Review: Angel Eyes by Shannon Dittemore

2012-05-28T10:30:00.001+01:00

Title: Angel Eyes

Series: Angel Eyes Trilogy #1

Author: Shannon Dittemore

Publisher: Thomas Nelson

Publication Date: 9 May 2012
Source: NetGalley
Rating: 4/5

Synopsis from Goodreads

Once you’ve seen, you can’t unsee. Everything changes when you’ve looked at the world through . . .

ANGEL EYES

Brielle’s a ballerina who went to the city to chase her dreams and found tragedy instead. She’s come home to shabby little Stratus, Oregon, to live with her grief and her guilt . . . and the incredible, numbing cold she can’t seem to shake.

Jake’s the new guy at school. The boy next door with burning hands and an unbelievable gift that targets him for corruption.

Something more than fate has brought them together. An evil bigger than both of them lurks in the shadows nearby, hiding in plain sight. Two angels stand guard, unsure what’s going to happen. And a beauty brighter than Jake or Brielle has ever seen is calling them to join the battle in a realm where all human choices start.

A realm that only angels and demons—and Brielle—can perceive.

REVIEW

I will begin by saying that although I really enjoyed this book I can see it isn't going to be for everyone. There are heavy religious undertones which are only to be expected from an author whose father and husband are both preachers. Although the religious aspect is fundamental to the story-line it doesn't advocate a particular belief system, which was refreshing. Both sides of the theological debate were equally depicted giving the reader plenty of food for thought.

Told in dual first person narrative from the perspective of Brielle and Jake. Brielle has just returned to her home town following a tragedy in New York. This tragedy is shrouded in mystery, cleverly woven into the narrative adding an ingenious plot twist as all the elements are revealed. Having lost her mother at an early age, Brielle doesn't have much faith in God. Jake is the opposite, he oozes faith and calm, the mysterious new boy at school Brielle is drawn to.

As the story unfolds fate and destiny are examined closely, showing beautifully the way free-will and external influences can alter the path we choose to take with our lives. The writing style is vividly descriptive balancing deep philosophical debates with touches of humor and engaging characters.

The clever weaving of the Old Testament into the plot gave depth to the story as a whole. The theological debate within the story was very interesting; begging the question I am sure most of us have thought at one point or another - why does God let some people suffer or die while others that may deserve to suffer don't. Is there a bigger picture, does God have some sort of plan, do people move onto another plain where they have a purpose to fulfill??? The examination of faith was skilfully depicted no matter what your belief system.

I especially liked the way fear was portrayed, used by evil as a means of control. How fear holds people back in more ways than we fully comprehend at the time, how it can paralyze and corrupt.

I have to say the ending was really unexpected and has completely left me longing to know what happens next. I have become invested Brielle and Jake's future. I cannot believe I have to wait an entire year to find out what happens.

Book Angel Book Love List - May 2012

2012-05-27T10:30:00.000+01:00

These are the books that are being published this month that I would love to and intend to read. My TBR pile is a thing of joy I adore all of my fabulous books.

Image from Goodreads

Title: Until I Die

Series: Revenants #2

Author: Amy Plum

Publisher: Atom

Publication Date: 3 May 2012

Synopsis from Goodreads

Kate and Vincent have overcome the odds and at last they are together in Paris, the city of lights and love.

As their romance deepens there’s one question they can’t ignore: How are they supposed to be together if Vincent can’t resist sacrificing himself to save others? Although Vincent promises that he’ll do whatever it takes to lead a normal life with Kate, will that mean letting innocent people die? When a new and surprising enemy reveals itself, Kate realizes that even more may be at stake—and that Vincent’s immortality is in jeopardy.

In Die for Me, Amy Plum created a captivating paranormal mythology with immortal revenants and a lush Paris setting. Until I Die is poised to thrill readers with more heart-pounding suspense, spellbinding romance, and a cliff-hanger ending that will leave them desperate for the third and final novel in the series.

