Author: Shannon Dittemore
Publisher: Thomas Nelson
Published: May 29, 2012
Add On: Goodreads
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
Angel Eyes is the tale of a guilt-ridden girl whose attempt to start over in her old town leads to the unexpected. When Brielle Matthews moves back in with her dad, the last thing she anticipates is for her world to be turned upside down – again. With fear proving to be something greater than she could ever have imagined, and unanswerable questions racing in her thoughts, Brielle soon finds herself caught in the middle of something out of this world – the war between demons and angels.
This is a tricky genre, both because of the sheer number of other angel books out there and also because the handling of religious ideas. Shannon Dittemore’s take on angel lore proved to be a fascinating one, with not only alluring descriptions of both demons and angels, but also a strong presence of thought-provoking questions. There is a real sense of this story being more than just a typical paranormal romance, and that much shines through in the many issues Brielle addresses when it comes to faith. Like how an omnipotent and benevolent god could have let her mother die so young. These deeper themes were nicely balanced with lighter aspects, one of these being the sweet romance between Brielle and the new boy in town.
Jake proved to be an interesting character and the contrast between his livelier personality and Brielle’s deflated one brought a spark to the story. Admittedly, although I did enjoy the romance overall, it felt very clichéd at the start. Jake just happened to choose the empty seat next to Brielle on his first day, which felt all too familiar to me. Things did improve as the story progressed and most of the clichés were ironed out sooner or later. It was nice to see Brielle come out of her shell a little and display some confidence in the second half, and I hope to see the author take that further in the next book.
What I really appreciated in the plot was the element of mystery that shrouded Brielle’s past. The tragedy that she was escaping from was something I was eager to find out more about, and was impressed with the way Shannon Dittemore intertwined events of Brielle’s past with the angels and demons. The latter part of the novel was fast-paced and full of action. Even up until the final pages new twists were revealed – one in particular that makes me eager to get my hands on the sequel.
I have mixed thoughts on this book overall, and while it didn’t blow me away, I still thought it to be a good addition to the angel genre. The author's writing was lovely, and the pacing was nicely controlled. This is worth a read, especially for people who are strong fans of angel books.
GIVEAWAY
To win an e-copy of this book, enter the giveaway below. Open internationally.
This book sounds really cool. Thanks for the giveaway! :)
ReplyDeleteI'm glad to see you enjoyed this one, Sam! I agree, the competition for angel books is kind of crazy and it's hard for one to really stand out. I'll probably give this one a go eventually. Great review!
ReplyDeleteOh, also, I'm going to include this on my Book Giveaway Finds, which comes out every Saturday. http://www.faeryinkpress.com/book-giveaway-finds
ReplyDeleteI've seen this pop up a few times on blogs and it looks pretty awesome. Would love to read it :)
ReplyDeleteI love the cover! Looks so cool!
ReplyDeleteBook look good thanks for the give away
ReplyDeleteAngel books are definitely a tricky group for me as well Sam, sometimes they work great for me and other times I just can't get on board. I'm glad that initial cliche's in this one get worked out a bit as the story continues, I can deal with some familiar elements in the beginning as long as I know there leading somewhere new:) Fabulous review!
ReplyDeleteI haven't really read too many of the angel/demon books. Honestly, I think it's better when the religious aspect isn't touched on as much, just because I know that can rub people the wrong way and it might turn things too serious. Sounds like a cute/thoughtful read though. I'm glad you enjoyed it overall.
ReplyDelete-Lauren
Very nice review, Sam. I still don't know if I'm going to review this one. I agree with you about wanting to find out what happened though.
ReplyDeleteNicely reviewed, Sam. I'm glad that still end up to be a fascinating read.
ReplyDeleteYou're review is fantastic. Very thoughtful and well-written. I'm actually a huge fan of the angel/demon books, but I don't like when the main focus of the book is religion. (That's sort of strange, isn't it?) Too much religion makes me a little uncomfortable, but it's mostly because I have extremely religious friends and extremely atheist friends. I'm used to shying away from the topic.
ReplyDeleteAngel Eyes sounds like a fun read. I love when authors use the love interests to measure out parallels and differences between people. I probably won't pick it up though, unless I'm really bored.
Lovely review Sam. You're right, there are a lot of angel books out there now. Angel has become the new vampire, haha! The romance sounds sweet. I'll have to give this one a try. Thanks for the awesome giveaway! :)
ReplyDeleteI've read only a few Angel books, but I didn't really enjoy many of them. Because of that, I tend to stay away from Angel stories.
ReplyDeleteI like that this book was thought-provoking. I might give it a shot someday ! :)
Great review, Sam :)
As tired as I am both of YA PNR and angels, I love that this doesn't just gloss over important issues, including the religious aspects. This is very important, I think, encouraging people to think about what's in the background, not just the surface issues.
ReplyDeleteI'm pretty sure a girl who lost her mother would, in reality, ask herself all these questions so it would be kind of silly not to address them in the book.
Lovely review as usual, Sam!
I think Angel Eyes looks pretty down right incredible and I'd love to read it. Fingers crossed to win!
ReplyDeleteI was kind of enjoying this and got to 75% but the strong religious aspect was just a bit too much for me and I had to put it down. I think I'm better sticking to fallen angels lol, I'm not a fan of the good guys :D Great review
ReplyDeleteI wish I could get enthusiastic about an angel book but they just aren't my thing. That being said, I am intrigued by the mystery elements that are woven into the story, a good mystery alway holds my interest. I might have to give this a read after all.
ReplyDeleteAngel-books are always tricky for me too! But it sounds like this one does it kind of right on its own way if you liked the descriptions on the angels and demons, and I like that it's an angel-book that makes you question things too -- sort of like Unearthly! x) And YAY that the romance looses its cliche quality as it progresses because I tend not to mind as much if things improve! :)
ReplyDeleteAwesome honest review, Sam! It may not be perfect but it sounds like a sweet angel read! :) <3
The best part of coming back from my blog hiatus was finding out that YOU were back from yours!!! I've missed you, Sam!! Wow, I really love the synopsis of this story, and I especially love this review. It sounds heartbreaking and romantic at the same time. I can handle a little "cliche'" in my romance if it's set in a great plot. This one has me intrigued for sure. Thank you for the review and the giveaway!
ReplyDeleteOoh this sounds interesting.
ReplyDeleteThanks for doing this giveaway!
Amazing review like usual, lovely! <3 For some reasons, I avoid books about angels most of the time. I've never been comfortable to read books that mingle religion with fiction, but this one sounds amazing! Glad that most of the clichés are gone in the end of the book! I'm such a hopeless romantic so it doesn't bother me usually, but it's always nice to read realistic romance hehe! x)
ReplyDeleteI've found it really hard getting into paranormal books lately too, I think sometimes it's just a little overdone, but it's good to know you relatively enjoyed this one! :)
ReplyDeleteI've been itching for this one!
ReplyDeleteSam, I want to thank you for your review. Very thoughtful and it is much appreciated. AND can we just talk about your header for a moment? How beautiful is THAT?
ReplyDeleteThank you Shannon! I enjoyed reading and reviewing your book. And thanks for stopping by. ;) I really like my header too. I had it made for me and I adore it. :)
DeleteThe cover is beautiful! Curious about the story itself.
ReplyDeleteCover love! The book sounds really great too!
ReplyDeleteI really want to read this book! It looks amazing =) x
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