Customer Reviews

Angels' Pawn: A Companion Novella to Angels' Blood (Guild Hunter)

5 star:		(6)
4 star:		(8)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Angel's Pawn is standalone prequel, set in the Singh's new Angel's Blood Guild Hunter world of vampires, angels and hunters. The Guild hunters are human bounty hunters hired by angel masters to retrieve errant vampire servants attempting to skip out on the hundred years of service that is the price angels charge for immortality.

Singh has carved out a nice little vignette for this story and she does a really good job of fleshing out her starring pair: Guild Hunter Ashwini, who is dangerous and a bit on the crazy side, and Ashwini's favorite target, Cajun vamp Janvier who is her ally and not her prey for this hunt. Both these characters were wonderful and the flirtation between the two makes me hope that Singh won't wait too long to give them a full length novel of their own since Angel's pawn is just a tease for the pair and their relationship is left ` to be continued'. This lack of closure for Ashwini and Janvier gives Angel's Pawn more of an urban fantasy feel than Singh's Psy-Changlings though.

I happened to read Angel's Blood first and I don't want to spoil that for you, but the one comment that I will make is that Angel's Pawn has a different feel than Angel's Blood - Angel's Pawn only hints at the darkness of this new series and the beauty, danger and cruelty that is part of the ancient angels' natures. I liked Angel's Pawn and loved Singh's new and original world.

Angel's Pawn is a stand alone novella that introduces us to Ashwini, who works for The Guild and Janvier, a vampire she's constantly tracking. Even though you don't have to have read Angels' Blood and Archangel's Kiss before reading the novella, I would suggest you do so. If you're not familiar with The Guild, you will be confused. A lot of character names are introduced in this novella and even I had a hard time keeping them straight. Being a novella, it was a quick read. I enjoyed the sexual tension between Ash and Janvier. They bantered constantly which kept the pace of the novella moving steadily. This was a quick way for me to get my Guild Hunter fix even though Raphael and Elena are not mentioned in the novella. I enjoyed Ash and Janvier's relationship immensely. I finished reading Angels' Pawn feeling unfilled. There was no resolution in regards to their "relationship". Janvier has the hots for Ash but Ash has a steadfast rule of not dating vampires. But throughout the novella, Ash struggled against giving in to Janvier's cajun charm. I hope that A & J will get their own book; I would love to see where their relationship is headed. It has a lot of potential of being just as good as Raphael and Elena's story

Angels' Pawn is an introduction to the world that we'll learn more about in Angels' Blood (due out 3/3/2009). A world where angels and vampires not only co-exist, but have an interesting connection. As a Guild Hunter, one of those that hunts rogue vampires down for the angels, Ashwini finds herself suddenly stuck between two vampire factions, and the angel wanting to manipulate them all, in Atlanta. She turns, for help, to Janvier, a vampire himself - who may have his own reasons for assisting her.

From the first moment I started this novella I was immediately immersed in the world. I couldn't have stopped reading if there was a fire. Okay. I hope I could have at least paused to get out of the building, but you get the picture.

I'm continually amazed by Nalini's ability to create fully realized characters, especially in novellas where the shortened format makes that difficult for a lot of authors. Angels' Pawn is no different. Ashwini is a compelling character from her first moments pounding on a door. I'm completely intrigued by her, and really hope that we get to see more of her in the future.

Janvier. Wow. What can I say except I want to meet him. A native from the bayous, with an old world charm, and an, apparently, innate sexiness, he is just fantastic. Watching him play off of Ashwini, lightening the mood and at the same time ratcheting up their relationship throughout everything they were trying to accomplish in Atlanta was truly a joy.

I can not wait to read Angels' Blood which focuses on Elena and Raphael, I believe. But I'm really hoping to see more from Janvier and Ashwini in the future. Their storyline was by no means complete - although the main conflict is tied up in the novella - we have lots more to hear about this pair.

Nalini's said it, but I'm going to give this warning to those that need an HEA. This is not a typical romance with a bow-tied HEA at the end.

It's a fantastic read, a great introduction, and I highly recommend it. If you've not read anything by Nalini Singh, I urge you to run out and buy everything you can by her. Her Psy/Changeling stories are absolutely fantastic, and this new series promises to be just as great.

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ANGELS' PAWN

I bought this story to try out the Guild Hunter series. I liked it so I elementally bought the rest of the Guild Hunter books and Must Love Hellhounds. While I don't like romances, I do like a good detective story.

