Customer Reviews

A Temptation of Angels

5 star:		(0)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

The book was okay, but I didn't like it near as muh as her other series (Prophecy of the sisters). The story ligne was good enough but I don't think the vilian was any good and have no idea how the series will continue. I didn't mind Helen, in fact, I quite liked her. But I didn't really get that attached to her like the sisters in her other books. I also didn't like the romance between Griffin and Helen. I don't like Griffin and find him quite boring. I don't think these two should be together and like Raum and Helen together better. The only thing was that Helen never seemed to like Ruam until the very end and then nothing happens between them!
I thought it would be better, but still an okay book.

This book was a bit disappointing for me, but I'm having trouble pinning down exactly why. I think most of my issues lie with the world building. I was so confused while reading it and I'm still confused now that I've finished it. What is a Keeper actually supposed to do? Just keep the world in order? How did they come about? I think this was mentioned briefly, but a lot of the book was spent with me trying to figure out what was going on and why. And for having angels in the title, I really didn't get an angel-y feeling. Or a temptation feeling for that matter.

My other issue was with the characters.I never felt a real connection with Helen. I didn't dislike her, I just didn't like her either. She seemed at times to have this major drive to be useful, but I wasn't always buying it. And her connection with Raum drove me crazy. You can't fix a guy that broken! And Griffin, the love interest, was nice, but a little boring. I'm sure I'd love him if I met him in real life, but as a character, he was a bit flat for me. And the romance wasn't quite right either. It felt a bit like Helen thought "Oh, he's nice to me. I must be in love with him!" Darius and Raum had a bit more to offer as characters I felt.

The writing was well done, but the plot felt a bit slow for me. Like I read 400 pages of what could have been done in 250. I don't want to bash this book too hard though, because it wasn't terrible. It wasn't great, but it wasn't terrible. I think it just lacked the things that make me fall in love with a book.

Cover:
Not really a big fan of the cover. It would have been better if they thought of something else to put on it concerning the book (maybe Helen's pendant, which plays a very important role in A Temptation of Angels) instead of Helen wearing a hood.

Writing:
(3/5) The writing flowed very well and was very easy to sink into right from the beginning.

Setting:
(3/5) Although set in Victorian England (a setting that I usually enjoy), the book didn't have much detail in the setting besides the barest minimum and I know some have classified it as "steampunk", but I wouldn't really call it that. The only thing that reminds me of steampunk are a couple of gadgets mentioned. I really did enjoy the idea of the Keepers, twenty descendants of angels who are chosen from birth to keep the balance in the world. A lot of mythology was told about them, which surprised me as this is a stand-alone novel. Nonetheless, I really liked learning about the mythology in the book and although angels aren't anything new, Michelle Zink did come up with more of a fresh idea. I only wish we got to learn more about them, especially the Dictata, the organization in charge of the Keepers.

Plot:
(4/5) As I mentioned before, the book was very easy to sink into. The plot was also highly enjoyable as I followed Helen's journey in which she loses her parents, discovers what she is, and tries to stop the people responsible for killing the other Keepers as well as her parents. There wasn't a chapter that didn't have my attention and the plot had me up in anticipation.

Main Character:
(1/5) Helen was portrayed as a very observant person, but besides this one rather small detail she was pretty flat. She was nothing that stuck out nor a character I particularly liked. I didn't hate or really dislike her either, if that counts for anything.

Villain:
(1/5) The villain also needs work. We learn about him unexpectedly and it was wrapped up rather quickly. He was the usual kind of villain, the kind that wants-power-so-he-can-bring-the-world-to-its-knees. Like Helen, there was no real depth to him.

Other Characters:
(2/5) By now, you've probably realized that the biggest flaw in the book was the characters. Many were just so stereotypical or not really thought out, all were very 2-dimensional. Griffin was probably my favourite, but his whole personality can be summed up as being the perfect golden boy. His brother Darius was sharp-tongued and very unaccepting of Helen. At times you wonder why he's so hostile. Another character main character was Anna, who was just so perfect. I did like Anna's father Galizur a bit, but again, he was nothing really special. Raum, Helen's childhood friend, had to be my least favourite for two reasons. One, I believe that the story would have been better without him. The other reason I will explain in the next section.

Romance:
(4/5) Like the plot, I really enjoyed the romance. It did happen pretty fast, but that didn't annoy me as much as it usually does (probably because it was done well). What did annoy me, however, was the love triangle. From the summary, I thought it would be a love triangle between Helen, Griffin, and Darius (not that I would have necessarily enjoyed that either). It was actually between Helen, Griffin, and Raum. I liked Helen and Griffin together, but not so much Helen and Raum. This is mainly because Helen had her eyes on Griffin and she makes it perfectly clear to Griffin that she doesn't have feelings for Raum (and I had thought to the readers as well), but BAM!!! Near the end, we find out that she has feelings for Raum as well!? I did not see that coming nor did I like it. Plus, Raum had this "I'm a tortured soul that can never be redeemed" vibe going on and that really annoyed me.

Overall:
(18/35) I still enjoyed A Temptation of Angels as it was a stand alone that tied the story nicely in the end (as opposed to all these YA series with annoying cliffhangers!!!). Although the characters need a lot of work, A Temptation of Angels was a book with an intriguing mythology, an enjoyable romance (excluding the love triangle with Raum), and a plot that kept me up.

There's no shortage of angel paranormal books in YA right now, but there's something special about A Temptation of Angels; it's an addictive, fascinating, page-turner that's remarkably refreshing for its genre.

I haven't read Michelle Zink's first series, Prophecy of the Sisters, yet but this reading her newest release has made me immensely curious to pick up those books!

Reasons to Read:

A Victorian setting:
I LOVE Victorian settings and books that can take that a step further by incorporating a paranormal twist are even better! A Temptation of Angels isn't the only book to do this (it's in good company with excellent books like Cassandra Clare's Infernal Devices series and Lia Habel's Dearly, Departed among others) but this is the first one I've read about angels.

A fast-paced story:
As far as I'm aware, this book's a stand alone and one that moves along rather quickly. With only one book to develop characters and a story, it can be very tricky to create such a detailed idea with only so many pages. But I was immediately drawn into the world, and I had a hard time putting this book aside for anything! The first few pages are in your face, bringing with them all sorts of excitement and riveting twists. And it just doesn't stop until it's over!

Cute romance with a sweet boy:
A Temptation of Angels is very clearly a YA paranormal romance - if you aren't interested in a romantic relationship developing and being a fairly key part of the plot, then I wouldn't recommend you try this one. But if you're like me, and you always enjoy a good romance then I think you'll truly appreciate the one that Helen finds in A Temptation of Angels... or at least partially.

It isn't a heavy paranormal:
I was expecting the paranormal aspect to be the driving force behind the story, so imagine my surprise when it really didn't strike me that way. Instead, the story focuses much more on a mystery aspect

Now all that being said... I also felt that too much was squeezed into this one book. It easily could have been spread out over two or three books and I think it would have been better if the story had been spread out that way. But it wasn't, yet it still featured just about all familiar aspects of a YA paranormal romance but all in one book. That led to some characters being less developed, and some relationships came off as unconvincing as well. I was especially expecting more from Raum, but easily felt that the story would have been better without him. He just came across as somewhat forced, and I don't think he was actually as important to the plot as the reader is led to believe.

And the book was so rich in details and history (which I loved) except for how confusing it came across at times; I would LOVE more explanation and a better look into the world that Michelle so creatively imagined and wrote about here. I just had so many questions and not enough answers to feel fully satisfied.

ARC received from Penguin Canada for review.