Angelology by Danielle Trussoni

Angelology by Danielle Trussoni
Buy Angelology by Danielle Trussoni at Amazon.co.uk or Amazon.com
Category: General Fiction
Reviewer: Loralei Haylock
Summary: Great adventure story tinged with theology and angels, spoiled slightly by a disappointing end. Still very much worth a read, however.
Buy? Maybe	Borrow? Yes
Pages: 464	Date: April 2010
Publisher: Michael Joseph
ISBN: 978-0718155582
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The Nephilim have lived among the human race since before the days of the Great Flood. Horrific creatures, the hybrid children of humans and angels, their strength, beauty and cruelty are unmatched, and they have infiltrated human society completely. For centuries, a secret society, students in a branch of theology known as 'Angelology', have studied the ways of the heavens and the Nephilim, and waged a secret war against them – a war that has spanned every continent. But the Nephilim grow weak, their blood contaminated by the blood of their human ancestors.

Evangeline has lived almost all her life at the St. Rose Convent. After her mother died, her father seemed to think it was the best place for her. She is happy, content with the simple ways of the sisters of the perpetual adoration, until a stranger named Verlaine shows up asking to look at a series of letters between Mother Innocenta, a sister of the Convent, and Abigail Rockerfeller.

The encounter puts the pair in terrible danger – for by chance they have stumbled on to the Angelologists' best kept secret: the location of an angelic artefact of incredible power – one that could restore the Nephilim to their former glory and render them an unstoppable force. The Angelologists have to relocate the artefact and destroy it before the Nephilim get to it first.

The fact that the quote on the front cover is from Kate Mosse should tell you everything you need to know about this book. It is an adventure story, dressed up with theology and angels – Dan Brown for the Urban Fantasy fan – and it's great. Mostly.

The premise is interesting – the Nephilim and their soldiers, the Gibborim, are gruesome and terrifying foes, and the scientific study of Angels is done in an engrossing fashion – it sounds high-brow and 'sciencey' enough to seem plausible without being rendered dry or unreadable. The characters are realistic and engaging, which so many characters in this genre fail to be, and like every good adventure story it jumps around between stunning locations and flashbacks through time, leaving you at once breathless and desperate for the next page.

It was just the ending that spoiled the experience for me. Without giving away too much it was building towards something, then just seemed to… stop. It felt almost like there should have been another chapter afterwards – it was neither a cliffhanger ready for Angelology 2, nor a complete and satisfying ending. While it wasn't enough to make me regret investing my time in reading the rest of the book (and there is a lot of it) it did leave me with the slightly bitter aftertaste a disappointing ending gives, which was a real shame.

My thanks to the publishers for sending a copy.

Fans of adventure stories may enjoy The Lost Art by Simon Morden.

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