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Angelology #1
Angelology
Abandoned as a child on the steps of St Rose Convent in New York, Evangeline Cacciatore grew up knowing little of her parents. Assisting a scholar in the convent one day, she uncovers a disturbing secret conected to her family.
464 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 2010
About the author
Danielle Trussoni
13 books1,401 followersDanielle Trussoni is the author of The Puzzle Box (October 8, 2024), The Puzzle Master, The Ancestor, Angelology, The Fortress and Falling Through The Earth. Danielle is an internationally best-selling author whose work has been translated into over 30 languages.
Please get in touch with Danielle by writing her at danielle@danielletrussoni.com
Please get in touch with Danielle by writing her at danielle@danielletrussoni.com
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 2,583 reviews
July 21, 2017
Over the years, I've received student papers so awful, I'm tempted to just write, "Nice font choice" and move on. For Trussoni's sad book, my comment is "Nice cover." Fetching, isn't it?
However, what a surprise.
Not one of my GR friends has any mention of this book - not a review, not a to-be-read, and definitely not a wishlist pick.
Gee. I wonder why.
Several reasons come to mind. Overall, the book is a half-witted concoction clearly written in the hopes that it would become a movie, or rather the first in a series of movies, given that the book's end signals a sequel.
The Nephilim or fallen angels, who live in the midst of a somewhat Victorian-feeling society, apparently elude the notice of most mortals, despite their immense power and influence. Just how this is possible is not explained nor is angelology, which could have been somewhat fascinating, if pursued in any depth.
And, just as Maureen Dowd coined the term baldenfreude for men losing their locks, we could probably use the term wingenfreude to describe the loss of wing breadth, luster, and thickness that some of the angels are experiencing. And if the dilemma of Percival, the key male angel, sounds a bit phallic, it should. The description of Percival's former wings in contrast to his mother's flawless appendages is rife with envy and Freudian implications:
His mother's wings were gorgeous, shimmering, healthy, full-plumed. A gradation of soft color radiated from the tips, where the feathers were tiny and roseate, and moved to the center of her back, where the feathers grew large and glittering. Percival's wings, when he'd had them, had been even larger than his mother's, sharp and dramatic, the feathers precisely shaped daggers of brilliant, powdery gold."
Though a major character, Percival, our emasculated and evil angel, is not the main character. That spot is reserved for Sister Evangeline, a remarkably flat and undeveloped character, whose destiny is evident by perhaps page 10 or so of this 458-page book.
The only remotely compelling sections were those in Bulgaria, particularly concerning Celestine and Gabrielle. Just why in the hell I read this whole godawful mess can only be explained by major funkdom, when I read continuously (including some awful literature) and eat a lot of bubba-mycin (chicken soup).
Please view this review as a public service message. Save yourself from this book and its likely incarnation as a movie (imdb.com indicates that it's in development). aaargh.
April 23, 2010
This one kept losing stars as it went. The broad concept was really interesting, excerpting one of those weird bits of the bible and making it the basis for an otherworldly, fantastical story. But the characters are flat and the writing is dull -- most of the first half of the book is scenes of people doing research, and we get to read right along with them as they examine ancient historical texts and first-hand accounts of angelic encounters. This is about as exciting as reading a musty old history textbook can be, but leaves you ready for some action.
Sadly, when the action finally does start up, the book quickly falls apart. Danielle Trussoni clearly has zero skill in writing a thriller, and the frantic final third grows increasingly ludicrous and difficult to follow, with several poorly-staged battles between demonic creatures and old nuns and an anticlimactic The Da Vinci Code search for a hidden historical object that is simply there to pad out the story needlessly. The writing is very sloppy and many confrontations don't make much sense (at one point the villain has a gun trained on the heroes but neglects to use it for no discernible reason, even as one of them slowly assembles a mysterious object that might spell the villain's defeat).
The ending springs a Star Wars-esque moral choice on the lead character pretty much out of nowhere and the book ends on a very sour note, clearly setting things up for a sequel that I would guess perhaps 10 percent of those who slog all the way through Angelology will actually bother to read.
Oh, and it's going to be made into a doubtlessly terrible movie. Hooray.
Sadly, when the action finally does start up, the book quickly falls apart. Danielle Trussoni clearly has zero skill in writing a thriller, and the frantic final third grows increasingly ludicrous and difficult to follow, with several poorly-staged battles between demonic creatures and old nuns and an anticlimactic The Da Vinci Code search for a hidden historical object that is simply there to pad out the story needlessly. The writing is very sloppy and many confrontations don't make much sense (at one point the villain has a gun trained on the heroes but neglects to use it for no discernible reason, even as one of them slowly assembles a mysterious object that might spell the villain's defeat).
The ending springs a Star Wars-esque moral choice on the lead character pretty much out of nowhere and the book ends on a very sour note, clearly setting things up for a sequel that I would guess perhaps 10 percent of those who slog all the way through Angelology will actually bother to read.
Oh, and it's going to be made into a doubtlessly terrible movie. Hooray.
October 6, 2011
Honestly, if I could give it 3.5 stars, I would. Since I can't, I'm rounding up, as a gesture towards giving the author the benefit of the doubt, expecting that the next book will be better.
Angelology is a mixed bag. Personally, I find angel lore, and other mythologies, fascinating, and I thoroughly enjoyed the mix of Judeo-Christian and Greek myth, Talmudic scholarship and discussion of the Book of Enoch (a personal favorite). The subject of the Nephilim has intrigued me since I first read Madeline L'Engle as a kid. So . . . A+ on an interesting new take on very intriguing subject matter.
I understand this is the Ms. Trussoni's first novel, her first book being a solidly non-fiction memoir. I believe that this is apparent in her writing style. Frankly, I found the narrative voice to be rather dry for a work of fiction, especially one of the fantastic variety, but perfectly in keeping, however, with the expected tone of a diarist. It is also quite telling that the most compelling part of the book was the section detailing the personal memories of a young woman's life and education in WWII-era France. It was written in the first person, and the character, Celestine, was by far the most well-developed, and most distinctive voice in the entire novel. Clearly Ms. Trussoni is more comfortable, at least at the moment, with this style of narration.
The other characters in the book suffered somewhat from a lack of differentiation of voice; they all ran together and "read" quite similarly, from evil Nephilim to nuns, to aged angelologists. This was something of an unfortunate impediment when trying to identify with the various characters, and I hope that further work in fiction will help Ms. Trussoni better develop individual character voice.
The author is, however, quite skilled in description and her world was very easy to visualize, often vividly so. Unfortunately, her adeptness in this area overbalanced her lesser abilities in characterization and resulted in large sections of the book feeling overly expository, which was surprising, because the book had some truly exciting action bits.
Despite the book's flaws, however, Ms. Trussoni really did succeed in drawing me in, particularly after the aforementioned very engaging second section of the book, and left me looking forward to the next novel in the series. She is clearly a skilled and talented author, and I expect that she will quickly develop better fictional narrative skills. While I don't believe the book is quite worth the hype, it is still well worth reading.
Angelology is a mixed bag. Personally, I find angel lore, and other mythologies, fascinating, and I thoroughly enjoyed the mix of Judeo-Christian and Greek myth, Talmudic scholarship and discussion of the Book of Enoch (a personal favorite). The subject of the Nephilim has intrigued me since I first read Madeline L'Engle as a kid. So . . . A+ on an interesting new take on very intriguing subject matter.
I understand this is the Ms. Trussoni's first novel, her first book being a solidly non-fiction memoir. I believe that this is apparent in her writing style. Frankly, I found the narrative voice to be rather dry for a work of fiction, especially one of the fantastic variety, but perfectly in keeping, however, with the expected tone of a diarist. It is also quite telling that the most compelling part of the book was the section detailing the personal memories of a young woman's life and education in WWII-era France. It was written in the first person, and the character, Celestine, was by far the most well-developed, and most distinctive voice in the entire novel. Clearly Ms. Trussoni is more comfortable, at least at the moment, with this style of narration.
The other characters in the book suffered somewhat from a lack of differentiation of voice; they all ran together and "read" quite similarly, from evil Nephilim to nuns, to aged angelologists. This was something of an unfortunate impediment when trying to identify with the various characters, and I hope that further work in fiction will help Ms. Trussoni better develop individual character voice.
The author is, however, quite skilled in description and her world was very easy to visualize, often vividly so. Unfortunately, her adeptness in this area overbalanced her lesser abilities in characterization and resulted in large sections of the book feeling overly expository, which was surprising, because the book had some truly exciting action bits.
Despite the book's flaws, however, Ms. Trussoni really did succeed in drawing me in, particularly after the aforementioned very engaging second section of the book, and left me looking forward to the next novel in the series. She is clearly a skilled and talented author, and I expect that she will quickly develop better fictional narrative skills. While I don't believe the book is quite worth the hype, it is still well worth reading.
October 6, 2019
3.5/ Realmente me ha gustado, es una historia diferente a las muchas que puedes encontrar sobre ángeles, el único pero es que, para mí gusto, la autora describe demasiado todo y eso hace que la novela pierda intensidad.
November 23, 2013
Well...the cover is FABULOUS.
Ok guys, I will admit it: I don't like nuns. I mean, not on a PERSONAL level, but their world view is not compelling in a general fictional sense, and they've always bugged me since one of my first acting classes when I had to play Agnes of God in a scene, and I remember I spilled Coke on myself during the performance and broke character and got yelled at. So this could be my personal problem with one of the main characters that is skewing my opinion. Because she's a nun. To be clear.
There was just WEIRD world building in this book. I couldn't grasp onto it, nothing ever felt REAL to me, so it was hard for me to suspend disbelief. I think there was some interesting lore invented here, and some compelling characters, but it was just a bit confusing for my tastes. Probably it was the nun thing. Sally Field was so creepy to me as a kid with that outfit on too, like, she could never get in a sportscar, am I right?!
Anyhoo, I think if you like Dan Brown's books this is JUST PERFECT for you. So there are tons of people out there who will like it. I wanted a bit more fantasy in this urban fantasy, that's all.
Nuns, sigh.
Ok guys, I will admit it: I don't like nuns. I mean, not on a PERSONAL level, but their world view is not compelling in a general fictional sense, and they've always bugged me since one of my first acting classes when I had to play Agnes of God in a scene, and I remember I spilled Coke on myself during the performance and broke character and got yelled at. So this could be my personal problem with one of the main characters that is skewing my opinion. Because she's a nun. To be clear.
There was just WEIRD world building in this book. I couldn't grasp onto it, nothing ever felt REAL to me, so it was hard for me to suspend disbelief. I think there was some interesting lore invented here, and some compelling characters, but it was just a bit confusing for my tastes. Probably it was the nun thing. Sally Field was so creepy to me as a kid with that outfit on too, like, she could never get in a sportscar, am I right?!
Anyhoo, I think if you like Dan Brown's books this is JUST PERFECT for you. So there are tons of people out there who will like it. I wanted a bit more fantasy in this urban fantasy, that's all.
Nuns, sigh.
July 15, 2011
I am so glad I found this on audiobook at the library. It turned out to be a very good medium for this story. I have to say that for a slow starter, I really got drawn into this book, and when it ended, I had separation anxiety!
Two things kept me from giving this a five star rating:
1. The slow, meandering start. I was initially thinking, uh-oh, this might turn out to be a real snoozer. Boy was I wrong!
2. The ending was a cliffie that really got my blood pressure up! I didn't like the way this novel concluded at all. I hate feeling like I'm being manipulated to read the next book in a series, and it felt that way. I'd rather read a book series that has books that begin and conclude in a natural way. Some resolution, but threads that encourage me to pick up the next book. That was so not the case here. I would have kept reading anyway, but now I feel like my arm is being twisted to read the next book.
Things I loved about this book:
1. The scholarly tone wouldn't work for everyone, but since I am a bookworm nerd who likes to research topics that are of interest, I could really get into the angelologists and their penchant for delving deeply into subjects in their field. And their subject knowledge.. .Wow! Most of the main characters were in one way or another scholars or people who really knew their stuff. They spent their lives reading and immersing themselves in the past. That spoke to me.
2. I loved the epistolary format, a significant portion of the book written as parts of journal entries and book excerpts. It was executed very well. One would think that this would make the book dry, but it didn’t.
