpack and watched the poachers.

He took a pair of expensive MechEye digital binoculars from his pack. His father had given them to him on his tenth birthday. And they were far better than those that any other guide he knew carried into the bush.

Depressing the power button, Simon zoomed in on the men as they went about their brutal business. They used handsaws to cut free the elephant tusks. Even with the recent decision to issue licenses to kill off a few hundred head of elephants after it was deemed their populations had grown too large to sustain them, ivory remained valuable on the black market.

The men worked with grim alacrity, tossing their bloody prizes into the backs of the Land Rovers. One of them stood guard, a rifle braced on one hip. His sunglasses reflected the orange coal of his cigarette as he smoked.

Simon captured images of the men and their grisly profit. The binocularscame fully equipped with a surprising array of software.

Okay then, you vicious cutthroats, you're going to pay for what you did here.

During the last sixteen months, Simon had gotten to know the Cape Town police and the gamekeepers that worked in the Fynbos Biome. The area wasprotected by international law.

Someone will know you.

Simon captured a few more images, then watched in silence as the corpses were stripped of their tusks. The radio vibrated in his pocket.

Leaning back, Simon shook the earpiece out and shoved it into his ear. "Yes."

"I just wanted to make sure you were all right." Saundra sounded worried. "I heard that final shot -- "

"Wasn't me." Simon quickly explained what had gone on.

Saundra cursed when he'd finished. "We can't let them get away with this."

She had very strong feelings about preserving wi...

Customer Reviews

When forces collide (and collide and collide)!
Setting: Earth, in the year 2038. A rift in reality has opened in the skies over London, England, and in comes a horde of horrifying creatures, who methodically and rapidly devastate the city of London, kill off anyone they catch, and begin transforming areas of London into a nightmarish swamp of bubbling acid pools. They seem unstoppable, especially as no one was prepared for anything like this.

Story: But, is it true that no was prepared? It turns out that at least two groups were indeed prepared. During the time of the Crusades, there were stories of demons appearing and joining the battle between the Christians and the Moslems, capitalizing on the existing mayhem and killing participants on both sides. In response, the Knights Templar, entrusted with finding and guarding the Holy Grail, also began preparing for a possible return of these demons. Even though the Templar were officially disbanded, centuries ago, they did not just cease to exist. Instead, the Templar went Underground, continued to train in battle skills, studied what little was known of the demons, and worked on enhancing their skills and their weapons with religiously-based magic.

The Knights Templar were not alone, though, in their interest in the demons. Another group, nicknamed the Cabalists, were fascinated with the demons. They did not view the demons as necessarily evil opponents of humanity, but saw them as powerful beings from another realm, that were indeed highly dangerous, but could also be the sources of powerful information, that could elevate humanity to a new stage of development. The Cabalists thus studied the demons, practiced the dark magic associated with the demons, and awaited their coming.

When the demons began pouring through the rift, nicknamed the "Hellgate", the Knights Templar emerged from hiding and tried to defeat the demons, even as did the conventional military forces. Neither was successful, but neither was eliminated. The Cabalists also stepped out of the shadows, to some extent, and began avidly studying the demons, as much as they could without getting mangled, dismembered, and eaten.

Thus, we are left with the following parties in play:

Knights Templar
Cabalists
Demons
Conventional government forces
Ordinary populace (of those not yet eaten)

"Hellgate: London (Exodus)" is the first book in a trilogy, telling us the tale of the arrival of the demons, and humanity's varying responses to their presence. The story focuses mainly on two main characters: Simon, a young Templar Knight who had forsaken his vows and his training, but returns when the arrival of the demons proves that his years of training were really not pointless, as he had thought; and Warren, a basically good young man, with a troubled past and significant "emotional baggage", who initially spends time with the Cabalists, but is eventually wooed by a powerful demon, who wants to use Warren, but will give the man tremendous power and status in return.

The Templar do not trust the Cabalists, as they see them as being too sympathetic toward the demons, and as naively over-confident about the idea of trying to learn from the demons, and maybe even control the demons. The Cabalists distrust the Templar, whom they see as too willing to throw away a potential boon to Mankind, in the opportunity to learn from the demons. The Templar do not fully trust Simon, as he once turned away from them, and Simon sees the Templar hierarchy as too rigid and not focused enough on saving the innocents. Warren initially sides with the Cabalists, and does not want to be totally seduced by the evil of the demon that seeks to use him, but can he ignore what the demon can give in return?

Even amongst the demons, there is not a uniform force. There are hints of internal power-plays, sectarian conflicts, and the underlying questions of where they are from and whether they came, or were sent here, and why.

