Guardian, October 2009
Angels #2
by Claire Delacroix
Tor Paranormal Romance
Featuring: Rafe Gerritson; Delilah Desjardins
368 pages ISBN: 0765359502 EAN: 9780765359506 Paperback
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"The Eyes of the Republic may be everywhere, but then so are Angels."
Reviewed by Tanzey Cutter
Posted September 16, 2009
Fantasy Urban | Romance Paranormal
In February 2100, at the Citadel of the Daughters of the
Light near New Seattle, the ceremony to select a new Oracle
of the Republic is about to commence. But things don't go
as planned and an uproar disrupts the proceedings. When
shade Delilah Desjardins is abducted following the vicious
attack on the Citadel, she fears she's being kidnapped, but
can't understand why. Her abductor, a fallen angel named
Rafe, has been assigned the mission of saving Delilah from
Republic assassins who realize she's the true Oracle.
Though only recently aware of her gift of foresight,
Delilah isn't sure she can trust Rafe to protect her. But
what other choice does she have? On the run together, Rafe and Delilah are drawn to each
other in a very earthly way, but Delilah is afraid to
succumb to the passion she feels for him, fearing the loss
of her special gift if she's no longer a virgin. Delilah
tries to elude Rafe, but the assassins are always close at
hand, so fleeing is not the answer. With time running out,
Delilah and Rafe forge onward to a final confrontation
guaranteed to be phenomenal in its conclusion. Will Rafe
regain his wings for his effort, or is his future with
Delilah?
This exceptional follow-up to the futuristic urban fantasy
FALLEN (10/08) continues the saga of Lilith Desjardins'
quest to locate Delilah, the daughter taken from her at
birth because of a physical defect, which rendered Delilah
a "shade" (those humans who failed the Sub Human Atomic
Deviancy Evaluation). In the Republic, all shades are
slaves with no names, only numbers. This exciting story
kept me entranced first page to last. For a uniquely
special reading experience by a gifted author, I recommend
both FALLEN and GUARDIAN.
Learn more about Guardian
SUMMARY
The victim of what she believes is a malicious kidnapping,
seer Delilah Desjardins quickly realizes that her abductor
is on a mission to save her from assassins. Rafe, a fallen
angel, must ensure that Delilah, blessed with the gift of
foresight, reaches her true calling as an oracle for the
Republic - and if his divine calling results in a more
earthly relationship between the two of them, well, he
doesn’t mind that at all. Drawn to Rafe, but fearing the loss of her gifts should she
surrender to his charms, Delilah knows she has to leave
him. But fleeing his guardianship sets the assassins on her
trail again. As Rafe races to save Delilah, he knows he
isn’t just saving her for the good of the Republic, for the
angels, or for the future - he’s saving her for himself.
ExcerptShe was being watched.The woman known only as Twenty-three felt her pulse quicken.
The hair prickled on the back of her neck, and she tried to
tell herself that the glance she felt was only passing. It wasn’t. Someone was scrutinizing her. She’d kept her head down as she lit the tall candles in the
chapel, trying to be as nondescript as possible. She’d moved
slowly, so as to not attract attention, but the weight of
that gaze had made her want to run. Someone knew her secret. Conviction made her heart race and
her hands shake. Twenty-three was a shade and shades officially had no secrets. Shades - those humans who had failed the Sub Human Atomic
Deviancy Evaluation - forfeited their citizenship and rights
because of their birth defects. They became the property of
the Republic and were destined to labor unseen for the
collective good of the Republic’s citizens. It was the duty of shades to remain invisible, the better to
ensure that no norm was reminded of the existence of slavery
in the Republic. But someone was keenly watching
Twenty-three. Her mouth went dry - she knew how the Daughter
Superior would react toward any shade who defied convention. Twenty-three had to avoid suspicion on this night of nights.
