The Falling Away

I was given a complimentary copy of this book by Thomas Nelson Booksneeze to read and write a review for them.

T. L. Hines is known for his novels of supernatural suspense. If you are looking for demonic influence,  possession and the rescuing from those conditions, this book is for you. You have the spiritual disease, demonic influence, which humans can spread to others. The demonic possession can be transferred to another human through a blood transfusion. Then there are the rescuers, the Falling Away, who they try to channel demonic influence (spiritual disease) out of those infected. The Falling Away are people trying to handle the evil they channel. Quinn, the Falling Away heroine who helps the diseased Dylan, has "vacant eyes," she tells lies, steals cars, and so on. She is hardly a model for a Christian person. 



If you are looking for theological accuracy with respect to the Christian faith you will be very disappointed. It is difficult to write a spiritual allegory and get most of it right. Hines doesn't get much right. Demons are tied to the heart and transferred by a blood transfusion (where donor and recipient are not typed for compatibility!)  Demon possession does not happen at once as it takes from hours to weeks. Even though Dylan becomes demon possessed himself, he can "put" the demon in a "kill box" in his mind and overcome its influence. This "kill box" is described as God inside of me. 


 Two positive aspects of the book might make it appropriate to give to another with the view of discussing it. Quinn is willing to give her life to save Dylan and there is a discussion of the problem of evil in the world.


This would have been a great book if he had been more consistent with representing the Christian viewpoint of demons and how we can be confront them.