Defiance (Strange Angels, Book 4) [Paperback]

Lili St. Crow (Author)

Book Description

Release date: April 19, 2011

Now that sixteen-year-old Dru's worst fears have come true and Sergej has kidnapped her best friend Graves, she'll have to go on a suicidal rescue mission to bring him back in one piece.

That is, if she can put all of Christophe's training to good use, defeat her mother's traitor, Anna, once and for all, and manage to survive another day...

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Lili Saintcrow was born in New Mexico, bounced around the world as an Air Force brat, and fell in love with writing when she was ten years old. Lili lives in Vancouver, WA with her children, a houseful of cats, and assorted other strays.

Product Details

• Age Range: 12 and up
  
• Paperback: 272 pages
• Publisher: Razorbill (April 19, 2011)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1595143920
• ISBN-13: 978-1595143921
• Product Dimensions: 5.6 x 0.8 x 8.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 9.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (37 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #76,313 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Lili St. Crow is the YA pen name for Lilith Saintcrow. Lili lives in Vancouver, WA, with children, cats, a dog, and a host of other strays. You can find her at http://www.lilistcrow.com.

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

14 of 14 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Opens and closes with a BANG.... April 22, 2011

By T. Sheppard

Format:Kindle Edition|Amazon Verified Purchase

Defiance, book 4 in the Strange Angels series, opens with a bang.
Dru is doing everything in her power to find and save her friend (oh but I want so much more) Graves from Sergej. While still dealing with the politics, training and other hassles/perks that accompany being a svetchka on the cusp of blooming.
Plus she's still trying to decrease the bad guy population.
AND figure out her feelings for Graves and Christophe.

Busy girl! But she manages to handle them all rather deftly. Gone is the wimpy whiny Dru from earlier. She is hella pissed that Sergej took Graves and will stop at almost nothing to get him back.

As much as I loathe the dreaded love triangle, I must admit Ms. St. Clair continues to handle this one rather deftly. Each has their equally strong pull with Dru.
Graves continues to be the heart of the story; even absent he is the core that keeps Dry going. (and if you want to know if, when, where, how and in what shape he shows up? I'm not telling..but to say READ IT) Christophe is her mentor, determined to hone the skills that may save her life when she faces Sergej.

The usual band of merry misfits is still around. And Dru actually gets her first female friend. I found their friendship to be quite honest and real. And it brought a nice layer to Dru we haven't seen before. And Ash? Ohhh who knew he could prove to be so complex? There is A LOT going on there, and I can't wait to see how that plays out.

But what really caught me, what had me ignoring all else to finish this book, were the subtle nuanced changes in how Dru sees the world now. How her experiences have changed her....

There is a scene in the beginning of the book when Dru crawls into bed after an especially hard day that just broke my heart with the quiet heartfelt weight of it.

Since this series first debuted, a plethora of strong smart girls who can think on their feet have shown up, with their own special set of skills, and their own angsty love issues..BUT...they still haven't touched the complexity of this series.

And the END?

B A N G! Full of win! Read more ›

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Another Incredible installment April 27, 2011

By Archimedes VINE™ VOICE

Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase

Dru is an incredible female lead. I think she is by far one of the most interesting characters because of her vulnerability and her brutal honesty. In one moment she is extremely strong and will risk anything and in another instance she is incredibly vulnerable and open. Her character continues to be dynamic in the stories.

The love triangle in this book only gets more confusing. I am still trying to figure what is up with the apple pie smelling Christophe and who Dru would be better off with. Graves is absent for the most part in this book since he has been kidnapped so we get to see a lot more of Christophe. Sometimes it seems like he is a perfect fit for Dru and at other times it seems that he keeps too much from her.

I wish I had seen more of Ash in this book. There are only a few scenes with Ash in it and I find his character really interesting. In fact there are some really big surprises with him. That's probably the only criticism that I have about this book. I really want to see more of Ash in the upcoming books.

The plot to this book is the usual fast paced rollercoaster that Lilith always writes. There is a little less action as the book is centered around Graves kidnapping and Dru's training. Most of the action that happens is between Dru and Christophe in her training. Overall I give the book a full 5/5.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Strange Angels rocks! July 13, 2011

By Mary VINE™ VOICE

Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase

When this book arrived on my doorstep Tuesday (delivered by my not-so-cheerful UPS guy--I think he hates me. I don't know why. I mean, he's only delivering new books and stuff to my doorstep every other day or so!), anyway, as I was saying, when DEFIANCE plunked down on my front stoop yesterday, it was all I could do not to tear into it at that very second. I resisted it until right after work Wednesday and didn't put it down until I finished it. Oh. My. God. So good.

This is the fourth Strange Angels novel and, if you haven't read the first three, you really should check those out first. While it's possible to pick this book up and read it without having acquainted yourself with Dru, Christophe, Graves, and the rest of the gang, you'd be missing out on a lot of the backstory and might get slightly tangled up in the terminology and details of Dru's world.

Typical of Lili St. Crow (and her adult writer-self, Lilith Saintcrow), the story is nonstop action with knives flashing, blood spurting, and howls of pain echoing in the night air. Awesome (holy cow, I do love me some urban fantasy!). Finally somewhat safe and sound at the main school for djamphir and werwulfen, Dru's honing her fighting skills so that when she blooms, she'll be able to take care of business (killing nosferat, the bad vamps) and not get herself killed. But she's worried about Graves, her best friend--her only friend, really--who was taken by Sergej, the King of the Vampires.

Dru is so confident one moment, like when she's in the middle of a fight and her training kicks in and she just knows what to do, and then the next, she's lost, unsure of who to trust (Though she has every right to have trust issues. Those vamps are sneaky buggers....), unsure of her feelings for the guys in her life, and even unsure of her appearance. It makes her such a solidly real character, that she might be a tough, totally kick-butt girl on the outside and yet, she's just as confused as every other teen growing up.

And I love the action scenes. Lili St. Crow writes those scenes with clarity and precision, so much so that I can picture each whirl, twist, kick, and slice as Dru battles her way through the bad guys. Great imagery, complete with scents (the taste of rotting, waxen orange signaling the approach of the nosferat), sounds (tentacles sounding like wet hamburger being dropped onto sheet metal), and sights (maggot-white fingers).

DEFIANCE and the Strange Angels series is stellar--a stand-out in the world of urban fantasy that will hook readers from the very start. Read more ›

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Good but I hope the next one is better! June 8, 2011

By Rainbowfish

Format:Paperback

This type of Paranormal Romance is my weakness. I will admit I only read this book at home because I think the covers are too cheesy (the model is so beautiful but I've never liked covers that use models)

But, now that I've gotten that little pet peeve out of the way,I must say I really do love this series. The author has a very distinctive writing style that at times are confusing, but her descriptions of events, especially attacks and fight scenes are probably some of the best I've ever read. And as far as the romance goes, I love the Dru is, to her core, a 17 year old (?)girl who is confused about what she feels but is still strong. There is minimal swooning going on in this book. And all the villainous (maawahahah) characters, with the exceptions of Sergei (who appears to just be evil reincarnate) have real motive, not just characters to keep the plot moving.

The ending was a bummer though. It was such a cliff hanger! *SPOILER* I waited the whole book for Dru and Graves to have this totally romantic reunion but it was more along the lines of "hey bro, missed you" and back to their shy routine.

Anyway, I complain . Despite all my nit picking, I did love this book and will probably rant some more until the last book comes out to answer all my questions! :3