Author: Carla Neggers
Title: The Angel
Publication Date: 2008
Number of Pages: 345
Part of a Series: Yes. Book two of the BPD-FBI (Boston Police Dept.- Federal Bureau of
Investigation) series. Book one is The Widow (2006).
- Angels
- Celtic legends
- Folklorists
- Good and evil
- Interpersonal attraction
- Men/women relations
- Missing persons
- Protectiveness in men
- Search-and-rescue ops
- Secrets
- Statues
- Truth
- Violence
- Women illustrators
Geographical Setting/Time Period: Boston, MA and Ireland/Present day
Main Character(s):
- Keira Sullivan- the artistic, independent, beautiful, and slightly eccentric heroine.
- Simon Cahill- the no-nonsense, quick-thinking strongman with a mysterious past and a disarming charm.
- Bob O’Reilly- Keira’s uncle; the cynical veteran cop who is struggling with the trauma of his past while trying to protect his family now.
- Abigail Browning- Bob’s partner; the younger cop who worked hard to prove herself, she struggles with her own dark past.
Plot Summary: Despite a mysterious stranger’s death and warning not to go, Keira Sullivan, illustrator and folklorist, travels to Ireland to connect with her family’s roots and investigate a legend about a stone angel. After Keira goes missing for days, Simon, dispatched by Bob to find and rescue her, quickly realizes Keira’s accident was no accident at all and works diligently to protect her. When a family friend with ties to the angel legend is murdered back in Boston, Keira and Simon return to help Bob and Abigail uncover clues. Delving into the murky world of good and evil, it is a race against time to discover who the killer is and stop him from murdering again.
Appeal: This is a fast-paced novel that immediately piques the reader’s interest with its mystical and somewhat complex story. While the story line is largely plot-centered and action-oriented, the reader gets a well-rounded sense of the main characters, whom are recognizable and relatable. Point of view switches between all the main characters, but Keira’s perspective is most prominent. The book’s frame is engrossing, moving from contemporary, urban Boston neighborhoods, to a folksy, mystical village in Ireland, and back and forth again. The descriptions are vivid without the writing being dense.
Brief quote: “Keira welcomed the feel of the breeze on her face, and she looked at Simon with his thick black hair, his green eyes- a clear, mesmerizing green, she thought. She’d noticed he was good-looking in Boston, but now, at dusk on a long June day, out on the southwest coast of Ireland, she was struck by how sexy he was.” –p. 121-122.
Prizes or Awards: None
Similar Works:
- Irish Mist by Andrew Greenly- another romantic suspense involving Ireland, men/women relationships, and secrets.
- Tall, Dark, and Deadly by Heather Graham- another romantic suspense involving men/women relations and missing persons.
- Call After Midnight by Tess Gerritsen- another romantic suspense involving men/women relationships, missing persons, and Europe.
Reviewer’s Name: Cyndi Selinger
Adapted from Saricks, Joyce G. and Nancy Brown. Readers= Advisory Service in the Public Library 2nd. Chicago: ALA, 1997.
No comments:
Post a Comment