Urban Fantasy/Sci-Fi: Phantom Four; Children of the Grave, by Roger Wilson

The Phantom Four; Children of the Grave, by Roger Wilson is the tale of four young boys whose lives were stolen at the age of five by the forces of evil, and then transformed by the powers of good into the ultimate fighting quartet 20 years later. Based in various venues around New York City, the Phantom Four fight demons of Hell who are aiding Satan in his take over of the world. All the while they learn about themselves, discover their past, and hone their newly acquired skills.

This story has a good premise for a hero story. It is written in a screenplay format, as that was the initial intention of the writer. However, it would be best told in a graphic novel where the story and characters could come alive like traditional superheroes.

There were some technical errors in the book, but my biggest difficulty was with the incongruity of the Christan themes with the sexual context of the story. There was also a lot of profanity, which I do not have a personal issue with, but again, did not fit well with the Christian themes. The religious aspects felt unnatural to the overall flow of the story, with the exception of the "good versus evil" elements.

Overall, I feel that this story has promise.  I liked the ideas and hope that the author will go back and revise the conceptual inconsistencies.

On a scale of 1-4, I give this book a 2.

This book was published by Outskirts Press.
ISBN: 978-1-4327-6122-6

Thank you to Roger Wilson for the gift of his book.