Tuesday 15 February 2011

Angel Time by Anne Rice

Pages 266

Published by Arrow Books in 2010

First few lines

There were omens from the beginning.
First off, I didn't want to do a job at the Mission Inn. Anywhere in the country, I would have been willing, but not the Mission Inn. And in the bridal suite, that very room, my room. Bad luck and beyond. I thought to myself.
Of course my boss, The Right Man, had no way of knowing when he gave me this assignment that the Mission was where I went when I didn't want to be Lucky the Fox, when I didn't want to be his assassin.

Many of you will be aware that I do have a fondness for angel books and that had a lot to do with my decision to buy this book. I have never read any other Anne Rice books, so I don't have anything to compare this book with.  All I can say is, that this book didn't impress me at all and I had hoped for so much more from it.

The book is centred around a character called Lucky the Fox, who is a contract killer, but one with a conscience.  The first two chapters are there to basically to show you this character's soul exists.  Personally, I had worked that out in the first couple of pages and didn't need the in depth religious chapters to repeat it to me over and over again.

As Lucky carries out his final contract killing, his guardian angel Malchiah reveals himself.  Malchiah wants Lucky to work for him now and help him solve situations rather than killing people.  Lucky agrees and then suddenly the book veers off into the 13th Century and Lucky becomes a monk on a mission! I bet you didn't see that one coming. Mmm, neither did I!

This book felt like it was two different books sewn together in the middle. It was like watching an episode of Quantam Leap, where the lead character jumps into different time periods. I had to keep turning back to make sure I had not been sold a dud book that had been rebuilt from spare parts. 

To be honest, I actually enjoyed the part of the book set in the 13th century more than I did the modern day part, which worries me a little, as the 13th Century has never appealed to me before.  However the story seemed to flow so much better and appeared to be more believable than the first part of the book.  In the second half of the book I began to relate to the characters and feel their pain and almost got lost in the story.

This book is full to the brim with religion, which I found quite hard to digest. If you have a thorough knowledge of religious studies, then this book will suit you. Personally, it all went a little over my head.  I can understand that Anne Rice is thorough in her research, yet it felt a bit like she had tried to absorb every bit of  information she had discovered into this book.

I couldn't conjure up any feelings towards the main character in the book, which made it even more difficult to enjoy it. The main character had committed so many gruesome acts, I struggled to feel the sorrow he felt over the crimes he had committed.

I have always wanted to read an Anne Rice book, but I think I will listen to other book bloggers recommendations in future, as I obviously don't know which ones are the best to read.  I really do want to love her books!

I am led to believe that this is the first book in a series, unfortunately, it won't be a series that I will continue with.

12 comments:

  1. I wondered about this book. It sounds interesting (a monk on a mission, haha). Sorry it didn't work for you but I think you are in the majority on this one (according to Goodreads).

    ReplyDelete
  2. I've never read any of Anne Rice's books, but her older ones have been recommended to me. I just haven't had time.

    ReplyDelete
  3. I love the Quantum Leap mention! This really sounds like two books sewn together.I haven't read this book and after your review, I have no plans to. Hopefully you'll try one of Rice's better-liked books next time. :-)

    ReplyDelete
  4. So sad that this wasn't a good read for you. I read my first Anne Rice book (an older one) a while ago and was also disappointed. That said I'm about to read another one to see if this is any better.

    ReplyDelete
  5. Nice honest review, too bad though that your first Rice book was a disappointment. Better luck next time

    ReplyDelete
  6. Sorry you didnt enjoy it Viv. I loved Interview when I read it years ago.

    ReplyDelete
  7. I read Cry to Heaven many years ago. It was good, but extremely detailed.

    ReplyDelete
  8. Hmmm...I have a feeling I'm not going to be a big fan of this one either. The thing is I LOVE Anne Rice...but ever since she had her born again moment she seems to have changed so much as a writer which is unfortunate. It's like she's trying to drill a point home in her writing when she's clearly a talented writer if she would just stick with the story telling. Still going to try it though since I own it already :p

    ReplyDelete
  9. Mary - I think you maybe right. On Amazon, there are such mixed reviews.

    Yvonne - a lot of the older books have been recommended to me too. I might try those instead.

    Vasilly - that is what it felt like.LOL. I am at a loss now as to which books I should try and read next of hers.

    Petty Witter- I will be interested to see what you think of your next Anne Rice read.

    Blodeuedd - thank you.

    Naida - thank you too.

    Suko - she obviously really likes to write in detail and utilise all the information she gathers.

    Chris - I thought of you as I read this book. I know how much you love her, but I am pleased that you might feel the same about the book. I hadn't realised she had had a born again moment. It kind of makes a lot more sense now.

    ReplyDelete
  10. I think it was not long after her Husband passed away Viv. The book she released after that was way, way to religous for me and I had been a huge Anne fan up till then, I was so dissapointed. But she had said on her blog she was going to take a new direction and that she understood it wouldn't be to all her fans tastes.

    Saying that, all her books are extremely detailed and some even pre-Born Again are quite religous. I think you might like the Vampire Chronicles as they are heavily influenced by New Orleans too.

    I don't think I'll rush out to get this one either.

    ReplyDelete
  11. From what I've heard, Anne Rice is very hit and miss with her books - especially her new work. I've only read Interview with the Vampire and enjoyed that but her writing's very hardgoing.

    Sorry you didn't really like this one. Can't say I was especially intrigued by the sound of it either. :S

    ReplyDelete
  12. Sorry this one didn't work for you. I think I have a few of her books in my personal library but not this one. I don't mind books with lots of religious elements in them. If it's well integrated into the story, all the better. :D

    ReplyDelete

Hiya, thanks for stopping by, it is always nice to hear what you have to say, so do leave a comment if you have time.