REVIEW: Archangel’s Prophecy by Nalini Singh
Dear Ms. Singh,
As a longtime reader of your Guild Hunter series, I was looking forward to this book. In one of the earlier books, snippets of a prophecy were revealed and it seemed to foretell the destruction of Lijuan, the horrific archangel of China who has gone to sleep, but only in order to recoup her strength so that she can then come back and take over the world.
Archangel’s Prophecy begins with part of the same prophecy, which contains the lines “One must die for one to live” and “the birds always know.”
Early in the book, Elena spots birds behaving unlike themselves. She is tracking a runaway vampire who has broken his contract to the Adirondacks when a sinkhole opens, filled with lava, and swallows him. The Cascade is back.
Harrison, husband to Elena’s sister Beth and father to her niece Maggie, is attacked, his mouth carved into a wider grin. Luckily, Beth and Maggie are visiting with Elena and Beth’s grandparents, Majda and Jean-Baptiste. Elena’s father Jeffrey, and her half-sister, Eve, arrive before the killer can finish the job. The killer escapes, but Jeffrey calls Elena.
After arriving and securing the scene, Elena calls Laric, who arrives and treats Harrison’s wound. Jason also helps out, letting Harrison drink his powerful blood so that he will heal faster. Though unable to speak, Harrison indicates that Maggie and Beth are in danger, but Elena, Eve and Jeffrey find them unharmed. Still, with their lives under threat, Elena is determined to investigate the case in order to save them.
More frightening still are the changes in Elena wrought by the cascade. Elena begins to see owls that aren’t there, and to hear the voice of an ancient telling her that “One must die for one to live,” and that it’s written in the stars that Elena is the one who will die.
Elena begins losing weight, no matter how much she eats. Cuts appear on her body, her chest itches, and her left wing weakens, dragging behind her when she’s not making an effort to keep it raised. Soon, she starts shedding feathers and healing at the rate of a human, not an angel. None of the healers know how to save her.
As her death inches closer, Raphael must struggle against the urge to wrap her in cotton wool, but he’s learned that doing so will only suffocate her. He acquires a new, Cascade-born ability that allows him to travel at supersonic speed, but the ability isn’t under his control.
The Legion tell Elena that she is “becoming,” but what she’s becoming isn’t clear, though the voice in her head speaks of a vessel. To save her sister and niece, and distract herself from the danger to herself, Elena buries herself in Harrison’s case. With Janvier and Ashwini’s help, she connects the attempt on his life to other killings. Related knowledge is buried in her brain, but she can’t remember what it is.
Will Elena manage to save Beth and Maggie before her time runs out? Will Raphael, faced with the impending loss of Elena and given more power from the Cascade, be able to protect his humanity? Will Elena survive the fulfilling of the ancient prophecy, or will she be the one to die? And who is the one who is prophesied to live at the cost of Elena’s life?
Archangel’s Prophecy is a high-stakes book and as such, I found it very page turning. Some of my favorite moments were Elena’s interactions with Jeffrey, Eve, Majda and Jean-Baptiste. I loved Elena’s kindness to Eve, her half-sister and guild hunting trainee. Jeffrey’s pain around Jean-Baptiste and especially Majda, who looks so much like his beloved dead wife, was understandable and moving. Best of all, Jeffrey shows that he loves Elena.
Raphael and Elena’s interactions were also satisfying, and highly romantic. The book shows how much Elena and Raphael have grown. It demonstrates how well Raphael has learned not to overprotect Elena—even with her weakened by the changes in her body, he understands her need to pursue Harrison’s would-be killer to protect her sister and niece. If anything, he is almost too hands-off.
Elena’s determination to protect Raphael’s humanity and life no matter the cost is touching. Near the end, Raphael makes a huge sacrifice for Elena which I found very romantic. Meanwhile, Elena’s fate hangs in the balance, and as her condition worsens, her safety doesn’t feel at all assured.
There are some good scenes with Jessamy and Galen, too, and Ashwini proves herself a true friend.
At the same time, I also found other aspects of the book frustrating. High among these is that the Cascade behaves differently in this book than it has in the earlier books in the series, almost like a person. It is bent upon Elena’s death, and on turning Raphael into a dark monster. This was both annoying and inconsistent.
The main danger in the story, Elena’s body being transformed into a host for another being, felt a little too similar to Holly’s situation in Archangel’s Viper.
There’s not much development on the Illium / Aodhan front, or rather, it feels like some development took place off-page. Last thing I remember, they were on the outs, but now it seems like they’ve moved past it, without us seeing how that took place. Aodhan is away, but Illium speaks of him as if they are already a couple so that instead of showing us their courtship, it’s presented as almost a done deal. Other readers might differ on this, though.
The subplot with Harrison at first seems separate from what’s going on with Elena, but the two threads end up tying together in a way that doesn’t feel entirely organic, since one has to do with an age-old prophecy and the other is very much of the here and now.
But the thing that bothered me most was the ending. Toward the end, I was turning the page faster and faster, to learn what would become of Raphael and Elena–only to come to a cliffhanger ending. And it was not a cliffhanger that resolved enough other stuff to feel satisfying. I ended up feeling thwarted—all that turning of the pages, and I still didn’t know what I wanted to know at the end.
Readers of this series, Archangel’s Prophecy is *not* a book you can skip over. Much like Angels’ Blood and Archangel’s Legion, it is a game changer. Nevertheless, I feel ambivalent about it. C+/B-.
