Christian Fiction Blog Alliance Review: Deadfall by Robert Liparulo

Illuminating Fiction Review

Walk into a computer store, check out the software department, and what do you find?

Shelf upon shelf of computer games.

And it’s not just computer stores. With PlayStation, Xbox, and a range of other devices, gaming has become a huge part of today’s culture. Browse the shelves long enough and you will find games aimed at pre-school age right through to adults.

If you think gaming is regulated to a form of entertainment, you’d be mistaken. The US Military view life-like games and simulators vital in the training of new recruits and also regard video games as a way to interest teenagers into enlisting.

With some video games also being attributed to the increase in teen violence, it stands to reason a novel would soon surface looking at the reach of today’s gaming.

Deadfall, Robert Liparulo’s latest release, is a fast paced, action thriller which combines gaming and military technology into a storyline that will have readers enthralled from start to finish.

Fiddler Falls, population 242, is about as remote as towns get. Situated in the Canadian far north, the town has no mobile phone service, landlines, cable or satellite television, or Internet. Satellite phones provide the only form of communication to the outside world. During Fall, rain makes roads impassable and isolates the town, making it the ideal spot for those who simply want to get away from it all—and those looking for a place to test a top secret weapon.

Lead by Declan Page, six visitors arrive in Fiddler Falls, bringing with them a terror unlike any the town has seen before. Intent on proving that the future of warfare lies in the technology of video games, Declan brings with him “Slacker” (SLCR), a control unit for a top secret weapon created by his father’s company. Declan and his group, largely made up of teens, use the town and surrounding area to test SLCR’s capabilities, as well as shot real life footage for a new video game set to take gaming to the next level. Declan only has one rule. Leave no witnesses.

When John Hutchison, known as Hutch, and his three closest friends needed a vacation, Hutch planned a hunting trip in the Canadian wilderness. Four men, nature, and ten days of seclusion to decompress. On the first morning, keen to hunt caribou and bring back meat for his friends, Hutch sets out. Soon the hunter becomes the hunted.

A deadly game of cat and mouse begins as Hutch races to save innocent lives and remain out of the sight of an eye in the sky.

An explosive read, Deadfall will blast holes in any action fanatics sleep pattern. Intent on only reading a chapter or two each night, I often found myself struggling to keep my eyes open many hours and many chapters later.

Although more tightly written, Deadfall lacks the storyline complexity Robert’s previous two releases contained. Reader enjoyment is carried throughout the story by hard and fast action and well developed characters. Robert also refrains from using gory descriptions as he did in Comes A Horseman and Germ, thus leaving more to the imagination, which may suit many readers.

As well as pleasing Liparulo’s existing fan base, Deadfall is bound to attract new action thriller seekers to his readership.

About The Author

Robert is an award-winning author of over a thousand published articles and short stories. He is currently a contributing editor for New Man magazine. His work has appeared in Reader's Digest, Travel & Leisure, Modern Bride, Consumers Digest, Chief Executive, and The Arizona Daily Star, among other publications. In addition, he previously worked as a celebrity journalist, interviewing Stephen King, Tom Clancy, Charlton Heston, and others for magazines such as Rocky Road, Preview, and L.A. Weekly.

Robert is an avid scuba diver, swimmer, reader, traveler, and a law enforcement and military enthusiast. He lives in Colorado with his wife and four children.

Robert's first novel painted a scenario so frighteningly real that six Hollywood producers were bidding on movie rights before the novel was completed. His acclaimed debut novel, Comes A Horseman, is being made into a major motion picture by producer Mace Neufeld and his short story "Kill Zone" was featured in the anthology Thriller, edited by James Patterson.

Bob has sold the film rights to his second book, GERM. He is also writing the screenplay for a yet-to-be-written political thriller, which sold to Phoenix Pictures, for Andrew Davis (The Fugitive, The Guardian) to direct!

He is currently working on his fourth novel.

Find out more about Robert by visiting his Web site: www.robertliparulo.com

Competitions!

A NOTE from Bob: I’d like to give away five signed copies of Deadfall to readers of CFBA blogs during my tour. All they have to do is sign up for my e-mailing list (they won’t be inundated!) by going to my website (www.robertliparulo.com) and going to the “Mailing List” page. Or email me with “CFBA giveaway” in the subject line.

And a second NOTE from Bob: I wanted to let you know that I’m holding a contest on my site:

**one winner a week till the end of the year for a signed Deadfall
**one winner a week till the end of the year for an unabridged audio MP3-CD of Deadfall
***and on Dec. 31, I’m giving away an iPod Nano, pre-loaded with an unabridged audio recording of Deadfall

Winners are selected from my e-mailing list—sign up at my site. If a winner has already purchased what he/she wins, I will reimburse them for the purchase price (or give them another—whichever they choose), so they don’t need to wait to see if they win before buying Deadfall.

Buy The Book

http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0785261796