Meet Kirk Vaisto, a heavy metal rock guitarist. He is often called "The God of Guitar" by his fans and the journalists who write about music.

Meet Egyptologist, Helmut Hartkopff. Helmut has been searching for a specific artifact, The Song of Sethis, which, when used properly, will release Sethis (sometimes better known as "Satan") from his imprisonment in the bowels of the earth.

Meet multibillionaire, Festus Baustone the Third, who has bank-rolled Helmut's search and who won't let anything stop him from having the Song of Sethis played for the world, including...

Meet Mona Baustone, the daughter of Festus. She doesn't know that her father is dying of cancer, and she doesn't know that he has no confidence in her ability to take control of his company when he dies, so she still works for her father.

Festus Baustone needs a musician to first transcribe the Song of Sethis. It is music but written in a form of Hieroglyphics. And because the author of the Song of Sethis, Aknaseth, was known to be a good musician who played a six-stringed instrument, much like the modern guitar, Festus and Helmut believe they need a guitar player. Since Festus wants only the best, he asks who is the best guitar player in the world. The answer is Kirk Vaisto - the "God of Guitar."

Festus pays a ridiculous amount of money to have Kirk transcribe the music and to play the song, and he sends his daughter, Mona, to follow and see how Kirk is doing. She gets there just as Kirk's computer program has finished the transcription and he is about to try playing it.

The song has surprising effects, sending Kirk into a trance-like state, with his fingers moving faster and faster, and images of chaos and destruction. As the song finishes and he comes out of his trance, he sees that his entire studio is completely trashed from the violence of the song. Mona, who witnessed the same things, assures him that the Baustone company will rebuild his studio for him. And while Kirk wants nothing more to do with the song, Mona is quite certain that her father won't let Kirk just walk away.

Kirk plays the song one more time, in a specially built studio, for Helmut and Festus hear what they have worked for so long to acquire. There are the same results, which has a negative effect on Kirk, but Helmut and Festus seem almost giddy afterwards. They know now that this is indeed the song that will release Satan from the underworld. But to do that it needs to be heard by the entire world. Baustone and Helmut plan for a live broadcast of the song, to be played by Kirk (his fame should get a large number of viewers).

Kirk does everything he can to avoid playing, but Mona was correct that Festus would stop at nothing to release Satan into the world. Fortunately, Kirk will get a little assistance along the way.

I was a little bit nervous about reading this ... I felt as though there was a good deal of hype surrounding this book, and I don't usually trust hype. But I'm always looking out for fiction that incorporates music. And that this was a dark fantasy or horror book just added to my interest. Fortunately, the hype is well deserved ... this is a really good book.

Author Jeremy Wagner really does a fantastic job balancing all the different aspects of this story. There could very easily have been too much of the German Egyptologist; too much of Kirk and his skills at guitar; too much of the set-up about releasing Sethis; etc. But the story moves along at a quick, but appropriate pace, with characters that are unique and clearly motivated. There's romance (you can probably guess with whom) and terror, good versus evil, and just enough religion/supernatural aspects to keep you on your toes.

I wondered, early, how Wagner would handle the religious aspects of Satan (can you have a Satan without God?), but the idea is addressed, and in a surprising and very satisfactory way.

I'm not into heavy metal music (the hardest rock I would listen to might be <em>Ballroom Blitz</em> by Sweet), but I did understand why a story about the devil and a musician might feature a heavy metal rocker.

Looking for a good book? <em> The Armageddon Chord</em> by Jeremy Wagner is a quick read, and a real page-turner ... I really wanted to read 'just one more' chapter each time I opened this book. You will, too.

I received a digital copy of this book from the publisher, through Netgalley, in exchange for an honest review.

I thought this would just be an attempt at a great novel by a guitar player, but I found it to be deeper than I thought possible and brilliant beyond my wildest dreams, the horror tale blowing me away like g-force, boundless as far as categories. I've never read a book more knowledgeable about guitar playing, as well as the evil world we live in, and then to have a moving morality about the tale. Terrific!

