The Armageddon Box

This was a fantastic sequel to the Devil's Auction. I wish the author would have continued with these characters in another series. Positvely captivating from the first chapter.

There exists in the world a puzzle box, a rare 1500-year-old relic purported to be imbued with wondrous powers. Whosoever possesses this relic is ensured of ultimate glory and mastery over men. Decades ago, the box was stolen away from the vaults of the Vatican. Now, with unholy hunger for this relic further blackening the hearts of the forces of darkness, the hunt for the Armageddon Box grows ever more desperate and dire... Here is the electrifying sequel to The Devil's Auction. The Armageddon Box reintroduces the reader to history professor and ex-Special Forces vet Alex Warner and sorceress-in-training Valerie Lancaster. In this go-around, Alex meets with his old friend Howie Rosenberg, who regales Alex with a horrific World War 2 vampire encounter and then asks for his aid. But Howie is killed mere moments later in a hail of automatic gunfire, leaving Alex once more in the lurch and dangerously immersed in uncanny ongoing events. Faced with a murderous religious sect,thousands-year-old vampires and a neo-Nazi master sorcerer, the professor must dig deep and call on his combat experience and scholarly intellect to weed out his enemies and solve the enigma of the much-coveted ancient relic. But Alex is not alone. Joining him in the trenches once again is ex-fashion model Valerie Lancaster (now his wife), who is well on her way to becoming a powerful sorceress. Help also comes from their good friend Makoto Tsuiki, owner/master chef of the restaurant Mama Mia's and a pretty darn good mage (he's giving Valerie magic lessons). Their adversaries are the secret religious order, the Circumcellions, and the enigmatic sorcerer Dietrich Vril (he sweats a lot), who commands the Very Old Folk (other-worldly vampires) and is implacable in his relentless decades-long pursuit of the Armageddon Box. While not equal to the Devil's Auction, this is still a slam-bang horror thriller and most definitely not to be missed. Weinberg once again puts Alex and Valerie Warner through the wringer. This time, the calm but deadly Makoto Tsuiki, a very intriguing zen-like character, is more involved in the action (he only showed up in brief spurts in the Devil's Auction), and this is good news for the Warner couple and for humanity. This novel's plot heavily involves the early WW2 Nazi movement and its pertinent personages, and Hanns Heinz Ewers' 1911 novel Alraune plays a key role. Weinberg also delves into bits of history of the Catholic Church (specifically the Donatist movement, to give background to the Circumcellions - who actually existed). Honestly, I did find those particular passages pretty dry going. Nevertheless, when Weinberg isn't giving the reader a quick history lesson, it's a captivating, thrill-a-minute reading experience. I think the reason I relish this book and the Devil's Auction so much is that the author pits an ordinary man against powerful fantastical foes and has that man vanquish them using non-magical means. Alex Warner is well on his