Janiver and Ashwini work well together and they care about each other. Their mutual attraction is unresolved in this story. He wants her to be his lover. She doesn't date vampires. She hears voices from places and people, with him she hears nothing.

Nazerach, the angel of Atlanta wants Ashwini to kidnap a runaway vampire. Janiver goes along to help and protect Ashwini from Nazerach.

Several readers have said this story was confusing. I didn't have a problem with it. Just for the record: Nazerach is an angel. Raphael of New York is an archangel. This story takes place a least a year before Angels' Blood. When Elena Devereaux runs into Ashwini in the underground section of the Guild Hunters complex Ashwini doesn't mention the events in this story. Yet a year later in Archangel's Kiss, Elena tells Raphael that Nazerach scared Ashwini so badly she refused a case which would have taken her back to Atlanta. Elena had been asleep for a year, so there is no time for Ashwini to have told her about Nazerach except before the opening of Angels' BLOOD.

Angel's Pawn is an introduction to the beginning of a new series. We are introduced to a world of angels and vampires and Ashwini, a Guild Hunter who hunts down vampires who have tried to escape their angel masters. In this instance, the angel we meet is as big and bad, if not worse, than the vampires. Vampires have to earn their immortality by being enslaved to angels for one hundred years. Ashwini is hired by the powerful and cruel angel, Nazarach,to find one of his vampires who has been kidnapped. Going along to help her is Cajun vampire, Janvier, who himself has been chased by Ashwini more than once.

I don't usually read short stories or novellas but I was curious about this series and thought Angel's Pawn would give me a taste of the world and characters to come. One of my favorite television series, Supernatural, has brought angels into the cast and they are portrayed as being almost as bad as the demons. Nazarach certainly isn't like any angel I have visualized in the past. I've had to set aside my own ideas of what I think an angel is like to read this book as well as watch Supernatural. I admit it was very hard for me to do. In spite of my uneasiness at how the angels were portrayed, I found myself caught up in Ashwini's world. The author immediately set up the world these characters live in and fleshed out the characters themselves. I know I will continue with the series because I like dark and this series promises to deliver.

This was a quick little peek at the Angels series by Nalini Singh. Most of the characaters in this book are just briefly mentioned in the series to date (4 books) but it was a good quick read and I look forward to Ashwini and Janvier's book iin the future.

This was a good novella to introduce readers to the Angels series. However, it's not necessary to read this before reading Angel's Blood. The plot and pacing were good, and the character development was great. The tension between the hero and heroine was one of the best aspects of the story. Due to the short word count, the storyline and backstory didn't have as much time to develop as I would've liked. I think I may enjoy it better as a reread since I've finished Angel's Blood now and understand more of the backstory. Overall, a good read.

Angels' Pawn is the fantastic introduction to Singh's Guild Hunters series. Quite different in tone than Angels' Blood or Angels' Kiss, the novels that follow it, I actually enjoyed it more.

The main characters in Angels' Pawn are the Guild Hunter Ashwini, and the vampire Janvier. (The main characters in the novels of the series are the hunter Elena, and archangel Raphael.) As some reviewers have mentioned, I felt a bit as if I was missing some world building backstory while reading the novella. However I had no problem figuring out what was going on, and it was one of my few complaints about the story.

Singh's character development shines here, something particularly impressive given the short length of the book. Ashwini and Janvier are both interesting, well developed characters; they are each far from perfect, but their own resilience and self-acceptance gives them strength and makes them quite likeable. A cast of interesting side characters are also found throughout the story.

Although the storyline touches on many of the same dark and violent themes that Angels' Blood and Kiss do, the overall tone is significantly lighter. This is due in large part, I think, to the main characters themselves. Their banter and sense of fun, as well as the kindness seen between them, gives a sense of perspective that the more solemn characters of Angels' Blood lack. Singh makes no attempt to wrap up Ashwini and Janvier's relationship in this story, although the particular "mission" is concluded. I think this was an intelligent choice, and far more satisfying than if she had tried to rush them into a happily ever after. Now I can't wait to see what adventure will bring them together next.

I was hesitant to read the "Angel" series. I was afraid it was too dark for me, even though I love Ms. Singh's Psy/Changling series. So I thought I'd try this novella just to see. And just that quickly I was hooked! Even though this story is about two "side" characters, and even though it is a little dark, I really got into the story. It was a good intro to this new world, & I can't wait to see more of Ashwini & Janvier in the books to come.

Great book,,,,,,,, I love this series.

I have no idea how this writer can transport me to a world I wouldn't want to live in, introduce characters I don't always like, and still entertain me,,,,,,,, amazing writer.