Examples:

Sentences describing how Yngwie Malmsteen whipped himself to not make the same mistake twice.

This said about one of the villains: "If New York was the Big Apple, then Festus Baustone III was the city's biggest maggot."

Then the bit about the evil music--the real antagonist--being beyond death metal and black metal, as if that's possible.

If you've missed this one, you've probably let 2011's best book pass you by. And the modern updates were incredible, describing the news as endless anti-presidential coverage.

The only flaw was that it was a bit poorly-edited, as if a rushed job, but not overwhelming so.

Get this or regret it!

Ancient Egyptian texts reveal a song written in hieroglyphics that, when played by a masterful guitarist, will bring about the rising of Sethis and Hell on earth in The Armageddon Chord by Jeremy Wagner.

It starts in the desert at an archeological sight, with the introduction of the over-the-top, deformed, former Nazi-villain, Helmut Hartkopff. Apparently an incredibly old and vile man, he remains, mysteriously, capable and even picks fights in bars. This, as long as played tongue in cheek, marks this book for a wild romp into the mixing of Egyptian lore and heavy metal. Reading at a roller coaster pace, the story dips and peaks, moving along rapidly, but ultimately lacks depth and the wit you might expect from a setup like this. The hero, Kirk Vaisto, is likable on paper, but majorly lacks personality and conviction, and his long rants into his feelings, perceptions and education on music often get in the way of the flow of the book, like the steady chug and pull of the cart going up a high mountain on the roller coaster ride. His love interest Mona, the spoiled daughter of the multi-billionaire, Festus Baustone, is something of a mystery as to why she’s even involved in the story. She comes across as vapid and untrustworthy, and it leaves us to ponder why our hero even falls in love with her in the first place.

There are some incongruities in the storyline and hiccups in the linguistics that add to the previously mentioned character flaws. Little things such as these unfortunately make this otherwise capable book feel weak and not fully realized. The scenes of hell rising to storm over the earth and cause Armageddon are well described, with mutilations and ghastly beasts that stir the reader’s imagination. However, the horror that Jeremy Wagner writes doesn’t scream in your face with terror when it should be mimicking the untethered violence of some hardcore metal.

The Armageddon Chord is neither over the top enough with humorous intent, nor is it violent or disgusting enough to be metal horror, putting it politely in the middle when it should be thrashing and screaming around the dance floor.

The Armageddon Chord is an extremely enjoyable book that works on many levels. It’s plot is a simple pain by numbers planning that takes you from point a to point b very fluidly. The characters tend to act true to their spirit and we have a fast, page turning read that is filled with many action moments to keep the reader interested.

This is the novel in a nutshell and the book does deliver on many levels. Kirk and Mona are well rounded though Mona is a bit sketchy at best and I guess given the past, the reader has to figure out if she is for good or evil. The villains of the piece are very villainous and this is where I think the novel is let down very slightly because we have two Batman villains occupying this world. Make no mistake as they are great evil people but from the description of the way they look down to their action, they felt very two dimensional.

Wagner excels on pop, heavy metal and social references that enhance the plot. His description of places is very well done and he really knows how to put this all in to the mix without losing momentum. It is fascinating how when Kirk plays the music that he is able to get into essence of this and perfectly explains it without bogging down his narrative. His religious imagery is well described and hits the right marks.

Overall, this is a fun read and thoroughly enjoyed it. It should find its audience will great ease and feel that for the most part, people who like dark fiction or horror will have a lot of fun with it. People who are not into these genres, should find a lot of pleasure as well getting into the epic fight between good and evil. This is a winner.

This is a story about good vs. Evil. There is an ancient pyramid that has been uncovered. It contains a book of music written by Sethis or the devil by another name. There's also a type of crown, and legend has it that whoever is wearing the crown while the music is played will be one of the devil's commanders. The devil will also rise from the earth to rule over all humanity and destroy it. There will be a war between heaven and hell, and it's the apocalypse. Kirk is hired by the billionaire that financed the archeological expedition. His name is Baustis. Baustis has bone cancer in his leg, and he only has a year left to live. He's seeking immortality, and he will get it if he's the one wearing the crown during the concert. He hires Kirk who is a heavy metal guitarist, to play for him. This is an unusual story, and I wasn't too sure if I would like it. However, I like Egyptian fiction, so I read it. It's well written, and very imaginative. I thoroughly enjoyed all of it. I had to keep reading to see what happens next.

