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Such a dark story. This series all seems to be that way.
It was good
It was good. The storyline was great kept me interested. I liked the little references in there about the BDB. On to the next one
It was good. The storyline was great kept me interested. I liked the little references in there about the BDB. On to the next one
There's a formula to this series that makes it redundant and predictable. This book was just OK, nothing new. The biggest highlight is the cross-over from the Black Dagger Brotherhood, a much better series.
Originally posted on Shelf Addiction! Check this and more of my reviews at Shelf Addiction
I just loved this story. It's the best of the three I've listened to so far. Just as I suspected that as the series goes along, that more I'll like it. These characters are so well written and flushed out. There is a constant evolution of the characters, such as Jim, Eddie, Ad, Nigel and even Colin. Even evil Devina is evolving. This book totally takes you though highs and lows. The twists and turn are great and you never can tell exactly how things will work out.
I really liked Veck and Reilly together. They are totally believable and the fact that they are similar in many ways and both cops really resided with me. I always like a strong leading lady and we really got that this time around. Reilly is spunky, smart, witty and she loves her some Veck! There were a few chapters were I thought someone needed to knock some sense into her. Not to mention that the entire situation almost went completely wrong, but thank goodness Jim was there to help Veck out.
Let me just say, that if you're reading the BDB series, Veck, is the same Thomas “Veck” DelVecchio, Jr from Lover Unleashed. I could see that a crossover was coming. I'm sure that more and more of this series will cross over here and there. Honestly, I barely remember Veck from Lover Unleashed. He character didn't leave an impression on me in that book. I'm not going to go back and reread that story to catch the connection - so "oh well". If anyone remembers what Veck and De La Cruz were doing in that book, please fill me in!
There is one thing bugging me about the rules of the game and Devina. Ward never clearly explained how Devina can have direct contact with the people in play yet Nigel can't? They both supposedly are the ones running their prospective "teams" and Jim was to be the only point of contact. How odd. I would have thought that Devina would have agents interacting with them, not she herself. I don't know. Also, Devina comes in all shapes and forms. She could be anyone at any given time which is a huge disadvantage for the good guys because Jim, Eddie and Ad can't change their appearance.
Of course no book would be complete without one of Ward's homoerotic bromances. She seems to love writing about bi and gay men. The whole Eddie and Ad relationship is very strange. Not just friends. I mean they have threesomes all the time with a chick and they participate with each other if you know what I mean. Then there's the Arch Angel Nigel and his 2nd in command Colin. Clearly the two angels are having some sort of relationship that's kept quiet, yet the other angels know about it? Very strange.
This book left me with a few questions. Things that I hope are addressed in the next book. Other than the things I mentioned earlier, what's up with Dog? Who is dog? I'm waiting for more background on dog, which appears and disappears at will. And what's up with the vampire?!?! Who is it? Right off his description doesn't remind me of one the BDB men, so who is this huge man dressed like a brother who came to kill the serial killer? Hmm...questions, questions and more questions.
If you've been reading the Fallen Angel books, I recommend proceeding with this one. They seem to get better and better to me. I am holding out hope that the series continues at this pace. If you can stand your books with a little explicit content and you haven’t yet read these books yet, you should! But on the other hand, these books are written in true Ward style, so if you can’t get past slang and sometimes purposeful bad grammar (from the characters), this may not be your cup of tea.
I just loved this story. It's the best of the three I've listened to so far. Just as I suspected that as the series goes along, that more I'll like it. These characters are so well written and flushed out. There is a constant evolution of the characters, such as Jim, Eddie, Ad, Nigel and even Colin. Even evil Devina is evolving. This book totally takes you though highs and lows. The twists and turn are great and you never can tell exactly how things will work out.
I really liked Veck and Reilly together. They are totally believable and the fact that they are similar in many ways and both cops really resided with me. I always like a strong leading lady and we really got that this time around. Reilly is spunky, smart, witty and she loves her some Veck! There were a few chapters were I thought someone needed to knock some sense into her. Not to mention that the entire situation almost went completely wrong, but thank goodness Jim was there to help Veck out.