3. The narrator was fantastic. She did a gorgeous French accent (and believe me, most of the book is in various French viewpoints), and she made each of the characters sound very different. With the male viewpoints, her voice was lower and conveyed a male speaking. She really brought them to life, and brought a vivid image of the story to life, and I could get an idea of what each character was like based on the way she spoke their parts.
4. Ms. Trussoni gets the duality of angels. They are so beautiful they are irresistible, but there are so powerful and dangerous that one never truly forgets (or shouldn’t to their regret) their celestial nature, so far above humans. And then, there are the nephilim. Oh my goodness. They were so evil! I had hopes that creatures of a once divine origin, so beautiful to look at, would have some goodness inside. Not at all! I was continually surprised at how sinister and even corrupt they were. They thought absolutely nothing about humans, or God, or their celestial origins. They were all about obtaining and keeping power on earth.
5. Angelology itself as the focus of this book. Who knew? Wow! It’s more than just being an angel scholar. It’s your life, and there is no sacrifice too great, as I learned as I read. It’s all for a purpose, to prepare for the battle against very powerful foes, the nephilim. The people in this avocation that we become acquaintances with in this book suffer so greatly, and as I listened, it was clear why. Their foes were such that it took all their energies to fight them, and losing one’s life could be a given at any time.
6. Ms. Trussoni did such a good job of tying all the various narrators together. The story spans over a thousand years (well actually goes back to biblical times), but it all plays a part, and each narrator took my attention and held it hostage as I listened.
7. Percival Grigori was a fascinating villain. There were times I felt really sorry for him, and other times I hated him. His highly complicated relationship with Gabriella Levy-French Valco made for some good reading! The societies that the nephilim had built and how they became the ones controlling all the power and money in the modern world felt so plausible, part of me wonders if this is truly possible. It kind of makes sense!
Final Thoughts:
Although the ending was a buzz kill, I was very impressed overall with this book. The angel parts were surreally intoxicating. I found I cared about the characters, and I was so engaged with their struggles. This book found my angel love and pulled me tight to the narrative. The unreal beauty of the angels, the black hearts of the nephilim, the intense struggle of the frail humans against unimaginably strong (but strangely frail in some ways) celestial creatures. But then, those angelologists have some serious tricks up their sleeve. If you are a reader who loves angels, you should add this to the reading list.
Overall rating: 4.5 celestial stars.
Two things kept me from giving this a five star rating:
1. The slow, meandering start. I was initially thinking, uh-oh, this might turn out to be a real snoozer. Boy was I wrong!
2. The ending was a cliffie that really got my blood pressure up! I didn't like the way this novel concluded at all. I hate feeling like I'm being manipulated to read the next book in a series, and it felt that way. I'd rather read a book series that has books that begin and conclude in a natural way. Some resolution, but threads that encourage me to pick up the next book. That was so not the case here. I would have kept reading anyway, but now I feel like my arm is being twisted to read the next book.
Things I loved about this book:
1. The scholarly tone wouldn't work for everyone, but since I am a bookworm nerd who likes to research topics that are of interest, I could really get into the angelologists and their penchant for delving deeply into subjects in their field. And their subject knowledge.. .Wow! Most of the main characters were in one way or another scholars or people who really knew their stuff. They spent their lives reading and immersing themselves in the past. That spoke to me.
2. I loved the epistolary format, a significant portion of the book written as parts of journal entries and book excerpts. It was executed very well. One would think that this would make the book dry, but it didn’t.
3. The narrator was fantastic. She did a gorgeous French accent (and believe me, most of the book is in various French viewpoints), and she made each of the characters sound very different. With the male viewpoints, her voice was lower and conveyed a male speaking. She really brought them to life, and brought a vivid image of the story to life, and I could get an idea of what each character was like based on the way she spoke their parts.
4. Ms. Trussoni gets the duality of angels. They are so beautiful they are irresistible, but there are so powerful and dangerous that one never truly forgets (or shouldn’t to their regret) their celestial nature, so far above humans. And then, there are the nephilim. Oh my goodness. They were so evil! I had hopes that creatures of a once divine origin, so beautiful to look at, would have some goodness inside. Not at all! I was continually surprised at how sinister and even corrupt they were. They thought absolutely nothing about humans, or God, or their celestial origins. They were all about obtaining and keeping power on earth.
5. Angelology itself as the focus of this book. Who knew? Wow! It’s more than just being an angel scholar. It’s your life, and there is no sacrifice too great, as I learned as I read. It’s all for a purpose, to prepare for the battle against very powerful foes, the nephilim. The people in this avocation that we become acquaintances with in this book suffer so greatly, and as I listened, it was clear why. Their foes were such that it took all their energies to fight them, and losing one’s life could be a given at any time.
6. Ms. Trussoni did such a good job of tying all the various narrators together. The story spans over a thousand years (well actually goes back to biblical times), but it all plays a part, and each narrator took my attention and held it hostage as I listened.
7. Percival Grigori was a fascinating villain. There were times I felt really sorry for him, and other times I hated him. His highly complicated relationship with Gabriella Levy-French Valco made for some good reading! The societies that the nephilim had built and how they became the ones controlling all the power and money in the modern world felt so plausible, part of me wonders if this is truly possible. It kind of makes sense!
Final Thoughts:
Although the ending was a buzz kill, I was very impressed overall with this book. The angel parts were surreally intoxicating. I found I cared about the characters, and I was so engaged with their struggles. This book found my angel love and pulled me tight to the narrative. The unreal beauty of the angels, the black hearts of the nephilim, the intense struggle of the frail humans against unimaginably strong (but strangely frail in some ways) celestial creatures. But then, those angelologists have some serious tricks up their sleeve. If you are a reader who loves angels, you should add this to the reading list.
Overall rating: 4.5 celestial stars.
February 1, 2013
When you read as much as I do, it is rare to come across a totally unique story. Angelology is that rare gem.
This book has almost every element a great book should offer: multi-faceted, fascinating characters, an exciting, complex, layered plot, and really excellent writing. The story is a tapestry of interwoven storylines, that includes history, religion, philosophy, art, puzzles, and scavenger hunts.
The story revolves around Sister Evangeline, a young nun, who has been part of the Franciscan Sisters of Perpetual Adoration convent since the age of twelve, left there by her father after the tragic, and mysterious death of her mother.
The Convent has a well-known archive and library with information on Angels. When an art-historian asks permission to visit and access the archives, Sister Evangeline as the nun responsible for correspondence, prepares the usual polite denial. And yet, she is intrigued by the request, which contends that Abigail Rockefellar corresponded with a previous Mother Superior of the convent.
Curious, Evangeline searches the archives and finds a letter from Mrs. Rockefellar.
This sets off a chain of events which show Evangeline that she is not the person she thought she was, and that her mother and grandmother were keepers of an exceptionally special calling - Angelologists, who have hunted and attempted to exterminate evil rogue angels, called Nephilim, who are living among us to this day.
But Evangeline soon realizes that her own life may be in danger because of events set in motion hundreds of years in the past, and that she must discover the truth of her heritage.
At the same time, Percival Grigori, son of one of the premier Nephilim families, is suffering from a debilitating crippling disease, that will kill him, unless he can unravel a mystery and obtain a cure, which he believes is being hidden by the Angelologists.
It isn't possible to do this book real justice in a review. It has so much to offer you have to read it to appreciate it, and I recommend you do if you like thoughtful, well-written, fascinating historical fiction with a number of psychological thriller twists and turns.
Definitely one of the best books I've ever read! This is the author's first book, and I really hope she has more stories like this one in her!!
This book has almost every element a great book should offer: multi-faceted, fascinating characters, an exciting, complex, layered plot, and really excellent writing. The story is a tapestry of interwoven storylines, that includes history, religion, philosophy, art, puzzles, and scavenger hunts.
The story revolves around Sister Evangeline, a young nun, who has been part of the Franciscan Sisters of Perpetual Adoration convent since the age of twelve, left there by her father after the tragic, and mysterious death of her mother.
The Convent has a well-known archive and library with information on Angels. When an art-historian asks permission to visit and access the archives, Sister Evangeline as the nun responsible for correspondence, prepares the usual polite denial. And yet, she is intrigued by the request, which contends that Abigail Rockefellar corresponded with a previous Mother Superior of the convent.
Curious, Evangeline searches the archives and finds a letter from Mrs. Rockefellar.
This sets off a chain of events which show Evangeline that she is not the person she thought she was, and that her mother and grandmother were keepers of an exceptionally special calling - Angelologists, who have hunted and attempted to exterminate evil rogue angels, called Nephilim, who are living among us to this day.
But Evangeline soon realizes that her own life may be in danger because of events set in motion hundreds of years in the past, and that she must discover the truth of her heritage.
At the same time, Percival Grigori, son of one of the premier Nephilim families, is suffering from a debilitating crippling disease, that will kill him, unless he can unravel a mystery and obtain a cure, which he believes is being hidden by the Angelologists.
It isn't possible to do this book real justice in a review. It has so much to offer you have to read it to appreciate it, and I recommend you do if you like thoughtful, well-written, fascinating historical fiction with a number of psychological thriller twists and turns.
Definitely one of the best books I've ever read! This is the author's first book, and I really hope she has more stories like this one in her!!
March 24, 2017
Mi libro favorito de todos los tiempos .
June 23, 2023
Evangeline ha pasado mucho tiempo viviendo en el convento de las Hermanas de la Adoracion Perpetua, desde que su padre la trajo cuando tenia 12 anos, y nunca ha cuestionado sus razones y menos su inclinacion a pertenecer a la orden. Pero ahora a sus 25 anos, una carta con una extrana solicitud de informacion, le abre un mundo totalmente diferente, y despierta su curiosidad. Lo que no sabe es a lo que se enfrenta y descubrirlo le mostrara un mundo nuevo, diferente y espeluznante a la vez. Ahora solo tiene que seguir adelante, confiando en su abuela y su grupo, para detener la amenza que se cierne ante la humanidad.
El libro tiene conceptos interesantes, una nueva forma de mirar a los seres angelicales, que resulta diferente y no muy alagadora. La primera parte del libro intenta que nos enfoquemos en el misterio de lo que estan buscando los protas y que puede ser, pero tiene tanto contenido teologico, y tantas descripciones que resulta aburrido de leer. Lo mismo pasa con la 2da parte, volviendo al pasado para explicarnos mejor el transfondo de la historia, resulta en un capitulo extremadamente largo, pesado de leer y con demasiados aspectos teologicos que no ayudan para nada en la trama, si no fuera porque parte del contenido ayuda a entender la trama, seguro me lo habria saltado. Y para cerrar, tenemos las 2 ultimas partes, en una nos muestras lo que son capaces de hacer los nefilin y como se pueden defender las monjas, y en el ultimo, nos llevan a la "aventura" de encontrar el objeto. Pero estas ultimas partes, aunque llenas de accion, tienen muchos fallos de conceptos, incluyendo, el como confias tan rapido en unas personas que no conoces, y que son los gibborin, y donde Evangeline aprendio tanto tan rapido.
En fin, no es una mala historia, pero resulta demasiado pesada de leer, termina con demasiados huecos, y el final resulta totalmente predecible, asi que no creo que lea la cotinuacion, o por lo menos no durante un buen tiempo.
El libro tiene conceptos interesantes, una nueva forma de mirar a los seres angelicales, que resulta diferente y no muy alagadora. La primera parte del libro intenta que nos enfoquemos en el misterio de lo que estan buscando los protas y que puede ser, pero tiene tanto contenido teologico, y tantas descripciones que resulta aburrido de leer. Lo mismo pasa con la 2da parte, volviendo al pasado para explicarnos mejor el transfondo de la historia, resulta en un capitulo extremadamente largo, pesado de leer y con demasiados aspectos teologicos que no ayudan para nada en la trama, si no fuera porque parte del contenido ayuda a entender la trama, seguro me lo habria saltado. Y para cerrar, tenemos las 2 ultimas partes, en una nos muestras lo que son capaces de hacer los nefilin y como se pueden defender las monjas, y en el ultimo, nos llevan a la "aventura" de encontrar el objeto. Pero estas ultimas partes, aunque llenas de accion, tienen muchos fallos de conceptos, incluyendo, el como confias tan rapido en unas personas que no conoces, y que son los gibborin, y donde Evangeline aprendio tanto tan rapido.