I normally would probably stay away or at least approach more cautiously a book so obviously schlocky, cover to title. But…but this one upon its original release 8 years ago actually managed to gather some legitimate praise from legitimate sources, be that other more well known authors or places like Rolling Stone and Publishers Weekly. So ok…maybe it wouldn’t be as trashy as the appearances suggest? No, wrong, it was. One of those times you can actually judge a book by its cover. Even though the book has a very decent premise of mixing heavy metal music and ancient Egyptian lore and, obviously, apocalypse. Have you ever watched a really over the top heavy metal music video and thought…now this would make a great book. I wish this was stretched out into a book form and took a decent chunk of time to get through instead of this 5 to 10 minute extravaganza? If so, then maybe this book is for you. Otherwise what you have is an overblown trite supernatural fantasy that strives for high octane excitement, but fails quite dramatically. Because music videos aren’t meant to be books, are they. And, quite possibly, musicians and song writers don’t make the best fiction authors as it is so blatantly the case here. The formats are just too different and there aren’t loud instruments to drone out the words. And the words here…well, they leave a lot to be desired. The main character is a famous guitarist named Kirk who may be 39 or in his 40s. Yes, this rerelease fails to update the main character’s age, although it does update some random cultural references. This is only one of many editorial snafus and typos, which one might hope would be addressed for the final product (this is a review of the ARC from Netgalley), but probably won’t, this one seems like a finished product, including original artwork inside. Kirk may be a great musician, but as a person and/or a novel’s protagonist he is…well, to put it politely, not that bright or evolved. In fact, he talks and acts like a hip teen high schooler with a garage metal band. Interestingly enough, that seems to be the case with every single character in the book, irrespective of their age, education level or position in life. Blatantly a case of the author’s limitations limiting the characters. So some of these arrested development candidates find a secret Egyptian papyrus with secret notes to a secret sing that ought to bring on the apocalypse. And pay Kirk to play the song. But…Kirk falls in love with the daughter of the evil guy, develops integrity and finds a way to fight back using the power of good, conveniently provided for him in form of…wait for it…guitar. So that apparently Kirk isn’t just a skilled music player, but is a guitar wielding savior of the world. Heavy metal saves hives. Yeah, dude. Oh, boy. Top quote Kirk’s original thought from the book…how absurd is this shit? That’s actually a pretty profound thought for Kirk. But yeah, pretty freaking absurd. Granted, I don’t listen to a lot of heavy metal music, maybe this book is very much in line with it, no idea. Maybe that’s why it found its audience. But to the rest of the audience this isn’t scary enough or smart enough or even good enough to enjoy. Just a prolonged cheap, very cheap, thrill rendered in some very crappy amateurish writing. And this is supposedly a superlative reedited version, too. Seen on screen, it might have made a so terrible it’s kinda good 80s B movie or maybe a decent horrific comedy with the right director. On page, it’s trashy, dumb and covered with cheese. It does entertain, but it’s a pretty low form of entertainment, even for very tolerant genre fans. If you are planning on reading it, go in expecting nothing more than some dumb fun. Otherwise, it won’t strike a chord with you. Bam. Went there. Thanks Netgalley.

I fell in love with the blurb and was fascinated by the mix of horror, urban fantasy and music it promised.
My expectations were high and I can say they were met as this book is fun to read, entertaining and engaging.
I loved how the plot was developed, the well written cast of characters and the great plot.
It was as satisfying as a pizza will all kind of toppers and fun to read as only a weird mix of thing can be.
I look forward to reading other books by this author.
Highly recommended!
Many thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for this ARC, all opinions are mine.