Harbingers: A Repairman Jack Novel    by F. Paul Wilson Order:  USA  Can Forge, 2006 (2006) Hardcover      Reviewed by Martina Bexte As Harbingers opens, Jack is sitting at his usual table at Julio's nursing a beer and feeling sorry for himself. He still hasn't gotten over the loss of his father in a bloody terrorist attack, or the disappearance of his brother thanks to a mysterious device known as the Lilitongue of Gefreda. Jack's even more concerned about impending fatherhood and the fact that creating a new identity is taking longer than planned. Agreeing to fix-it jobs is the farthest thing from his mind, but when another regular begs Jack to track down his missing niece, he reluctantly agrees. Within hours, he is drawn into a series of events that have little to do with Caitlin's abduction and everything to with his role in the age-old battle between two opposing, omnipotent and equally ruthless forces, the Otherness and the Ally. Jack tracks Caitlin to an abandoned warehouse where a group of unsavory thugs are bent on rape and murder. Knowing it's far too late for police intervention, Jack is prepared to do whatever it takes to save her. However, before he makes his move, a second group of well-trained men storm the location and take out the bad guys. Jack's curiosity about Caitlin's saviors turns into a cat-and-mouse game that eventually leads him to a secure location in the Bronx where he meets the Yeneceri, ages old warriors trained from childhood to protect the Sentinels, seers who answer to the Ally. Further revelations ensue, each more surprising than the last. Jack has been warned repeatedly that nothing in his life will ever again be coincidence and given recent events, he knows this as fact, yet Jack refuses to accept his fate. But when the warring forces turn their attentions to the three people he loves most, he is prepared to do anything to stop the inevitable. In this 10th fantastic installment in the Repairman Jack series, Wilson finally shakes things up in a big way with major plot developments. New revelations take Jack down a dark, dangerous, deadly road and close to his breaking point. This story is much more violent than past adventures and reinforces that Jack is not a man to be crossed or lied to, particularly with regard to Gia, her daughter Vicky and his unborn child. Wilson continues doing a marvelous job of showing both sides of his antihero: the cunning, deadly and unstoppable warrior and a man who also longs for an ordinary life even though ordinary has never factored into his destiny. Harbingers confirms Wilson as a master at creating smart, intriguing and highly entertaining contemporary dark fantasy. Note: Opinions expressed in reviews and articles on this site are those of the author(s) and not necessarily those of BookLoons. Find more Fantasy books on our Shelves or in our book Reviews