Origin

1906 - Something is discovered by workers digging the Panama Canal. Something dormant. Sinister. Very much alive.

2009 - Project Samhain. A secret underground government installation begun 103 years ago in New Mexico. The best minds in the world have been recruited to study the most amazing discovery in the history of mankind. But the century of peaceful research is about to end.

BECAUSE IT JUST WOKE UP.

When linguist Andrew Dennison is yanked from his bed by the Secret Service and taken to a top secret facility in the desert , he has no idea he's been brought there to translate the words of an ancient demon.

He joins pretty but cold veterinarian Sun Jones, eccentric molecular biologist Dr. Frank Belgium, and a hodge-podge of religious, military, and science personnel to try and figure out if the creature is, indeed, Satan.

But things quickly go bad, and very soon Andy isn't just fighting for his life, but the lives of everyone on earth...

I just finished reading this title a while back and just had to give it my two cents. My hat goes off to J.A. Konrath, a Chicagoan, and a prolific writer.

I once attempted a story similar to this but there were some differences. One, it took place in the Nevada dessert when two rogue scientists try to dig to hell. Through their digging they find a demon encased in hardened magma. The demon's name is Rage and he is accidentally freed to wreak havoc on Vegas. Trouble is this idea was formed when I was a freshman in high school and, unlike some of my other ideas, this one easily slipped through the cracks. I wrote the summary on a slip of paper, tucked it away and hoped for the best. Now, since this Konrath has beat me to the punch, I'm happy to toss the idea away. Another book I don't have to work on.

Now on to the Review:

You could tell right away that Konrath did research in terms of religious theories and underground military bases. It shows. Although, I did have trouble picturing the facility when everything was laid out in arms. It kind of reminded me of LOST. The characters were believable, likable, and flawed in their own ways but there was one character I could have done without. The Doctor Belgium character had this annoying habit of saying a word three times at the end of a sentence. It was just overdone and added nothing to the story except for a higher word count. The twists and turns with Bub's plotting his escape was a constant tension maker throughout. It definitely had a feel worthy to Crichton's Jurassic Park but the ending, I feel, was a bit lacking. When hoping for a more powerful line, all I was left with was a short line that left me with a huh? At one point I looked at the back of my kindle. An old habit I have. When a book ends unexpectedly I have to look at the back, see if there are any more pages. But, hey, it kept me reading right up until the end so it did the job well. I give it 4 out of 5 stars.