I have read several of Mel Odom's books, including The Quest for the Trilogy: A Rover Novel of Three Adventures (The Rover) and several "Rogue Angel" books (written under the name Alex Archer), and all of them feature interesting, non-standard characters, who have definite quirks to them. All of the books also feature complex plots involving different factions that are not clearly good or evil. Hellgate: London (Exodus) fits these descriptions well, but with no feel of being formulaic or worked from a template.

Mel Odom provides a complicated plot, rich with detail and populated by three-dimensional characters, yet the pace remains quite fast, with no slow spots. Some of the action scenes are breath-taking and almost overwhelming, especially near the end of the book. Another aspect that I like is that the characters have moments of reflection, during which they work to reconcile what they are doing with what they believe.

While there is no overt sexuality, the level of gore, carnage, mayhem, and violence argues for this book being aimed at adult readers.

Post-script: I do not know if you caught the connection, and it took me a while, but the character Simon is a member of the Templars, and the name of the old but popular and long-running television series, "The Saint" was Simon Templar. Oh, both that series, and this book, took place in England. While all this could be an unintended coincidence, I am guessing that it was a mix of inside-joke humor, and an homage to what was a very good series.

Strengths: Interesting characters and plot, tons of action

Weaknesses: Not for the squeamish! The word "arcane" is over-used, when synonyms could be mixed in.

This supernatural action-thriller-fantasy novel has religious overtones. For this type of book, they do not get any better.

Lots of action with nice characterization, too
For centuries, the Templars have hidden underground practiced their warrior techniques, and prepared for the day when demons would once more attack the earth. Simon Cross, once a Templar, had abandoned that order when he lost faith in demons. But when the demons attack, he returns to London--only to find that his father has been killed in a deliberate sacrifice. The Templars are desperate for fighters and are willing to take Simon back--under certain conditions. But can Simon put up with the petty rules and politics at a time when humanity itself is in danger of destruction?

Warren Schimmer has always had a bit of power--enough to manipulate little things. But he's never been able to capitalize on that power--except the one time he saved his own life and forced his stepfather to commit suicide rather than murder. When the demons invade London, he's caught in the middle, hunting for food and water in a city that increasingly is becoming a part of the hellish environment of whatever dimension the demons are crossing from. But the demon invasion is more than just a danger to Warren. Somehow the same powers that allow the demons access to Earth have raised his own magic to higher levels. Warren attracts the attention of the secretive Cabal--and, all too soon, the attention of a demon lord who has his own plans for Warren--and for Earth.

Both Warren and Simon has survived difficult relationships with the father figures in their lives. Both are now orphans, surrounded by supposed allies who have little love for them. Clearly their destinies are somehow linked--but will destiny and the demon invasion bring them together, are they doomed to become enemies?

Author Mel Odom kicks off an exciting video-game-based series with an action-packed thriller. Set in the near future (2020) after a demon invasion, HELLGATE: LONDON: EXODUS provides all the action and fighting detail you'd expect from a video-game-based story, but Odom doesn't neglect character development. Simon might be a bit too perfect, but Odom humanizes him with his past history of recklessness and rebellion. Warren is not exactly anyone you'd want to bring home, but his history goes a long way toward explaining his situation and making him sympathetic even as he grows ever-more creepy.

Odom writes page-turning prose, with new dangers around every corner. Every time Simon or Warren thinks they can finally breathe safely, another threat pops up. If you enjoy solid action, demons, and sword-wielding knights, you'll definitely want to grab a copy of HELLGATE: LONDON: EXODUS.

Excellently written, action-packed
The Knights Templar are usually linked with the enigmatic Freemasons, but in "Hellgate: London: Exodus," their purpose is clear: to save the citizens of London from demons leaking from the gates of Hell ('Hellgates', if you need more clarification).

You know, everyday stuff.

Author Mel Odom knows how to write a good book. And he more than proves it with Exodus, the first of three in the "Hellgate: London" series, following former Knight Thomas Cross through his struggles with accepting himself and his fate...or completely changing fate altogether.

Meanwhile, Londoner Warren Schimmer deals with the battles of living with roommates that despise him and surviving an attack from one of the Hellgates' demons.

As I said, everyday stuff.

Odom expertly intertwines Cross's and Schimmer's stories very gradually, creating an action-packed tale of good versus evil, or more simply, the changing of powers. As Thomas makes his way from his escape of South Africa to London to search for his father, or what remains of him, Warren staves off death and watches his body slowly transform into a tool for the demons.

The inclusion of characters like Leah Creasey, who holds more secrets than she's willing to tell, and Schimmer's roommate Kelli, whom he is almost unconsciously mind-controlling, helps expand a somewhat restricted storyline and add elements of impending disaster to the most heart-pounding situations. And trust me - there are a lot of 'em.

Now, if I could just find out where to get one of those Knights' cool armour suits....

- T.C. Robson