This was a truly strange read.

From a structural perspective, the book lacks a protagonist until halfway through. Up until that point, there is a succession of expendable characters.

In terms of the story, it is bleak and rather mean. Although nothing is overly described, the violence within it is simply unpleasant and unpalatable.

One can't help but wonder if Robert McCammon was in a particularly bad mood when he penned this work.

It's not that it's a terrible book; rather, it fails to offer an enjoyable reading experience.

Perhaps for some, the unique structure and the gritty nature of the story might hold a certain appeal. However, for the average reader, it may fall short of expectations.

Overall, while it has its moments, it doesn't quite manage to engage and captivate in the way that one might hope.

It remains a somewhat odd and underwhelming offering from the author.

After recently making the decision to go through McCammon's work, I had originally planned to read in publishing order, which would have meant commencing with Baal. However, for uninteresting reasons, I initially skipped Baal, and I'm truly glad I did. This particular work is rather rough, and I might not have continued my exploration of McCammon's works if I had started with it.

In fairness, it was published in the 70s by a 25-year-old author. Nevertheless, there is some truly uncomfortable racism present in this book. There are sections set in both the Middle East and an Eskimo village. In both cases, the native populations are depicted as curious animals. There are no non-white characters who come across as real or fully developed in any way. There is always a white counterpart. In the Middle East, Naughton connects with a British journalist. In the Eskimo village, a white missionary interacts with the characters. Comically, he sends them out to meet a mysterious shaman. I braced myself for McCammon's attempt at writing such a character, only to find out that the shaman is a white dude named Ryan whom the Eskimos worship because he's an extremely good hunter. Oh, and also they let him sleep with their wives because his seed is strong and they desire his strong white man genes. Yes, you read that right.

In terms of the horror aspect, there are some fleeting glimpses of his later skill, but little here is truly worthwhile. Baal has his moments as a villain, especially when he's still a child, but for the most part, he's rather lame. It probably contains the least amount of gore among any of McCammon's works that I've read so far. Also, it's always a minor pet peeve of mine when a crucifix is presented as an effective weapon in a horror context.

Ultimately, this one is only really worth it for a die-hard fan or for someone who is curious to see just how racially problematic a 300-page horror novel can be.

**** 4 STARS ****

A very good debut from a master storyteller. For a while, I had been procrastinating on reading Robert McCammon's debut novel, Baal. I had this preconceived notion that it wouldn't be very good. However, I was proven wrong. Baal has everything that a horror and adventure fan could desire. It is filled with thrilling moments and captivating characters.

Baal reminded me of McCammon's other book, They Thirst, which in my opinion is one of his best. There are also some aspects of Frankenstein present in Baal. The way the story unfolds and the themes explored are truly engaging.

My favourite parts of the book were definitely the opening and the last thirds. The opening sets the stage and grabs the reader's attention right from the start. The last third brings the story to a thrilling conclusion, tying up all the loose ends. And Baal himself was a great character. He was complex and mysterious, adding an extra layer of depth to the story.

Madre, qué truñaco.

And the protagonist is called Padre Virga and I gave it to read Padre Viagra.

For now, I have no more desire for McCammon, an author who has managed to make a story about the messiah of evil in the desert boring.

It's really quite a disappointment. I had expected more from his work. The concept of a story about the messiah of evil in the desert sounded so intriguing and full of potential. But somehow, McCammon has failed to bring it to life in an engaging way.

The characters don't seem to have much depth, and the plot feels rather flat. It's as if he didn't fully explore the possibilities of the premise. Maybe he was too focused on other aspects and overlooked the importance of creating a captivating narrative.

Overall, this experience with McCammon's work has left me with a sense of dissatisfaction. I'm hoping that his other books will be more interesting and will be able to recapture my attention.

Robert R. McCammon is rapidly emerging as one of my favorite authors. Boy's Life is truly the greatest piece of literature I've ever had the pleasure of reading.

Consequently, I've made the decision to go back and read his very first book to witness the evolution of his writing skills.

Baal is a story that shares similarities with and is no doubt inspired by novels like Rosemary's Baby or The Omen. However, it takes a slightly different approach and has a much broader scope on a global scale. The story commences in the United States, then ventures into the deserts of Kuwait, and finally reaches the Arctic wastelands of winter. Despite its epic proportions, it remains a rather simplistic novel. This is understandable considering it's the writer's first published work and thus, it may come across as somewhat amateurish.

It's a highly enjoyable, albeit flawed, novel that falters somewhat in its final act. The characters are engaging to read about, but they lack strong, distinct personalities, lacking the top-notch three-dimensional writing that I've come to associate with this author. Baal is an excellent antagonist. His actions and cruelty in the first half are absolutely terrifying, and there's an air of intense intimidation surrounding his character. However, in the final quarter of the novel, he devolves into a one-dimensional, shouting lunatic of a villain, ending the story on a somewhat disappointing note.

Overall, it's a decent novel. It has its flaws but is still fun to read, and the first half is actually really good. It's just a pity that it falls apart at the end. I wouldn't recommend this novel to those new to this author's work, but I would recommend it to those who have read multiple novels by Robert R. McCammon and are curious to see how far he's come as a writer. I rate it 6/10.

McCammons' first novel, which is often regarded as his "angry young man book", reads in a way that one might anticipate. There are flashes of true greatness within its pages, but unfortunately, there is also an excessive amount of unevenness. Additionally, there is just a hint of sentimentality that becomes more and more prominent as he grows older and refines his craft.