I have this to read. *pushes up pile* Check out this terrific review HERE from Daisy Chain Books

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Title: The Anti-Prom

Author: Abby McDonald

Publisher: Walker

Publication Date: 3 May 2012

Synopsis from Goodreads

Popular girl Bliss Merino is ready to have the perfect prom. But when she catches her boyfriend making out with her best friend in the back of the limo, she has only one thought: revenge...Bad girl Jolene Nelson is the last person anyone expected to see at prom. Yet here she is, dressed in pink ruffles and feeling like a fool for believing that he would actually show up...Meg Rose Zuckerman is ready to stop being a wallflower and start experiencing life firsthand. But when her date stands her up, she finds herself on the outside yet again...Three unlikely allies team up for a night of rebellion, romance, and revenge in this high-stakes dramedy from acclaimed young author Abby McDonald.

Love the sound of this one. My 11 year old has swiped it and is currently reading it along with telling me how much I'm going to enjoy it, lol.

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Title: City of Lost Souls

Series: The Mortal Instruments #5

Author: Cassandra Clare

Publisher: Walker

Publication Date: 8 May 2012

Synopsis from Goodreads

The demon Lilith has been destroyed and Jace has been freed from her captivity. But when the Shadowhunters arrive to rescue him, they find only blood and broken glass. Not only is the boy Clary loves missing–but so is the boy she hates, Sebastian, the son of her father Valentine: a son determined to succeed where their father failed, and bring the Shadowhunters to their knees.

No magic the Clave can summon can locate either boy, but Jace cannot stay away—not from Clary. When they meet again Clary discovers the horror Lilith’s dying magic has wrought—Jace is no longer the boy she loved. He and Sebastian are now bound to each other, and Jace has become what he most feared: a true servant of Valentine’s evil. The Clave is determined to destroy Sebastian, but there is no way to harm one boy without destroying the other. Will the Shadowhunters hesitate to kill one of their own?

Only a small band of Clary and Jace’s friends and family believe that Jace can still be saved — and that the fate of the Shadowhunters’ future may hinge on that salvation. They must defy the Clave and strike out on their own. Alec, Magnus, Simon and Isabelle must work together to save Jace: bargaining with the sinister Faerie Queen, contemplating deals with demons, and turning at last to the Iron Sisters, the reclusive and merciless weapons makers for the Shadowhunters, who tell them that no weapon on this earth can sever the bond between Sebastian and Jace. Their only chance of cutting Jace free is to challenge Heaven and Hell — a risk that could claim any, or all, of their lives.

And they must do it without Clary. For Clary has gone into the heart of darkness, to play a dangerous game utterly alone. The price of losing the game is not just her own life, but Jace’s soul. She’s willing to do anything for Jace, but can she even still trust him? Or is he truly lost? What price is too high to pay, even for love?

Darkness threatens to claim the Shadowhunters in the harrowing fifth book of the Mortal Instruments series.

I have a confession - I haven't read any of the series yet. I am, desperate to and plan on having a Cassandra Clare marathon in the Summer holidays.

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Title: Fated

Series: Soul Seekers #1

Author: Alyson Noel

Publisher: Macmillan Children's Books

Publication Date: 24 May 2012

Synopsis from Goodreads

Strange things are happening to Daire Santos. Crows mock her, glowing people stalk her, time stops without warning, and a beautiful boy with unearthly blue eyes haunts all her dreams. Fearing for her daughter’s sanity, Daire’s mother sends her to live with the grandmother she’s never met. A woman who recognizes the visions for what they truly are—the call to her destiny as a Soul Seeker—one who can navigate the worlds between the living and dead.

There on the dusty plains of Enchantment, New Mexico, Daire sets out to harness her mystical powers. But it’s when she meets Dace, the boy from her dreams, that her whole world is shaken to its core. Now Daire is forced to discover if Dace is the one guy she's meant to be with...or if he’s allied with the enemy she's destined to destroy.

I have this to read. I adored The Immortals series.

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Title: Adorkable

Author: Sarra Manning

Publisher: Atom

Publication Date: 24 May 2012

Synopsis from Goodreads

Jeane Smith is seventeen and has turned her self-styled dorkiness into an art form, a lifestyle choice and a profitable website and consultancy business. She writes a style column for a Japanese teen magazine and came number seven in The Guardian's 30 People Under 30 Who Are Changing The World. And yet, in spite of the accolades, hundreds of Internet friendships and a cool boyfriend, she feels inexplicably lonely, a situation made infinitely worse when Michael Lee, the most mass-market, popular and predictably all-rounded boy at school tells Jeane of his suspicion that Jeane's boyfriend is secretly seeing his girlfriend. Michael and Jeane have NOTHING in common - she is cool and individual; he is the golden boy in an Abercrombie & Fitch T-shirt. So why can't she stop talking to him?

