Review: Angels' Blood
Our heroine is Ellie, a vampire hunter. In this world, vampires are made by angels, and are indentured to them for their first 100 years of life. If one decides to break the terms of the deal, the Guild gets a call to track him down and return him to his angel. Ellie is one of the best hunters there is; she can track vampires by scent. And as a result, when the archangel Raphael needs a hunter, Ellie is the one he wants.
To call Raphael intimidating would be an understatement. He is centuries old and barely relates to humanity. He is alpha to the extreme; he is sexy; he is a warrior. And he can manipulate the minds of humans. Ellie is both attracted and repulsed by him at the same time. She fights her attraction tooth and nail, which intrigues him. And once she becomes interesting to him, the chase is on.
As a relationship starts to grow between Ellie and Raphael, the two of them must hunt for an angel who is turning into vampire of sorts. (It's complicated.) The hunt gives the book plenty of action and excitement. There is a strong cast of secondary characters, ranging from Ellie's fellow hunters to the angels and vampires in Raphael's entourage. I liked the world building and I loved the ending.
So why am I not writing sonnets to the book? I guess it was hard for me to get on board with the love story. Such a point was made about Raphael's lack of humanity and he was drawn to me as someone incapable of a real romantic love. He inflicts his will on others; he sees Ellie as a puzzle --or an interesting thing-- more than a woman. I guess you can say this changes as she "makes him more human," but it was hard for me to see him as a man capable of love. It felt more like an ownership or she was more like a favored pet than a mate. With the way the book ended though, I think maybe that could change. I'll keep reading to find out... 4 stars.
Click to purchase: Amazon
Angels' Bloodby Nalini SinghRelease Date: March 3, 2009Publisher: Berkley
Labels: Angels, by Jen, Nalini Singh, Paranormal Romance, Vampires
posted by Jen at Red Hot Books @ 8:51 AM
5 Comments
5 Comments:
I did feel like you with this book but I will say their relationship deepens over the series and becomes more than just an ownership/possession kind of thing.
It was never a favorite series for me but I do like Elena and Raphael more over time.
You’re definitely not alone, I never really got into the series and I agree with you, Raphael is just too inhuman, I guess, and the angels in general seem one-dimensional (perhaps with the exception of the Ilium). The vampires, on the other hand, are more appealing to me, which is why I kept reading the series hoping for the time when they would get their books. I was a bit disappointed by Dmitri’s books, but I think the series has potential as long as it stays away from Elena and Raphael.
Have you read the Psy/Changeling series? Those books are FANTASTIC! They have nothing to do with this series and if you haven’t read them you should start ASAP (so we can talk about it and discuss what’s to come).
Woops! I forgot I was logged in with the other account, sorry about that, the last comment was mine! ;-P
I ended up liking the later books in the series much better. I thought their relationship evolved over time as they both changed.
I'd really like an Ilium story, though --or one for the white winged angel whose name is escaping me...
As for the other series -- it is on my TBR list. You know how that goes...
Thanks for the post. I haven't read this yet. I had heard good things about it. Now I'm not sure if I'll read it or not. I like a hero who has a connection with the heroine. It doesn't sound like that's what I'll get with this book.
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