Official Review: Earth Angel by Alex Apostol

Nokkela · Post by **Nokkela** » 20 Mar 2015, 14:25

[Following is the official OnlineBookClub.org review of "Earth Angel" by Alex Apostol.]

2 out of 4 stars

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Kamlyn Paige was a happy mother. Her son, Danny, was her world and it was a world of delight and love – until a demon stole it all away. Now, Kamlyn lives to seek vengeance against the monster that stole her son from her, stole her happiness and destroyed life as she knew it. Eyes opened to a world swarming with supernatural evils, Kamlyn has become the hunter. If it goes bump in the night, she tracks it down, looking for clues that will lead her to the evil that took her little boy from her forever. Along the way, with a little help from friends both old and new, she will discover things about herself that may just help her survive if she ever manages to find the demon who changed her life and set her on the path of revenge.

Earth Angel by Alex Apostol has some excellent story elements and there are moments where the writer shows true talent for description and character development. From the beginning, however, the story is overshadowed by the confusing transitions that leave you wondering if you somehow missed a page or six. Several times while reading the book, I found myself blinking in surprise as the characters switched from one locale to another with no apparent explanation or transition at all.

Kamlyn begins as a convincing, grieving mother torn by the pain of having her child taken from her only the year before. She's a tough cookie and hell bent on vengeance even though it seems to mean living like Sam and Dean Winchester. She has a lot in common with the boys from Supernatural, in fact, since she and her mentor both call themselves hunters and follow a similar path to the characters in the show insofar as how they hunt down monsters. This was one of my favorite aspects of the story, in fact as I am, personally, a fan of Supernatural.

It isn't long before Kamlyn seems to undergo a complete and utter personality change that takes her from grieving mother to giggly, smitten teen once the main love interest has been introduced. At times, the plot feels lost and forgotten because of this personality change though it does, eventually, get back to it. The love interest comes off as awkward in his interactions (think Hayden Christensen woodenly fumbling through romantic scenes with Natalie Portman in Star Wars) though there are moments where it seems the author will flesh him out more. Perhaps this will happen in a follow-up novel. The love interest also seems to be the reason things frequently dissolve into teen temper tantrums that would feel less out of place in a young adult novel.

While there is some excellent story telling at work, the writing pitfalls made it difficult to get through even for an avid reader like myself. That said, the story itself kept me reading and made me want to know what happens next. I cannot bring myself to give it more than 2 out of 4 stars simply based off the jumpy, awkward and sometimes non-existent transitions that made it difficult to get through without wondering if I had missed something. Good for a light read, fans of Supernatural and other monster hunting/slaying shows and books would enjoy this novel so long as they aren't looking for something too serious. People who enjoy complicated plot twists and turns and complex, well-developed characters will find nothing enjoyable here.

******
Earth Angel
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alexandrakay87 · Post by **alexandrakay87** » 25 Mar 2015, 22:05

Thank you for your honest review! I appreciate it and I agree with a lot of what you said. Thank you again!

PashaRu · Post by **PashaRu** » 25 Mar 2015, 22:28

Thanks for a well-written, insightful review.

Nokkela · Post by **Nokkela** » 26 Mar 2015, 06:00

Thanks to both of you for your comments! I enjoyed reading and reviewing this book despite having some criticisms.

alexandrakay87 · Post by **alexandrakay87** » 26 Mar 2015, 07:01

Believe me, I had my criticisms too after I published it, but all I can do is take the helpful feedback and learn from it. Thank you.

Nokkela · Post by **Nokkela** » 26 Mar 2015, 16:49

Everyone grows from helpful feedback! I'm glad if I was helpful in anyway. You've amazing talent as a story teller and writing is one of those things where we only get better with time - or at least that's how I feel about it. You finished something and published it. That's so much more than can be said for many aspiring writers (myself included).