Book Review: The Fall of the House of Cabal by Jonathan L. Howard

The Fall of the House of Cabal by Jonathan L. Howard
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

This book...this book, this book, this book. The last novel of the Johannes Cabal novel...

It was FANTASTIC. I loved every bit of it and I really want Jonathan Howard to write more from this series because I'm starving for more and I just wanna read more about Cabal and Horst and Leonie and Zarenyia-everyone. And splitting it up to five parts...OMG I LOVED EACH AND EVERY PART. Espically the Great Detective part, when Horst became human for a moment and ate bacon while they were investigating the death of Maximilian Maleficarius, which was saddening and also a bit funny because of Horst eating the bacon...but I have to say, the star of the book has to be Madame Zarenyia, my sister from another mister.

Even her quotes were funny and spot on:

"You’re telling me,’ muttered Zarenyia, drifting at the edge of consciousness. ‘Johannes has one, you know. Terribly clever with it. He got me my sweater. Lots of fish. So many fish.’ Her voice faded into sub-vocalized semi-words."

"Hello darlings!“ said Zarenyia as she breezed back into Satan’s throne room, a shambling, scuttling sound in her wake assuring her that Ratuth Slabuth was following. ‘Forms signed, bona fides authenticated. You will be delighted to hear that I am now declared a legal visitor to the scenic heart of Hell. Hooray for me!"

"Scrawny creatures, aren’t they? Still, a soul’s a soul.’ She sighed. ‘I am making myself ever so available, and I’m getting for my troubles is a lot of frightened looks and scuttling. Haven’t they ever seen a gorgeous woman before?"

"Do you suppose this is part of the trap, too?’ Zarenyia weighed up the possibilities. “I must say, as traps go it’s a little bit lazy, isn’t it? Tiny it short in the bait department. Why would we want to go in there?’ She squinted, her inhuman senses apparently able to make something out of the pervading shadow. ‘Oh, it’s all right, after all. It’s not trying to get us to go in. It’s letting something out. Much better."

And the ending, when Horst because of dhampir (yay!!!) and I FINALLY found out that woman in the coffin's name (Berenice, what a lovely name) and I really do reconmend this series a whole lot!!

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Book Review: The Brothers Cabal by Jonathan L. Howard

The Brothers Cabal by Jonathan L. Howard
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

This book...this book right here made me laugh-like bust out laughing-while also shocking me and making my mouth drop. I loved this book out of all of the Cabal novels I've read over the months that I've read them, so what is this book about?

Well...Horst is back. Back back. Back from the Dead back. And the ones that brought him back-the Ministerium Tenebrae-wants him to create vampires for their army of the undead, so they can create a country for the undead. Then that's when the voice of Horst's ripper-that's what I call it (I used to watch/read wayyy to much Vampire Diaries and the Originals)-started whispering in his mind like Phury's did in his book, wanted to do it, to drink the blood from the table, in the wine glass and in the bowl. But he didn't and escaped with the help of the Dee Society, and then he met Miss Montgomery's Flying circus.

While they were getting aquiented, they were attacked by zombies, a werebadger, obelisk, and a stone spider *in which I screamed because I hate spiders so much* and then as Horst tells this story to his brother Johannes, he asks him to help him destroy the Ministerium. Though Johannes reluctantly said yes, the two packed up Cabal's things to meet up with Miss Montgomery's trio of fliers and went to the rondevous point and met with serveral....how shall I put this....members of each religious group, some were witches (the Sisters of Hecate or the Hades one, I believe) and others were fighters, and before they attacked the Ministerium, they had a meeting, where Cabal explained that the Red Queen was none other than Lady Orfilia Nimuka, daughter of Count Merchal, and on top of that, Rufus Maleficarus is alive and walking...or so he thought.

The Mirkavian battle started, and everyone brought their best warriors out, but the Ministerium lost, even when Horst and Cabal, along with Alisha, went inside the castle to kill Rufus and Lady Misericorde. Cabal tricked Rufus, who turned out to be the Eriskghal Working and trapped him in Rufus's body, while Alisha died-killed by dopplegangers, and Horst killed them all by listening to his inner ripper and killed them all.

But the ENDING though....Johannes found the book he was looking for, and then asked Horst about the Fountian of Youth and the Philsopher Stone.....but when Ninuka was alone and randomly talking to the urn....THAT was freaky enough.

So I really do recommend this book and the whole series if you haven't read it yet!

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Book Review: Johannes Cabal the Fear Insitute by Jonathan L. Howard

The Fear Institute by Jonathan L. Howard
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

So this book of the Johannes Cabal series was different than the last two-mostly because they were in the Dreamlands looking for the Phobic Animus (in which THERE WASN'T ONE) and also because it felt like I was on a D&D adventure with Cabal and his companions. So what happened in this book?

