Exhausted by years of illness and chemotherapy, Britt plans
to get washed over a waterfall and end her life. But as the
river takes her she realises that she does want to live.
Then unearthly intervention restores her to her distraught
parents, and not only is she free of trauma from the river,
the cancer seems to have vanished. Can it have been angels
who touched her? And what comes next for an eighteen year
old who has forgotten how to live?
The hospital can find only accelerated healing and Britt is
released to go shopping for stylish clothes with her girl
pals, to make a new family life in Grand Rapids. But she's
experiencing vividly unpleasant dreams and she realises
that whatever the angels did might not have gone entirely
right. TAKING ANGELS gets us right under the skin of this
unhappy girl from the start, so we want her new life to be
joyous - but everything comes at a price. Persuaded to
volunteer at the hospital where she had been treated, Britt
finds that her touch helps to heal some patients... and
that a sinister man is going around doing the reverse. Who
would believe her?
CS Yelle has put together a young adult paranormal tale
with touches of horror, mainly for girls. There are
similarities with Twilight - a glamorous brother and
sister arrive at school, who are wealthy and long-lived
beings with extra abilities. Britt finds herself attracted
to the young man who, like Edward Cullen, is rather older
than he appears. However the fact that Britt herself is
learning to handle her new abilities and problems does
differentiate this work. Britt also shares her secrets with
her girlfriends and involves them in her changed life.
Yelle gives us several degrees and varieties of angels -
Eternals, half-angels, guardians, avengers, soulless....
it can be hard to keep track. I also found it hard to
balance the romantic element, as the characters were soon
leading far from normal lives.
Yelle has been a school science teacher and industry
accounts manager, and plans to extend his story to a series
called The Angel Crusades. TAKING ANGELS will surely
gain young adult fans.
Britt Anderson went along with everything the doctors said
for nearly four years, but she was still dying at eighteen.
The cancer had won leaving her without a future, without any
options, and without control. No control, except for how she
would leave this world. As Britt tries to end her life by
going into the frigid waters she realizes her mistake. She
struggles to get back to shore, to cry out for help, but her
atrophied muscles are useless and the frigid water steals
the breath from her chemo-scarred lungs. Despite her
father's attempts to reach her, she flies over the
waterfall.
When Allister Parks finds Britt's fragile body on the
riverbank something calls out to him. Ignoring the warnings
of his sister, Allister brings Britt back from the edge of
death. The only problem is that an Eternal like Allister
isn't allowed to touch those who have already passed from
this world. It is forbidden; an infraction punishable by
death.
As Britt relishes her new cancer-free life and senior year
of high school, her very existence threatens Allister's
place in this world. Allister struggles to keep Britt a
secret from the Eternal Council and out of the hands of the
only Eternal who already knows the truth: the one who stole
her guardian angel.
© 2003-2024 off-the-edge.net
all rights reserved Privacy Policy