Archangel (Library Binding)

I look forward to reading the other books about this world, but first, I need something a little lighter and mindless....

And that reason is the only one why I gave "Archangel" any stars at all. The writing is standard, or substandard. The characters, as mentioned earlier, are essential to the story. And I ended up hating them. To me, a character who acts without motivation (even the motivation "she didn't know why she was doing it") is poor writing. I couldn't stand the female lead in the slightest. And the male lead was at the very best one-dimensional. The plot was absolutely transparent. It's sad that what was a very interesting and original idea ended up with such awful characters. I read halfway through the book and, just in case I was missing anything, skimmed the rest. I am not at all disappointed that I put down this book, and I never intend to read anything else from this author.

However ...

Conventional romantic-epic heroine Rachel -- willful, formerly victimized, advocate of the poor -- is the most unpleasant part of the book, which is unfortunate since she's ostensibly the center of it. Rachel may have a sense of justice, but she's intensely self-absorbed, nurses vendettas long past the point of return, and lacks any humility whatsoever. Readers are left to watch this self-sabotaging heroine rampage through the book with a chip the size of the starship Jehovah on her shoulder and wonder how on Earth the male protagonist, Archangel-elect Gabriel, manages to tolerate her, much less fall in love with her.

The ending, in which Rachel ends up having her cake and eating it too, feels like a sop to romance readers; it would have been much more interesting to see Rachel and Gabriel blow their chance for love (read: extended antagonism interrupted by libido) and learn to rule as sadder-but-wiser partners.

Despite this, I cannot recommend the follow-up, "Jovah's Angel," highly enough. There, the world-building is even more well thought out, and the heroine -- equally hobbled by circumstances -- holds the story aloft with an endearing blend of doubt, assertiveness, erudition, selflessness and wisdom. Come to think of it, ALL of Shinn's other heroines are much more engaging, so read this book only as background for the rest.