CO-Review: Angel Eyes + Tour-Wide Giveaway

Angel Eyes by Shannon Dittemore

Publisher: Thomas Nelson
Publishing Date: May 29, 2012

Genre: YA, Paranormal, Romance, Christian

Series: Angel Eyes #1
Received: Free as part of blog tour by Litfuse
Others by this Author: Broken Wings (Angel Eyes #2)

Goodreads Synopsis: Once you’ve seen, you can’t unsee. Everything changes when you’ve looked at the world through . . . ANGEL EYES
Brielle’s a ballerina who went to the city to chase her dreams and found tragedy instead. She’s come home to shabby little Stratus, Oregon, to live with her grief and her guilt . . . and the incredible, numbing cold she can’t seem to shake.

Jake’s the new guy at school. The boy next door with burning hands and an unbelievable gift that targets him for corruption.
Something more than fate has brought them together. An evil bigger than both of them lurks in the shadows nearby, hiding in plain sight. Two angels stand guard, unsure what’s going to happen. And a beauty brighter than Jake or Brielle has ever seen is calling them to join the battle in a realm where all human choices start.
A realm that only angels and demons—and Brielle—can perceive.

Rachel Rating:

Ana's Rating: 1/2

Overview

Rachel: I have wanted to read this book for a while now. The summary intrigued me and I liked the cover also. I was not disappointed in this book. I don’t normally enjoy angel books as much as other paranormal stories but there are a few exceptions and this was one of them. I really enjoyed this book and I give it 5 stars.  I will try to review without spoilers.

Ana: Me too! I first heard about this book at Thomas Nelson's website, then it was on NetGalley, and then there The Teen Book Scene hosted a blog tour. You can be sure that by then, I knew a lot about this book and couldn't wait to get to it myself! Unfortunately, it didn't meet my expectations. Angel Eyes was a very unique paranormal, but with a (too) strong romance plot and a Christian influences that made me slightly uncomfortable.

The Plot

Rachel: The plot of this story pulled me in and kept me reading. I was curious to know what the tragedy was that Brielle had in her past. I wanted to know more about Jake also. What was so special about him? The ending certainly left it open for the next story and I can’t wait. I liked how the author brought all the different lives and plot line going on in the story together and made them all connect at the end of the book. The halo and the different things that it can do was a change up as well.

Ana: Totally! It gave you several hints throughout the book as to 'Ali' and what exactly happened to her, but you don't find out till quite late in the book. One of the biggest questions I had was what was 'Damien' going to do and how Brielle was involved in all this.

It started out like a contemporary novel. After having experienced a traumatic incident involving her best friend Ali, Brielle, moves back to the small town feeling lonely and pained. She meets new kid Jake who is gorgeous, sweet and is interested in her, and he's the only person she feels comfortable around. But then it starts to diverge into the paranormal elements and pick up speed. By building on existing lore and adding plenty of details and fascinating background about the angels, the author succeeded in creating a very believable story.

The writing was maybe slow-paced at times (there was a LOT of crying on Brielle's part) and the plot wasn't exceptional, but the author's writing style was beautiful and the emotions expressed by the characters were very real and some parts were truly moving.

Nevertheless, I am curious to know what happens in Broken Wings (Angel Eyes #2)

The Characters

Rachel: There was no surprise on who the demons were or if they would turn good or stay bad. However there was a twist on the bad guy Marco who Brielle believed was responsible for her best friend’s death. The other thing that I liked was that the angels were divided into different divisions this was also a twist from many other stories. The author gave little details to the characters with their likes and dislikes and their back stories that helped bring them to life. The conversations in between the characters was interesting and funny. It did seem that Jake and Brielle had a hard life as children both had lost parent(s) when they were younger and that gave them something in common also. I was a little curious if Brielle's friend will remember everything and believe or not and what of little Ali and the other girls from the ending. Hope there is a good ending for them even though that probably won't be in the next book. 

Ana: As I've said before, Angel Eyes is a very character-focused novel. The author put a lot of time in creating each of the characters' pasts and showing their emotions in a way that the reader can feel too. It was most likely the beautiful characters who kept me fascinated in this book. Ms Dittermore took plenty of time and details to bring the characters and the settings to life. Brielle was a relatable character even with her tormenting past and Jake is just such a sweet guy, you can't help falling for him!

Setting

Rachel: The setting for this story varied to many different places but each was described so that I could picture each one and fill in the little details. I think I like the cemetery scene as well as when they were stranded in the rain in the field the best. I also liked the idea of the chest in Kanaan’s room that he received messages in from The Throne. The descriptions of the pictures that Jake and Brielle take throughout the story sound beautiful.

Extra Thoughts that don't Deserve a Separate Category

Ana: The romance in this novel just makes you smile. It's kind of cheesy, but overall, Brielle and Jake had a very sweet relationship. They weren't instantly in love or falling all over each other; instead, they were comfortable around each other and were happy just to be around each other. Most importantly, there was no love triange! Hurray!

The alternating POVs let the reader peek into the mind of the antagonist and see what he was planning, which kept me super intrigued.

Since I'm not a religious person, I was left feeling a little uncomfortable by all the God references and thoughts about faith, but I didn't feel like the author's views were pushed on me in any way so that was a relief. 

Yay! Pretty cover =D

Find the author on her blog and Twitter.
Visit all the blogs on Litfuse Publicity's blog tour
OH and BTW! Shannon is hosting a giveaway for a Nook Color during the blog tour! What, do I need to give you another reason to enter the giveaway?! ;D

Celebrate with Shannon by entering her "Angel Eyes" Giveaway and connecting with her during the Author Chat Party on 6/26!

Find out what readers are saying here.

One "angelic" winner will receive:

• A Brand New Nook Color
• A copy of Angel Eyes by Shannon Dittemore

Enter today by clicking one of the icons below. But hurry, the giveaway ends at noon on June 25th. Winner will be announced at the "Angel Eyes" Author Chat Facebook Party on 6/26. Shannon will be hosting a book chat, testing your trivia skills and giving away some great prizes!

So grab your copy of Angel Eyes and join Shannon on the evening of the June 26th for a chance to meet Shannon and make some new friends. (If you haven't read the book - don't let that stop you from coming!)

Don't miss a moment of the RSVP today. Tell your friends via FACEBOOK or TWITTER and increase your chances of winning. Hope to see you on the 26th!

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Posted in: 3 stars,christian,co-review,giveaways,paranormal,review,romance,ya