Convict Grade (Xlibris, 2009)

Review by G.L. Giles
Author: Azrael Paul Damien

If you’re looking for a thick book with gore galore, then this will probably be a good, long read for you! This novel of 340 pages will probably not be a one-sit read, so I like how Damien includes chapter titles (many books don’t these days) to help you remember exactly where you left off (even if you forgot to mark it). Plus, chapter titling enables you to get a preview of what’s to come. Obviously, I dig that feature of the book. The book’s title, Convict Grade, refers to a village; the setting of the storyline. It’s described early on as “a sleepy little village” (p. 13). However, it doesn’t stay that way for long. And, there’s a really good twist, about a third of the way through, where more than one Convict Grade is revealed/uncovered. But, I won’t say anything more about it to avoid a spoiler alert. The main storyline centers around best friends Ryan Curtis (a.k.a. Tigg) and Edgar Earl Hammond, Jr. (generally just referred to as Hammond). Hammond ends up being the big hero by the time the novel ends, but he’s aided throughout the novel by Tigg and their love interests: Sara Rikker and Bailey Stryker. By the time the novel is complete there have been lots of run-ins with evil once-human demons, blood-thirsty pets, angels and nephlim. All in all, at its best, it reminded me somewhat of Nicholas Grabowsky’s attention-grabbing and witty writing style coupled with a large mainstream-appealing side order of the CW’s Supernatural. Not one to generally disparage great effort, I think it’s definitely worth a read, especially if you’re a gorehound. I give it an 8 out of 10.