The Reprobation Series Books 1-3 by Catherine Fearns

 

The Reprobation Series by Catherine Fearns is a supernatural thriller box set situated in Liverpool. The box set contains three books that make out the series. In the first, Reprobation DI Darren Swift is given his first big murder case: a young man crucified on the beach. Through his investigation, he meets Sister Helen Hope, a Calvinistic nun. She starts her own investigation into the circumstances surrounding the murdered young man. She encounters and becomes friends with the lead singer of Total Depravity, a Norwegian Death Metal band. Together the three come to the same conclusion and race to save the life of a baby and a kidnapped criminal from a fanatic scientist and his accomplice.

The second book, Consuming Fire, finds DI Darren Swift investigating the fiery death of an Albanian woman in a city caught in a heatwave. As the heat escalates, there are more unexplained fiery deaths. As Swift still feels shaken by the circumstances of his previous case, he feels himself drawn to Helen Hope. The latter is now a layperson still teaching at the university. As he and Helen make an impromptu trip to Switzerland, Darren feels how his personal life is affected by the cases he is working on. The Supernatural nature affects him and alienates him from his partner. When the city of Liverpool is shaken by an inner-city fire, Darren’s life comes to a traumatizing halt. But to talk about his nightmares and the supernatural nature of his investigation would only bring a kind of trouble he cannot afford.

 

The third book, Sound, continues where Consuming Fire ended. DI Darren Swift is just back from Compassionate leave and preparing for the Shepherd Trial to commence on Halloween. When an Acoustics Professor is found dead in his office at Liverpool University, Darren is called in to investigate. In the professor’s office, an envelope with a USB drive inside addressed to the police is found. When the acoustic forensics are baffled, Darren again turns to Helen and her Metal Boyfriend for insight. It comes to light that sound waves are being used to murder and influence the masses. Darren and Helen devise a plan to flush out the guilty and stop a supernatural disaster from happening. Not that they believe in supernatural forces at work, but they both know the power of faith. It can make people do awful things if they believe it is true. Sound brings the series full circle and ends on the same suspenseful tone that is prevalent from the first paragraph in Reprobate.

 

The Reprobation Series, A Supernatural Thriller by Catherine Fearns, is a series that is powerfully written and excellently delivered. It is well written and has few explicit violent scenes and language. It is a series weaving together Calvinist doctrine with demonology and tying it together with a Death Metal twist. Though the content is fictional, the use made of factual beliefs and philosophy conjures up a suspenseful and unsettling tale. Ms. Fearns uses impeccable language at a register and tone that emphasizes the level of intelligence and thought processes of the characters. She has done immense research, and one cannot help but look up the names and facts she mentions, which adds to the terrifying effect the whole presentation of the story and books cause. A truly riveting and thrilling read.Switzerland