Angelfire

Gr 10 Up—How can a normal 17-year-old suddenly deal with an awakened power, learn to wield magical blades properly, save the world, and fall in love with her 500-year-old Guardian? These questions are answered as angels, horrible beasts, and superpowers meet in the Detroit suburbs where Ellie attends high school. Her nightmares start to make sense when she is introduced to the dark world in which reapers are intent on destroying her as well as the rest of humanity. Handsome and mysterious Will helps awaken her powers and guides her as she discovers who she really is. Fans of the supernatural genre will recognize echoes of recycled plot devices such as the returned savior who needs training, dark and swirly tattoo markings, and an ancient book that gives details on fighting demons (to name a few). Though the writing is rushed and loose, offering plenty of clichés, the story does have a fair dose of action, clothes, shopping, drama, and romance. First in a planned trilogy, with a media blitz and flashy author website to bolster sales, this is likely to be requested where supernatural romance adventures are a hot item.—Angela J. Reynolds, Annapolis Valley Regional Library, Bridgetown, NS, Canada