Doesn't this just sound brilliant. It's in my pile [ : D ] and I will be reading it in celebration of Sisterspooky's Geek Week

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Title: So Silver Bright

Series; Theatre Illuminata

Author: Lisa Mantchev

Publisher: Square Fish

Publication Date: 22 may 2012

Synopsis from Goodreads

All Beatrice Shakespeare Smith has ever wanted is a true family of her own. And she’s close to reuniting her parents when her father disappears. Now Bertie must deal with a vengeful sea goddess and a mysterious queen as she tries to keep her family – and the Theatre Illuminata – from crumbling. To complicate it all, Bertie is torn between her two loves, Ariel and Nate.

I love this series. I've been waiting ages for the last book to be available in paperback so I could afford it. You can see the trailer HERE

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Title: The Peculiars

Author: Maureen Doyle McQuerry

Publisher: Amulet Books

Publication Date: 1 May 2012

Synopsis from Goodreads

This dark and thrilling adventure, with an unforgettable heroine, will captivate fans of steampunk, fantasy, and romance. On her 18th birthday, Lena Mattacascar decides to search for her father, who disappeared into the northern wilderness of Scree when Lena was young. Scree is inhabited by Peculiars, people whose unusual characteristics make them unacceptable to modern society. Lena wonders if her father is the source of her own extraordinary characteristics and if she, too, is Peculiar. On the train she meets a young librarian, Jimson Quiggley, who is traveling to a town on the edge of Scree to work in the home and library of the inventor Mr. Beasley. The train is stopped by men being chased by the handsome young marshal Thomas Saltre. When Saltre learns who Lena’s father is, he convinces her to spy on Mr. Beasley and the strange folk who disappear into his home, Zephyr House. A daring escape in an aerocopter leads Lena into the wilds of Scree to confront her deepest fears.

Sounds so interesting, although it has received a mix response so far.

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Title: Legacy

Series: Wintercraft #3

Author: Jenna Burtenshaw

Publisher: Headline

Publication Date: 10 May 2012

Synopsis from Amazon

The veil which marks the division between life and death is falling. Lost souls are seeping through to roam Albion's graveyard city of Fume.

Kate Winters' recent memory is lost. Relieved to be heading home to Albion, Kate can't shake the feeling that Dalliah Grey, the woman she's supposed to be working for, is not to be trusted.

Disgraced warrior Silas Dane plans to rescue Kate and save Albion from the advancing armies seeking to profit from the confusion. But the veil will not be easy to repair and Silas knows sacrifices have to be made.

Kate must return to the dark secrets detailed by her ancestors in the ancient book of WINTERCRAFT and learn from their mistakes to save herself.

This is another series I have on my shelf and am planning a reading fest in the Summer holidays.

Such gorgeous books *sigh* Have I missed any you think I would like???

Spotlight: Books I Would Like To See Published In The UK

2012-05-26T10:30:00.000+01:00

Read Mundie Moms brilliant review HERE

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Title: A Beautiful Dark

Series: A Beautiful Dark #1

Author: Jocelyn Davies

Publisher: Harper Collins (USA)

Publication Date: 5 Nov 2011

Synopsis from Goodreads

On the night of Skye's seventeenth birthday, she meets two enigmatic strangers. Complete opposites—like fire and ice—Asher is dark and wild, while Devin is fair and aloof. Their sudden appearance sends Skye's life into a tailspin. She has no idea what they want, or why they seem to follow her every move—only that their presence coincides with a flurry of strange events. Soon she begins to doubt not just the identity of the two boys, but also the truth about her own past.

In the dead of a bitingly cold Colorado winter, Skye finds herself coming to terms with the impossible secret that threatens to shatter her world. Torn between Asher, who she can’t help falling for, and Devin, who she can’t stay away from, the consequences of Skye’s choice will reach further than the three of them could ever imagine.

SSSWWWWOOONNNN

Book Angel Booktopia

Review: Angel Eyes by Shannon Dittemore

Book Angel Book Love List - May 2012

Spotlight: Books I Would Like To See Published In The UK