An Appeal To Heaven

By: Steven Smith

Narrated by: Virtual Voice

Length: 7 hrs and 5 mins

Publisher's summary

Author's Note - As I have mentioned in past books, this is a sequel to the previous and should be read after the others; The Reversion, The Revival and The Renewal, in order to fully understand it. My reason for this is simple; I’ve always found it tedious to read re-introductions of situations and characters, and so have no desire to write them. For those who have read the first three books in this series, you may have seen that I intended to title this one The Blessings of Freedom and make it the first in a new series called the New America series - my reason being that the action begins to expand beyond the original area of Stonemont. However, as the story continued to unfold, I changed my mind and decided to change the name to An Appeal to Heaven, a reference many of you will recognize, and make it the fourth book of the continuing Stonemont series so as not to create a false feeling of interruption in the progress of the story. Though the scope is expanding, it is still through the lens of Stonemont that we view that expansion, and Stonemont which remains the center of our attention as it continues to increase in its size, its influence and its interest in the world around it. An Appeal to Heaven is a transitional book – it continues and builds on the circumstances of its predecessors while expanding into new areas, both geographic and social, and does so through the eyes of both established characters and numerous new ones. As such, it is both a “cap” on the birth pangs of the new world and an introduction to the challenges of the future – a future that is far more complex and threatening than the initial stages of survival and reestablishment of elemental society following the collapse. It is, essentially, the framework around which the continuing series will be seen to take shape. And finally, a brief word about me and how I approach the writing of my books. I am a traditionalist. I hold to traditional values and consider them to be the foundation of a healthy, productive society and civilization. I am a Christian, and, without denigrating other belief traditions, agree with Patrick Henry’s statement that “This great nation was founded not by religionists, but by Christians, not by religions, but on the gospel of Jesus Christ.” Arguments against this are ill-informed and incorrect, and to ignore this would be to ignore the most important foundational principle of America. And I am a patriot, in that I subscribe to and support the principles on which our country was founded, and under which it prospered, though not how those principles are often subverted. Some find this offensive – but those are not the ones I write for. To those of you I do write for – welcome back to Stonemont and the continuing adventure in the building of a New America! Semper Paratus, SCS

I've enjoyed all of the Stonemont Series

The Stonemont series is difficult to find on Audible. Only 3 of the series have a Stonemont Series link. Some are appearing under Steven Smith and Some are appearing under Steven C. Smith and the search seems to not know these are the same authors. Not knowing the name of the book but wanting to continue the Stonemont series, it was especially difficult to locate the title Appeal to Heaven. I had to go around and search the internet for more information so I could track it down. I think most people would give up after the first 3 titles not finding the 4th easily linked on Audible. It would be extremely useful to link these in order as other series on Audible are linked. Plus making sure that they all appear under Steven C Smith and Steven Smith as the same author of the Stonemont series.

Now about the book. This is an excellent tail of the rebirth of civilization after the collapse and the various hiccups anticipated and dealt with along the way.

The books are all wonderful but could be made more wonderful if they were more in-depth and longer. The main storyline is adequately covered about the 3 main male characters, but so many fingers branch off of the main story that could be cultivated into a more fulfilling adventure for the reader and although a few survival tips are interlaced within the story, these could be cultivated as well. I would love to see a second series emerge, a more in-depth series from this author. If these books were over 20 hours a piece I would enjoy every minute. That's not to say that each of these shorter books are not a book in its own right. I think the start and the finish of each of these books are in the right spot in the timeline for this dystopian series. I would just like them to be fuller & richer with information. Some of the characters introduced back in books one, two, and three peeked my interest and then nothing more was said about them. The books may be written short for the targeted audience of apocalyptic tales being young males. I being neither young nor male think this is an epic adventure that could be cultivated.

Thank you so much for writing this marvelous series and I look forward to many more books from Steven C Smith. I would also like to thank the author for not throwing in sexual and inappropriate content here and there, (like so many books of this genre), that I would be embarrassed to have someone overhear while I'm listening.