Emily Noon

In this deeply emotional dark fantasy, Evie, a broken-winged angel and Aurora, a shapeshifter huntress with a bloody past, must learn to trust each other - if they want to survive. Set in a vivid fantasy world with fully realized characters this intricate story features a slow-burn romance that sizzles with chemistry.

A Dark Fantasy Romance

Aurora's Angel

A broken-winged angel trying to get home. Her escort a nocturnal huntress with a bloody past. It will be a dangerous journey - monsters are everywhere and the truly dangerous ones hide in plain sight. Alone since her father's brutal murder, Aurora has spent years hunting his killers. Battle-weary she's ready to start over where no one knows who or what she is - she just has one last mission. Everything is going to plan until she discovers the beautiful winged girl caged underground. Her decision to rescue Evie and to help her get home safely, despite avians being infamous for selling out shapeshifters like Aurora to cutters and black-market flesh dealers, will put her on a perilous path. As the women travel together their attraction grows but Aurora is guarding her lonely heart almost as much as her dangerous secrets and Evie is struggling to accept how important Aurora has become to her. When their enemies conspire to kill them, they may be each other's only hope. Aurora is powerful but she's also emotionally scarred and it will be up to Evie to save her from herself and to fight for them - or innocent people will die along with the guilty ones and Aurora will disappear from Evie's life forever.

Jude Silberfeld

Abby Craden. That should almost be all I need to write because, honestly, who is going to complain about listening to Abby Craden for over twenty hours? Her narration is top-notch as usual, well-paced with wonderfully fitting and distinctive voices for each character. I do have a lot more to say about this story however, because wow…

Aurora lives a lonely life. The child of two old blood species that aren’t supposed to mix, she’s never been accepted by either. Her father, a tiger shifter, made sure she grew up surrounded by good people but when Aurora was eleven, her father was murdered and her whole world was torn apart. Feeling responsible for his death, she made a vow to get back every part of him his murderers – black market flesh smugglers – took away. Years later, she stumbles upon another cutter’s nest. Despite the painful memories it brings back, she makes her way in and frees the prisoners she finds. One of them is an Avian woman, Evie.

I cannot believe this is a debut novel, it’s so well-written and complex. The world-building is amazing, it feels at once foreign and familiar. While some parts are violent and dark, this story is definitely not depressing. Quite the opposite, it left me feeling warm and happy. This book is equal parts fantasy and romance, both excellent. There’s a perfect balance of tension-filled events and humour. Aurora has a quirky sense of humour once she lets herself show it, and Evie is delightfully sassy.

I’m a very character-driven reader, and I loved the characters in this book. Aurora is a beast shifter and everyone is terrified of her beast(s), even herself at times. She’s very intense and strangely relatable for such an extraordinary creature. She can be socially awkward whereas Evie is as outgoing as can be. They’re a perfect example of opposites attract, with Aurora as an introvert (either by nature or because of the life she’s had to live) and Evie as an extrovert, both kind, smart and sweet.

“Tomorrow is unwritten”, says Evie mid-book, and that’s very much who she is. Carpe diem and deal with things as they happen. It’s a brand new view of life for Aurora who has been bound by her vow since she was eleven. Evie isn’t scared of Aurora’s beast, only of hurting Aurora. She has a very endearing playful and teasing side. To be honest, I might be just a little bit in love with Evie.

This book could probably have been shorter, especially as the story takes place over a relatively brief period of time, but honestly, I was enjoying it so much, I was okay with it lasting. With a book of that length, you won’t be surprised to learn the romance is a slow-burn. Which entails loads of touching, looks that last longer than they should, hints on both parts. Very sweet but also very sexy. Evie and Aurora have fantastic chemistry, and their shapeshifting abilities only enhance it. There’s a certain area on Evie’s body that is particularly sensitive to touch, for example, and don’t get me started on Aurora’s sense of smell!

Books like this one are my favourites, stories you don’t want to see end, with the right mix of action and romance, depth and humour.

A slightly different version of this review can be read on Les Rêveur.

Megan Cooper

A very impressive novel for first time published author Emily Noon. 

This is firmly in the fantasy genre - the author calls it dark fantasy, but I think its closer to high fantasy with some dark elements. The world building was done remarkably well and had a satisfying level of logic and wonder. An oddity was the way that Ms Noon linked the world to ours - a portal that is never really explained in detail, but gives enough to let me let her get away with references to jeans or sashimi. If I didn't enjoy the book so much, I may not have been as ready to suspend my disbelief or questioned it more. It gave the book a boost of originality by blending the elements - but the world and characters are firmly rooted in the fantasy realm that is populated with shifters and monsters and magic trump science and technology.

At its heart, this is a romance - a long slow burn romance between Aurora and Evie as they escape the dreaded cutters and make their way back (with a few detours) to Evie's home. The book focuses on that build up from strangers to lovers to partners in detail. There are some great action scenes - the escape from the mine and some of the battles, but the bulk of the story is the travel and getting to know you plotline with more than a bit of angst thrown in with a pretty horrible backstory for Aurora. As much as I liked the characters, a bit more action and adventure in the middle would have helped keep the pace up.

Be prepared to set aside a week or so to read the novel - it's a long one - but once you start you'll be hooked.

Aurora's Angel A Dark Fantasy Romance

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