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4.13 AVERAGE
4.13 AVERAGE
challenging
dark
emotional
reflective
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Intriguing premise, just not hitting for me.
dark
emotional
medium-paced
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
My main issue with it is the main character seems to shift very rapidly near the climax of the book. I think there was a good setup for it but their actual change was too quick
I loved this book as much as I hated it. We knew from the beginning how Lucifer's story would end (who doesn't?), but that only made it more heart-wrenching. I was sad that Michael chose God over Lucifer in the end, especially because everything that Lucifer did was for his happiness with Michael. An awful book for my heart, but a story extremely well executed with gorgeous prose, so I can't give it less than five stars.
Angels Before Man
By Rafael Nicolás
Genres: fantasy
In the eternal paradise, Lucifer is created. The most beautiful of the angels, ashamed of his own looks, Lucifer learns how to exist amongst his many friends and admirers. When he meets the archangel Michael, the pair fall in love, the first romance ever, causing the anger of God to come upon them… This is a Queer retelling of the fall of Satan.
This book is split into two parts, the first focusing on Lucifer as he learns to live and grows. The second happens after he and Michael fall in love, and Lucifer begins to dream of rebelling against their unjust God.
Lucifer begins as a shy, ashamed angel, who can’t even look at his own beauty. Upon discovering his purpose as the angel of Worship in addition to Beauty, his confidence grows alongside his pride. He notices his influence over his fellow angels, and begins to use it negatively as his blasphemous thoughts increase. He creates the concept of ‘sin’ and teaches his newfound disciples to be devious, merciless, sexual.
Other characters include Michael, archangel and the angel of strength, who becomes besotted with Lucifer but never ceases loving their God; and Rosier, who guides Lucifer in the ways of living and is shown to be very observant as he notices when Lucifer’s personality begins to shift. The God in this story is a jealous, controlling being. One who expects eternal worship and praise whenever he wishes, and who will punish any who do not do enough for him.
This novel is set in heaven, where angels can fly, play, eat, craft, build, fight, etc. The fact that this beautiful paradise, where darkness never approaches, is also the setting for what happens at the end, when Lucifer and his followers rebel, makes it even more shocking. The setting certainly contributes to the atmosphere of this book, a heavy lull filled with sleepiness and contentedness. This evaporates once Lucifer makes the choice to rebel, the book’s pacing changing from thousands of years passing between chapters to every moment being captured.
I had this one on my to-buy list for well over a year before I eventually read it, and I really enjoyed it. The pacing is quite slow at first, but speeds up in part 2. The large cast of characters can be hard to follow (I think I mixed up Phanuel and Rafael quite a lot near the end), but most are introduced at the beginning and remain throughout, with few new characters being added as the story progresses. If you’re someone who considers things that portray the god who has heaven and angels to be not a great guy to be blasphemous and terrible, then maybe don’t read this book. If you enjoy books with morally grey protagonists whose fear and ambition grow with them, then this Queer retelling may entice you.
Trigger Warnings (as listed in the preface): graphic violence, graphic animal death, sexual content, self-harm, grooming, mental instability, use of terms with incestuous connotations, off-page sexual assault, on-page sexual trauma, abuse.
By Rafael Nicolás
Genres: fantasy
In the eternal paradise, Lucifer is created. The most beautiful of the angels, ashamed of his own looks, Lucifer learns how to exist amongst his many friends and admirers. When he meets the archangel Michael, the pair fall in love, the first romance ever, causing the anger of God to come upon them… This is a Queer retelling of the fall of Satan.
This book is split into two parts, the first focusing on Lucifer as he learns to live and grows. The second happens after he and Michael fall in love, and Lucifer begins to dream of rebelling against their unjust God.
Lucifer begins as a shy, ashamed angel, who can’t even look at his own beauty. Upon discovering his purpose as the angel of Worship in addition to Beauty, his confidence grows alongside his pride. He notices his influence over his fellow angels, and begins to use it negatively as his blasphemous thoughts increase. He creates the concept of ‘sin’ and teaches his newfound disciples to be devious, merciless, sexual.
Other characters include Michael, archangel and the angel of strength, who becomes besotted with Lucifer but never ceases loving their God; and Rosier, who guides Lucifer in the ways of living and is shown to be very observant as he notices when Lucifer’s personality begins to shift. The God in this story is a jealous, controlling being. One who expects eternal worship and praise whenever he wishes, and who will punish any who do not do enough for him.
This novel is set in heaven, where angels can fly, play, eat, craft, build, fight, etc. The fact that this beautiful paradise, where darkness never approaches, is also the setting for what happens at the end, when Lucifer and his followers rebel, makes it even more shocking. The setting certainly contributes to the atmosphere of this book, a heavy lull filled with sleepiness and contentedness. This evaporates once Lucifer makes the choice to rebel, the book’s pacing changing from thousands of years passing between chapters to every moment being captured.
I had this one on my to-buy list for well over a year before I eventually read it, and I really enjoyed it. The pacing is quite slow at first, but speeds up in part 2. The large cast of characters can be hard to follow (I think I mixed up Phanuel and Rafael quite a lot near the end), but most are introduced at the beginning and remain throughout, with few new characters being added as the story progresses. If you’re someone who considers things that portray the god who has heaven and angels to be not a great guy to be blasphemous and terrible, then maybe don’t read this book. If you enjoy books with morally grey protagonists whose fear and ambition grow with them, then this Queer retelling may entice you.
Trigger Warnings (as listed in the preface): graphic violence, graphic animal death, sexual content, self-harm, grooming, mental instability, use of terms with incestuous connotations, off-page sexual assault, on-page sexual trauma, abuse.
dark
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
challenging
dark
emotional
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
There’s potential but it desperately needed a good editor. I love flowery language but this is good example of bad purple prose. So many words to say nothing, and so many attempts to subvert grammatical conventions that ultimately add nothing of substance to the style, message, or theme.
dark
emotional
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