Let me just say, that if you're reading the BDB series, Veck, is the same Thomas “Veck” DelVecchio, Jr from Lover Unleashed. I could see that a crossover was coming. I'm sure that more and more of this series will cross over here and there. Honestly, I barely remember Veck from Lover Unleashed. He character didn't leave an impression on me in that book. I'm not going to go back and reread that story to catch the connection - so "oh well". If anyone remembers what Veck and De La Cruz were doing in that book, please fill me in!
There is one thing bugging me about the rules of the game and Devina. Ward never clearly explained how Devina can have direct contact with the people in play yet Nigel can't? They both supposedly are the ones running their prospective "teams" and Jim was to be the only point of contact. How odd. I would have thought that Devina would have agents interacting with them, not she herself. I don't know. Also, Devina comes in all shapes and forms. She could be anyone at any given time which is a huge disadvantage for the good guys because Jim, Eddie and Ad can't change their appearance.
Of course no book would be complete without one of Ward's homoerotic bromances. She seems to love writing about bi and gay men. The whole Eddie and Ad relationship is very strange. Not just friends. I mean they have threesomes all the time with a chick and they participate with each other if you know what I mean. Then there's the Arch Angel Nigel and his 2nd in command Colin. Clearly the two angels are having some sort of relationship that's kept quiet, yet the other angels know about it? Very strange.
This book left me with a few questions. Things that I hope are addressed in the next book. Other than the things I mentioned earlier, what's up with Dog? Who is dog? I'm waiting for more background on dog, which appears and disappears at will. And what's up with the vampire?!?! Who is it? Right off his description doesn't remind me of one the BDB men, so who is this huge man dressed like a brother who came to kill the serial killer? Hmm...questions, questions and more questions.
If you've been reading the Fallen Angel books, I recommend proceeding with this one. They seem to get better and better to me. I am holding out hope that the series continues at this pace. If you can stand your books with a little explicit content and you haven’t yet read these books yet, you should! But on the other hand, these books are written in true Ward style, so if you can’t get past slang and sometimes purposeful bad grammar (from the characters), this may not be your cup of tea.
So far, this is my favorite of the three Fallen Angels novels. I really liked the tie-in with the BDB series that this one had, and I hope Ward continues the trend in future books of this series. The novel turned into much more of a detective-style novel for the last third, which wasn't an unwelcome change--just different. 3.75 stars, rounded to 4.
3.5 stars
This series is not as enthising as the BDB, that's for sure. I do like the angels, and especially Jim, but it's harder to get into the story, and also to get attached to the other characters here.
Still a good book, with quite a good plot as well. Devina continues to be a b!tch, but that's no surprise. However Jim has to be a little more careful.
The archangels are really not all that smart, they behave like spoiled little children, and that might be part of why I don't love this as much as other series written by the same author.
This series is not as enthising as the BDB, that's for sure. I do like the angels, and especially Jim, but it's harder to get into the story, and also to get attached to the other characters here.
Still a good book, with quite a good plot as well. Devina continues to be a b!tch, but that's no surprise. However Jim has to be a little more careful.
The archangels are really not all that smart, they behave like spoiled little children, and that might be part of why I don't love this as much as other series written by the same author.
Kurz-Meinung:
Dies ist der 3. Teil der Fallen Angels Reihe, die ich abgöttisch liebe. Ich möchte zur Grundhandlung hier nichts mehr sagen. Schaut dazu bitte meine Rezi zu Band 1 oder 2 an, je nachdem an welcher Stelle der Reihe ihr seid. Die Bände sollte man auf jeden Fall in der richtigen Reihenfolge lesen, da die Grundhandlung jedes Teils auf den Vorgänger aufbaut und gerade dieser Gut gegen Böse Kampf ist sehr entscheidend.
