My Rating: 3 hearts
Thoughts on the Novel: Although Michelle Rowen’s Dark Kiss had a somewhat interesting take on angels and demons in that neither side was completely good or bad, it ended up being an average read at the end because its plot lacked cohesion at times. As well, I thought Sam came off as sort of wishy-washy and naïve, and found it ironic that she claims to mock romance of any form when her own romance with Bishop – another character who I thought lacked depth – was insta-love and not particularly great. The one character I did like though was Kraven since he was snarky and seems to have an interesting backstory.
Dark Kiss was released in May 2012 by Harlequin Teen.
In exchange for an honest review, this ARC was received from the publisher (Harlequin Teen) for free via NetGalley.
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| original image from thegate.ca |
My Rating: 3 hearts
Thoughts on the Novel: Angel Eyes by Shannon Dittemore is actually pretty different from the typical YA angel novel out there. For one thing, it has a strong religious undertone throughout the novel, which may not appeal to everybody. However, it doesn’t come off as preachy; instead, it nicely ties questions about faith in God and free will into the plot. That said, the latter half of the book did feel a little heavy with the religious aspect.
Another way that Angel Eyes differs is that it doesn’t succumb to common themes. For example, I was fully expecting Brielle to either be an angel or fall for one - and was pleasantly surprised to find that didn’t turn out to be the case.
Angel Eyes was released by Thomas Nelson Fiction in May 2012.
In exchange for an honest review, this ARC was received from the publisher (Thomas Nelson) for free via NetGalley.
I tend to stay away from Angel books, but I do like to make note of those that aren't too preachy. I'm not sure either of these are for me, but AE sounds interesting because the character doesn't fall for an angel or isn't one. That seems different.
ReplyDeleteNice minis. Why don't you go read about vampires now. Please, with cherries on top. LOL
Just kidding. I don't expect everyone to be a fangbanger like me.
DeleteMy interest for angel books has been dwindling recently. I feel like most of them have cliched plot and only few are quite original, but I've had my eyes on Angel Eyes for a while now... though after reading your review, I'm having second thoughts whether to buy it or not.
ReplyDeleteI've read mixed reviews of Dark Kiss, but I've heard pretty consistently good things about Kraven, so that may be enough to make me want to read this one. Snarky boy? Sign me up:) Love these mini reviews Zahida!
ReplyDeleteGreat mini reviews! I haven't read Dark Kiss yet but I've noticed it's been generating some fairly mixed reviews. Kraven seems like an interesting character though - I wouldn't mind meeting him.
ReplyDeleteAngel Eyes got a 3 star rating from me too. I liked that it was a fairly different take on Angels but it still didn't fully meet my expectations. I was expecting a little more from it, I think.
I totally agree with you in both of these reviews. The characters had very little depth in Dark Kiss but I liked Kraven. And Angel Eyes, the religious undertone was just too much for me and I stopped reading at 75%. I just couldn't go on. Great mini reviews :)
ReplyDeleteKraven was my favourite too! I loved how he seemed like the bad boy and Bishop seemed like the good boy, but they really weren't what they seemed -- it added to their charm, I think! ;) And I think Angel Eyes is being a three for most people because of the strong religious undertone. But it's cool how Brielle isn't an angel and doesn't fall for one! That's really different :)
ReplyDeleteThanks so much for the awesome honest mini-reviews, Z! <3
Angel books are largely a miss with me, especially ones with religious overtones. Perhaps it's due to not believing that angels could have free will or have any desire to become/fall in love with a mere mortal. I can't fix that disconnect.
ReplyDeleteGreat reviews! I thought the same about Angel Eyes, way too religious for me. I haven't read Dark Kiss because I grew tired of angel books that I'm not a fan of in the first place, but it doesn't sound like anything to write home about either. Bleh.
ReplyDeleteI really am looking forward to Angel Eyes. That cover is amazing and I haven't read a angel book in a very long time. Sounds like something I might borrow at the library. ;)
ReplyDeleteTwo angel books and two not so positive reviews. No surprise there from me. I'm not even sure I can pinpoint why I have never been impressed with an angel book. Granted, I have never read Unearthly of Daughter of Smoke and Bone, so maybe my tune would change if I had. As far as these two go, I can't say I'm interested in either of them. Though it is sort of interesting that neither the main character nor the love interest in Angel Eyes is an angel - that's new to me. Thanks for the reviews!
ReplyDeleteI think I can comfortably pass on both of these. Thank you! Preachy, shallow characters, and insta-love are not for me. I do like the sound of Kraven though.
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