Take a pound of apocalyptic suspense, add a dash of conspiracy, a little romance, and you've got a recipe for publishing success.

When authors Tim LaHaye and Jerry Jenkins first imagined Left Behind, their goal was to create "...the first fictional portrayal of events that are true to the literal interpretation of Bible prophecy." Left Behind began as a sleeper, starting slowly and building steadily, selling by word of mouth. Eventually the book became a bestseller and LaHaye and Jenkins discovered that the story would take more than one book to tell, so they continued the tale in Tribulation Force.

Set against the backdrop of the Rapture, in which Jesus has returned as promised to gather his followers and remove them from this world, the characters in Tribulation Force must confront life without their loved ones, struggle with evil unleashed on the world, and ultimately embrace God's truth for themselves.

Pilot Rayford Steele, his daughter Chloe, journalist Buck Williams, and pastor Bruce Barnes band together to study the Bible, pray, and support one another through this time of terror and uncertainty. They realize that Nicolae Carpathia is the prophesied Antichrist, as they watch him consolidate his power. Buck and Rayford find themselves employees of Nicolae, keeping their faith in Jesus secret so that they can continue to work and share their faith unhindered while secretly fighting the Antichrist with the other members of the tribulation force.

Awesome !!! Spellbounding !!! Insightful !!! A Great read...

...having bought the first four books in paper back I sat down and began to read " Left Behind. " From there it was the most compelling roller coaster ride I have ever been on. I couldn't put it down , neither did I want to put it down. I started the second book ;"Nicolae" It too was very exciting .As I neared the end of the fourth book in the series, " Soul Harvest " I began to feel a great sense of loss that I would not have a continuing book to read in the wonderful journey of " The Tribulation Force "and the death of the antichrist.! But my friend told me about the fifth book in this series titled "Apollyon" and I and bought it. I have just began reading it , and must savour every word , because I know the sixth book is not out yet. In the beginning as I read the first two book's "Left Behind" & " Nicolae " , I found myself wanting to watch to see if CNN had something to report about the things I was reading , then only to remind me....I was reading a book!!! .Or think to look at the headlines in the news paper or Newsweek and see if they had any articles in it,,,I was reading a book , it is not happening. Or I found myself praying for certain people in the book, and praying in ernst that Amanda was not a spy to Potentate Carpathia. The reality of all that took place and is still happening in the annointed word of these book's have brought me back to reading my Bible again.I know there are millions that either believe in the Pre or Post Tribulation; I myself want and plan to go in the Great Rapture of The Church.I decided I won't be one who was "Left Behind" In God's reply to Jeremiah,12:verse 5 He said; "If you have run with footmen and they have tired you out,then how can you compete with horse's? If you fall down in the land of peace, how will you do in the thicket of the Jordan "? N.A.S.(Nelson). The Glory Train is here, everybody get on board. Peace and Love , In His matchless Name. Jesus... Lynda.

Gripping tale but some major theological errors

There is no doubt that LaHaye and Jenkins weave a gripping tale here. The first two books are extremely well paced and action packed. The character development is extraordinary and very tastefully done. They are certainly characters that one could relate to. However there are some problems with these books, if they are to be read as anything other than purely fiction (I say this because I know many people use these books as witnessing tools). First, this book, as it has been stated, can be very offensive to Catholics. As has also been pointed out, Jenkins and LaHaye do a very poor job of either understanding or conveying Catholic (and consequently mainstream Protestant) theology. For instance, the only reason that the Pope is saved in the Rapture is because he converts to a Lutheran line of thinking. Needless to say, the Catholic and Lutheran churches have similar lines of thought in eschatological theology, and both differ greatly from the evangelical viewpoint which is depicted in this book. There are other points which indicate poor research of the Catholic theological position which could have easily been rectified. These are unfortunately reasons for Catholics to put these books aside and pick up one which is more accurate and just as captivating (O'Brien's - Father Elijah - by Ignatius Press is one example). In addition, it must be said that this series originally started as a trilogy, and as is evident, we're now on the sixth book with no end in sight. This means that this is the last book which doesn't spend an enormous amount of time rehashing past episodes (books) to bring the reader back into the flow of the new books. This also means that this is the last book which is hard hitting and fast paced, as it appears the later books are more drawn-out to increase the amount of material for later books. In my mind, this is the greatest pity about this series, because if it was shortened, it could have been an excellent, five-star series. So, in conclusion: This is a great series to read if your an evangelical Christian, but I would please ask you to not let this book paint a picture of Catholicism which is untrue. This book is merely fiction so please don't let it sway you to believe things which are not true about other Christian denominations. Also, do not expect this series to maintain the high state of action, and hence the quality that you will get accustomed to in these first two books. It is a slow but steady decline from here on out.

Blahh!

After reading the first book Left Behind, I was so geared up for the second book of the 12 book series. Man, I was so disappointed. I actually found myself hoping one of the main characters would be eliminated to stop the madness of boring "does he like me?" "does she like me?" This theme was throughout the whole book. The end of the book was good and it let you know that it wasn't all for nothing because the next book which is Nicolae has to be better.