In my opinion, Part 1 of the novel should have been extended. It felt somewhat rushed, and there were aspects that could have been explored in greater depth. On the other hand, Part 2 could have been shortened. It seemed to drag on at times, and some of the details felt extraneous. However, Part 3 was just right. It had a good pacing and kept my interest throughout.

Considering the content matter, which had the potential to be truly terrifying, the novel fell a bit short. It should have been scarier than it actually was. I tried my best not to let the infantile cosmology and poorly researched historical details affect my rating, but there were several spots that induced severe eye-rolling. For example, the idea of actual demons recoiling at a crucifix seemed rather laughable.

Overall, I would rate this novel a 3.4 out of 5. While it has its flaws, it also shows promise and potential. I look forward to seeing how McCammons develops as a writer in his future works.

I truly wanted to savor and enjoy this book. However, as I delved deeper into it, I found that the story seemed to be extremely choppy in the middle.

The book appeared to make too many sudden jumps for my liking. I simply couldn't fathom how we were at one point in the narrative and then, all of a sudden, we were at another completely different point.

And here's what's really odd. The paperback copy that I own has the last page numbered as 291. But on this app, it shows that I'm only at 91% instead of the story being finished. The page numbers within the book are numbered correctly, which makes me question whether I have a book that is a misprint.

I have a clear understanding of what happened at the beginning of the story and also at the end. But the rest of it was just a bit of a bouncing blur, leaving me rather confused and dissatisfied with the overall reading experience.

The debut novel is so often an author’s strongest. It can feel like the most polished and precious of an author’s entire canon.

I have been a fan of McCammon’s for quite a few years now. However, my familiarity is more with his recent novels. It has taken me a bit of time to track down this, his debut novel.

With hopes set high, it quickly becomes apparent that McCammon is one of those authors who has really honed their craft over time. This debut is far from being his strongest novel!

Its biggest flaws lie with its uncertain grasp on time. Years ebb and flow through the book, but without any sort of specificity. The general backdrop of technology feels consistent, making it feel like Baal has aged like a soap opera’s progeny (overnight, and all at once).

With a broad scope for a horror novel, coincidence plays a large role which downplays the frightening scenes. The varied characters, though lively, do not ever feel like they have a permanent role in the novel, giving them all more of a minor, undeveloped feel.

There is plenty of horror and gore here - with an almost screenplay-like action and sense of setting. As the plot unfolds, it certainly follows an unpredictable path and the prose along the way hints at McCammon’s later mastery with words.

It’s an interesting first novel, and though I wouldn’t recommend starting with McCammon here, I certainly don’t regret reading it.

I did not approach this particular work with lofty expectations. This was mainly because even McCammon himself had stated that it was not his finest creation. After all, it was the very first book he penned, marking the beginning of his journey as an author.

Having said that, while the story itself was not outstanding, one could still detect inklings of the greatness that was yet to come from this talented individual.

For those who are die-hard fans of his, this book is an absolute must-read. However, for others, I would recommend they focus on his truly remarkable works such as "A Boy's Life" and "Swan Song". These latter two masterpieces truly showcase his literary prowess and are sure to captivate readers with their engaging plots, well-developed characters, and beautiful prose.

So, while this initial offering may not have been a home run, it does provide a fascinating glimpse into the early days of a writer who would go on to achieve great things in the world of literature.

The movie starts strong and aggressively, just as it promised, like a more violent version of The Omen.

However, once the character of Virga (the academic) appears and it changes from showing us what Baal does to telling us what Naughton and Virga see that Baal does, it then becomes the Simi version of The Omen. And although it has several scenes that do have an impact, it still doesn't quite come together completely.

The ending, well, it's just not there.

It can keep you entertained, but

apart from that, there are some things that are left to be resolved in a rather "plot convenient" way.

Overall, it's a 2.5-star movie.

That started out good.

It had an engaging beginning that piqued my interest and made me look forward to what was to come.

Then it got boring....really boring.

The story seemed to lose its momentum and became a slog to get through. I found myself constantly checking the page number, hoping for something to happen to liven things up.

I'm so glad this wasn't my first McCammon book, otherwise I wouldn't read any more, and would never know the glory of Swan Song and Boys life.

Those two books are absolute masterpieces and a testament to McCammon's talent as a writer.

2 stars for the first third, and 1 star for the fact that it was very well written....just didn't hold my interest.

The prose was beautiful and the descriptions were vivid, but unfortunately, that wasn't enough to keep me hooked. I had high hopes for this book, but in the end, it just didn't deliver.

Baal was McCammon's first novel.

It distinctly lacks the subtlety in style and pacing that is characteristic of most of his later works.

Moreover, it leans towards being more violent and extreme. In fact, there is a rape scene that occurs near the very beginning, which many readers might prefer to avoid.

However, despite these drawbacks, the novel does have its redeeming qualities. There are different segments and scenes that, in the end, all come together around a religious theme. This theme is quite effective, although, as mentioned earlier, it lacks the nuance and subtlety found in his subsequent novels.

Nonetheless, it presents a good spine-tingling plot of good versus evil. Interestingly, it holds up better now than most books from the 1970s, perhaps due to its unique blend of elements that, while not perfect, manage to engage and captivate readers even after all these years.