This is Beale's second book (following his debut novel The War in Heaven, which is being re-released concurrently) in a seven-book fantasy series aimed at young evangelical Christians. It is best read as a sequel, as important events leading up to this book are only hinted at. Beale continues the story of three Christian teenagers who have been granted special knowledge of the ongoing spiritual battle between Good and Evil to dominate mortal souls. Beale's complex cosmology of guardian angels and demons is fraught with theological inconsistencies and too often resembles the fantasy video games that his teenage characters like to play. Readers will need to suspend their disbelief (and possibly some of their doctrine) to enjoy the tale. On the positive side, Beale does an excellent job of capturing the rarefied world of high school, and both Christian and fallen teenagers are painted with some sympathy. His chapters are headed by epigraphs ranging from the Bible to rock music to blockbuster movies, which lend the book a hip edge. The novel's driving tension is an evil plan to stage a Columbine-like massacre at the senior prom. Some of the best (and most disturbing) writing occurs in the sections that try to imagine the inner worlds of the killers, though the subsequent ending is abrupt and somewhat inexplicable. The novel is best aimed at Christian youths who want to make sense of evil while being reminded that their seemingly trivial lives of crushes, proms, fashion and gossip can have eternal consequences. (Sept.)
