Review – Angel in Chains by Cynthia Eden

Publisher: Brava
Publish Date: Nov 27th
How I got this book: ARC from the publisher

As a fallen Angel of Death, Azrael is cursed to walk the earth alone in search of redemption. One night, as he wanders the streets of New Orleans, he discovers a woman surrounded by panther shifters. No longer able to contain the anger simmering within, Az summons his dark powers and attacks, determined to protect this innocent human from certain death.
Only Jade Pierce is no delicate flower. She’s spent years learning to survive and fight the evil forces sent by her ex-lover who refuses to let her go. But after seeing Az in action, she figures she could use a little supernatural help. And so she plans a course of seduction guaranteed to arouse his interest and his angelic passions…
This blurb came from the author’s website here.

Angel in Chains is the third book in Eden’s The Fallen series. Like not only her previous Fallen books but several others in Eden’s backlist it is set in her paranormal earth with Others – vampires, shape-shifters, witches, demons, and fallen angels. Things have been heating up with The Fallen making it dangerous to be around them. Evil shape-shifters and a few others have discovered that they are indeed vulnerable and the greatest weapon against them actually is part of them. Grudges and disagreements from their time as angels tend to spill over after falling. When you have one who has Fallen and the other hasn’t, yet things tend to get a bit tricky especially when the second one falls. Add in the possibility that angels are compatible AND viable with other species potentially passing on some of their paranormal strengths and weaknesses. Stir with a prophecy/vision of the end of the world based on the actions of two angels both now Fallen and you have a very exciting story.

Az has not had a very enjoyable time since he fell. First he lost some of his memories along with his wings during the fall. Then he was almost killed by a witch before he was able to regain complete control of himself, his powers and his situation. His brother Sammael the hero of Angel Betrayed wouldn’t mind killing him because of what Az did while Sam was struggling with his life as a Fallen. As this story opens all Az really wants is to return to Heaven. This means he has to do something as a form of redemption to earn his wings back before he becomes corrupted by the mortal world. When he sees Jade in danger he decides that maybe rescuing her would solve all of his problems. Except that she can’t seem to stay rescued. The panther shifters are a rather determined bunch and far more scared of their Alpha than of Az despite his ability to grant death with a simple touch. Az had to do some serious work towards his redemption because it required more than just actions but a mental shift as well. I loved seeing Az realize that he had feelings, that feelings were OK, and in fact feelings are a good thing. I also liked how his feelings showed as he tried to protect Jade from experiencing physical harm in their dealings with witches and Others. Az also had to make some tough choices about his future.

Jade was interesting. She escaped from an abusive situation by killing her primary abuser but she still wasn’t completely free. The very nicely evil villain was still after her and he made a point to painfully kill anyone who helped her. Jade decided that she was going to have to enlist paranormal help to kill the villain but as the same time she wasn’t callused enough to want to put someone in danger and leave them there. I liked how even though she needed help she was going to sit back and play damsel in distress. She was going to play a significant role in not just surviving but winning her complete freedom from the panther pack. She also had to learn to trust people again and realize that some people don’t help others out of the sheer goodness of their hearts or a simple need for revenge.

Watching Az and Jade deal with each other, their respective personal sh*t and everything else that was thrown at them was very entertaining and enthralling. Their personalities were so different from the previous heroes and heroines yet they all fit together nicely once they started cooperating with each other. I liked how it took several of the good guys to ultimately bring down the villain. Eden did throw in an incredible twist that had me gaping and wishing I could read faster so I could figure out how I was going to get my HEA. Sneaky author… I ended up really enjoying that because it solved a few things yet left the door open for others.

I continued to learn new things about this world even after reading at least three different series set in this world, which I thought was wonderful. The setting has not become stagnant for the reader or for the characters. The unfallen Angels of Death tend to be something else. Some but not all of them lack compassion and instead seem to feel almost a hatred towards the Fallen. While other Angels of Death play by the rules and suffer for it because they are dealing with a world whose original rules have been broken but no one gave them the updated version. I have a sneaky suspicion for the next couple as well as the next Fallen angel and I don’t think they will be the same. Once again Eden provided an entertaining, engrossing, action filled story. I continue to look forward to each new release with the same sense of anticipation.

I giveAngel in Chains a A-

Links to purchase
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