Tracy’s review of Angels of Darkeness by Ilona Andrews, Nalini Singh, Meljean Brook & Sharon Shinn.
They soar through the night, unearthly creatures of legends and lore. Four masters of urban fantasy and paranormal romance explore the rapture of the heavens above, and the darkness below in four all-new stories of angels and guardians, and good and evil.
Alphas: Origins by Ilona Andrews
When a young woman is taken captive by a dangerous male, she is pulled against her will into a world hidden from humanity’s view, where those with superhuman powers fight a bloody civil war. Now she must make a choice: to submit and become a pawn or to take hold of her own destiny.
Karina is minding her own business, driving children, including her daughter Emily, home from a field trip when she takes an exit on the road so that one of the children can use the facilities. Little did she know that that decision would change her life forever. She’s infected by a demon with a fatal poison and the only way to counteract the venom is by letting yet another “alien” feed on her. Karina fights for Emily and eventually the human race in general and is eventually drawn into the life and hell that she’s come to know.
This was a new world that Andrews created and though a very violent and strange one, it was incredibly compelling. I loved that Andrews, once again, pulled no punches. She made the bad guys bad and the good guys one step behind them. What would you do in order to save the world and those you love? It’s a hard moral question and one that Karina has to ask herself. As a reader I was intrigued by the story and can’t wait to read more stories set in this world.
Angel’s Wolf by Nalini Singh
Rafael sends Noel to Louisiana to help out the head of that territory, Nimra. She’s deeply feared but Noel can’t quite figure out why. Noel believes that Rafael is actually demoting him when in actuality he’s putting a ton of trust in the vampire.
Nimra finds that she’s was almost poisoned by someone close to her but she can’t figure out who it is. She hesitates to accuse someone who’s been with her for so long and that she’s lived so closely with. Noel is the vampire who is there to be an outside eye. Nimra and Noel find that they have more than the case in common and soon become more than indispensible to each other.
This was a story in the Guild Hunter series and it was another great one. I really love Singh’s characters in these stories. They so unapologetically hard yet they have to be because of the world that they live in. They’re good people though – you just have to crack the outer shell. Lol A great story.
Nocturne by Sharon Shinn
This is the story of Moriah who works as a cook at a remote school and we find out that she’s hiding from something. She’s a very curious sort and likes to investigate things. She soon discovers that there’s an angel living in the Housekeepers house – that no one is allowed to enter. Due to certain circumstances she eventually meets the angel and through her brash talk soon talks him into trying to live again – after he was blinded. Moriah talks with Corban and manages to get him to try flying again – along with living.
I’ve not read anything by Shinn before but this story made me think that maybe I’ve been missing out. Her world of angels was quite intriguing and this novella was quite good. Moriah was a tough talker even though she had some issues in her past. She didn’t really take shit from anyone and I really liked that about her. Corban was really at his lowest point – even though he’d been blind for 2 years. He was ready to give up on just about everything and Moriah made him see there are ways around disabilities. It was a lovely start to a romance and a nice message of hope.
Ascension by Meljean Brook
Marc has been a Guardian for years and has been in love with fellow Guardian for many, many years. They were great friends for a while but after they slept together Radha took off and never spoke to him again. Now Marc is in a small town looking for a demon when Radha shows up and chooses to stay with him. After some communication the pair discover that their problems aren’t insurmountable. Neither Radha nor Marc ever fell out of love with the other so they pick up…more or less…where they left off.
I love Brook’s Guardian series novels and her novellas are just as good. I really felt Marc’s pain when he was thinking about his past with Radha and still, after many years without her, trying to figure out why she left. Radha giving into the feelings that she never lost was sweet – even though she wasn’t really a “sweet” woman, was wonderful to see.
Overall the anthology was very good. All of the stories were good and they all kept me reading.
Rating: 4 out of 5
You can read more from Tracy at Tracy’s Place
This book is available from Berkley Trade. You can buy it here or here in e-format.
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