En fin, no es una mala historia, pero resulta demasiado pesada de leer, termina con demasiados huecos, y el final resulta totalmente predecible, asi que no creo que lea la cotinuacion, o por lo menos no durante un buen tiempo.
April 7, 2016
Ωραία η θεματολογία του βιβλίου, άγγελοι, νεφιλείμ, ελοχείμ, πόλεμος με τους ανθρώπους, το βιβλίο του Ενώχ, χαριτωμένη αγνή πρωταγωνίστρια και όλα αυτά τα καλά. Η πλοκή ακολουθεί μια ωραία σειρά, με την αγωνία του, την δράση του, μια χαρά. Όμως… τι λογοδιάρροια είναι αυτή; Τι ακατάπαυστη φλυαρία; Μας εξηγούσε την λεπτομέρεια, της λεπτομέρειας, ω λεπτομέρεια!!! Μου το χάλασε τα μάλα! Τελος πάντων… καλό ήταν, θα μπορούσε να γίνει πολύ πολύ καλύτερο αν η Trussoni πριν το γράψει δεν είχε καταπιεί δυο καφάσια γλιστρίδα!
March 5, 2010
Dare I say it? Yes, I dare say -
Angelology by Danielle Trussoni is the heir to Elizabeth Kostova's The Historian.
Angelology is a breathtaking story of ambitious scope: good vs. evil, man vs. fallen angels, Nazis, Greek mythology, the Bible, Milton (Angelology owes much to Paradise Lost). And the heroine is a nun - gotta love it!
Sister Evangeline is leading a quiet life of prayer in a convent situated in Milton, New York, when she receives a letter from Paul Verlaine asking for access to the convent's archives. With this one request, Evangeline and Verlaine set off a dangerous chain of events that are connected to the secret society of Angelologists, those who have made it their lives' work to study and defeat humankind's oldest enemy - the fallen angels.
The Society of Angelologists go back many generations, claiming as its members, Sir Thomas Aquinas, Roger Bacon, Milton, of course. They are scholars of theology, scientists, men and women of the cloth who throughout the years have waged a secret war against the Nephilim, the evil offspring of the fallen angels who pass as humans. The darkest periods of human history, such as the Inquisition and the Nazis' rise to power, are attributed to the machinations of the half-human, half-angel Nephilim. However, some of the Nephilim are falling prey to a degenerative disease, and they have become desperate to find a cure.
For many years now, the Angelologists and Nephilim alike have been searching for a hidden, fabled treasure from the Archangel Michael himself, which, if the Nephilim were to obtain it would be their instrument to unlimited power on earth and also cure their mysterious wasting disease. Within the forgotten archives of Sister Evangeline's convent lies the key to its location. From Bulgaria, to Paris, to New York - the Angelologists race to find this precious artifact before the Nephilim.
Angelology started off slowly, as it opens with details of the uneventful, meditative life of a nun; however, once it hits the Angelology part, it just takes off and soars. Much like Lucifer in Paradise Lost, the Nephilim are mesmerizing figures, more so than the human characters in Angelology. The vivid passages describing them leap off the page.
The angelologists examined the body. It was intact, without decay, the skin as smooth and as white as parchment. The lifeless aquamarine eyes gazed heavenward. Pale curls fell against a high forehead and sculptural shoulders, forming a halo of golden hair... It should not have surprised them to find the angel in that preserved condition. The fingernails, nacreous as the inside of an oyster shell; the long, smooth, navel-less stomach; the eerie translucency of the skin---everything about the creature was as they knew it would be, even the positioning of the wings was correct. And yet it was too lovely, too vital for something they had studied only in airless libraries...
All their professional lives they had waited to see it. Although not one of them would have admitted so, they secretly suspected to find a monstrous corpse, all bones and fiber shreds, like something unearthed from an archeological dig. Instead there was this: a delicate tapering hand, an aquiline nose, pink lips in a frozen kiss. The angelologists hovered above the body, gazing down in anticipation, as if they expected the creature to blink its eyes and wake.
As diabolical and soulless as they are, the fallen angels are seductive; I would love to have majored in Angelology! I love that all the Angelologists have angelic names: Seraphina, Gabriella, Raphael, Celestine, Angela, Evangeline. To give Angelology a scholarly feel, Trussoni weaves Biblical passages, letters, journals, and historic-esque accounts within the fantastical plot (hence the comparison with The Historian).
I just could not stop reading this book and raced without break to the thrilling yet unexpected ending.
I'm further excited to find out that there's a planned sequel (the ending certainly begs for it) called Angelopolis. I hope Trussoni finishes that one soon!
My enthusiasm for Angelology has me wondering - Are angels are the new vampires???
Angelology by Danielle Trussoni is the heir to Elizabeth Kostova's The Historian.
Angelology is a breathtaking story of ambitious scope: good vs. evil, man vs. fallen angels, Nazis, Greek mythology, the Bible, Milton (Angelology owes much to Paradise Lost). And the heroine is a nun - gotta love it!
Sister Evangeline is leading a quiet life of prayer in a convent situated in Milton, New York, when she receives a letter from Paul Verlaine asking for access to the convent's archives. With this one request, Evangeline and Verlaine set off a dangerous chain of events that are connected to the secret society of Angelologists, those who have made it their lives' work to study and defeat humankind's oldest enemy - the fallen angels.
The Society of Angelologists go back many generations, claiming as its members, Sir Thomas Aquinas, Roger Bacon, Milton, of course. They are scholars of theology, scientists, men and women of the cloth who throughout the years have waged a secret war against the Nephilim, the evil offspring of the fallen angels who pass as humans. The darkest periods of human history, such as the Inquisition and the Nazis' rise to power, are attributed to the machinations of the half-human, half-angel Nephilim. However, some of the Nephilim are falling prey to a degenerative disease, and they have become desperate to find a cure.
For many years now, the Angelologists and Nephilim alike have been searching for a hidden, fabled treasure from the Archangel Michael himself, which, if the Nephilim were to obtain it would be their instrument to unlimited power on earth and also cure their mysterious wasting disease. Within the forgotten archives of Sister Evangeline's convent lies the key to its location. From Bulgaria, to Paris, to New York - the Angelologists race to find this precious artifact before the Nephilim.
Angelology started off slowly, as it opens with details of the uneventful, meditative life of a nun; however, once it hits the Angelology part, it just takes off and soars. Much like Lucifer in Paradise Lost, the Nephilim are mesmerizing figures, more so than the human characters in Angelology. The vivid passages describing them leap off the page.
The angelologists examined the body. It was intact, without decay, the skin as smooth and as white as parchment. The lifeless aquamarine eyes gazed heavenward. Pale curls fell against a high forehead and sculptural shoulders, forming a halo of golden hair... It should not have surprised them to find the angel in that preserved condition. The fingernails, nacreous as the inside of an oyster shell; the long, smooth, navel-less stomach; the eerie translucency of the skin---everything about the creature was as they knew it would be, even the positioning of the wings was correct. And yet it was too lovely, too vital for something they had studied only in airless libraries...
All their professional lives they had waited to see it. Although not one of them would have admitted so, they secretly suspected to find a monstrous corpse, all bones and fiber shreds, like something unearthed from an archeological dig. Instead there was this: a delicate tapering hand, an aquiline nose, pink lips in a frozen kiss. The angelologists hovered above the body, gazing down in anticipation, as if they expected the creature to blink its eyes and wake.
As diabolical and soulless as they are, the fallen angels are seductive; I would love to have majored in Angelology! I love that all the Angelologists have angelic names: Seraphina, Gabriella, Raphael, Celestine, Angela, Evangeline. To give Angelology a scholarly feel, Trussoni weaves Biblical passages, letters, journals, and historic-esque accounts within the fantastical plot (hence the comparison with The Historian).
I just could not stop reading this book and raced without break to the thrilling yet unexpected ending.
I'm further excited to find out that there's a planned sequel (the ending certainly begs for it) called Angelopolis. I hope Trussoni finishes that one soon!
My enthusiasm for Angelology has me wondering - Are angels are the new vampires???
July 29, 2011
All 452 pages of it. Yup.
I had issues with this book from the first page. The writing is...not good. I know Trussoni went to Iowa (which is usually a yardstick of some kind) and she wrote an acclaimed memoir before this, and this very book is a NY Times Notable Book of 2010. So you'd think she'd write a good sentence. But no. The book is full to bursting with things like:
"Verlaine stared at her, flabbergasted at what this otherwise rational woman had just said."
and:
"The chaos of people slogging through the slush, the squish of buildings, the incessant movement of traffic in every direction--New York City was deeply familiar, despite her years away."
The squish of buildings?
So, overall the book feels rushed and superficial. It's also about 100 pages too long, in part because there's so much redundant and unimportant information--and long, long passages devoted to careful reiteration of past events and their possible significance. At the same time it's missing major appendages--like believable character development, realistic motivation for a shoe-horned-in romance, thoughtful description of many places people & things...
I made myself read to the end of this one because I'm interested in literary writers who turn their hand to genre. Sometimes this can go very well (Michael Chabon, Alden Bell) and sometimes it goes very badly (Justin Cronin, Danielle Trussoni.) I think the secret to writing good genre fiction is not assuming your readers are simple-minded, and not treating it like a cash cow for the movie rights. Where I think both Cronin and Trussoni did very well.
So hey, this could be a really long, overwrought movie at a theater near you soon!
I had issues with this book from the first page. The writing is...not good. I know Trussoni went to Iowa (which is usually a yardstick of some kind) and she wrote an acclaimed memoir before this, and this very book is a NY Times Notable Book of 2010. So you'd think she'd write a good sentence. But no. The book is full to bursting with things like:
"Verlaine stared at her, flabbergasted at what this otherwise rational woman had just said."
and:
"The chaos of people slogging through the slush, the squish of buildings, the incessant movement of traffic in every direction--New York City was deeply familiar, despite her years away."
The squish of buildings?
So, overall the book feels rushed and superficial. It's also about 100 pages too long, in part because there's so much redundant and unimportant information--and long, long passages devoted to careful reiteration of past events and their possible significance. At the same time it's missing major appendages--like believable character development, realistic motivation for a shoe-horned-in romance, thoughtful description of many places people & things...
I made myself read to the end of this one because I'm interested in literary writers who turn their hand to genre. Sometimes this can go very well (Michael Chabon, Alden Bell) and sometimes it goes very badly (Justin Cronin, Danielle Trussoni.) I think the secret to writing good genre fiction is not assuming your readers are simple-minded, and not treating it like a cash cow for the movie rights. Where I think both Cronin and Trussoni did very well.
So hey, this could be a really long, overwrought movie at a theater near you soon!
June 7, 2010
Gah...I wanted to like this book so much. Its premise is so fascinating, but it's execution is like being trapped in a coffin with a rich, old dead woman (one who is wearing enough perfume to clear a street riot) and having to listen to her talk about her less-than-exciting life as a nun.
You know there are some exciting parts somewhere if only she'd stop blathering on about the absolute stupidest details, like the color of the typewriter she used to respond to some man's letter or the size of the flowers on a small pink cake she ate when she was seven.
I got halfway through before I got smart enough to claw my way back to the land of the living...
Stephen King wrote that description is like helping someone out of quicksand. You should throw them a rope, something they can hold easily, not 200 lbs. of steel cable.
I think Danielle was trying to balance out the fantastical (angels, etc.) with the every day. Her version of the every day was 200 lbs. of steel cable.
You know there are some exciting parts somewhere if only she'd stop blathering on about the absolute stupidest details, like the color of the typewriter she used to respond to some man's letter or the size of the flowers on a small pink cake she ate when she was seven.
I got halfway through before I got smart enough to claw my way back to the land of the living...
Stephen King wrote that description is like helping someone out of quicksand. You should throw them a rope, something they can hold easily, not 200 lbs. of steel cable.
I think Danielle was trying to balance out the fantastical (angels, etc.) with the every day. Her version of the every day was 200 lbs. of steel cable.
August 26, 2016
Prologue: In which I apologize to the people who like this book
I'd like to apologize for what you're about to read. I know you really enjoyed this and you thought it was just an amazing fantasy epic on par with say Dan Brown's The Da Vinci Code.
