ReadingOnBecauseIWantTo

The Angelfire series and I have had a rocky history together. I loved the first book but Wings of the Wicked dragged on and on and on. I wasn’t sure what to expect going into this one. Probably a mix of the first two.

Well whatever I was or wasn’t expecting, Shadows in the Silence blew me away. From page one the plot sucks you in and doesn’t let go. But it was by no means fast paced. But it wasn’t slow either. Shadows used its plot to the best of its ability. It took time to further develop the characters and introduce us to new ones.

And unlike so many sequels, there was down time for the character spread throughout the book so it wasn’t all build up and then ten pages for the climax. This was greatly pleasing because Wings had so much build up reading it was like pulling teeth.

The action sequences were brought to new heights in their detail and pulse-pounding reactions. Whenever Ellie fought a reaper, I got a thrill, knowing I was in for a treat.

Another common complaint I have about novels involving searches for some mysterious relic is the length/build up. They usually take forever and are excruciatingly boring. I honestly don’t know how Courtney managed it, but the search for the Ring of Solomon wasn’t boring in the slightest. Maybe it was all the dead ends and questionable leads that kept me guessing.  (The reaper guarding the statue was hilarious).

Another problem with 3^rd books is weak endings. They go by too quickly or make no sense. Thankfully, the ending of Shadows made sense (for the most part. I’ll get to that in a second) and was quite epic. I was hit with a tidal wave of feels when Ellie ascended.

The only confusing bit was whether Ellie was Gabriel permanently or what. It said that she was an Archangel with a human soul but does that mean that she was Ellie with angel powers of Gabriel with emotions?