Holy Hell

By: William Saunders

Narrated by: Erik Johnson

Length: 10 hrs and 55 mins

Publisher's summary

Lucifer, Prince of Darkness, is off to a rough start. He's been plucked from Hell and dropped onto a rural Georgia highway. Naked. In the rain. And he's about to be hit by a car. To make matters worse, Lucifer is being hunted by an agent of God who has the power to destroy him.

Barabbas is looking forward to the end of his journey. Gifted with immortality, he has spent 2,000 years searching for the fallen angels who waged war against Heaven. They've been sent to Earth from Hell one by one, and Barabbas offers them all the same deal: rejoin the Kingdom of Heaven or perish forever.

Now his final adversary has arrived, and the hunt becomes something he never expected when Lucifer reveals himself to the world and uses the age of information to his advantage.

Before Barabbas can face off against Lucifer, he'll have to handle the geriatric Horsemen of the Apocalypse, not to mention a zombie army. But with his vampire companion, Kate; a motley group of NSA agents led by a 14-year old girl; and the Three Wise People, Barabbas might just stand a chance.

©2016 William Saunders (P)2016 William Saunders

You had me at "Baby Long Dong"

If you could sum up Holy Hell in three words, what would they be?

Original, funny. smart.

Who was your favorite character and why?

Kate- I liked all of the characters, but she had some truly great lines. I loved how the author made the women kickass.

Which character – as performed by Erik Johnson – was your favorite?

He did a fantastic job- Kate, as I stated earlier, was laugh out loud funny, and I thought his Barabbas voice was sexy. The female federal agent was great, too. I want to listen to more of his work.

Did you have an extreme reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?

It had me laughing within the first few minutes- I couldn't wait to listen to all of it. And I'm hoping William Saunders can somehow contrive a sequel. There were also some points where I had to grab the tissues. I really cared about the characters.

Any additional comments?

This book has to have one of the greatest opening chapters of any book I've listened to or read in quite some time. It made me think of a collaboration of Christopher Moore & Chuck Wendig.

Apocalypse Time

Any additional comments?

“This audiobook was given by the author, narrator, or publisher at no cost in exchange for an unbiased review via Audiobook Boom.”


Narration is really good for a multitude of characters. The story starts out really good, the author builds a good end of times story with likable characters. The story, however, goes in some pretty silly directions. The satan character is so unbelievable, or maybe every other characters treatment of him. The ending was not a great one either. The main story was enjoyable though as the characters are enjoyable.

A fun read!!!

I wasnt entirely sure about this book, but it was a very sound adventure and fun. I was hoping about halfway thru this would be a series, about Barabbas and Kate's adventures hunting down the rogue angels. But it was a satisfying whole story. If your looking for a good adventure with some good well written characters this is a good one. I will be looking for more from Mr Saunders

"This book was given to me for free at my request and I provided this voluntary review."

A Really Fun & Entertaining Book

Any additional comments?

There are a whole list of things I could say about this book. The bottom line is it's a really fun, humorous, entertaining and enjoyable end of days story. This book is a fantastic way to pass the hours on a road trip, it made the time fly. The story will keep you laughing out loud or smiling continually.

A great cast of characters including but not limited to Lucifer, vampires , cherubs, rogue angels, zombies and more with plenty of action, twists and intrigue to keep the story moving at a nice fast pace. Never a dull moment.

Great narration. Erik Johnson did a great job with the narration. Nice voice, easy to listen to for hours at a time. Clearly spoken. Nice even pace. Really good character voices. Even his female character voices are good. He was able to bring the characters, their humor, sarcasm and the story to life. I would definitely listen to more books he narrates. Very entertaining and enjoyable.

I was voluntarily provided this free review copy audiobook by the author, narrator or publisher.

Interesting Take on the End of Days

Would you consider the audio edition of Holy Hell to be better than the print version?

Yes. The Erik Johnson did a fantastic job with the wide spectrum of characters in this action filled tale.

Would you be willing to try another book from William Saunders? Why or why not?

Yes. Saunders has a unique and interesting take on over told end of days tales. In addition, Saunders expertly depicts fight scenes that allows the reader to feel like he's actually there.

What does Erik Johnson bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

Johnson brilliantly keeps the reader engaged with the story regardless of it is dramatizing dialogue between the characters or narration. 'Holy Hell' has a very wide range of characters, but Johnson was able to inhabit each character uniquely. For a male narrator, he does the female voices very well without doing the whole high pitched voice.

Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?

The book was more action and intrigue than drama. So...I can't really pick a scene that was particularly moving.

Any additional comments?

This review copy audiobook was provided by the author, narrator, or publisher at no cost.

God always did have some strange plans

Heaven and hell on earth. Battles of biblical proportion. Demons walk the earth for a chance of redemption or eternal death. Characters from the Bible, descendants, powers of the
Ancients and much more. Great story well narrated. Thoroughly enjoyed it. I was voluntarily provided this free review copy audiobook by the author, narrator, or publisher.

great book

I received this book free of charge for an honest review, cool story, wish there would have been a little more of an after the fact but over all loved it. I'm proud to admit that I would have ended up being one of lucifer's fans. he turned out to be a great character

A genuinely enjoyable comedy sci-fi/horror yarn

Usually, it takes a while for me to warm to a new writer. For me, you have to learn their cadence and rhythms before getting lost in the story. With William Saunder's "Holy Hell", I was almost immediately transported into a world of Demons, Angels, Vampires and Immortals. This optimistic story of the apocalypse is lined with a cynics humor. Similar to another great genre writer Christopher Moore, William Saunders deftly weaves humor into a complex (and sometimes very dark) fiction that spans locales from the Deep South to Antarctica. The characters have a realized humanity and distinctive personalities that make their journey a delight to read. If you're on the fence about trying out a new writer, might I suggest the audio adaption as Erik Johnson adds a nuanced performance on top of a tight piece of literature. Either way, you're in for a treat. Highly recommended. Full stars and honors.

A Modern Take on Armageddon

Would you listen to Holy Hell again? Why?

Yes, I'll probably listen again because the apocalypse is handled in such a unique and fresh way. (Now, those are words I never thought I'd type!)

What did you like best about this story?

This is the Apocalypse, right? Armageddon, the final battle, is close. War, Famine, Pestilence, and Death are wrecking havoc. Yest, there's always that bit of sly humor that pops up when you least expect it. For example, Lucifer can look like anyone/anything he chooses. Gregory Peck? Check. Sean Connery? Check. He goes public, demonstrating his powers on TV, using the media to spread his message. People follow him on Facebook, Twitter, etc. Everyone assumes they're seeing gimmicks and illusions. Very few see him for what he is...until it's too late.

What does Erik Johnson bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

The characters really came to life for me.

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

I came really close, but I did have to get a few hours sleep.

Any additional comments?

I was voluntarily provided this free review copy audio book by the author, narrator, or publisher.

I really enjoyed this supernatural adventure

I knew when I went into this audio book that I was in for a wild ride, The premise was so over the top, how could this not be good? Well I suppose if the author really sucked it wouldn't be good, but this was not the case! And I guess if the narrator did a shitty job then it wouldn't be good, but this was also not the case!

So is this my final word? The book does not suck? Nah I can do better than that. It was campy. It was apocalyptic. There was ass kicking. There were vampires. There were angels and demons, and the devil himself. And it wasn't even set it Georgia,

There were many characters in this book and the narrator, Erik Johnson, handled all with aplomb. Kate, one of the main characters, had a definite F-You attitude and the narrator did her so well that she became my favorite.

I won't spoil the ending for you, but Jesus died.