Me? I should have known better then to read a book that had words like "if you loved The Da Vinci Code" on the back cover. My feelings about The Da Vinci Code and Dan Brown cannot be fully expressed in words but it’s very difficult to spell out primal screams of rage so you'll just have to imagine that's what I'm doing right now.
So I thought I'd have a little fun with this review (you will note I have hidden it all under a spoiler tag because of well spoilers but also because no one likes seeing something they loved torn to shreds and occasionally I'm not a totally horrible person).
Now without further ado I present my views on Angelology...
I'd like to apologize for what you're about to read. I know you really enjoyed this and you thought it was just an amazing fantasy epic on par with say Dan Brown's The Da Vinci Code.
Me? I should have known better then to read a book that had words like "if you loved The Da Vinci Code" on the back cover. My feelings about The Da Vinci Code and Dan Brown cannot be fully expressed in words but it’s very difficult to spell out primal screams of rage so you'll just have to imagine that's what I'm doing right now.
So I thought I'd have a little fun with this review (you will note I have hidden it all under a spoiler tag because of well spoilers but also because no one likes seeing something they loved torn to shreds and occasionally I'm not a totally horrible person).
Now without further ado I present my views on Angelology...
January 13, 2013
"Angelology" is not a Biblical-based novel, it is an adventure in an imaginary world. It combines angels and ancient myths and interweaves them into a contemporary setting.
This novel is a struggle between good and evil, between Nephilim (angels of the earth) and Human beings. It is a story of magic, and struggle, and hope. We watch as Evangeline, who grew up in a convent, encounters a world and a life she never knew existed. We are introduced to that world with her, and find ourselves suspending our disbelief as we watch the story unfold.
Sister Evangeline is leading a quiet life of prayer in a convent situated in Milton, New York, when she receives a letter from Paul Verlaine asking for access to the convent's archives. With this one request, Evangeline and Verlaine set off a dangerous chain of events that are connected to the secret society of Angelologists, those who have made it their lives' work to study and defeat humankind's oldest enemy -- the fallen angels.
The Society of Angelologists go back many generations, claiming as its members, Sir Thomas Aquinas, Roger Bacon, Milton, of course. They are scholars of theology, scientists, men and women of the cloth who throughout the years have waged a secret war against the Nephilim, the evil offspring of the fallen angels who pass as humans. The darkest periods of human history, such as the Inquisition and the Nazis' rise to power, are attributed to the machinations of the half-human, half-angel Nephilim. However, some of the Nephilim are falling prey to a degenerative disease, and they have become desperate to find a cure.
For many years now, the Angelologists and Nephilim alike have been searching for a hidden, fabled treasure from the Archangel Michael himself, which, if the Nephilim were to obtain it would be their instrument to unlimited power on earth and also cure their mysterious wasting disease. Within the forgotten archives of Sister Evangeline's convent lies the key to its location. From Bulgaria, to Paris, to New York -- the Angelologists race to find this precious artifact before the Nephilim.
In incredible detail, Trussoni tells a believable tale, a tale that pulls you into the very center of the struggle, one that is 3/4 adventure and 1/4 fantasy. I found myself intrigued as I met the characters and watched the story weave itself together.
The story is engaging, fast-paced, and original. The characters are intriguing, believable, and of increasing complexity as the story develops. The settings and time periods range from Paris in the 1940's, to the mountains of Bulgaria, to modern-day New York. Whether in a convent or a cave; whether seeing events through the eyes of a bewildered little girl or a prideful centuries-old Nephilim -- you feel you are there and it feels real.
Book Details:
Title Angelology
Author Danielle Trussoni
Reviewed By Purplycookie
This novel is a struggle between good and evil, between Nephilim (angels of the earth) and Human beings. It is a story of magic, and struggle, and hope. We watch as Evangeline, who grew up in a convent, encounters a world and a life she never knew existed. We are introduced to that world with her, and find ourselves suspending our disbelief as we watch the story unfold.
Sister Evangeline is leading a quiet life of prayer in a convent situated in Milton, New York, when she receives a letter from Paul Verlaine asking for access to the convent's archives. With this one request, Evangeline and Verlaine set off a dangerous chain of events that are connected to the secret society of Angelologists, those who have made it their lives' work to study and defeat humankind's oldest enemy -- the fallen angels.
The Society of Angelologists go back many generations, claiming as its members, Sir Thomas Aquinas, Roger Bacon, Milton, of course. They are scholars of theology, scientists, men and women of the cloth who throughout the years have waged a secret war against the Nephilim, the evil offspring of the fallen angels who pass as humans. The darkest periods of human history, such as the Inquisition and the Nazis' rise to power, are attributed to the machinations of the half-human, half-angel Nephilim. However, some of the Nephilim are falling prey to a degenerative disease, and they have become desperate to find a cure.
For many years now, the Angelologists and Nephilim alike have been searching for a hidden, fabled treasure from the Archangel Michael himself, which, if the Nephilim were to obtain it would be their instrument to unlimited power on earth and also cure their mysterious wasting disease. Within the forgotten archives of Sister Evangeline's convent lies the key to its location. From Bulgaria, to Paris, to New York -- the Angelologists race to find this precious artifact before the Nephilim.
In incredible detail, Trussoni tells a believable tale, a tale that pulls you into the very center of the struggle, one that is 3/4 adventure and 1/4 fantasy. I found myself intrigued as I met the characters and watched the story weave itself together.
The story is engaging, fast-paced, and original. The characters are intriguing, believable, and of increasing complexity as the story develops. The settings and time periods range from Paris in the 1940's, to the mountains of Bulgaria, to modern-day New York. Whether in a convent or a cave; whether seeing events through the eyes of a bewildered little girl or a prideful centuries-old Nephilim -- you feel you are there and it feels real.
Book Details:
Title Angelology
Author Danielle Trussoni
Reviewed By Purplycookie
March 26, 2010
This book did not live up to the hype. It's Dan Brown with a slightly better editor. The book is split into three sections. The first section was ok. The author did a good job of introducing the families and the specific players. The second section set up the action and gave a history of what the characters were searching for. There were parts of this section that were interesting, specifically the trip to Bulgaria. The third section, was the most similar to a Dan Brown book. It was rushed: new characters were introduced that did not have distinct personalities and other characters were killed off with trite last words. In addition, the ending was clearly written to indicate that there would be a sequel. Unfortunately it read like the ending to a bad superhero movie.
May 26, 2010
When my friend Deb told me she was reading a book called Angelology, and that I had to read it, too, I was skeptical. I mean, it sounded like some funky new age treatise, and secretly, I was worried about what chemicals might be misfiring in her brain. Then she began to describe the plot, and even before she gave me the book, I was hooked.
Imagine a world where angels walk beside us, not as mystical guardians but as immortal (or as near to it as makes little difference) preter-natural beings with huge mafia-esque family businesses. Oh, they’re not ‘out’ or anything – but they exist nevertheless – at least in the reality Trussoni has created.
Enter Sister Evangeline, orphan, nun, restless soul. She’s been assigned to work in the convent library, and one day while she’s doing just that, she intercepts a letter asking for proof of a connection between her convent’s former Mother Superior and Abigail Rockefeller, yes, the Abigail Rockefeller.
That letter sparks a romp through art, literature and history that even Dan Brown would be humbled by, replete with mystery, intrigue, faith, science, and maybe even a little magic.
To describe the plot more would be to ruin it. Suffice to say Angelology is a gripping paranormal mystery/thriller of epic proportions.
Goes well with a slice of angel food cake, fresh strawberries, and a perfect cappuccino.
Imagine a world where angels walk beside us, not as mystical guardians but as immortal (or as near to it as makes little difference) preter-natural beings with huge mafia-esque family businesses. Oh, they’re not ‘out’ or anything – but they exist nevertheless – at least in the reality Trussoni has created.
Enter Sister Evangeline, orphan, nun, restless soul. She’s been assigned to work in the convent library, and one day while she’s doing just that, she intercepts a letter asking for proof of a connection between her convent’s former Mother Superior and Abigail Rockefeller, yes, the Abigail Rockefeller.
That letter sparks a romp through art, literature and history that even Dan Brown would be humbled by, replete with mystery, intrigue, faith, science, and maybe even a little magic.
To describe the plot more would be to ruin it. Suffice to say Angelology is a gripping paranormal mystery/thriller of epic proportions.
Goes well with a slice of angel food cake, fresh strawberries, and a perfect cappuccino.
May 28, 2015
Nope. Not happening. I can't even make it to page 100. I am absolutely bored senseless. Danielle Trussoni's Angelology is a mess. There's probably a story there somewhere, but I just don't have the energy to dig through all the long-winded descriptions, the flashbacks, and the (fictional) historical research. I also have zero interest in any of the characters. NONE of them. I don't care about Evangeline, Verlaine, Grigori, the mystery that needs to be solved. Nothing has me at all thinking: "Gee, I wonder what happens?" It's all kind of obvious: Verlaine is apparently supposed to be the hero of the book. I'm not feeling it. Once I decided that I was definitely giving up, I skimmed through the book and I couldn't see anything that made me think I'd made the wrong decision in giving up. Yuck. So funny that this book sat on my shelf for five years before I decided to read it...and it sucks. Ah well.
April 25, 2010
It is hard to rate this story because there were parts that were very interesting and exciting, yet there were parts that were very slow where I fell a sleep.
I loved the story line but I didn't like how it ended to much, I was looking for a happy ending with some romance involved. This book totally left you hanging in the end so that you will find out the rest of the story in the second book.
there are so many things that happen in the story but I liked all the characters especially the main ones:
Percival Grigoris III - Nephilim/Angel - whos wings were once gold but now black with disease. He contacted a degenerative disorder that had been spreading through their community. Doctors predicted his wings would die spreading the disease to his muscles and he would eventually die.
Sneja Grigori - Percivals mother - her wings were the pride of the family - multicolored wings that stretched over 36 ft - they were a symbol of their blood, their breeding, the predominance of their position in the community.
Evangeline - Nun - Gabriella's and Percival's granddaughter - Evangeline doesn't find out that she is 1/2 Nephilim until the end of the book.
Gabriella - Angelologist - double spy - Percival's lover
Verlaine - Dr in Art History - worked for Percival until he found out what he was - fancied Evangeline and realizes he was in love with her at the end.
The things that intrigued me were how these angelologist explained how these angels existed:
"We begin in the years before the Great Flood, when heaven dispatched a fleet of two hundred angels called the Watchers to monitor the activities of creation. The Chief Watcher, according to these accounts, was named Semjaza. Samjaza was beautiful and commanding, the very image of angelic bearing."
"The angels moved among the children of Adam and Even unseen, living quietly in the shadows, hiding in mountains, taking shelter where humanity would not find them. They traveled from region to region, following the movements of men."
One afternoon, in the era of Jared, when the Watchers were stationed on Mount Hermon, Semjaza saw a woman bathing in a lake, her brown hair twisting about her. He called the Watchers to the edge of the mountain and together the majestic beings looked upon the woman. According to numerous doctrinal sources, it was then that Semjaza suggested the Watchers choose wives from among the children of men."
"The women took these strange creatures as their husbands and soon became pregnant. After some time children were born to the Watchers and their wives. These creatures were called Nephilim."
These Nephilim were very beautiful, tall, and gifted. The Watchers taught their children many things that were kept hidden from humanity such as secrets of fire - how to kindle and keep it, how to harness it for cooking and energy; metallurgy, the art of working precious metals into bracelets, rings, and necklaces; how to make objects out of gold and gemstones, how to use dyes for cloth, how to color their eyelids with glittering minerals ground into powder, how to melt metal and fashon swords, knives, shields, breastplates, and arrowheads; how to fight, hunt, and store meat.
They even taught their daughters how to cast spells and how to use herbs and roots in medicines; taught them the secrets of the magical arts, teaching them a system of symbols to record their spells. they taught them astrology, how tor ead portents in the constellations, knowledge of the clouds, map the course of the sun and the moon, and taught them counter spells.
They soon had developed their own tribe and became more powerful over humanity and taking domains of land and claiming their own kingdoms and then they took men/women human on as slaves.
