A medieval masterpiece of adventure, romance and horror, younger readers of Paolini and Cashore will gobble up this award-winning debut.
An Ancient Prophecy. A Powerful Relic. An Insatiable Evil. When all three converge, the fate of every living thing will be in peril.
All her life Catherine had hoped to see a fairrier cat. No book, no scroll provided to her by her tutors had ever mentioned this legend, much to her frustration, and now-at the worse possible time-she was getting her wish. Only, in her wish the cat wasn't about to kill her.
A 732-year-old fairrier cat the size of a horse has killed his fair share of hunters. Driven to the brink of extinction for the supernatural powers of his coat, is he indeed the last of his kind?
Sheltered, 16-year-old Catherine is about to find out. Unwitting heir to the Ancient Onyxes, she flees an arranged marriage only to stumble upon the cat's secrets, the force of the ancient relic she wears, and the dangerous mission they must undertake.
Hidden under a desert that was once a fertile land, millions of predators are waiting to feast again. Catherine must discover the secret of the Ancient Onyxes and stop the creatures known as trodliks before they consume everything in their path. A whispered prophecy becomes her only guide and a rejected suitor just might be the one warrior she desperately needs.
For readers ages 12 and up.
*** Please see this awesome Author Interview at the Hollow Readers blog HERE. ***
I apologize for technical difficulties!! I'm not sure what the problems were with my post!!
Left by her mother at a young age, Kyra has grown-up in the foster system, leaving her angry and hateful towards the world. The only person she can trust is Hammond, her case worker who has watched over her since the time her mother left. When Hammond places Kyra in a foster home located in a small town, strange things begin happening and Kyra starts unraveling the mystery of her past. When Kyra's life is threatened, she is saved by an angel, her guardian angel, Ashur, who falls from heaven to save her. Together, Ashur and Kyra must figure out why her life is in danger and stop a strange cult from bringing about the end of days.
My Review (no spoilers, pretty much):
The Dawn of Angels was a big surprise for me. I'm not sure what I expected, but I was unprepared for this ride!
The story is fast-paced. The main character, Kyra, is an angry girl and the story opens on
her seventeenth birthday. Her issues are
valid. She’s been stuffed through the foster care system having been abandoned
by her mom. So, this book just dives into the story, no hesitations.
Which brings me to how this book felt for me:Rollercoaster. Pure Emotion. I rode up and down on Anger,
Good-will, Suspicion, Fear and that’s not counting the dream-like quality of many scenes, including actual dreams. The dreams and reality mix and blend freakily together.
You’ve seen the
cartoon movie Dumbo, right? You know that scene when shapes are blowing up and
shrinking and odd animals are growing protrusions? It feels like that. (I just sold this book
for someone!! Hahahaha)
There’s just
enough hint at real horror:moving shadows that can grasp and pull someone
under to cut off their breath; red-eyed wild dogs. And then there's these
angels. OMG! If I had been someone in the Bible, this is the sort
of angel I would imagine, with white-hot eyes, using the power of light to push
back the darkness.
And then the story takes over again, which is almost trite by
comparison.
There are no wasted characters watching from the sidelines,
every one of them holds a secret(s) and they all focus on Kyra (with hints or friendliness or wariness or hatred). The town being “small” does not
account for every single person being a critical player.
Kyra’s was bright spot in this story for me. Sheis the anchor on this wild ride, the one person who always makes real sense. Usually. Asher's cute and potentially more than cute - potentially amazing - but not revealed completely in this book. Ethan is also mostly mystery and I wouldn't go so far to call this threesome a "love triangle". Yea.. not yet. Each relationship Kyra has is deep and makes sense - like Liv, for example, is so sweet! She's very much a side character, but she has her own struggles and triumphs and a deep, special meaning for Kyra. Gotta love that.
As for the historical background, the angels know who God
is, which was comforting momentarily, and then the story gets wild. All written
books about God and angels, including but not limited to The Bible, only tell
parts of this historical backdrop. The information comes in thick heavy mini-doses that don’t make much sense on their own, but as the perspectives join together, the big picture does, uh, clarify itself in that dream-freaky way.
In this world... there are shadow men, there are
warring angels, various levels of angels, levels of heavens, odd cults that are
different and yet all point to something in this history. (This is a tad spoilerish to give you heads' up, but I would have appreciated knowing this stuff was actually intentional and not a side-dream moment. So, I share.)
Cover Commentary: It’s a bit of a surprise. Maybe the
layered angel wing is supposed to tip off the layers of history or
craziness? I’m not sure. It’s a deceptively innocent-lookin’ cover and did not give me head's up about what's inside this book. The title, however, is clear by the end.
This book is very much about the beginning of angels and how that relates to
present day.
My Rating: 3 - For writing, for content, for characters - "cute" doesn't fit with this book, though, more like "downright eerie". I'd give this book a higher rating for that complicated historical backdrop, but a lower rating for how it was delivered to the reader, so it evens out to a square 3 for me.
Excerpt:
"I didn't just fall from heaven to save your life…" Ashur pulls me in closer until my chest touches his. "…I came here because after all those years, I could not spend another moment of eternity knowing that you would not be there."
He begins to sweep his head down toward mine. I know what's coming and I can't allow it. Turning away, I say, "I can't." My objection is not that I don't love him, but that I can't love him. He is an angel, I am a mortal. Two worlds that never have, and never will exist together. "You know as well as I do that this can never be. No matter how desperately we may want it. What will become of us?"
"I don't know," he says. "I don't care."
"Well, I do," I say. "All this will end and you will have to go back. And I will be left here alone."
"But…"
"No," I say, sternly. "It's better this way."
Our eyes meet and I look away, but his eyes do not retreat as if they are holding me in place, preventing me from leaving.
