Author: L.A Weatherly
Pages: 464
Genre: YA
Publisher: Candlewick Press
Angel Burn was kindly provided to me by Netgally
AMAZON: Angel Burn
Synopsis. (Goodreads)
Willow knows she’s different from other girls, and not just because she loves tinkering with cars. Willow has a gift. She can look into the future and know people’s dreams and hopes, their sorrows and regrets, just by touching them. She has no idea where this power comes from. But the assassin, Alex, does. Gorgeous, mysterious Alex knows more about Willow than Willow herself. He knows that her powers link to dark and dangerous forces, and that he’s one of the few humans left who can fight them. When Alex finds himself falling in love with his sworn enemy, he discovers that nothing is as it seems, least of all good and evil. In the first book in an action-packed, romantic trilogy, L..A. Weatherly sends readers on a thrill-ride of a road trip - and depicts the human race at the brink of a future as catastrophic as it is deceptively beautiful.
They’re out for your soul . . . and they don’t have heaven in mind.
REVIEW: 3.5 out of 5 stars
Angel Burn is the first book in the Angel Trilogy by L.A. Weatherly and was kindly provided to me by Netgalley for Candlewick Press.
Angel Burn is the story of 16 year old half-angel, half-human Willow Fields; she is quite content lying low in the small town of Pawtucket living with Aunt Jo and her mentally disabled mother tinkering with cars and using her psychic ability to give readings; she can look into the future and know people’s dreams and hopes, their sorrows and regrets, just by touching them. .
The story starts out with Willow giving a reading to a fellow student, Beth and what she sees both shocks and mystifies her; she never believed Angels truly existed but had heard the hype about The Church of Angels and their lure to humans - seeing the negative path Beth's future held gave her an opportunity to try and dissuade her from joining the church but her efforts proved fruitless, it just bought the angels focus onto herself.
Alex Kylar is an angel assassin, he has lost a number of family members from angel burn or angel related deaths so truly holds a grudge, his father was the founder of the Angel Killers or AK’s and he has followed in his footsteps and is now employed by the CIA.
He had received a message with an angel sighting, his assignment to terminate on sight but when he senses Willow, he realizes she is not wholly angel but also part human and has his doubts about who the order had come from.
Alex becomes Willow’s protector when the Angels realize she is the one person who could defeat them, they are on the run for their lives to try and evade not only members of the church but also the angels who are out to kill both of them. It was a road trip with non-stop action that kept me turning the pages, there didn't seem to be anyone on their side but they remained optimistic.
Angels in Angel Burn are certainly unique and not portrayed in the nicest of ways, when an angel feeds off someone, the effect is toxic, the person perceives the angel as wonderful and kind, but meanwhile it’s damaging them in some way – causing disease or mental illness; the more the persons energy is drained, the more severe the burn.
I was fascinated by the story and the way angels were perceived; some things I found unrealistic, Alex being a 17yo CIA operative for one was truly a tad far fetched but I was able to overlook this and enjoy the story.
The romance between Willow and Alex was sweet, it didn’t start off all that great with his hatred for angels and her being a half breed but he eventually accepted her for who she was; of course their was instant attraction and love again but I have come to accept that in the YA genre. I am curious to see how their relationship evolves.
There were a few things left unanswered which I am hoping will be followed up on in the sequel, I was curious about Raziel - angels are unable to reproduce but it was obvious that it could happen, I wanted to know why. I also wanted to know why Willow’s angel seemed to exist as a separate entity and had no halo.
The plot was well thought out and creative; it was fast paced and engaging. The writing was choppy at times and the switching back and forth from first to third narrative drove me batty; I wish it was consistent throughout.
All in all, an enjoyable start to this new trilogy, Book 2 ‘Angel Fire’ has an expected release date of October 1st 2011.
Interesting review. I gave it the same rating, but I disagree a bit on Willow and Alex. There was instant attraction but their falling in love was built up quite slowly and the author put in lots of moments of them getting closer before they got together. I actually thought there was too much of that!
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