"As the Nephilim ruled over earth and men perished, mankind cried to heaven for help. Michael, Uriel, Raphael, and Gabriel, the archangels who had observed the Watchers from their first descent to the world, also montored the progress of the Nephilim."
"When commanded, the archangels confronted the Watchers, surrounding them in a ring of fire. They disarmed their brothers. Once defeated, teh Watchers were shackled and transported to a remote, unpopulated cavern high in the mountains. At the lip of the abyss, their chains heavy upon them, the Watchers were ordered to descend. Throught a crevice in the earth's crust they fell, plummeting deeper and deeper until they came to rest in a prisness of darkness. From the depths they grieved for air and light and their lost freedom. Separated from heaven and earth, awaiting the day of their release, they prayed for heaven's forgiveness. They called out for their children to save them. God ignored their pleas. The Nephilim did not come."
"The angel, Gabriel, messenger of good news, could not abide the Watchers' anguish. In a moment of pity, he threw his lyre to his fallen brothers so that they might diminish their suffering with music. Even as the lyre fell, Gabriel realized his mistake: The lyre's music was seductive and powerful. The lyre could be used to the Watchers' benefit."
The story just totally amazes me how the children of the Watchers were so selfish. Knowing that god was about to flood the earth and kill all the evil within, the Nephilim searched a way to save their race.
If you read Genesis 6 in the KJV bible, it tells the story of why god was going to flood the earth.
Genesis Chapter 6:
"1. And it came to pass, when men began to multiply on the face of the earth, and daughters were born unto them,
2. That the sons of God saw the daughters of men that they were fair; and they took them wives of all which they chose.
3. And the Lord said, My spirit shall not always strive with man, for that he also is flesh: yet his days shall be an hundred and twenty years.
4. There were giants in the earth in those days; and also after that, when the sons of God came in unto the daughters of men, and they bare children to them, the same became mighty men which were of old, me of renown.
5. And God saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every imagination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually.
6. And it repented the Lord that he had made man on the earth, and it grieved him at his heart.
7. And the Lord said, I will destroy man whom I have created from the face fo the earth; both man, and beast, and the creeping thing, and the fowls of the air; for it repenteth me that I have made them."
Well we all know that Noah found grace in gods eyes and this part of the story really trips me up and I have to give the writer thumbs up for this part of the story.
"High in the mountains, under a ledge that sheltered them from the rain, the Nephilim stood together, begging guidance from the daughters of Semjaza and the sons of Azazel, whom they considered to be their leaders after the Watchers had been taken below the earth."
"For some days Azazel's son and Semjaza's daughter watched the comings and goings of Noah's sons. They were called Shem, Ham, and Japheth, each very different from the others. Shem, the eldest, was dark-haired and green-eyed, with elegant hands and a brilliant way of speaking; ham was darker than Shem, with large brown eyes, great strength, and good sense; japheth had fair skin, blond hair, and blue eyes, the most frail and thin of the three. While Shem and Ham did not tire as they helped their father load animals, satchels of food, and jars of water, Japheth worked slowly. Shem and Ham and Japheth had been long married, adn between them Noah had many grandchildren."
"Semjaza's daughter saw that Japheth's appearance was close to their own and decided that this was the brother her companion should take. The Nephilim waited for many days, watching, until Noah had loaded the final animals onto the Ark. The son of Azazel stole to the great boat. Its massive shadow fell upon him, blanketing him in shadow as he called for Japheth.
Noah's youngest leaned over the edge of the Ark, his blond curls falling into his eyes. Azazel's son summonded Japheth to accompany him away from the seashore, along a footpath that led deep into a forest. The archangels, who stood guard at the boats prow and hull, inspecting every object that entered and exited the Ark so that it fit God's dictate, paid no attention to Japheth as he left the ship and trailed the luminous stranger into the woods.
As japheth followed Azazel's son deeper and deeper into the forest, the man began to fall, pounding the canopy of leaves above his head and echoing loud as thunder. japheth was out of breath when he caught up to the majestic stranger. hardly able to speak, he asked, 'What do you want of me?'
Azazel's son did not reply but wrapped his fingers around the neck of Noah's son and squeezed until he felt the brittle bones of the throat colapse. In that moment, even before the Flood wiped out the wicked creatures of the earth, God's plan of a purified world faltered. The future of teh Nephilim race solidified, and the new world came into being.
Semjaza's daughter stepped from the forest and placed her hands over the face of Azazel's son. She had memorized the spells her father had taught her. As she touched Azazel's son, his appearance changed"
So now we know that a Nephilim was on the Ark and of course mated with his wife and so now they continue to exist. Japheths children eventually grew up and mated with children from his brothers tribe so now their is a mixture of angel blood in all the populations.
I loved the story line but I didn't like how it ended to much, I was looking for a happy ending with some romance involved. This book totally left you hanging in the end so that you will find out the rest of the story in the second book.
there are so many things that happen in the story but I liked all the characters especially the main ones:
Percival Grigoris III - Nephilim/Angel - whos wings were once gold but now black with disease. He contacted a degenerative disorder that had been spreading through their community. Doctors predicted his wings would die spreading the disease to his muscles and he would eventually die.
Sneja Grigori - Percivals mother - her wings were the pride of the family - multicolored wings that stretched over 36 ft - they were a symbol of their blood, their breeding, the predominance of their position in the community.
Evangeline - Nun - Gabriella's and Percival's granddaughter - Evangeline doesn't find out that she is 1/2 Nephilim until the end of the book.
Gabriella - Angelologist - double spy - Percival's lover
Verlaine - Dr in Art History - worked for Percival until he found out what he was - fancied Evangeline and realizes he was in love with her at the end.
The things that intrigued me were how these angelologist explained how these angels existed:
"We begin in the years before the Great Flood, when heaven dispatched a fleet of two hundred angels called the Watchers to monitor the activities of creation. The Chief Watcher, according to these accounts, was named Semjaza. Samjaza was beautiful and commanding, the very image of angelic bearing."
"The angels moved among the children of Adam and Even unseen, living quietly in the shadows, hiding in mountains, taking shelter where humanity would not find them. They traveled from region to region, following the movements of men."
One afternoon, in the era of Jared, when the Watchers were stationed on Mount Hermon, Semjaza saw a woman bathing in a lake, her brown hair twisting about her. He called the Watchers to the edge of the mountain and together the majestic beings looked upon the woman. According to numerous doctrinal sources, it was then that Semjaza suggested the Watchers choose wives from among the children of men."
"The women took these strange creatures as their husbands and soon became pregnant. After some time children were born to the Watchers and their wives. These creatures were called Nephilim."
These Nephilim were very beautiful, tall, and gifted. The Watchers taught their children many things that were kept hidden from humanity such as secrets of fire - how to kindle and keep it, how to harness it for cooking and energy; metallurgy, the art of working precious metals into bracelets, rings, and necklaces; how to make objects out of gold and gemstones, how to use dyes for cloth, how to color their eyelids with glittering minerals ground into powder, how to melt metal and fashon swords, knives, shields, breastplates, and arrowheads; how to fight, hunt, and store meat.
They even taught their daughters how to cast spells and how to use herbs and roots in medicines; taught them the secrets of the magical arts, teaching them a system of symbols to record their spells. they taught them astrology, how tor ead portents in the constellations, knowledge of the clouds, map the course of the sun and the moon, and taught them counter spells.
They soon had developed their own tribe and became more powerful over humanity and taking domains of land and claiming their own kingdoms and then they took men/women human on as slaves.
"As the Nephilim ruled over earth and men perished, mankind cried to heaven for help. Michael, Uriel, Raphael, and Gabriel, the archangels who had observed the Watchers from their first descent to the world, also montored the progress of the Nephilim."
"When commanded, the archangels confronted the Watchers, surrounding them in a ring of fire. They disarmed their brothers. Once defeated, teh Watchers were shackled and transported to a remote, unpopulated cavern high in the mountains. At the lip of the abyss, their chains heavy upon them, the Watchers were ordered to descend. Throught a crevice in the earth's crust they fell, plummeting deeper and deeper until they came to rest in a prisness of darkness. From the depths they grieved for air and light and their lost freedom. Separated from heaven and earth, awaiting the day of their release, they prayed for heaven's forgiveness. They called out for their children to save them. God ignored their pleas. The Nephilim did not come."
"The angel, Gabriel, messenger of good news, could not abide the Watchers' anguish. In a moment of pity, he threw his lyre to his fallen brothers so that they might diminish their suffering with music. Even as the lyre fell, Gabriel realized his mistake: The lyre's music was seductive and powerful. The lyre could be used to the Watchers' benefit."
The story just totally amazes me how the children of the Watchers were so selfish. Knowing that god was about to flood the earth and kill all the evil within, the Nephilim searched a way to save their race.
If you read Genesis 6 in the KJV bible, it tells the story of why god was going to flood the earth.
Genesis Chapter 6:
"1. And it came to pass, when men began to multiply on the face of the earth, and daughters were born unto them,
2. That the sons of God saw the daughters of men that they were fair; and they took them wives of all which they chose.
3. And the Lord said, My spirit shall not always strive with man, for that he also is flesh: yet his days shall be an hundred and twenty years.
4. There were giants in the earth in those days; and also after that, when the sons of God came in unto the daughters of men, and they bare children to them, the same became mighty men which were of old, me of renown.
5. And God saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every imagination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually.
6. And it repented the Lord that he had made man on the earth, and it grieved him at his heart.
7. And the Lord said, I will destroy man whom I have created from the face fo the earth; both man, and beast, and the creeping thing, and the fowls of the air; for it repenteth me that I have made them."
Well we all know that Noah found grace in gods eyes and this part of the story really trips me up and I have to give the writer thumbs up for this part of the story.
"High in the mountains, under a ledge that sheltered them from the rain, the Nephilim stood together, begging guidance from the daughters of Semjaza and the sons of Azazel, whom they considered to be their leaders after the Watchers had been taken below the earth."
"For some days Azazel's son and Semjaza's daughter watched the comings and goings of Noah's sons. They were called Shem, Ham, and Japheth, each very different from the others. Shem, the eldest, was dark-haired and green-eyed, with elegant hands and a brilliant way of speaking; ham was darker than Shem, with large brown eyes, great strength, and good sense; japheth had fair skin, blond hair, and blue eyes, the most frail and thin of the three. While Shem and Ham did not tire as they helped their father load animals, satchels of food, and jars of water, Japheth worked slowly. Shem and Ham and Japheth had been long married, adn between them Noah had many grandchildren."
"Semjaza's daughter saw that Japheth's appearance was close to their own and decided that this was the brother her companion should take. The Nephilim waited for many days, watching, until Noah had loaded the final animals onto the Ark. The son of Azazel stole to the great boat. Its massive shadow fell upon him, blanketing him in shadow as he called for Japheth.
Noah's youngest leaned over the edge of the Ark, his blond curls falling into his eyes. Azazel's son summonded Japheth to accompany him away from the seashore, along a footpath that led deep into a forest. The archangels, who stood guard at the boats prow and hull, inspecting every object that entered and exited the Ark so that it fit God's dictate, paid no attention to Japheth as he left the ship and trailed the luminous stranger into the woods.
As japheth followed Azazel's son deeper and deeper into the forest, the man began to fall, pounding the canopy of leaves above his head and echoing loud as thunder. japheth was out of breath when he caught up to the majestic stranger. hardly able to speak, he asked, 'What do you want of me?'
Azazel's son did not reply but wrapped his fingers around the neck of Noah's son and squeezed until he felt the brittle bones of the throat colapse. In that moment, even before the Flood wiped out the wicked creatures of the earth, God's plan of a purified world faltered. The future of teh Nephilim race solidified, and the new world came into being.
