Aug 29 2011
Breath of Angel by Karyn Henley
As regular readers of this site know, I am intrigued by imaginative young adult fantasy and almost anything that deals religious and mythological themes. So I was intrigued by Breath of Angel. Here is the book trailer for the visual among us:
Here is the publisher’s description for the textual:
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 Melaia becomes a target, she finds refuge with a band of angels attempting to restore the stairway. But the restoration is impossible without settling an ancient debt—the “breath of angel, blood of man,” a payment that involves Melaia’s heart, soul, and destiny.
This seemed like it had a lot of potential. And upon reading the first book in this series, I think it did/does. But for me, the story never lived up to the potential. The first chapter is so well done that you want that kind of suspense and tight story telling to last – but it doesn’t. Instead the story seems to lose its power as it continues and never really regains the power it showed in that great start.