Her mind, for once, was clear. Someone had made a mistake in
issuing her daily sedation for the past two days, because
she hadn’t been given any. She didn’t care who or why. Her chance had finally come. Twenty-three was sick of lies and sick of servitude. The
haze of indifference had risen slowly from her mind, leaving
her with a clarity of thought that was shocking. She’d seen
more in the last twenty-four hours than she’d noticed in the
Citadel in years. It was time to reveal herself. The chapel was filled with strangers and the unusual hum of
conversation. Once every four years, guests were allowed
into the Citadel of the Daughters of the Light of the
Republic to act as witnesses, and on this night, those
guests had come. Twenty-three knew that the Daughters would have preferred to
have denied access to others, but the selection of the
official Oracle of the Republic had to be witnessed by
outsiders to appear legitimate. Appearances were key, for the selection had already been
made. This ceremony was a lie. Twenty-three shouldn’t have
been surprised when she had stumbled upon the rehearsal the
day before. This entire ceremony, which witnesses would
endorse with their presence, would be a sham. But then, she already knew that nothing in the refuge of the
Daughters was as it appeared. The only mercy was no one knew
that she had seen the truth. Sometimes it paid to be invisible. Sometimes the shadows - or the shades - were the true witnesses. It was wrong to feign the revelation of the true Oracle. It was wrong to ensure that a false Oracle could take the
honored place. And Twenty-three, who had been told years before that she
was destined to be the one true Oracle, found the deceit
offensive. She wasn’t going to let the acolyte Teresa usurp
the place that was destined to be hers. It was time for Twenty-three to act. She felt awake and
alive, vital, as if she’d rediscovered a lost key to
herself. She’d almost forgotten the power of her undrugged body. Yet at the same time, she felt naked and exposed, certain
that someone would see the truth before she could prove her
abilities. She feared that watchful gaze. The eyes of the Republic, after all, were everywhere. Cloaked from head to toe in black, veiled and gloved,
Twenty-three should have blended with the shadows. She
should have been invisible. But the weight of that gaze was relentless. She was keenly aware of the men who had allowed into the
Citadel for this ceremony. At all other times, the Citadel
was a refuge of women for women only. The low resonance of
their voices in the crowd was foreign and titillating. Was it a man who watched her? Something quivered deep inside
her, something that she knew would have found disapproval
from the Daughters. It was a seductive hum, a pleasurable
tingle, and one that Twenty-three might have enjoyed under
other circumstances. She’d felt this sensation before, this buzz of awareness.
That time, it had been accompanied by a pearly opalescent
light, a light that ran like quicksilver and resonated with
the same hum. She closed her eyes and remembered, shivering
with delight. Angelfire. The source of her power and the root of her faith. The
angels wouldn’t abandon her now, not when triumph and
justice were so close. Twenty-three returned to her place at the perimeter of the
chapel, folded her hands and dipped her head. She was just
another shade in the shadows, another anonymous figure in
the line of similarly clad attendants. Still, she knew she was watched. Twenty-three straightened slightly and sought for the bold
culprit. Her gaze collided immediately with that of a man,
the only one who stared directly at her. And only at her. Twenty-three’s heart stopped cold. He stood at the back of the assembled crowd, seeming to
think that the others would overlook his presence. The idea
was ridiculous. He was almost radiant in his vitality, his
golden hair gleaming, his eyes glowing like sapphires.
Amongst the poorly nourished and burdened citizens of the
Republic, he was a magnet for every eye. Never mind that he dressed with such verve. He wore a
faux-leather cloak, so deep an indigo that it was nearly
black, high black boots and long black gloves. There was a
froth of white at his throat, a fine ruffled shirt with a
striped silk cravat. His vest was sleek and zipped up the
front, defining the muscled breadth of his chest, and made
of faux-leather in midnight blue. He had to be affluent, then. Successful. Of course. It wasn’t easy to gain a witness pass. It
probably took creds or connections or both. There were
senators in the crowd - Twenty-three had heard the Daughters
bragging about their number this time. But this man was no senator. He didn’t have the smug
satisfaction of a politician, much less the bulk of one who
ate frequently and well at the expense of others.
Twenty-three doubted that this man would ever tell anyone
what they wanted to hear. To the contrary, she suspected
that he preferred to surprise people. There was an intriguing hint of mischief in his smile. And a knowing glint in his eyes. The gem in the pin that held his cravat in place was large
and faceted, large enough to catch the light at a distance.
It was blue, maybe a sapphire, but couldn’t compete with the
brilliant blue glimmer of his eyes. His fair hair was tied
back in a queue, as luxuriant as spun gold. He was
clean-shaven, and made no pretence that he was doing
anything other than what he was doing. He watched her openly. Twenty-three knew he couldn’t truly see her. Her features
were hidden behind her veil, but she feared that his bright
gaze could pierce those shadows. She knew he couldn’t even
see her eyes given the distance between them, but she felt
as if he could read her thoughts. As if he knew how she felt. As if he could see the trickle of perspiration running down
her bare back or smell the heat rising from her skin. Could
he know that her heart was racing? That there was a shimmer
spreading through her lower body? That she was awake for the
first time in years? Twenty-three’s mind filled with
questions but she couldn’t avert her gaze from his.
Awareness strung taut between the two of them, increasing
the hum in her ears. Would he thwart her plan?
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