Wie in jedem Teil der Reihe gibt es auch hier wieder ein frisches Pärchen, das neben Jim (der eigentliche Hauptcharakter) den Hauptteil der Handlung einnimmt. Dieses Mal geht es um Veck und Sophie. Veck ist Polizist und im Spiel zwischen Gut und Böse stellt er etwas besonderes dar. Sein Vater war ein Serienmörder und steht kurz vor der Hinrichtung. Veck befürchtet immer so zu werden wie er, obwohl man selbst als Leser nie den Eindruck hat, dass es dazu kommen könnte. Sophie ist ebenfalls bei der Polizei und hat mit Veck beruflich zu tun. Das daraus mehr entsteht wirkt realistisch. Die Chemie zwischen den beiden war toll. Allerdings gab es auch eine Sache, die mir hier gar nicht gefallen hat. An einem Punkt der Handlung ändert Sophie ihre Meinung zu Veck so plötzlich ohne auch nur Zweifel zu haben. Das passte für mich gar nicht zu ihrer Figur. Das war aber auch der einzige Kritikpunkt.
Ansonsten ist natürlich Jim und die Hintergrundhandlung um das 'Spiel' zwischen Engeln und Dämonen wieder das wichtigste am Buch. Hier kann man leider nicht viel sagen ohne zu spoilern. Auf jeden Fall weiß man halt nie welche Seite am Ende den Punkt macht und das finde ich einfach genial. Die Nebencharaktere sind sehr individuell. Die Bösen, gerade Devina, sind einfach super böse. Jim ist der beste Charakter aller Zeiten. Es gibt einfach keine Figur, die mich so überzeugen konnte wie seine – er ist so ein richtiges Raubein und dann hat er wieder Szenen, die mich tief berühren und das passt dann auch noch zusammen. Einfach unbeschreiblich. Auch die anderen guten Charaktere sind einfach klasse – so sympathisch und doch realistisch menschlich.
Das in diesem Band plötzlich das Thema Vampir aufkommt, hat mich ziemlich überrascht und ich fand es auch etwas merkwürdig. Irgendwo habe ich dann aber gelesen, dass Wards Vampir Reihe wohl mit dieser Angels Reihe zusammenhängt. Das wusste ich vorher noch nicht und ich habe die Vampir-Reihe (Black Dagger) auch noch nicht gelesen.
Das Buch ist wie schon die anderen Teile sehr spannend. Ich weiß nie wie es tatsächlich ausgeht. Manche Szenen sind psychisch schon sehr belastend, wenn man wie ich sich sehr in Charaktere einfühlt. Jim muss so einiges aushalten was Devina betrifft, aber auch die anderen Opfer von ihr tun mir super leid, obwohl diese nicht einmal viel Tiefe bekommen. Am faszinierendsten ist für mich aber wirklich die Unvorhersehbarkeit des Endes und die Wendungen, die ich meist auch nicht vorhersehen konnte. Einfach toll.
Meine Wertung:
5+ von 5 Sternen
Dies ist der 3. Teil der Fallen Angels Reihe, die ich abgöttisch liebe. Ich möchte zur Grundhandlung hier nichts mehr sagen. Schaut dazu bitte meine Rezi zu Band 1 oder 2 an, je nachdem an welcher Stelle der Reihe ihr seid. Die Bände sollte man auf jeden Fall in der richtigen Reihenfolge lesen, da die Grundhandlung jedes Teils auf den Vorgänger aufbaut und gerade dieser Gut gegen Böse Kampf ist sehr entscheidend.
Wie in jedem Teil der Reihe gibt es auch hier wieder ein frisches Pärchen, das neben Jim (der eigentliche Hauptcharakter) den Hauptteil der Handlung einnimmt. Dieses Mal geht es um Veck und Sophie. Veck ist Polizist und im Spiel zwischen Gut und Böse stellt er etwas besonderes dar. Sein Vater war ein Serienmörder und steht kurz vor der Hinrichtung. Veck befürchtet immer so zu werden wie er, obwohl man selbst als Leser nie den Eindruck hat, dass es dazu kommen könnte. Sophie ist ebenfalls bei der Polizei und hat mit Veck beruflich zu tun. Das daraus mehr entsteht wirkt realistisch. Die Chemie zwischen den beiden war toll. Allerdings gab es auch eine Sache, die mir hier gar nicht gefallen hat. An einem Punkt der Handlung ändert Sophie ihre Meinung zu Veck so plötzlich ohne auch nur Zweifel zu haben. Das passte für mich gar nicht zu ihrer Figur. Das war aber auch der einzige Kritikpunkt.