Semjaza's daughter stepped from the forest and placed her hands over the face of Azazel's son. She had memorized the spells her father had taught her. As she touched Azazel's son, his appearance changed"
So now we know that a Nephilim was on the Ark and of course mated with his wife and so now they continue to exist. Japheths children eventually grew up and mated with children from his brothers tribe so now their is a mixture of angel blood in all the populations.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
December 14, 2015
Tinha este livro para ler já a bastante tempo. Finalmente resolvi pegar nele e a sua leitura criou-me vários sentimentos. Gostei do tema, da história e da maneira como foi abordado. Mas por outro lado, foi exaustivo demais. Por vezes perdia-me nas descrições que eram feitas, sobre o tema em si. De qualquer forma quero ler o livro seguinte e perceber como esta saga vai continuar
June 2, 2010
Ok, I got to page 100 last night before I gave up. I was reading it during the commercials during Glee, with Beck's "Loser" stuck in my head thanks to the episode, and I just gave up. I can't believe the author could take so little happening and stretch it out to 100 pages of tiny print. I don't need every thought that goes through the character's mind. There is so much telling in this book, so many infodumps. The dialogue was in paragraphs. This could've been so good, too. Ugh.
July 3, 2020
“El cuerpo puede envejecer, pero el alma permanece joven, como Dios la creó.”
Compré este libro no porque conociera a la autora, sino porque me apasiona el tema de los ángeles y nefilim, y me encantó su portada… y no he quedado decepcionada, el libro me ha encantado. Es una novela emocionante y magistralmente escrita, aunque para algunos abundan las descripciones; pues si, si las descripciones en exceso de detalles te aburren, entonces este libro lo hará.
“Angelology” empieza con un ritmo lento, en donde poco a poco te sumerge en la historia, para acabar con giros inesperados y de un modo trepidante… y te deja esperando la segunda parte.
La novela nos cuenta la historia de Evangeline, una joven monja del convento de St. Rose, que se ve envuelta en extraños acontecimientos a partir de la llegada de un experto en historia del arte. A partir de ello, comenzará a descubrir un mundo oculto de secretos y traiciones; pero más que nada, entenderá que los versículos narrados en la Biblia, sobre ángeles en la tierra, son más reales de lo creía.
Con una narración contada entre diferentes épocas y por diferentes personajes (Evangeline, el investigador, un ángel y Gabrielle), con detalles fantásticos y un vocabulario muy rico. En cada párrafo vas descubriendo el escurridizo mundo de la angeología, entremezclado entre la historia, el arte y la religión.
Los personajes son comunes y quizás un poco ágiles, pero me ha faltado una descripción más completa de ellos… la autora no los hizo eje principal, solo un hilo conductor más para explicar los temas expuestos.
Aunque sí me gustó la protagonista, Evangeline Cacciatore, es un personaje que atrae por su personalidad misteriosa.
Pero en general, esto restó un poco en su valoración, ya que tanto la trama y subtramas que se cuentan como los personajes que en ellas intervienen son importantes.
En “Angelology” no encontrarán una historia de acción, sino de investigación (4 años de parte de la autora), en un contexto impresionante, de estudios bíblicos y una interpretación curiosa de la humanidad a partir de su mitología.
Esta manera en que se muestra la historia de los ángeles y nefilim me encantó.
100% recomendado
“Una cosa es desear la paz y otra muy distinta fingir que la guerra misma no existe."
Compré este libro no porque conociera a la autora, sino porque me apasiona el tema de los ángeles y nefilim, y me encantó su portada… y no he quedado decepcionada, el libro me ha encantado. Es una novela emocionante y magistralmente escrita, aunque para algunos abundan las descripciones; pues si, si las descripciones en exceso de detalles te aburren, entonces este libro lo hará.
“Angelology” empieza con un ritmo lento, en donde poco a poco te sumerge en la historia, para acabar con giros inesperados y de un modo trepidante… y te deja esperando la segunda parte.
La novela nos cuenta la historia de Evangeline, una joven monja del convento de St. Rose, que se ve envuelta en extraños acontecimientos a partir de la llegada de un experto en historia del arte. A partir de ello, comenzará a descubrir un mundo oculto de secretos y traiciones; pero más que nada, entenderá que los versículos narrados en la Biblia, sobre ángeles en la tierra, son más reales de lo creía.
Con una narración contada entre diferentes épocas y por diferentes personajes (Evangeline, el investigador, un ángel y Gabrielle), con detalles fantásticos y un vocabulario muy rico. En cada párrafo vas descubriendo el escurridizo mundo de la angeología, entremezclado entre la historia, el arte y la religión.
Los personajes son comunes y quizás un poco ágiles, pero me ha faltado una descripción más completa de ellos… la autora no los hizo eje principal, solo un hilo conductor más para explicar los temas expuestos.
Aunque sí me gustó la protagonista, Evangeline Cacciatore, es un personaje que atrae por su personalidad misteriosa.
Pero en general, esto restó un poco en su valoración, ya que tanto la trama y subtramas que se cuentan como los personajes que en ellas intervienen son importantes.
En “Angelology” no encontrarán una historia de acción, sino de investigación (4 años de parte de la autora), en un contexto impresionante, de estudios bíblicos y una interpretación curiosa de la humanidad a partir de su mitología.
Esta manera en que se muestra la historia de los ángeles y nefilim me encantó.
100% recomendado
“Una cosa es desear la paz y otra muy distinta fingir que la guerra misma no existe."
April 26, 2020
I abandoned this around page 100. It had a promising idea: The Nephilim (a type of angel apparently) are evil. They want to enslave humanity, which is being protected by a secret society. One of the Rockefeller family was involved with this in the past, on the side of the secret society. She could have been a member of the secret society, but the first 100 pages didn't get that far. The book was too preoccupied with irrelevant details to progress the plot that far. You might think that I can't know what is irrelevant when I've read less than 1/4 of the book, but I am pretty sure that I do not need two descriptions of how one character lit the fire in a room because it was cold. I don't mean two accounts of her lighting the fire, I mean two descriptions of the method she used to light it. There are plenty more examples of similar events described in minute detail, but I will spare you.
There are also the things that do not make sense. For example, The Nephilim have wings, which they can fold down so they can hide them beneath their clothing. I am not convinced that this would work actually, since the wings are strong enough to enable the angels to fly, but OK, lets give that the benefit of the doubt. Wearing clothes do not stop the angels from unfurling their wings however and there is one place where the author makes it quite clear that the feathers are so flexible that they can pass through clothing without damaging it. Really? What about the bones and muscles in the wings? How do they pass through the clothes without damaging them?
The straw that broke the camel's back for me was dolmen sleeves. The author referred to the dolmen sleeves that were part of the older nuns' habits twice (in itself this is annoying. Why does the author think that readers need to be told this twice?). However, it gets worse, Dolmen sleeves are very wide at the shoulder and they taper to be close fitting at the wrist. The author clearly does not realise this because she describes the nuns rolling up their dolmen sleeves. She explicitly states that the sleeves that get rolled up are dolmen sleeves. This is not possible.
I just could not read on. If the plot is going to be submerged in irrelevant details, the author could at least make them accurate irrelevant details.
There are also the things that do not make sense. For example, The Nephilim have wings, which they can fold down so they can hide them beneath their clothing. I am not convinced that this would work actually, since the wings are strong enough to enable the angels to fly, but OK, lets give that the benefit of the doubt. Wearing clothes do not stop the angels from unfurling their wings however and there is one place where the author makes it quite clear that the feathers are so flexible that they can pass through clothing without damaging it. Really? What about the bones and muscles in the wings? How do they pass through the clothes without damaging them?
The straw that broke the camel's back for me was dolmen sleeves. The author referred to the dolmen sleeves that were part of the older nuns' habits twice (in itself this is annoying. Why does the author think that readers need to be told this twice?). However, it gets worse, Dolmen sleeves are very wide at the shoulder and they taper to be close fitting at the wrist. The author clearly does not realise this because she describes the nuns rolling up their dolmen sleeves. She explicitly states that the sleeves that get rolled up are dolmen sleeves. This is not possible.
I just could not read on. If the plot is going to be submerged in irrelevant details, the author could at least make them accurate irrelevant details.
November 19, 2020
Boeiend boek! Het gaat over de strijd tussen de mensen, meer bepaald de angelologen, en de nephilim. De nephilim zijn aan het degenereren, en omdat ze het mensenras willen overheersen, zijn de angelologen daar niet rouwig om. Al vele generaties lang proberen ze de neergang van de nephilim te bespoedigen. Deze daarentegen zijn te weten gekomen dat de angelologen iets gevonden hebben, of tenminste op het spoor zijn, dat de nephilim zou kunnen helpen om hun gezondheid en hun kracht terug te winnen, eigenlijk om ze terug meer engel dan mens te doen worden.
Evangeline, haar grootmoeder Gabriëlla, de de speurder Verlaine, en de zusters van het Santa Rosa klooster zijn allemaal betrokken bij de feiten die aan het licht komen als de nephilim Grigori en zijn familie hun zoektocht naar de hemelse lier intensifiëren.
Ik vond het verhaal van (zuster) Celestine en Gabriëlla zeer interessant en spannend, en zelfs geloofwaardig! (Natuurlijk weet ik wel dat het fictie is.) De gebeurtenissen in de huidige tijd waren wel ok, maar niet zo aangrijpend dat ze me aan het boek gekluisterd hielden, eigenlijk enkel aan het einde wel. Het einde zelf vond ik toch wel onverwacht, niet echt een happy ending van 'ze leefden nog lang en gelukkig'. Ik moet dit nog even laten bezinken, maar misschien is het inderdaad het logische einde dat uit de gebeurtenissen moest voortkomen.
Evangeline, haar grootmoeder Gabriëlla, de de speurder Verlaine, en de zusters van het Santa Rosa klooster zijn allemaal betrokken bij de feiten die aan het licht komen als de nephilim Grigori en zijn familie hun zoektocht naar de hemelse lier intensifiëren.
Ik vond het verhaal van (zuster) Celestine en Gabriëlla zeer interessant en spannend, en zelfs geloofwaardig! (Natuurlijk weet ik wel dat het fictie is.) De gebeurtenissen in de huidige tijd waren wel ok, maar niet zo aangrijpend dat ze me aan het boek gekluisterd hielden, eigenlijk enkel aan het einde wel. Het einde zelf vond ik toch wel onverwacht, niet echt een happy ending van 'ze leefden nog lang en gelukkig'. Ik moet dit nog even laten bezinken, maar misschien is het inderdaad het logische einde dat uit de gebeurtenissen moest voortkomen.
June 6, 2017
Ugh, i'll try to be nice.
1: too detail. By God, I didn't even read all of it, the words can't keep my mind focus on the world building which was very weak btw. All that descriptions on the desk, the wrinkled face, the feelings, the mundane little things. Torturing.
2: weak characterization. There's no difference between the characters. I didn't like all of them. I didn't care if they died or alive. How sad was that?
3: too many gibberish. Seriously, all that explanation, the stories about the past... It was repetitive and confusing because it went round and round as if the author couldn't put the story together. I didn't need all that gibberish words just to grasp what the author want to say. Goodness sake, I wasted my time on this book while it can be written in 250ish pages!
4: the only awesome thing was went the old nun summon a high pure Angel to abolish those half monsters. Awesome scene. But other than that there's no other action scene in it. Everything else just ended blandly. Leave no taste in my mouth. Sad.
5: of course there will be deux ex machina thingy. And they have to find it before the enemy did. And of course they all found it at the same day, like oh there's no need to divide it in different chapters to keep the novel more exciting with mysteries and to build the characters more stronger by it, but no the author didn't do that. She went on and on about the legend and there were pages over pages about "research" and how important their job was, how crucial, and how dangerous. The Nephilims are dangerous inhuman creatures that don't have empathy. But they have desire for lust and greed. They're not intelligence creature but they're able to manipulate humans with their beauty and whispers and therefore they're superior and powerful and rich. They work behind powerful human and controlling them. No, there's no magic involved. The book didnt mention how powerful this angels are but their beautiful wings and their super strength. So annoying.
I wonder why GPU published this book. There are tons of good books out there and they decided to waste the precious papers on this piece of annoyance. GPU is about to lose from its competitors if they keep disappointing their loyal readers like this. Tsk tsk...
1: too detail. By God, I didn't even read all of it, the words can't keep my mind focus on the world building which was very weak btw. All that descriptions on the desk, the wrinkled face, the feelings, the mundane little things. Torturing.
2: weak characterization. There's no difference between the characters. I didn't like all of them. I didn't care if they died or alive. How sad was that?
