Spirit Fighter Review

Book Description from Amazon:

Age Level: 9 and up | Grade Level: 4 and up

Percy Jackson, move over! Jonah Stone is here!

What if Nephilim-the children of angels and men-still walked the earth? And their very presence put the entire world in danger? In Spirit Fighter, Jonah and Eliza Stone learn that their mother is a Nephilim and that they have special powers as quarter-angels. When their mom is kidnapped by fallen angels, they must use those powers to save her. Along the way, they discover that there is a very real and dangerous war going on between good and evil and that God has a big part for them to play in that war.

Parents today are looking for fiction that makes Christianity and the Bible exciting for their kids. This series is the Christian answer to Percy Jackson and the Olympians, The Kane Chronicles, The Secret Series and other middle-grade series packed with adventure, action, and supernatural fights. Son of Angels, Jonah Stone will be the first series in the market to explore this topic from a biblical perspective with content that is appropriate and exciting for middle-grade readers.

My Review:
I have read the Percy Jackson series, but not the other two mentioned above so I can't compare to those.  Son of Angels has a lot of promise and for hardcore Christians it will be a welcome series.  For the rest, once you adjust to the frequent, and sometimes forced, scripture references it will be enjoyable.

The Stone siblings are the children of a preacher/pastor and a Nephilim who has given her life to Christ.  This means that the children, and quarterlings, have inherited some special abilities.  These are all related to the "full armour of God".  I was disappointed that Eliza seems to have been relegated to the protector role and otherwise stayed out of the way while Jonah had mulitiple abilities.  I realize Jonah is the main character, and to be honest I was looking for a book my son would enjoy, but Eliza just came across as weak.

For middle school children not well versed in Bible knowledge they will learn alot just by reading.  There are not only scripture references throughout, but the scripture itself is included in the story text.  In addition the author brings the verse to life, demonstrating that it isn't just words that were applicable 2,000 years ago.  God is referred to throughout the book as Elohim which may need some explaining if you have never talked about the different names of God in the Bible.  Satan is also referred to as Abaddon which is only used once in scripture so you may need to clarify this one too.  In both cases though the contextual clues should be adequate enough for the casual reader to figure it out.

Is this up there with Percy Jackson?  I can say I don't see a movie being based on this book in the near future but I do see potential for a great Christian series that will appeal to those seeking a strong teen male character who relies on God to see him through a lot of action adventure.