Rating  - ...Excellent Character and Plot Growth Continues Yet Again
Again, Book 8 builds on the extremely successful writing changes in Book 6 and 7. Book 8 continues to make the point for good plot growth and some new characters are added to the mix to provide an excellent change of pace.
Rating  - Nice Story but Disturbing Audiotape
From the Unabridged audio version
One of the better entries in this series.
Frank Muller is a fine reader and I usually have no problems with his work. But his interpretation of Nicholi in The Mark is way off. The previous reader (Frank Perone?) gave Nicholi a soft and becoming voice. A voice that was truly beguiling. Muller on the other hand give Nicholi the voice of a count Dracula. yes I kid you not, Count Dracula. And because Nicholi sounds so evil, he become less compeling, less believeable and it makes the tape seem too cartoony.
As far as the believer getting the mark. I think as far as this story is concerned I think it may be possbile considering the circumstances that were laid out in this book. However, I don't think any rational reader is going to come away from this book with the conclusion that you can have both. The most likely conclusion, at least mine was, I wonder if a quick beheading is going to hurt.
Rating  - It is time to proclaim faith and loyalty-- to one force.
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The Great Tribulation begins; everything in the previous seven books was a prequel. Now everyone must take the mark of the beast, (frequently referred to as 666). People must bow to and worship the statues that belch black sooty smoke and receive a mark on either their forehead or their hand, as prophesized in the Book of Revelations. They must also have a computer chip injected and embedded as part of this process. No is not an option -- it means a trip to the guillotine. It is a personal decision, and it is forever. Many believers are slaughtered, but those who stay true discover that God has also marked His people with a cross on their forehead, but it is visible only to other believers.
The only way a person could stand against imminent torture and death was through the power of the Holy Spirit that God has also given to His believers when they turn to him. Many thought they could resist, but it was only through the power of the Holy Spirit that they were able to walk to the guillotine, bend, place their neck into the slot, and hear the swish of the blade just before it ended their lives. This was both humbling and exciting.
This is the time when end time main characters emerge. One story is especially poignant, and it is that of a young, brilliant Chinese Christian man who is forced by his father to take the mark. He has been drugged so that he does not fight when this is done to him. He also bears the cross of God, but it is seen only by other believers. This allows him extraordinary access when he is placed under the wing of the current computer genius, also a Christian.
Each book as you get closer to the end is more engrossing, exciting, and action driven. It is difficult to develop depth in all of the new characters, but LeHaye and Jenkins do a credible job. Vignettes about conversions and rescues show that Chloe, Rayford, Buck, Tsion Ben-Judah, Chaim Rosenberg, and others maintain a strong presence, and there is excellent foreshadowing for the future of the Tribulation Force.
Of course, after reading eight of these novels, I will read the next one. I have a feeling of trepidation because I am closer to the end of the series than the beginning. Still captivated by the non-stop action, but weak character and vignette plot development, I will give it five stars.
Victoria Tarrani
Rating - What Happens When The World is MARKED??
Book #8 reveals the "Mark of Loyalty" to Carpathia, or the Antichrist, and all who refuse it are beheaded. Or so it seems...
This book follows suit with those before it and it is an intriguing and addicting tale about those Left Behind after the Rapture. I am enjoying the whole series and recommend the books to believers and non-believers alike.
One comment on the previous reviewer, stating that he cannot recommend the books cased on the fact that a believer "takes" the mark of the beast in this book. You don't have the whole story. You must read on into the next book, #9 Desecration, to see what really happened with this believer. The authors only give you a glimpse of the issue in book #8.
I'm continuing with this great series!!
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