Series Review: Angelfire

Angelfire and Wings of the Wicked

Author: Courtney Allison Moulton         

Publish Date: 2011 / 2012

Publisher: HarperCollins

I must apologize. It’s taking me forever to write reviews but not read. >_< I really should start writing a review as soon as I’m done reading rather than jumping into the next book,. Or in the instance of the Angelfire books, I read them back to back. 

The story follows Ellie, a girl who has extraordinary abilities. She has a companion, Will and they basically protect the world from the greater evils of the depths of Hell.

The story environment is fantastic and very realistic. It’s like watching a movie in words. There’s no confusion or puzzlement over what something looks like or what exactly that is. Everything is clearly and realistically drawn out. 

Ellie is a wonderful character. She’s smart, and strong and doesn’t buckle under the task appointed to her, though there are instances where the reader can feel her despair and want to quit. But she doesn’t. She grits her teeth and pushed through. No matter how impossible it may seem she still fights for her future. It’s super admirable. 

Will is complex. His only thought, his very existence relies on Ellie. It’s weird in a way and slightly unsettling at first when his full nature is revealed and the story behind it. His loyalty and love for Ellie is unquestionable and unshakable throughout both books and it’s wonderful to read the lengths he goes to keep himself by her side. 

The story itself moves quickly from point A to point B without much of a stop inbetween. Ellie is thrust from one problem to the next, sometimes of her own doing, and sometimes it is outside of her control. There’s no way to read just one chapter at a time simply because by the end of the chapter there’s something else that needs attended to and the reader is dying to know what’s going to happen. (Or at least I was)

In whole the books were amazing. It’s a definitely top of the charts paranormal book that all paranormal fans should read. However, I recommend blocking out a decent amount of time for it. Once started there’s no stopping until the end of the second book is reached and then there’s no way to continue like the story demands it be continued because the last in the series hasn’t been released yet. It’s heart wrenching. T_T Once again, if you’re a lover of paranormal you MUST read this series. It doesn’t get any better than this. 

My Rating:

Series Review: Jeri Smith-Ready

I had fully intended on posting this yesterday. T_T; So I'm a day late, BUT not a dollar short. I finished the series on Monday, but haven't actually gotten around to writing a review for any of the books so I thought I'd do it as an overall series review. 

The Shade series is by far one of the most creative and unique series I've come across to date.  The series stays as close to real facts as possible while creating its own ideas at the same time.  It takes a new twist to the monoliths and ghosts and weaves an incredibly realistic world.

Our heroine is Aura.  She is by far one of my top picks for best heroine award.  Simply because she's not a whiny, mewling child that expects a man to rescue her.  She expects to help and often helps when she's told not to.  It's great that she's independent yet, she does ask for a helping hand when it's needed.  She's human and often makes mistakes, but that only adds to her appeal and makes her more real for me.  Throughout the series she grows from a slightly skeptical, smart, cautious young girl into an even smarter, slightly less skeptical, and more cautious young woman.  She grows into who she is, and it makes her such a great character that if she had a counterpart in reality I would be her BFF. 

Enter Zachery Moore, love interest number two actually, but that's not a long story that isn't explained in the first chapter, and I'm not giving it away.  He is a fantastic Mr. Right.  Not Mr. Perfect because he does have some flaws that makes the reader wonder sometimes if his head is screwed on right.  Throughout the series though he is an invaluable companion to Aura and though I feel she would have still gotten to her end destination without him, I think it was a good thing she had him.  Dylan said it best, "Zachary was like a freak­ing su­per­hero. Cap­tain Pa­tience or some­thing.”  That is completely apparent throughout the entire series. 

The story is flawless. Each book leads into the next with fluid grace.  There is no reading one without reading the others.  The plot is written so well, there's an "I have to know what happens" effect that occurs while reading.  It sucks the reader in and leaves them begging for more.  There are no plot holes or time distortions that ruin the fluidity.  All loose ends are tied off by the end of the last book.  There's not wondering what happened or what if.  

The ending is beautiful.  While I was very sad to see it end, at the same time I was happy with the finale.  It was right, and necessary.  I'm sad to see such wonderful characters go, but it was such a fantastic journey I know I'll be reading through it again, and again.  

My Rating