Sincerely,
Janine
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I just finished the book and it was meh , something was missing for me and I truly cannot say what it is. For me it was really slow and then picked up in the end. As for I&A relationship, it did not look for me that they are a couple, it looked like they are maybe moving in that direction. At this point I do not think she will write them as a couple, in the book Elena for some reason thought I was interested in that female angel for a minute (forgot her name). As for the cascade, I was surprised that it actually dictated Elena’s actions in the end with the guns and knifes. I thought cascade is a natural thing that is fluid not a thinking entity. The cliffhanger surprised me, it’s 11th book in the series and I feel like it was not really necessary. It does not bother me, but I went to the author website and a lot of people feel betrayed. I will still read the next book because I like the series in general.
It was when Illium said, in reference to his past lover and to Aodhan “It seems all my loves leave me in the winter snow,” that I felt he was acknowledging Aodhan as more than a friend.
+1 to everything you said about the Cascade. I could not agree more. This was the first book in which it behaved like a thinking entity determined to enact a given outcome and that was a head-scratcher for me.
I don’t feel betrayed by the cliffhanger but I do feel frustrated and deprived. I want to know what happens next and the fact that we have to wait a year to find out is not cool.
This series has always been an auto-buy both in print and audio, but I am unsure about that this time around. I HATE CLIFFHANGERS with the passion of a thousand suns. If the next book came in three months I could get on board and it would be very exciting. But to wait a year!! I have seen many comments on the web about waiting for the series finale to continue on, I just might do that and get the books from the library. These kinds of author shenanigans turn me off from buying their books.
I am so disappointed about what I have heard about Archangel’s Prophecy, the cover is absolutely gorgeous and I was really thrilled when I first saw it a few months ago. I never cared for paranormal fiction, but the reviews from DA (way back) got me to read the Andrews and Nalini Singh and man I jumped on that bandwagon so fast! I haven’t been happy with either authors new direction and frankly it hurts my heart.
@mel burns: There are some really romantic moments in this book but yeah, if you hate cliffhangers then this is not the book for you. I don’t always mind them but I minded this one. It might be better for you to wait for the next book at least, if that one doesn’t end in a cliffhanger. How many books away is the series finale?
Singh’s Guild Hunter books have fallen into the “good but not great” category for me recently. The Psy / Changeling series has been more uneven. As for Ilona Andrews, I was not a fan of the first Sweep book but I love the Hidden Legacy series. I’m several books behind on the Kate Daniels series so I can’t comment on that one.
Janine Great review ! It was nice to read about your take on Illium and Aodhan
I too ship Bluebell and Sparkle.I am an avid reader of M/M and I have read many books very the guys have close bonds and awesome bromances so its not that I want I & A to end up together because they are very close but it’s bcoz the connection they have between them transcends friendship and I can’t see either of them ending up with other characters…not after all they went through together. (nope..not happening.. can’t even imagine that scenario in my head..it’s like physically repelling LoL)
Their interactions gave me vibes of very close friendship on the edge of becoming more…or from bluebell’s side , he has already started feeling more but he is just starting to realize that …and he still tries to be overprotective and thinks that Sparkle is the same person as before but Aodhan is discovering himself more and more so… hopefully he will realize he doesn’t just love his Bluebell…but he is IN love with him #fingers crossed…but I am afraid Nalini won’t go that way..in many Q&A when asked about if I&A will end up together she always replied…. “she doesn’t have any ideas to go that way at this point of time” her reples were always ambiguous..
And introducing a M/M book at a last point in the series maynot be a favourable option for the author for many reasons..one being many of her readers won’t like to read a M/M book let alone will like our beloved Bluebell’s story going that way and second Nalini has never written a M/M book so her chances of writing her first one in an ongoing series is pretty much low.
But still against all odds I am cynically optimistic and hoping for their book and If they dont end up together I personally will feel so disappointed after all the teases we had of them…Venom saying where one goes other will flow and the quote you mentioned about Bluebell’s loves leaving him in winter,and this one..
P.S. sry for the long comment.I am obsessed with Bluebell and Aodhan and felt overjoyed to seeing you also ship them!
Aodhan
@Suhasini: I think that at this point, after all the buildup, to pair Illium and Aodhan with other people would be a jarring note and odd, at the very least.
I don’t know if I would say I ship them per se but I certainly want to see them together because I don’t think I can buy them turning to others after all we’ve seen happen between them. And I hope their relationship doesn’t develop off-page, either — I like them both too much and don’t want to see their relationship relegated to the background.
It is possible that Nalini Singh could change my mind about the first, though. Many authors have pulled off stories I didn’t think I would like.
I don’t know what she will do but I’m not that worried by her caginess on that. As i recall she was equally cagey about the Hawke / Sienna pairing in the Psy / Changeling series.
I don’t know if you read the Psy / Changeling books but it was a *very* controversial relationship going in because Sienna was just fifteen or sixteen when she first started arguing with Hawke, and he was in his early thirties if I’m not mistaken. Of course, they didn’t hook up until after she turned eighteen.
But my point is just that before we knew they’d get together, there was a lot of controversy about the potential for it among readers, and everyone wanted to know what the author would do. And she was cagey and did not reveal it until that book came out.
There was also a lot of secretiveness around who Kaleb’s heroine would be before he got a book. So Nalini Singh’s refusal to comment on what she plans to do with Illium and Aodhan doesn’t worry me in itself. She’ll write what she wants to write and we have to wait and see what it will be.
This gives me hope
I have read psy-changeling series just 2 years back so I didn’t know about the history behind the books.