Ansonsten ist natürlich Jim und die Hintergrundhandlung um das 'Spiel' zwischen Engeln und Dämonen wieder das wichtigste am Buch. Hier kann man leider nicht viel sagen ohne zu spoilern. Auf jeden Fall weiß man halt nie welche Seite am Ende den Punkt macht und das finde ich einfach genial. Die Nebencharaktere sind sehr individuell. Die Bösen, gerade Devina, sind einfach super böse. Jim ist der beste Charakter aller Zeiten. Es gibt einfach keine Figur, die mich so überzeugen konnte wie seine – er ist so ein richtiges Raubein und dann hat er wieder Szenen, die mich tief berühren und das passt dann auch noch zusammen. Einfach unbeschreiblich. Auch die anderen guten Charaktere sind einfach klasse – so sympathisch und doch realistisch menschlich.
Das in diesem Band plötzlich das Thema Vampir aufkommt, hat mich ziemlich überrascht und ich fand es auch etwas merkwürdig. Irgendwo habe ich dann aber gelesen, dass Wards Vampir Reihe wohl mit dieser Angels Reihe zusammenhängt. Das wusste ich vorher noch nicht und ich habe die Vampir-Reihe (Black Dagger) auch noch nicht gelesen.
Das Buch ist wie schon die anderen Teile sehr spannend. Ich weiß nie wie es tatsächlich ausgeht. Manche Szenen sind psychisch schon sehr belastend, wenn man wie ich sich sehr in Charaktere einfühlt. Jim muss so einiges aushalten was Devina betrifft, aber auch die anderen Opfer von ihr tun mir super leid, obwohl diese nicht einmal viel Tiefe bekommen. Am faszinierendsten ist für mich aber wirklich die Unvorhersehbarkeit des Endes und die Wendungen, die ich meist auch nicht vorhersehen konnte. Einfach toll.
Meine Wertung:
5+ von 5 Sternen
The plot was very similar to author's other stories. The MC and love interest are constantly recycled from other books.
I think this one was really a 3.5 stars for me.
I found myself bored and the book very predictable for the first 75% of it. I'm still very invested in the characters except for Davina. Ugh, hate her! But I can't help but try and predict the rest of the series. I think I continue to read because I've become completely immersed and I need to know the outcome. So, of course I'll finish, I just hope the rest are a bit more exciting.
I can tell you what I like about J.R. Ward ... I love how she writes with down to earth speech from her characters. They talk and use words that are realistic. They don't all sound educated and formal. The characters have vocabularies full of slang and curse words that would be normal in their worlds.
I like the redemption and the romance.
I just ... I don't know ... think that maybe the good vs. evil game in this particular book was too predictable. I'll keep reading, though.
I found myself bored and the book very predictable for the first 75% of it. I'm still very invested in the characters except for Davina. Ugh, hate her! But I can't help but try and predict the rest of the series. I think I continue to read because I've become completely immersed and I need to know the outcome. So, of course I'll finish, I just hope the rest are a bit more exciting.
I can tell you what I like about J.R. Ward ... I love how she writes with down to earth speech from her characters. They talk and use words that are realistic. They don't all sound educated and formal. The characters have vocabularies full of slang and curse words that would be normal in their worlds.
I like the redemption and the romance.
I just ... I don't know ... think that maybe the good vs. evil game in this particular book was too predictable. I'll keep reading, though.
I didn't get my fabulous couple this time around, either. In fact, I'm only giving this book 4 stars because of Jim Heron, who is the true protagonist of this series as far as I'm concerned, and all that went down with him and his Sissy. Apart from that, Veck and Reilly were definitely my least favourite couple so far. I really liked Veck and how much he struggled with the two sides of himself: the true one and his father's son. That made for some interesting drama. Reilly, however, was very much meh most of the time and then she pissed me off by basically betraying him and turning her back on him when he needed it the most. Not cool!