A Portion of Malice by Lloyd Jeffries is the first book of the Ages of Malice series and presents an intriguing concept that mixes fantasy, history and religion.

Hopeless Emery Merrick is ready to end his life, but destiny has something else in store for him. At what he thought was the last moments of his life, he meets a strange and commanding man. He’s not a complete stranger though: Thaddeus Drake, famous global figure, has made a name for himself as a peacemaker and now has a once in a lifetime proposal for Emery: to write his biography. Soon Emery finds out Drake’s darkest secret, an unimaginable reality that will change the course of his life forever. When proof comes out about ancient biblical stories having truly occurred, and we find out that some of the people that were part of those stories are still alive as a punishment from God, the intrigue of the book increases exponentially, bringing something unique and enigmatic to the table.

From the beginning of this darkly alluring novel the characters introduced were intriguing, since each of them held some darkness hidden in their pasts: immortality, cruelty and power. Immortals roam the Earth, and the most vicious seem to be the ones with the most ambition. Throughout the story readers meet figures that they’ll recognize from Bible stories; and I was always excited to see them because I was interested in seeing this particular author’s take on those characters. As we see Cain himself attempt some sort of revenge against God, we see a clear representation of human greed and barbarism. Leading living members of the Roman Legion, Cain has a master plan to shape the human world as an act of defiance against God. I never knew where the storyline would go next, the creativity imbued in the plot is unparalleled in the occult thriller genre.

What is the fate of humanity? Cain has his own plan and is willing to commit the most atrocious crimes to reach it. The narration style lets the reader see through different timelines the evolution of these ruthless immortals. Jumping back and forth, we get to connect the dots, which makes for an engaging and intricate plot.

Though slow at times, the pacing of the story allows the readers to digest the depth of the ideas and the nuances of the characters. This is a visionary story with a fantastically strange aura of mystery. By the end, some reflection into the human psyche will be necessary to understand where these dark characters come from and where they’ll most likely be going in the next installments of the Ages of Malice series. I can’t wait.

Pages: 364 | ASIN: B0BG8ZPY7D

Original source: https://literarytitan.com/2022/11/21/a-portion-of-malice-2/