Apollyon (by Tim LaHaye and Jerry Jenkins)

(Amazon UK link)

Yes, I did get a bit stuck in a rut. We bought several of these 'Left Behind' books very cheaply from the MV Doulos when it visited our town. Since we had them, I thought I might as well read them.

The first book, 'Left Behind' was powerful and exciting. Since then, they started to go downhill as the authors stretched the series into twelve books. Six would have been plenty.

'Apollyon' is the fifth in the series, subtitled: 'The Destroyer is Unleashed'. In this book Ray, one of the Tribulation Force (a small number of Christians) tries to find out what happened to his wife in events described in one of the previous books.

The Tribulation Force also decide to go to Jerusalem for a great meeting. Plagues of beasts led by Apollyon torment the people who remain.

I thought it rather gruesome in places. There is lots of fast action, but no characterisation to speak of. And, frankly, this book is not terribly well written.

Really not recommended. But these books are very popular in some circles, so if you liked the earlier ones, you might also like this one.