About the Authors: Vivienne Malynn and Sean Kade are the parents of five lively children and live in a rural suburb surrounded by eagles and coyotes. They spend their free time reading, writing, and playing make-believe with their children. In their not so free time, they teach.
Happy 17th birthday. I wish I could be there with you, but I think if you ar reading this...I am not. For that, I am sorry. The day your dad and I found out we were going to have a baby was the happiest day of my long life. I know the only day that will exceed that joy will be the day you are born - no matter how that day ends.
A big decision lies ahead. The burden of the covenant is a heavy one to bear. Choose with your heart, for I already know that you, my girl, must let your heart guide the way.
Expected publication: March 6th 2012 by Sourcebooks Fire (first published October 1st 2010)
Premise: Ganked from Goodreads:
It starts with a whisper: “It’s time for you to know who you are…”
Violet Eden dreads her seventeenth birthday. After all, it’s hard to get too excited about the day that marks the anniversary of your mother’s death. As if that wasn’t enough, disturbing dreams haunt her sleep and leave her with very real injuries. There’s a dark tattoo weaving its way up her arms that wasn’t there before.
Violet is determined to get some answers, but nothing could have prepared her for the truth. The guy she thought she could fall in love with has been keeping his identity a secret: he’s only half-human—oh, and same goes for her.
A centuries-old battle between fallen angels and the protectors of humanity has chosen its new warrior. It’s a fight Violet doesn’t want, but she lives her life by two rules: don’t run and don’t quit. When angels seek vengeance and humans are the warriors, you could do a lot worse than betting on Violet Eden…
Look for the sequels ENTICED in September 2012 and EMBLAZE in March 2013!
My Review NO Spoilers!
Wow.
I read this book as part of the mass Review with other Hollow Readers.
I’m not sure what my preconceived idea was… but I was in for a
surprise!
Right from the beginning, this book grabbed my attention and
sucked me in. I was caught off guard by the speed and efficiency. Refreshing!
There are big underlying ideas – creative, attractive,
thought-provoking, edgy!
Since this book is about angels – no spoilers, ok!! – there
is a large backdrop of the spiritual world and how it functions. The author
takes the idea of “good” vs. “bad” and shakes it up, mixing it together and
then dumps it out into something new. What if angels weren’t “good” or “bad”
exclusively? What if they had their own free will and sometimes didn’t like
their jobs? What if they wanted to have a body, which they only could if they
became part-human? What if these “exiles” had their own motivations and
ulterior motives to go with super speed & strength &
who-knows-what-all-else?
Suddenly, the spiritual world opens up completely different
and unique from any preconceived idea I had before opening this book. The
information is delivered as Violet learns it, fast, certainly, but also
incomplete, which adds to the anticipation of learning more as the book
progresses. This book was fun to read as
a creative story, setting aside my personal conclusions. I missed the
idea that God was anywhere – He is set aside as a huge question mark
that doesn’t take an active part in the spiritual or physical world. There is
more reference to God as a swear word, actually, as a humorous way to relieve
tension when the characters find everything too hard to deal with.
Yes, there’s swearing – mostly at the beginning and the end.
There’s also sex. It's not explicit, rather tasteful, but central to
the story!
My favorite part of this book is how Violet is in tune with
her emotions. She doesn’t always agree with what she feels, but she’s always
aware. The author takes this to a deep level as certain angels can share
emotions, instantly changing the mood of the moment. I totally believe in the
fallacy of emotions, so this was amazing, I thought, and really well done.
I also enjoyed the love triangle as being very unique and
well-developed, and emotionally reactive!!!
I loved Lincoln… and then I loved Phoenix… and I was suspicious of
Lincoln, suspicious of Phoenix. Both men had enough that was good and
enough that was selfish that I was never sure, right along with
Violet.
I guessed some of who he was well before Violet did in the
story. I think the author lets us readers in early on purpose because she
didn’t spend time retelling… which I appreciated. It adds
to the tension, again, of how things will work out by the end, especially with
Violet’s character… she is so stubborn and she doesn’t forget.
[Slightly Spoilerish!!] I was really weirded out with my own reaction to, um, Pheonix when I grasped who he was. *ahem* I don’t know exactly how else to say that.
Instead of, say, the appropriate response of running away, I, um, liked him a
heck of a lot more. *cough* I just
wonder what that says about me, that I really like “bad” boys. You know? I’m totally curious where your
emotions swing when everything clicks. When you read this book, do tell!!!J I can’t be the only one!!!! (Please!!!)
En Fin, the concept unique, the characters
(can’t say “people”) are all deep & flawed – all of ‘em! The
spiritual side is plenty mysterious with that unbelievable dream-like
quality, the powers are not fully developed in Embrace because the timeline is short and sweet and Violet’s just learning stuff. I LOVE the use of color.
This book is a
winner.
My Rating: 4.5 - Great Book!!
About the Amazing Author:
Jessica Shirvington is the author of THE VIOLET EDEN CHAPTERS also known as THE EMBRACE SERIES. An entrepreneur, author, and mother living in Sydney, Australia, Jessica is also a 2011 finalist for Cosmopolitan’s annual Fun, Fearless Female Award. She’s also one of the lucky few who met the love of her life at age seventeen: Matt Shirvington, a former Olympian and current sports broadcaster for FOXTEL and Sky News. Married for almost eleven years with two beautiful daughters, Sienna and Winter, Jessica knows her early age romance and its longevity has definitely contributed to how she tackles relationships in her YA novels. Previously, she founded a coffee distribution company, Stella Imports, in London, and before that was involved in the management of restaurants Fuel Bistro and MG Garage in Sydney. Jessica is now a full-time novelist and living her dream.
A medieval masterpiece of adventure, romance and horror, younger readers of Paolini and Cashore will gobble up this award-winning debut. 
