COMPLETE DARKNESS
Matt Adcock
Burton Mayers
October 25, 2019
Reviewed by Ray Palen

… and men loved darkness rather than Light, for their deeds were evil. – John 3:19

With that chilling biblical passage we are introduced to Matt Adcock‘s genre-defying novel, COMPLETE DARKNESS. The year is 2242 and the world finds itself existing in a time where darkness or “dark matter” surrounds them. Those who are brave enough to dare penetrating said dark matter find themselves in what may very well be hell itself.

Our hero, if one can be called so in this bleak existence, is the one who is called Cleric20. Cleric20 operates in and around the darkness accompanied only by his robot sidekick, GiX, who reminded me of a mix between Dr. Who‘s K-9 or one of the many droids from the Star Wars saga. Cleric20 seeks to unravel the secrets of the dark matter and discovering the elusive God Particle that has become an obsession for so many on the planet, most specifically the scientists and the Satanic President Razour.

Razour is trying to bring about armageddon in spite of the many living beings who are seeking to repent in an attempt to alleviate the dark matter they feel has been placed there as a form of punishment. It’s as if everyone is living in their own personal purgatory.

As we travel along with Cleric20 and GiX, we get to truly experience the horrific landscape author Matt Adcock has created. This landscape is capable of so much violence and terror, yet Cleric20 never loses sight of the fact that there may be a way out of the darkness and all is not lost for those who feel philosophically hopeless.