📖 Overview
Piercing the Darkness follows multiple storylines in the town of Bacon's Corner, where supernatural forces clash with everyday life. The central narrative tracks Sally Beth Roe's attempt to escape her past, while a parallel plot involves Tom Harris fighting to regain custody of his children.
A murder investigation led by police officer Ben Cole intersects with a lawsuit against a Christian school. The case draws in various townspeople, including a young student named Amber who becomes entangled in controversial meditation practices at her school.
The book connects to Peretti's previous novel This Present Darkness through returning characters Marshall and Kate Hogan, who join the struggle against dark forces in Bacon's Corner. The story builds to a convergence of these separate plotlines.
The novel explores themes of spiritual warfare and religious freedom while examining how unseen battles manifest in legal, educational, and personal conflicts. The narrative presents a Christian worldview of angels and demons operating within modern American society.
👀 Reviews
Readers describe this supernatural thriller as more polished and complex than Peretti's previous work, with interwoven storylines that build tension. Many note the book's realistic portrayal of spiritual warfare and its connection to everyday events.
Readers appreciated:
- Strong character development, especially Sally Beth Roe
- Details about prayer and its effects
- Connections to real-world issues in education and society
- The faster pace compared to "This Present Darkness"
Common criticisms:
- Too many characters to track
- Some found the spiritual warfare scenes repetitive
- Several readers felt the plot took too long to come together
Ratings:
Goodreads: 4.25/5 (22,000+ ratings)
Amazon: 4.7/5 (800+ ratings)
ChristianBook.com: 4.8/5 (150+ ratings)
One frequent reader comment mentions the book's impact on their prayer life: "It changed how I view spiritual battles happening around us daily" (Amazon reviewer). Others noted the book feels dated in its treatment of New Age beliefs.
📚 Similar books
This Present Darkness by Frank E. Peretti
The first book in the series deals with spiritual warfare in a small town through the perspectives of both humans and angels.
The Oath by Frank Peretti A mysterious force terrorizes a small mining town while a skeptical outsider confronts supernatural evil and ancient secrets.
House by Frank Peretti Four people trapped in a haunted house must confront their sins and face a killer who offers them one way of escape.
The Visitation by Frank Peretti A former minister investigates a man claiming to be Jesus who performs miracles in a small town while confronting his own spiritual doubts.
Monster by Frank E. Peretti A husband and wife encounter a creature in the Idaho wilderness that connects to genetic experiments and a dark conspiracy.
The Oath by Frank Peretti A mysterious force terrorizes a small mining town while a skeptical outsider confronts supernatural evil and ancient secrets.
House by Frank Peretti Four people trapped in a haunted house must confront their sins and face a killer who offers them one way of escape.
The Visitation by Frank Peretti A former minister investigates a man claiming to be Jesus who performs miracles in a small town while confronting his own spiritual doubts.
Monster by Frank E. Peretti A husband and wife encounter a creature in the Idaho wilderness that connects to genetic experiments and a dark conspiracy.
🤔 Interesting facts
🔹 "Piercing the Darkness" sold over 2.5 million copies worldwide, becoming one of the most successful Christian supernatural thrillers of the late 1980s.
🔹 Frank E. Peretti worked as a construction worker, lumberjack, and pastor before becoming a full-time writer, drawing from these diverse experiences in crafting authentic characters.
🔹 The concept of spiritual warfare depicted in the book is based on various Biblical references, particularly Ephesians 6:12, which speaks of wrestling "against spiritual forces of evil in heavenly places."
🔹 The book's release in 1989 helped establish Christian fiction as a viable commercial genre, paving the way for numerous authors who followed in combining faith elements with supernatural suspense.
🔹 The small-town setting of Bacon's Corner was inspired by real communities in the Pacific Northwest, where Peretti spent much of his life and witnessed firsthand the dynamics of rural American life.