Archangel's Sun

 

Archangel's Sun (Guild Hunters #13)- Nalini Singh

Berkley Publishing

Release Date: November 24, 2020

Rating:📚📚📚📚📚

Synopsis:The Archangel of Death and the Archangel of Disease may be gone but their legacy of evil lives on—especially in Africa, where the shambling, rotting creatures called the reborn have gained a glimmer of vicious intelligence.

It is up to Titus, archangel of this vast continent, to stop the reborn from spreading across the world. Titus can’t do it alone, but of the surviving powerful angels and archangels, large numbers are wounded, while the rest are fighting a surge of murderous vampires.

There is no one left . . . but the Hummingbird. Old, powerful, her mind long a broken kaleidoscope. Now, she must stand at Titus’s side against a tide of death upon a discovery more chilling than any other. For the Archangel of Disease has left them one last terrible gift . . . .

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In the aftermath of war, the survivors are left to pick up the pieces.  When archangels fight, that takes on a whole new meaning.  Archangels Lijuan and Charisemmnon may be dead but their legacy continues in the flesh-eating, zombie-like reborn creatures infesting the world- in particular, Africa.  Archangel Titus and his people have been fighting them nonstop since the war's end but need more help to turn the tide.  Help comes from an unlikely source: the Hummingbird.  An Ancient who lost millennia trapped in the broken kaleidoscope of her mind, she is known and revered as a great artist.  But now that she is fully awake, the Hummingbird proves equal to any task set to her.  Perhaps even gaining the love of an archangel.

 The world is rebuilding from war, but also the Hummingbird, Lady Sharine, is rebuilding her life after centuries spent in her own broken mind. Here we learn her past, and the traumas that caused her to retreat from life.  And here we (and she) learn who the Lady Sharine truly is. A woman of strength and humor, courage and tenderness, she turns out to be the perfect person to help Titus and his people.  It is wonderful to see her become herself, to discover her strengths and what she can do to help not only the world, but the people who she loves.

Just as Sharine is not who we necessarily expect her to be, Titus has layers and hidden depths that make him a brilliant general, a compassionate leader, and a good man.  He's more than the loud and gruff soldier we met in earlier books, but is far too used to his own way.  Watching him spar words with Sharine, and his reactions as she treats him just like anyone else instead of the Archangel of Africa, is entertaining every time.

  

As you would expect from a book by Nalini Singh, Archangel's Sun is beautifully written, intense, and thought-provoking. The relationship that develops between Titus and Sharine is wonderful, and the scenes between Sharine and her sons (adopted and born) are beautiful.  The reader sees the world through the eyes of an artist, and descriptions of the land and its people are rich in color and beauty.  Archangel's Sun picks up after the events of Archangel's War and it will definitely help the reader to have read that book, if not others, before starting this one.  But if this is the first Guild Hunter book someone is starting with, while a few of the people referenced won't mean anything to them already, Archangel's Sun is still a fascinating and intense story of rebuilding life. A must read!

I received an ARC of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review

Gentleman Jim

 

Gentleman Jim- Mimi Matthews

Perfectly Proper Press

Release Date: November 10, 2020

Caution: Spoilers! (sort of)

Rating: 📚📚📚📚📚

Synopsis: Wealthy squire's daughter Margaret Honeywell was always meant to marry her neighbor, Frederick Burton-Smythe, but it's bastard-born Nicholas Seaton who has her heart. Raised alongside her on her father's estate, Nicholas is the rumored son of notorious highwayman Gentleman Jim. When Fred frames him for theft, Nicholas escapes into the night, vowing to find his legendary sire. But Nicholas never returns. A decade later, he's long been presumed dead.

After years spent on the continent, John Beresford, Viscount St. Clare has finally come home to England. Tall, blond, and dangerous, he's on a mission to restore his family's honor. If he can mete out a bit of revenge along the way, so much the better. But he hasn't reckoned for Maggie Honeywell. She's bold and beautiful--and entirely convinced he's someone else. 

As danger closes in, St. Clare is torn between love and vengeance. Will he sacrifice one to gain other? Or, with a little daring, will he find a way to have them both?

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Wealthy Margaret Honeywell grew up alongside neighbor Frederick Burton-Smythe and stablehand Nicholas Seaton.  She's always disliked the one and loved the other.  When Fred frames Nicholas for theft, she helps Nicholas escape and he leaves promising to come back to her.  Ten years later she is in the difficult position of having to marry Fred -who has only grown worse with age- or see her fortune and estate pass into his hands and leave her nothing.  Then the appearance on the scene of the mysterious John Beresford, Viscount St. Clare, changes everything. Maggie is certain he is her long-lost love Nicholas. St. Clare denies it, but proceeds to court her and drive Fred to increasing levels of cruel antagonism.  St. Clare's right to inherit the title and estate of his grandfather is being questioned by distant relations and he should be keeping his focus on dealing with that.  But Maggie changes all of his plans and now he must decide who he is, and what he is willing to do- and to give up- to be that man.

Author Mimi Matthews (Work of Art) has once again written a book that enthralls and entertains from start to finish.  She's admitted that Gentleman Jim has some Count of Monte Cristo inspirations and I enjoyed every one of those moments.  That knowledge means that it won't surprise readers familiar with the story to know that St. Clare and Nicholas are the same person.  But there's much more to the story of Nicholas and his origins than that and one of the questions that keeps readers guessing is: how much of St. Clare/Nicholas is fiction and how much is truth?  He grows into an intelligent, cold, and calculating planner with an obvious path set out, but how much is his plan and how much his (supposed) grandfather's?  Trying to keep up with the secrets and machinations of the Beresford men kept me guessing all the way to the end, which I very much enjoyed. Maggie may be one of my favorite Matthews' heroines- a strong woman willing to overcome obstacles, believing unconditionally in her love even when she isn't always able to believe in herself or see her way out of a situation. She's willing to accept help from friends (unlike so many headstrong characters), take risks, and when in doubt, use a pistol to great effect.

 I also loved the relationship between Maggie and St. Clare. These are two people who are meant to be together, and who have a soul-deep understanding despite being separated by ten years, a continent, and endless secrets.  Their chemistry is perfect, and their connection perhaps shows readers that there are times when people are just meant to be together.

From shadowy taverns to glittering ballrooms, Gentleman Jim is a winner from start to finish. Wonderful characters with electrical chemistry, revenge, adventure, and fortunes hanging in the balance, this is a perfect book to read and re-read. This is Mimi Matthews at her finest! 

I received an ARC of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review