3: too many gibberish. Seriously, all that explanation, the stories about the past... It was repetitive and confusing because it went round and round as if the author couldn't put the story together. I didn't need all that gibberish words just to grasp what the author want to say. Goodness sake, I wasted my time on this book while it can be written in 250ish pages!
4: the only awesome thing was went the old nun summon a high pure Angel to abolish those half monsters. Awesome scene. But other than that there's no other action scene in it. Everything else just ended blandly. Leave no taste in my mouth. Sad.
5: of course there will be deux ex machina thingy. And they have to find it before the enemy did. And of course they all found it at the same day, like oh there's no need to divide it in different chapters to keep the novel more exciting with mysteries and to build the characters more stronger by it, but no the author didn't do that. She went on and on about the legend and there were pages over pages about "research" and how important their job was, how crucial, and how dangerous. The Nephilims are dangerous inhuman creatures that don't have empathy. But they have desire for lust and greed. They're not intelligence creature but they're able to manipulate humans with their beauty and whispers and therefore they're superior and powerful and rich. They work behind powerful human and controlling them. No, there's no magic involved. The book didnt mention how powerful this angels are but their beautiful wings and their super strength. So annoying.
I wonder why GPU published this book. There are tons of good books out there and they decided to waste the precious papers on this piece of annoyance. GPU is about to lose from its competitors if they keep disappointing their loyal readers like this. Tsk tsk...
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
December 29, 2010
I won this book through First Reads. I was never quite clear on where this story was going, and the ending seemed abrupt and to come out of nowhere. I liked it, but I just didn't think it fit with the rest of the book. There were really interesting passages throughout and bits of elegant writing, but I couldn't help but think of The Da Vinci Code (which I never read) and The Historian (which I hated). Fans of those books will surely love Angelology. As for me, I thought the characters were somewhat flat and uninteresting. The angels never frightened me. I never felt any suspense. Perhaps if the book were shorter it would have been more successful for me. It was pretty long for nothing really happening until the last pages.
July 28, 2011
Angelology, delusione è il tuo secondo nome.
Già, devo dire di essere rimasta enormemente delusa da questo romanzo. Le premesse parevano interessanti: nel mondo che conosciamo si combatte da sempre una guerra tra i Nefilim (o Nephilim), i figli degli Angeli, da una parte e gli angelologi dall'altra. I primi vorrebbero la supremazia totale sugli uomini, i secondi vorrebbero cortesemente impedirglielo. Peccato che l'unica cosa interessante di questo libro rimanga proprio questo. La premessa.
La storia si divide in tre parti principali. L'inizio ci introduce Evangeline, la protagonista, suora cattolica del convento di St. Rose. Giovane, bella, intelligente, vive in convento da più di un decennio, da quando il padre ha deciso di rinchiuderla lì per la sua sicurezza. Ovviamente tutti i migliori piani hanno qualche falla ed è così che un giorno le strade di Evangline e di Verlaine, studioso assoldato da Percival Grigori - Nefilim di primo piano, ma questo Verlain non lo sa - si incontrano e portano a galla la relazione tra il convento, tra Gabrielle - la nonna di Evangeline - e suor Celestine, una delle anziane consorelle del St. Rose.
La seconda parte ci riporta indietro agli anni '40, dove riviviamo, grazie alle memorie di Celestine, gli avvenimenti di quegli anni che hanno coinvolto la suora, Gabrielle e lo stesso Percival.
L'ultima parte, infine, di nuovo ai nostri giorni e dove Evangeline e Verlaine, scoperti i misteri e gli orrori dell'angelologia, si danno insieme a Gabrielle a una fuga e a una ricerca disperata per ritrovare la chiave che potrà porre fine al conflitto.
Tutto chiaro e lineare, vero? Peccato che l'autrice riesca da questo piano semplice a creare un marasma assoluto. Sono tantissimi i punti che non stanno in piedi e i passaggi logici dove la logica è un optional non preventivato.
.Il primo grande punto interrogativo è Perché gli Angelologi si comportano così?
Mi spiego. Ci viene illustrato come i Nefilim siano creature che fondamentalmente reagiscono. Non sono capaci di approntare delle loro ricerche, si affidano alle ricerche degli Angelologi per carpire cosa possa essere utile a loro. Questo, per inciso, è il motivo per cui non hanno ancora sterminato tutta la categoria, hanno bisogno di qualcuno che pensa al posto loro. Perfetto.
Ora gli Angelologi nelle loro ricerche scoprono dell'esistenza di questo oggetto magico, una lira, dai poteri immensi che in mano ai Nefilim potrebbe causare danni irreparabili. Che fanno allora? Beh, ovvio: la vanno a cercare. In pratica forniscono ai Nefilim l'unico modo con cui potrebbero impossessarsene visto che da soli loro non ci penserebbero nemmeno a recuperare tale oggetto. Geniali. Notare che questo si ripete per ben due volte a distanza di 55 anni l'una dall'altra. Come dire, i Nefilim saranno il male assoluto, ma qui qualcuno non ha mai sentito il detto sull'errare è umano, perseverare è diabolico. E notare anche che della lira gli Angelologi non sanno che farsene, visto che le loro opzioni al riguardo sono:
1) Nasconderla di nuovo
2) Distruggerla (ma solo un Nefilim può farlo. D'oh)
Bisogna ammettere che per un libro che fa della ricerca di questa lira il suo punto focale un interrogativo così grande è piuttosto destabilizzante, ma proseguiamo.
.Gli Angeli (i veri angeli caduti intendo) sono radioattivi. Okay. Visto il loro luccicare, questo fa molto centrale nucleare di Springfield, ma okay. Se un uomo li tocca, brucia. Va benissimo. Gli angeli caduti, prima di essere rinchiusi, si sono biblicamente uniti con donne umane (generando così i Nefilim). Solo io ci vedo qualche difficoltà tecnica?
.Evangeline scopre parte della (sua) storia risolvendo un mini rompicampo. Sua nonna le ha inviato dei biglietti, ogni Natale da quando è in convento. Dietro ad ogni biglietto c'è un ritaglio di figura. A mo' di tessere di un puzzle, ricompendo la figura originaria alla fine dei 14 biglietti previsti, è possibile leggere il testo di una lettera che la nonna ha scritto alla nipote. Nel presente Evangeline ha ricevuto solo 12 tessere. Capisce il trucco, rimette insieme e...
1) Il testo che ne consegue è completamente comprensibile. Ora immaginate di avere un puzzle con 14 tessere. Ve ne mancano 2, poste a caso all'interno del puzzle, immaginate che su ogni tessera ci sono scritte quella ventina o più di righe e ditemi se potete leggere un testo completamente comprensibile così! Senza nemmeno accorgervi che manca qualcosa!
2) No, alla fine si accorge che manca qualcosa. Perché le informazione non sono complete. Non perché c'è qualche decina o più di frasi lasciate a metà. SIGH.
.Le ultime 50 pagine prevedono questa grande fuga, rincorsa, thriller and action movie. Dire che il tutto è gestito male è un eufemismo. Di nuovo non so nemmeno da dove cominciare per sottolineare l'illogicità di quanto narrato, ma proviamoci.
1) I numeri. I "buoni" sono 7 persone, non una in più. I "cattivi" sono più di un centinaio, un solo capo e 100 buoi che seguono gli ordini, ma pur sempre un centinaio. Prima cosa, siamo a Manahattan in pieno periodo natalizio e nessuno si accorge di alcunché. Poi, utilizzando solo una persona come esca e una come pedina sacrificabile, i "buoni" riescono a mettere in sacco i cattivoni di turno. Se non fosse per la decisione di Evangeline di consegnarsi per salvare sua nonna, i nostri potrebbero andarsene senza problemi. 5 - i rimasti - contro 100. 5 umani contro 100 guerrieri addestrati. Okay, capo.
2) In ogni action movie che si rispetti, c'è la fuga dall'auto. Ferma al semaforo o in corsa poco importa. Ovviamente Angelology non sfugge alla regola. Solo che stavolta a fuggire sono in due: un'arzilla vecchietta di 70 e passa anni e sua nipote. E riescono pure a portarsi dietro il tessssoro. Arsenio Lupin era un dilettante a confronto. E prima o poi qualcuno imparerà a inserire la sicura nelle portiere delle auto.
3) SONO TUO PADRE. No, non sono proprio queste le parole, ma a senso ci siamo. Ehi, era figo la prima volta in Star Wars. Ora provoca solo una risata sguaiata.
4) Vogliamo parlare del finale? No, meglio di no. Tanto finale non è. Giusto una (emo) porta sul sequel. Non finisce nulla dopo l'ultima pagina di Angelology. E dopo aver arrancato in questo mare di irrazionalità per 500 pagine sa di presa per i fondelli.
C'è chi ha paragonato Angelology a la Trussoni a Dan Brown. Chiunque l'abbia detto o non ha mai letto Brown o non ha mai letto la Trussoni. Magari nel secondo caso ha saltato le prime 400 pagine (Una. Noia. Mortale.) e vedendo un po' di thriller, action e pseudo teorie religiose ha tirato fuori il paragone più sballato possibile. La Trussoni non ha nulla di Brown e viceversa. Dove Brown usa una prosa secca, arida ed elementare (ma che ha il vantaggio di velocizzare in maniera esponenziale la narrazione), la Trussoni è logorroica e descrittiva all'inverosimile. Nelle prime 400 pagine i dialoghi si contano sulle dita di una mano. Diari, resoconti, pagine di diari, sermoni universitari la fanno da padrone. Il ritmo stagna in maniera dolorosa, l'info-dump abbonda a ogni pagina (perché due studentesse, le più brillanti della loro età, devono risorbirsi le lezioni dell'anno precedente? Perché? Io lettore forse ho bisogno di conoscere quelle cose, ma loro o sono stupide o le sanno già. Perché?! Perché si sorprendono di fronte a cose che dovrebbero già sapere? Perché? Forse sono stupide davvero, alla fine dei conti. Sigh), avanzare anche di poche pagine è una tortura. Rimane quella premessa che ti fa andare avanti, quella convinzione che l'idea di fondo poteva dare avvio a una gran bella storia che ti fa continuare nella speranza, infin disillusa, di trovare un qualcosa di salvabile nelle acque torbide del testo.
Ci sarebbe ancora molto da dire, sulla trama e sullo stile e sui personaggi, la cui bidemensionalità e irrealtà è al di là di ogni immaginazione. Credo di non essere mai stata più disinteressata del destino di una protagonista. Evangeline è un personaggio insulso. Verlain pure. Gabrielle e Celestine, per quanto non esattamente due personcine gradevoli, sono molto più interessanti, ed è un peccato che la loro avventura sia già finita. Non che importi, per quanto mi riguarda non c'è possibilità al mondo che vada avanti a leggere anche il resto di questa saga.
Già, devo dire di essere rimasta enormemente delusa da questo romanzo. Le premesse parevano interessanti: nel mondo che conosciamo si combatte da sempre una guerra tra i Nefilim (o Nephilim), i figli degli Angeli, da una parte e gli angelologi dall'altra. I primi vorrebbero la supremazia totale sugli uomini, i secondi vorrebbero cortesemente impedirglielo. Peccato che l'unica cosa interessante di questo libro rimanga proprio questo. La premessa.
La storia si divide in tre parti principali. L'inizio ci introduce Evangeline, la protagonista, suora cattolica del convento di St. Rose. Giovane, bella, intelligente, vive in convento da più di un decennio, da quando il padre ha deciso di rinchiuderla lì per la sua sicurezza. Ovviamente tutti i migliori piani hanno qualche falla ed è così che un giorno le strade di Evangline e di Verlaine, studioso assoldato da Percival Grigori - Nefilim di primo piano, ma questo Verlain non lo sa - si incontrano e portano a galla la relazione tra il convento, tra Gabrielle - la nonna di Evangeline - e suor Celestine, una delle anziane consorelle del St. Rose.
La seconda parte ci riporta indietro agli anni '40, dove riviviamo, grazie alle memorie di Celestine, gli avvenimenti di quegli anni che hanno coinvolto la suora, Gabrielle e lo stesso Percival.
L'ultima parte, infine, di nuovo ai nostri giorni e dove Evangeline e Verlaine, scoperti i misteri e gli orrori dell'angelologia, si danno insieme a Gabrielle a una fuga e a una ricerca disperata per ritrovare la chiave che potrà porre fine al conflitto.