Well three men came to Cabal's house to employ him to go to the dreamlands to retrieve this Phobic Animus. Cabal thought about it and after a day he said yes, and the four of them went to visit a poet that had the Sliver Key, and once he died, off they went into the dreamlands. Sadly throughout the adventure that I cannot remember because I took a break from reading this, but for the rest of the books I will be keeping a journal of all my thoughts:

Shadrach, and Corde died, Miss Smith and Cabal had a very nice conversation, they found a dead hermit's body and Cabal used necromancy to bring his skull back, the fight on the boat, and one of the Fear Institute People died.

Cabal is scared of cats, though I'm convinced there were Khajits in the book and Corde died, then Bose revealed himself to be Nyarlothotep, and sent Cabal through a dream, where he basically dreamt that his experiments worked, brought that girl in the casket back to life and then died WHYYYYYYYY.

Cabal also changed into a ghoul, didn't like it, so he made a laboratory so he could make an elixir to make himself hooman again. But the ghoul's leader took it from him, drank it, and became hooman, but then for some reason Cabal was knocked out, and a weird man came and took him home and took care of him. Now whoever he was knew the house intimately knew where everything was, and when Cabal woke up, he's like "You're supposed to be dead...."

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Book Review: Johannes Cabal the Detective by Jonathan L. Howard

Johannes Cabal the Detective by Jonathan L. Howard
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Johannes Cabal, a necromancer of little infamy, is a detective in this one after he escaped from the Mirkarvia-well, after he stole a book from the library *mini-heart attack*, was forced to bring back the leader of the Mirkarvian people, but he turned into a cannibal (really, Cabal, did you think? Nope), and then ran off after defeated Count Marechal in a duel. Cabal then scared a man named Herr Meissner, stole his idenity and got on a ship named the Princess Hortense...

WHERE MY OTP MEETS AGAIN *throws confetti everywhere*

That's right-Leonie Barrow, daughter of Frank Barrow, studying to be a criminologist, was on the Princess Hortense, and they sat at the captian's table, having a lovely dinner, until it all ended the moment M. DeGarre was killed, and Cabal was nearly thrown off the aeroship. Thus the mystery began to find out who killed M. DeGarre and who wanted to throw him to his death.

My favorite part of the book was when Leonie saw Cabal do some necromancy when they were following Cacon and found him dead. Though she was shocked, the answer Cacon told them were shocking in a way-he was killed by a woman with a venomous dagger. But at the end of that conversation, when they finally left the poor man to die:

Cabal: I am unsure whether to thank you or demand n explanation.
Leonie: The former, I hope. As I’m not so sure why I didn’t just grass you up like the scum you are.
Cabal: That’s uncanny. Are you channeling your father right now?
Lenoie: Please, Cabal. Please don’t mention my dad, or I’ll full guilty that I didn’t just do the right thing and stitch you up like a kipper. Even my dad doesn't talk like that. He would have understood not giving you up to the Mirkavians. He’s not a great fan of Capital Punishment. But he’d never understand why I didn’t just hand you over to Constable Don Juan back there. Go then Cabal. Just shoo. I’m done with you.

Like...I couldn't even. But at the end the both of them survived, Leonie in the hospital trying to remember before she finally does and told the police the whole tale....and that is where our story ends, if you wanted to know about that weird short story I didn't get, the Tomb of Umtak Ktharl, though I only got the part that some old giant or sorcerer came back to life and somehow Cabal knocked him out? But I really loved this book like the first one and I already put the other two on hold so I can get them and read more of this series because I love it so much already.

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Book Review: Johannes Cabal the Necromancer by Jonathan L. Howard

Johannes Cabal the Necromancer by Jonathan L. Howard
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I was recommended this novel by a friend and all it took was three pages for me to be hooked. So when Johannes Cabal, a necromancer or scientist, goes down to hell like a fly MFer and makes Satan a deal: he can get one hundred souls in exchange for his. But he had to do it before the next Walpurgisnacht, or Satan will kill him.

Oh, and did I mention he had to do it by a traveling carnival?

So with his brother Horst Cabal, the Cabal Brothers are out on the road with their devilish carnival, collecting ninety-nine souls, getting rid of a necromancer named Rufus Maleficarus (what kind of name is that anyway?), Johannes getting stuck in the pocket time universe made me giggle a bit, Ratuth Slabuth nearly destroying the carnival because he was bored, then....then they came to Penlow on Thurse on April 29....

A day where I ship Cabal x Leonie because they met and I got happy....

Till the end...when sweet Leonie signed her life away to save her father. But thank god Cabal burned her and another woman's forms so they wouldn't be in Hell when they die. But when Horst burned to death and died because he wanted to save his brother and I was so mad at Johannes...but I got over it when he saved Leonie and Lea (I think that's her name).

So I really do recommend this book because IT'S SO GOOD AND FUN AND YOU'LL HAVE FUN READING IT!!!

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