A TEMPTATION OF ANGELS

Zink heightens the pile of heavenly sagas.

Like most heroines in these stories, Helen loses her parents before they can explain her unique legacy to her. In Helen’s case, however, they prepared her for it throughout her childhood, using games to train her for her calling as an angelic guardian. A council of demons kills without discrimination, on a mission to destroy those like Helen in order to tip the balance of the world toward evil. Obeying all the tropes of this genre, Zink allies Helen with male counterparts, two brothers who are also lesser angels and who have also lost their parents. Griffin wins her heart, though Darius conveniently spurns her in what seems to be an attempt to lend additional adversity to Helen’s life, since Helen doesn’t much mourn her parents’ recent deaths. Given how few people share their unique backgrounds, Darius’ scorn doesn’t make sense.  A childhood friend whom Helen has not seen in many years presents the only real complexity in the book; once a playmate, he has grown up to perpetrate grave crimes, and yet he holds the keys to thwarting the forces of evil.

A formulaic and slow-paced tale combining too many conventions to excite savvy readers who have likely seen it all before.