A Temptation of Angels by Michelle ZinkMarch 20th, 2012 · Dial Books for Young Readers
Source: Author (Thank you!)
Format: Hardcover
Page Count: 435
Even angels make mistakes in this page-turning epic romance.
When her parents are murdered before her eyes, sixteen-year-old Helen Cartwright finds herself launched into an underground London where a mysterious organization called the Dictata controls the balance of good and evil. Helen learns that she is one of three remaining angelic descendants charged with protecting the world's past, present, and future. Unbeknownst to her, she has been trained her whole life to accept this responsibility. Now, as she finds herself torn between the angelic brothers protecting her and the devastatingly handsome childhood friend who wants to destroy her, she must prepare to be brave, to be hunted, and above all to be strong, because temptation will be hard to resist, even for an angel.
Michelle Zink masterfully weaves historical fantasy with paranormal romance to create a gripping tale of love and betrayal.
Review:When her parents are murdered before her eyes, sixteen-year-old Helen Cartwright finds herself launched into an underground London where a mysterious organization called the Dictata controls the balance of good and evil. Helen learns that she is one of three remaining angelic descendants charged with protecting the world's past, present, and future. Unbeknownst to her, she has been trained her whole life to accept this responsibility. Now, as she finds herself torn between the angelic brothers protecting her and the devastatingly handsome childhood friend who wants to destroy her, she must prepare to be brave, to be hunted, and above all to be strong, because temptation will be hard to resist, even for an angel.
Michelle Zink masterfully weaves historical fantasy with paranormal romance to create a gripping tale of love and betrayal.
Sometimes authors can overload the reader all in one go but Michelle Zink knows exactly what she’s doing and takes her time unravelling the story; slowly easing you into the breathtaking world she has created. Although it is quite lengthy - 435 pages in total – after being bitten by the reading bug, I moved through it quickly and read it in under 24 hours. The pacing is good and keep me intrigued, wondering what was going to happen next.
I didn’t connect with Helen as much as I might have liked but she was still a good character. I especially loved how even though she was facing a whole new world which she was still adjusting to and hadn’t known long, she handled the situation well and was always brave in the face of danger.
As with the love triangle, I was neither team. I didn't have a strong pull towards any of the guys but the funny thing is, if I had to choose who my favourite was, I would choose, Darius, the non-contender.
Zink’s prose is lovely – rich, detailed and picture perfect to imagine. She certainly has a knack for writing historical fantasy, especially when it comes to angels, which you can tell she has a passion for. With its original and unique storyline, I can honestly say I’ve never read anything like this before; which with all the similar, repetitive storylines on the YA market, is a breath of fresh air!
3/5
Similar, repetitive storylines on the YA market?! ):
ReplyDeleteBut anyway, great review. I loved Michelle Zink's first book Prophecy of the Sisters, it's just a matter of finally grabbing the pb for the last book and I can tear through 2 and 3! I'm not one for love triangle thingies so we'll see how I go with this one.
Yep, nothing seems to be unique anymore :|
DeleteGlad to hear your a fan of the Prophecy series! I might just have to check that out.
Yeah i know what you mean with the overload. I love it when a book is well paced with just the right amount of info to keep you intrigued throughout without overdoing it. I have been meaning to read this one for a while and never even got a copy. I like how unique it sounds it's definitely good to get something fresh and new once in a while O_O
ReplyDeleteDefinitely! If your looking for something unique, this is a great place to start :)
DeleteI have been wanting to read some of her books, I have been really curious of her Prophecy of Sisters series, I hate it when you aren't into any of the romances. Great review!
ReplyDeleteKristin @ Young Adult Book Haven
I am filing this book away in my "on the off chance I don't have anything else to read and actually WANT to read a paranomral about angels" file. :) Despite how it sounds, that's actually a compliment to your review. Normally, I'd be, angels? Pass. Paranormal? Skip. But you have intrigued me with your something new and unique and nothing like anything you've read before words! :p
ReplyDeleteI really liked her series 'Prophecy of the sisters', so I'm really excited to try this one out. I'm glad to hear that she kept her writing style. In her series, she gave the story enough time to develop, instead of dropping down loads of information.
ReplyDeleteI keep hearing that Helen isn't such a strong character, though :) So you're not the only one with that problem. I'm not a fan of love-triangles, but I'm still going to give it a shot.
Thanks for the review!
I enjoyed this too but I never really thought of it as a love triangle (mostly because I hoped Helen wouldn't choose Raum!)
ReplyDeleteI was kind of ambivalent about this one - it reminded me so strongly of Kady Cross's "The Girl in the Iron Corset". Have you read that one ? (followed by "The Girl in the Clockwork Collar") Although of the two, I think I prefer ToA. Most of all, I felt like yes, there were so many interesting ideas, interesting characters, and it was (mostly) an easy read and I WANTED to like it, but I just was left feeling "meh". And double-meh to the love triangle - I refuse to believe that after ONE WEEK Helen and Griffin are completely and utterly in love.
ReplyDeleteOooooh, you know, I was never really interested in this one, but I don't know why :/
ReplyDeleteBUT. It's actually this. Your review--not talk of romance or amazing characters--but the writing, the story, how fast you flew through it that makes me want to read! Amazing review, Becca! ♥
This is why I hate love triangles! I feel like once an author introduces one they don't feel like they have to give depth to either one unless it's their abs, because that's all we're attracted to *scoffs*... I didn't really get into Zink's Prophecy of the Sisters series so I don't know how I would take to this one, but it sounds like a nice enough read with only a few mildly irritating pieces to it...
ReplyDeleteI'm glad to hear this is original and well-paced. I haven't read anything by this author before but I want to give this a shot. Despite not fully connecting with the main character, I'm glad you enjoyed this. Lovely review, Rebecca! :)
ReplyDelete