Forging a Nightmare

Thanks, Netgalley and Publisher for allowing me to read and review!
It was a fantastic experience! I love books that actually paint both evil and good in the shades of gray!
It's an interesting reimagining of biblical mythology - with angels and demons living in the real, contemporary world. The story takes interesting twists when you least expect it and presents rich and complex characters. I loved the read!

I received a free review copy from Angry Robot in exchange for my honest, unedited feedback.

FBI Agent, Michael Childs is trying to catch a serial killer targeting people born with 12 fingers and toes. During his investigations, he meets Anaba, a marine killed in action but soon finds himself under attack by a group of angels intent on killing him too. He soon finds himself in a world he has only read about with angels, horsemen, and the Grigori. The Grigori want to kill all Nephilim which unfortunately includes Michael who has discovered his true nature. But luckily, he has Anaba by his side, who is not just a marine but a powerful Nightmare.

This amazing cover caught my eye when I was browsing through titles on NetGalley and I just had to read the book.
The book features a diverse cast of characters - the main characters were black, and a lot of the secondary characters were people of colour. I liked the fact that this was seen as ordinary with no long backstory as to why people of colour were in positions of power and authority which I have seen in so many books.
Michael isn’t your typical hero- he is an FBI agent with an academic background, who enjoys jousting and we first encounter him at a crime scene dressed as a medieval knight (or at least that is how imagined it). This would definitely be on my list of most dramatic entrances in a book. Michael not only finds himself fighting in a world he has only read about but also discovers he is a Nephilim too- half-angel and half-human. His reaction to his new reality is realistic and well described- I don’t think anyone would deal with this rationally. So it makes sense when he learns about his true nature, he does something silly!
While I found Michael interesting, Anaba is the character I was most drawn to one of the most complex female characters I have read in a while. Her story is truly tragic and as I read more about how she was ‘forged’ from her human soul, her all rage makes all the more sense. But despite this, she is still loyal to her cause and to Micheal even though he doesn’t always treat her with the respect she deserves at the start of the book. I would happily read any book with her as the lead.
The plot is fast-paced with lots of action and moments of peril. There are plenty of characters in this book and fascinating in their own right. If this is part of a series, I hope we see more of Lucifer, Loki, Wyrmwood, Raijin, and of course EJ.
The world-building is intricate and well-described bringing to life the underworld and Hell.
I did feel uncomfortable when Anaba is in horse form and sometimes made to do what her rider tells her to do given her fierce and independent nature.
Content warning
Descriptions of violence and torture
Perfect for fans of
The television shows Supernatural and Lucifer.

This book was given to me in exchange for an honest review


I'm having trouble finding the right sentence to use in starting this review.
The first line of this book is entrapping. It kept me in a suspension. I began wondering what was happening.

You see what Patricia A Jackson does in this book is that, she takes you by the hand and throws you through the Vestibule road and smiles because she knows you're going to be riding through one Hell (pun intended) of a journey.

When you pick this book, you have to will your imagination to explore questions of what would happen if the creation story went this other way? What happened to this part of the creation story and why did we really never talk about the antagonist in the story. Patricia A Jackson, is willing to help you out in figuring an answer to this questions we sometime find ourselves asking.

The Forging A Nightmare, follows a 28 year old FBI special agent with a thick celestial heritage and history he doesn't really know much about. When he and his partner are called to debunk the mysterious maimed bodies with twelve fingers and twelve toes, popping around the city. Michael J Childs soon begins to uncover deep secrets engulfing his whole existence.

This story takes you back and forth, riling and tempting your imagination to take a leap of faith, to trust the characters, to actually believe in their own stories.

Every scene has its own importance, nothing is ever there without a reason and everything has a role to play regardless of how insignificant it might seem.

The Characters have this thick layer of mystery, you'll find yourself trying to rip apart so you can see that humanity in them. I so much enjoyed the diversity of characters, from a main black man as the protagonist, to an LGBT protagonist, to the Asian and Hispanic hints in other characters.

The diversity definitely made this book special because it's a story told through a black woman for the BIPOC world of readers.

(This review is based on an Advance Reader Copy.) Patricia A. Jackson's debut novel Forging a Nightmare immerses the reader in a world of menace--fallen angels and demigods whose history of alliances and resentments stretch to the beginning of time. Jackson puts a fresh spin on biblical characters like Gabriel and Lucifer by turning them into FBI agents, a parish priest, a homeless preacher and other seemingly ordinary folks who pursue ancient vendettas in modern day New York City.

On the surface, the story is about a series of grisly murders. But underneath, it is about much more: a son grappling with his father's abandonment, the persecution of "the other" and the revelation that maybe Hell isn't the unremittingly evil place we thought it was.

The book is full of unexpected twists and turns. Even the characters are unexpected. The hero is FBI Agent Michael Childs, a Black man who competes in jousts (at the opening of the book, he shows up at the scene of a grisly murder clad in medieval armor) and who (unbeknownst to him) descends from divinity. His sidekick is another surprise: Anaba Raines, a Black woman, former Marine and the eponymous Nightmare, whose transformation into a fierce and hellish horse makes her a formidable foe to angels seeking to do Michael harm.

This is an original page-turner from a talented new voice.

FORGING A NIGHTMARE is an interesting blend of religious lore and magic. As someone who grew up on a steady diet of catechism and X-men cartoons, this book hit a sweet spot. I love stories featuring nephilim!

Overall, this book featured tight writing, good sub-plots, and dynamic characters. Anaba was my favorite! Even Lucifer makes an appearance, and he, like all living things, is a mixture of both good and bad. He’s not actually the villain in this book, which was refreshing.

There are a lot of battle scenes, which is to be expected when you’re dealing with the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse! I’m not a huge fan of battle scenes, because I have a hard time following the action. But Jackson did a good job fleshing them out, so the sword strikes are easy to follow.

If you like books with biblical references, refreshed good vs. evil tropes and lots of battle-scenes then you will love FORGING A NIGHTMARE!

I received a free e-ARC of this book via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

This was the most fun to read. A hunt for a serial killer, an FBI agent whose father is an Archangel, a Marine transformed into a Nightmare, the steed of a Horseman of the Apocalypse.

One of those stories that hooks you in and carries you along. The action is non-stop and you engage with the characters. This is not high-end literature, but if you love a non-stop, roller-coaster journey this is the book you need to pick up.

My thanks to NetGalley and Angry Robot for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.