Tuesday, August 2, 2011

Book Review - Breath of Angel - Karyn Henley


Title:  Breath of Angel

Author: Karyn Henley

Review:  I was sucked into the pages of this book right away and I read it mostly in one evening, I had to go to sleep so I finished it the next day.  The characters are a bit stiff at times, but then ever so often you get to glimpse inside and see their true natures.  Angels, be them good or bad populate this book.  Bad angels seems like a strange concept, but then again Satan was the Son of the Morning and he isn’t exactly sweet and cuddly.

The ending I didn’t really go for and so that is why I rated it only 3 ½ stars.  Some things fell into place a bit too easily and neatly for my taste.  This is the first in the series and so the unresolved parts will get resolved in the next book or the next after that and I hope less neatly.  I think that the main character has been through enough, but with her destiny she has more on her plate and so that maybe the reason for the neat packaged ending in this first book.

Deceiving, guilt, love, murder, death, magic and the like fill these pages and I hope that the next one keeps the pace this one set.   I hope all the characters struggle as much as Mellie, a young girl thrown into a mess that was created way before her birth and yet she is the one left to sort through the wreckage left by others to save the world she loves.  This has the potential to be a great series and I could even see a movie in its future, if the next books are as interesting and fast moving as this one.


Publisher: Published June 21st 2011 by WaterBrook Press

ISBN: 0307730123

Copyright: 2011

Pages: 277

Quick Review: 3 1/2 stars (out of 5)

Why I Read It: I requested this from Blogging for Books.

Where I Obtained the Book: Sent by the publisher.

Synopsis:  The stranger’s cloak had fallen back, and with it, a long, white, blood-stained wing.

When Melaia, a young priestess, witnesses the gruesome murder of a stranger in the temple courtyard, age-old legends recited in song suddenly come to life. She discovers wings on the stranger, and the murderer takes the shape of both a hawk and a man.

Angels. Shape-shifters. Myths and stories—until now.

Melaia finds herself in the middle of a blood feud between two immortal brothers who destroyed the stairway to heaven, stranding angels in the earthly realm. When the feud turns violent and Melaia becomes a target, she finds refuge with a band of angels attempting to restore the stairway. But the restoration is impossible without the repayment of an ancient debt—the “breath of angel, blood of man,” a payment that involves Melaia’s heart, soul, and destiny.


Author Biography:  Award-winning author Karyn Henley has written more than 100 titles, including a mix of childrens books and articles, parent-teacher books, articles, and curricula, and preschool musicals and CDs/DVDs of original music for children.

Venturing into the young adult market, Karyns first book in The Angelaeon Circle trilogy, Breath of Angel, releases June 21 from WaterBrook Press (Random House).

An accomplished songwriter, Karyn has been a Dove Award nominee and received a regional Emmy Award as Music Composer for a Christmas television special. She has traveled worldwide speaking to parents and teachers and entertaining children and their families in storytelling/active movement sessions and concerts.

A graduate of Abilene Christian University (BSEd), Karyn received a Masters of Fine Arts degree in Writing for Children and Young Adults from Vermont College of Fine Arts in 2004.

Karyn lives in Nashville, Tennessee.

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