of these authors individually, so I was hoping for the best when they appear in one book. It began as a game with just a few rules. Each of the authors, Bill Myers, Frank Peretti, Angela Hunt and Alton Gansky would write their entry as if they were one of the characters. The second rule stated that they would write it like a television series. So there would be one storyline over all where each person would place their story, from their character's point of view. They were successful with their first attempt and this is their second.

Each of these stories involve four gifted people who are fighting a growing darkness. Bill Myer's "The Revealing" has them in Rome looking for the mystical spear Hitler once had. This was also the spear that pierced Christ's side. This led them to many places they did not expect. Frank Peretti wrote "Infestation" where a microscopic evil was released on the world. This evil deceives, blinds, kills and then moves on. Angela Hunt's "Infiltration" has the team barely staying together. They have been injured and separate. Soon they realize they are now in dangerous situation. "The Fog" by Alton Gansky has a supernatural mist that is unleashed. Dangerous things are in the fog. These things kill the things or people they find. One of the members of this group realizes that the ultimate sacrifice is called for.

Such an exciting and gripping book. I had not read the first book in the series, but I am on the lookout for it now. I did not have any issues coming in with this book. I caught on very fast as to who was who and what was going on.

It is amazing how even though each of these stories are individual stories, they come together so well. A huge advantage to this is one of the stories in here can be read alone, yet you know when the book is picked backup it will continue from a different point of view.

I found this an exceptional project. I highly recommend it especially to those who enjoy episodic stories

I was given this book by Bethany House in exchange for my honest review. ( )

The Assault: Cycle Two of the Harbingers Series by Frank Peretti, Angela Hunt, Bill Myers, Alton Gansky is a highly recommended second installment of the group-story.

This volume contains the second collection of four interconnected stories in the Harbingers Series that started with Invitation. This is an ongoing series created by these Christian authors with additional stories already available. In the series a team of four widely diverse people join together to use their individual skills.

The author's set up two rules for their collaboration:
Rule #1 Each author would write as one of the characters in the series: Bill Myers's character is Brenda, the street-hustling tattoo artist who sees images of the future. Frank Peretti's character is the professor, the atheist ex-priest ruled by logic. Angela Hunt's character is Andi, the professor’s brilliant but geeky assistant who sees inexplicable patterns. Alton Gansky's character is Tank, the naïve, big-hearted jock with a surprising connection to a healing power.
Rule #2 They would write the stories like a TV series with an overarching storyline. The series part would be their individual stories, novellas, written from their character’s point of view.

The stories in Cycle 2 of the Harbingers series continues the story of four gifted strangers brought together to fight a growing darkness. From the synopsis:
In Bill Myers's "The Revealing," the team finds themselves in Rome trying to retrieve the mystical spear Hitler once owned--the very spear that pierced Christ's side. This task will take them from hidden chambers inside the Vatican to a mysterious seaside cave with powers they could never expect.
Frank Peretti's "Infestation" unleashes a microscopic evil on the world that deceives, blinds, kills, then spreads. The Harbingers team must confront a monster bent on seducing and destroying mankind.
In "Infiltration" by Angela Hunt, the team is wounded and barely holding together. Forced to split up, they realize their investigations have led them into dangerous waters.
Alton Gansky's "The Fog" unleashes a supernatural mist unlike any other. There are vicious things in the fog that kill whatever they find. One team member realizes that the ultimate sacrifice may have to be made.

I enjoyed this second installment of the series a bit more than the first, probably due simply to knowing the characters already and what they are facing and also understanding what how the authors are collaborating on the series. Additionally, I also felt that this cycle of stories was stronger than the first, but, again, they are building on the previous stories.

As I noted before there are pros and cons to this collaboration. Since these are four individual short stories are written like a TV series with the same characters, each story stands alone while also working with the others to create a larger overwhelming story arch. This makes it easy to quickly read one story and know the next one will be a new adventure from a different character's point-of-view. This is also the potential downfall of the series. Because it is written as an ongoing series there is no concluding resolution and the character growth is limited.

In the end the real questions for readers are: Do you like episodic ongoing stories? How much time are you willing to invest in an ongoing series? I'm not even sure about my answer to these two questions. So far I do like the series and the stories. On the other hand I am also growing weary of authors making an ongoing series that lasts too long and reading books with no real conclusion. I have liked the first two, but I do wonder how many I am willing to read to reach the end. (I am positive the number is much small than it used to be due to the abuse of making an ongoing series by some authors in the past.)

Disclosure: My review copy was courtesy of the Baker Publishing Group
http://www.shetreadssoftly.com/2017/08/the-assault-cycle-two-of-harbingers.html ( )