Tutto chiaro e lineare, vero? Peccato che l'autrice riesca da questo piano semplice a creare un marasma assoluto. Sono tantissimi i punti che non stanno in piedi e i passaggi logici dove la logica è un optional non preventivato.
.Il primo grande punto interrogativo è Perché gli Angelologi si comportano così?
Mi spiego. Ci viene illustrato come i Nefilim siano creature che fondamentalmente reagiscono. Non sono capaci di approntare delle loro ricerche, si affidano alle ricerche degli Angelologi per carpire cosa possa essere utile a loro. Questo, per inciso, è il motivo per cui non hanno ancora sterminato tutta la categoria, hanno bisogno di qualcuno che pensa al posto loro. Perfetto.
Ora gli Angelologi nelle loro ricerche scoprono dell'esistenza di questo oggetto magico, una lira, dai poteri immensi che in mano ai Nefilim potrebbe causare danni irreparabili. Che fanno allora? Beh, ovvio: la vanno a cercare. In pratica forniscono ai Nefilim l'unico modo con cui potrebbero impossessarsene visto che da soli loro non ci penserebbero nemmeno a recuperare tale oggetto. Geniali. Notare che questo si ripete per ben due volte a distanza di 55 anni l'una dall'altra. Come dire, i Nefilim saranno il male assoluto, ma qui qualcuno non ha mai sentito il detto sull'errare è umano, perseverare è diabolico. E notare anche che della lira gli Angelologi non sanno che farsene, visto che le loro opzioni al riguardo sono:
1) Nasconderla di nuovo
2) Distruggerla (ma solo un Nefilim può farlo. D'oh)
Bisogna ammettere che per un libro che fa della ricerca di questa lira il suo punto focale un interrogativo così grande è piuttosto destabilizzante, ma proseguiamo.
.Gli Angeli (i veri angeli caduti intendo) sono radioattivi. Okay. Visto il loro luccicare, questo fa molto centrale nucleare di Springfield, ma okay. Se un uomo li tocca, brucia. Va benissimo. Gli angeli caduti, prima di essere rinchiusi, si sono biblicamente uniti con donne umane (generando così i Nefilim). Solo io ci vedo qualche difficoltà tecnica?
.Evangeline scopre parte della (sua) storia risolvendo un mini rompicampo. Sua nonna le ha inviato dei biglietti, ogni Natale da quando è in convento. Dietro ad ogni biglietto c'è un ritaglio di figura. A mo' di tessere di un puzzle, ricompendo la figura originaria alla fine dei 14 biglietti previsti, è possibile leggere il testo di una lettera che la nonna ha scritto alla nipote. Nel presente Evangeline ha ricevuto solo 12 tessere. Capisce il trucco, rimette insieme e...
1) Il testo che ne consegue è completamente comprensibile. Ora immaginate di avere un puzzle con 14 tessere. Ve ne mancano 2, poste a caso all'interno del puzzle, immaginate che su ogni tessera ci sono scritte quella ventina o più di righe e ditemi se potete leggere un testo completamente comprensibile così! Senza nemmeno accorgervi che manca qualcosa!
2) No, alla fine si accorge che manca qualcosa. Perché le informazione non sono complete. Non perché c'è qualche decina o più di frasi lasciate a metà. SIGH.
.Le ultime 50 pagine prevedono questa grande fuga, rincorsa, thriller and action movie. Dire che il tutto è gestito male è un eufemismo. Di nuovo non so nemmeno da dove cominciare per sottolineare l'illogicità di quanto narrato, ma proviamoci.
1) I numeri. I "buoni" sono 7 persone, non una in più. I "cattivi" sono più di un centinaio, un solo capo e 100 buoi che seguono gli ordini, ma pur sempre un centinaio. Prima cosa, siamo a Manahattan in pieno periodo natalizio e nessuno si accorge di alcunché. Poi, utilizzando solo una persona come esca e una come pedina sacrificabile, i "buoni" riescono a mettere in sacco i cattivoni di turno. Se non fosse per la decisione di Evangeline di consegnarsi per salvare sua nonna, i nostri potrebbero andarsene senza problemi. 5 - i rimasti - contro 100. 5 umani contro 100 guerrieri addestrati. Okay, capo.
2) In ogni action movie che si rispetti, c'è la fuga dall'auto. Ferma al semaforo o in corsa poco importa. Ovviamente Angelology non sfugge alla regola. Solo che stavolta a fuggire sono in due: un'arzilla vecchietta di 70 e passa anni e sua nipote. E riescono pure a portarsi dietro il tessssoro. Arsenio Lupin era un dilettante a confronto. E prima o poi qualcuno imparerà a inserire la sicura nelle portiere delle auto.
3) SONO TUO PADRE. No, non sono proprio queste le parole, ma a senso ci siamo. Ehi, era figo la prima volta in Star Wars. Ora provoca solo una risata sguaiata.
4) Vogliamo parlare del finale? No, meglio di no. Tanto finale non è. Giusto una (emo) porta sul sequel. Non finisce nulla dopo l'ultima pagina di Angelology. E dopo aver arrancato in questo mare di irrazionalità per 500 pagine sa di presa per i fondelli.
C'è chi ha paragonato Angelology a la Trussoni a Dan Brown. Chiunque l'abbia detto o non ha mai letto Brown o non ha mai letto la Trussoni. Magari nel secondo caso ha saltato le prime 400 pagine (Una. Noia. Mortale.) e vedendo un po' di thriller, action e pseudo teorie religiose ha tirato fuori il paragone più sballato possibile. La Trussoni non ha nulla di Brown e viceversa. Dove Brown usa una prosa secca, arida ed elementare (ma che ha il vantaggio di velocizzare in maniera esponenziale la narrazione), la Trussoni è logorroica e descrittiva all'inverosimile. Nelle prime 400 pagine i dialoghi si contano sulle dita di una mano. Diari, resoconti, pagine di diari, sermoni universitari la fanno da padrone. Il ritmo stagna in maniera dolorosa, l'info-dump abbonda a ogni pagina (perché due studentesse, le più brillanti della loro età, devono risorbirsi le lezioni dell'anno precedente? Perché? Io lettore forse ho bisogno di conoscere quelle cose, ma loro o sono stupide o le sanno già. Perché?! Perché si sorprendono di fronte a cose che dovrebbero già sapere? Perché? Forse sono stupide davvero, alla fine dei conti. Sigh), avanzare anche di poche pagine è una tortura. Rimane quella premessa che ti fa andare avanti, quella convinzione che l'idea di fondo poteva dare avvio a una gran bella storia che ti fa continuare nella speranza, infin disillusa, di trovare un qualcosa di salvabile nelle acque torbide del testo.
Ci sarebbe ancora molto da dire, sulla trama e sullo stile e sui personaggi, la cui bidemensionalità e irrealtà è al di là di ogni immaginazione. Credo di non essere mai stata più disinteressata del destino di una protagonista. Evangeline è un personaggio insulso. Verlain pure. Gabrielle e Celestine, per quanto non esattamente due personcine gradevoli, sono molto più interessanti, ed è un peccato che la loro avventura sia già finita. Non che importi, per quanto mi riguarda non c'è possibilità al mondo che vada avanti a leggere anche il resto di questa saga.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
December 4, 2013
The only reason I didn't give this book one star was because the concept was intriguing and it's clear the author did her research.
But between the truly horrible writing and editorial neglect, this book was almost painful to read. The only reason I even finished it was to see if I could.
I don't even know where to begin with the myriad inconsistencies and sloppiness of this story, which could have been told in half the time if the writer had not gone to infuriating pains to describe in mind-numbing how the a character lit a fire every time her room was cold, or how the blaze in the fireplace "generated heat through the room," as if a fire would lower the temperature. The author might want to note that if explorers are about to descend into a potentially dangerous situation in an underground cavern, the reader may rather read about the action instead of having it all stalled while she spends five paragraphs describing the rope ladder they climb down on. There were too many instances like this to count.
*SPOILER ALERT*
And then - oh my - the plot holes. Would a secret society in hiding from killer angels really have personalized plates on their car? And if a contact who knew the whereabouts of an artifact said society was in a hurry to work to solve the puzzle they were given, rather than just telling them where it was? Especially when the contact agreed that time was of the essence? And if a fire wiped out an entire convent in New York would there really be not a single news crew or helicopter to investigate?
The dumber this book became, the more I was determined to see how awful it could become. And it did not disappoint. The ending is so god-awful that I briefly considered throwing it away. And I NEVER throw books out.
I don't know anything about this author, but she either is under a lucky star or has some sort of contact in publishing because there is no way on heaven or earth that most people could have gotten this book published in such an obviously unedited form otherwise.
This was a serious squandering of a really cool idea. What a shame.
But between the truly horrible writing and editorial neglect, this book was almost painful to read. The only reason I even finished it was to see if I could.
I don't even know where to begin with the myriad inconsistencies and sloppiness of this story, which could have been told in half the time if the writer had not gone to infuriating pains to describe in mind-numbing how the a character lit a fire every time her room was cold, or how the blaze in the fireplace "generated heat through the room," as if a fire would lower the temperature. The author might want to note that if explorers are about to descend into a potentially dangerous situation in an underground cavern, the reader may rather read about the action instead of having it all stalled while she spends five paragraphs describing the rope ladder they climb down on. There were too many instances like this to count.
*SPOILER ALERT*
And then - oh my - the plot holes. Would a secret society in hiding from killer angels really have personalized plates on their car? And if a contact who knew the whereabouts of an artifact said society was in a hurry to work to solve the puzzle they were given, rather than just telling them where it was? Especially when the contact agreed that time was of the essence? And if a fire wiped out an entire convent in New York would there really be not a single news crew or helicopter to investigate?
The dumber this book became, the more I was determined to see how awful it could become. And it did not disappoint. The ending is so god-awful that I briefly considered throwing it away. And I NEVER throw books out.
I don't know anything about this author, but she either is under a lucky star or has some sort of contact in publishing because there is no way on heaven or earth that most people could have gotten this book published in such an obviously unedited form otherwise.
This was a serious squandering of a really cool idea. What a shame.
December 28, 2014
I gave this two stars because that indicates "it was okay". I have mixed feelings about it. The writer is an "outside-the-box" thinker and has a brilliant vocabulary. She created an entire society in this book, fascinating journals and interesting ancient religious artifacts in the story. The story takes place over two days, with a side story of a past event taking up a good chunk of the book. The side story was interesting in and of itself and would have made a good book. The book depticts a world battle between good and evil angels, and their human/angel offspring called "Nephilim". This is a dark story with hope, where the dark characters are actually portrayed that way- versus the typical trend in stories that sympathize with dark characters (vampires,magicians). The actual story of Angelology would have been better if she had given as much attention to the feelings of the characters as she did the details of the society and stories told within the book.
April 2, 2014
Holy Christ, but this was pedantic.
If not for the fact that I've blood-oathed myself into reading every single book on my TBR, this one would so have never made the cut.
Seriously. This is crap. The writing is pretentious (and smells heavily of Thesaurus)and is extremely uninspiring. The plot is basically a jumble of cliches that have no impact and ultimately does nothing with whatever potential it had.
Oh, and also, this happened on page 362:
"The sight was so terrible that Evangeline caught her breath at the sight of it."
Really? You wouldn't mind clarifying that a tad bit more, would you?
Anyway, I actually wasted 24 days of my life on this garbage, and I regret it intensely. The only reason why this doesn't get one star is because I actually quite took to the character of Gabrielle .
If not for the fact that I've blood-oathed myself into reading every single book on my TBR, this one would so have never made the cut.
Seriously. This is crap. The writing is pretentious (and smells heavily of Thesaurus)and is extremely uninspiring. The plot is basically a jumble of cliches that have no impact and ultimately does nothing with whatever potential it had.
Oh, and also, this happened on page 362:
"The sight was so terrible that Evangeline caught her breath at the sight of it."
Really? You wouldn't mind clarifying that a tad bit more, would you?
Anyway, I actually wasted 24 days of my life on this garbage, and I regret it intensely. The only reason why this doesn't get one star is because I actually quite took to the character of Gabrielle .
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