Customer Reviews

Echoes of Angels

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As a writer, I know what it takes to keep a reader engrossed. As a reviewer, I can say that Caitlyn McKenna has fulfilled the requirements in "Echoes of Angels." Real, individual characters and an excellent plot-line bring the reader into a dimension of witchcraft and immortality. This one will stay in my library.

Courtesy of Paranormal Romance Reviews

Julienne Hunter has just completed rehab and is ready to start over with a new and better life. She had been at the top of her game as a supermodel until the rough life got to her. Drugs, alcohol, and anorexia had all been a part of her life, until the day her now ex-husband slashed her face with a razor knife, putting a halt to her career. She realized her ways of life had to change... And what better way to start over then to return to the family her mother had abandoned, taking a young Julienne with her.

Morgan Saint-Evanston was suffering in a silent misery of his own making. He is an immortal, from an alternate reality, Sclyd, though born in the world of the mortals, where his practices in the dark arts were welcomed and necessary for his survival. After a violent battle where he nearly destroyed his one time friend and now greatest enemy, Xavier, Morgan abandoned Sclyd, coming to the world of the mortals and swearing off of his use of the occult. Though he escaped his world, he is still an outlaw, and is cursed with an abominable loneliness... and the loss of his soul.

When Morgan came to the world of the mortals, he took Julienne's family under his wing. He taught them the ways of magic and the occult in exchange for them keeping his secret and protecting him. Julienne's mother, Cassandra, could not accept the ways of her family, particularly Morgan, and abandoned them, taking an infant Julienne with her. Julienne had little or no memory of her family, except that her mother hated Morgan with every fiber of her being.

Now the time has come where the doors between the worlds would be opening, and Julienne's destiny is tied to that. Morgan has tracked her down, at the request of her grandmother, and is returning her to the world that should have been hers. Morgan thinks it is a mistake, but he cannot refuse Julienne's grandmother. Julienne is reborn into her family, infused with Morgan's own blood, without even being aware of what is happening to her. Once the family skeletons are revealed, Julienne embraces their ways, ready to take her place as a powerful priestess. As she is learning everything from Morgan, she finds herself falling in love with him, knowing it is a huge mistake. As events spiral out of control, with the opening of the other worlds, Julienne and Morgan are called over to his world to once again face Xavier, which is their greatest challenge...and maybe their ultimate destruction.

This was a very intriguing beginning to the KEEPERS OF ETERNITY series. It is extremely well written and has a fascinating and unique premise. The plot moves along smoothly, keeping the interest of the reader through to the end. The story actually does not end, but just stops, giving a definitely "to be continued" feel, setting up the next book quite well. One will be very eager to see what happens next.

Julienne is a fascinating woman, very weak-willed in her old life, but finding a new strength of purpose upon returning to the home of her birth. She changes and one gets the impression, she does a complete turn around from her old ways. She is disgusted with her ruined face in the beginning, but comes to realize she is still an incredible woman, with a special beauty within that had never been allowed to shine before.

Morgan however, is another story. This reviewer had an extremely hard time warming up to him. Be forewarned - he is violent, abusive, downright rude, and drowning himself in liquor every night, as he tries to battle his inner demons. Some people may not enjoy reading parts of the story for that reason. Probably part of the reason for the dislike of Morgan, comes from personal experiences of this reviewer's life, hitting way to close to home for comfort, bringing back bad memories. But most will probably have an easier time accepting him for who he is. As the story progresses though, one finds the true reasons for Morgan's behavior, his is in an agony of life that he cannot control or overcome. His only reaction is to lash out, in hopes to make his own pain recede a little. He does come around in the end, when he realizes how important Julienne is to him, and just how deeply he really does love her.

ECHOES OF ANGELS is an exciting saga, crossing from coast to coast, and world to world. Definitely a worthwhile read, it will keep one entranced, waiting with baited breath for the next chapter in the drama.

By TT reviewer Amy L Turpin

Julienne Hunter is a one-time model whose career was taken away by an estranged husband's attack, leaving her face scarred. She had been dragged into the pit of drugs by her ex, which contributed to her professional demise, but the gashes to her face with a utility knife laced with battery acid put the stamp of retirement permanently on her dwindling profession.

After the vicious attack, she checks herself into a rehabilitation center in order to come off the cocaine. It is there that she learns she has living family and that they have been taking care of her financial situation for some time since her injury. Believing her only relative is the one she has known since she was three, her deceased mother, she is afraid of what she will find if she agrees to meet with this family. She never knew her mother's secrets, she only knew that her mother hated this family that was now trying to bring her home.

The first of the two that she meets is a striking man by the name of Morgan Saint-Evanston. His cool demeanor, not to mentionn his willingness to call her every bluff, is enough to grate on Julienne's nerves. Morgan Saint-Evanston is a man used to getting his way and has very little patience for weakness in people and it is obvious he sees her as a pathetic little girl.

The home he takes her to is stunning, and for the first time, Julienne becomes truly aware of her heritage. At least the heritage with relation to things of the known world. What she isn't aware of are the fantastical things that are her birthright.

While she and Morgan learn to love hating one another, Julienne's grandmother alone knows that Julienne is the key to saving Morgan's very soul. With Morgan refusing to acknowledge his responsibility to help those very people he has taught and trained throughout his life, Anlese did the only thing she could to help the stubborn man; she mated he and her granddaughter without either of their knowledge.

As Julienne learns more about Morgan's dark past, she catches glimpses of vulnerability, fleeting as they are. She sees the tortured man he has become over, what must have been for him, endless centuries. As tortured as her own mother had been, which she now knows was due to her mother's psychic tendencies and the fact that she was what amounts to a witch.

Having made his decision to leave the mortal world, Morgan knows he must sever all ties: including those with Julienne. It turns out to be a decision he has to rethink. Having become intimately involved with the beautiful girl, he is once again unsure of his destiny.

But Julienne has plans of her own. Embracing her heritage, she does as her grandmother tells her she must. She leaves with Morgan when he returns to his world. Now, all she has to do is stop the end of the world . . .

This is a tantalizingly unique tale about Celtic magic and the mortals and immortals surrounded by it. Although the flow seems to lag in a few places, the utter distinctiveness of this work makes it a worthwhile read. I look forward to the next chapter in the lives of Morgan and Julienne.

A vengeful husband wielding a box cutter destroyed supermodel Julienne Hunter's career. Then six months ago Julienne overdosed on cocaine and almost died. Permanent heart damage resulted and another seizure could kill her. Now released from rehabilitation and broke, Julienne returns to the home of her early childhood and begins to unravel the legacies of her family.

Julienne's mother hated Grandmother Anlese. They never spoke again after Cassandra Blackthorne took her daughter Julienne and fled their family home. Yet the demons of Cassandra's mind still destroyed her and now threaten Julienne as well. Circumstances force Julienne to return to the family she does not remember and the man her mother despised, Morgan Saint-Evanston.

An immortal, Morgan only wishes to die, despite the consequences to earth if he does. Halloween approaches when alignment will occur between the world of mortals and the dimension of the Sclyd. If Morgan does not take up his legacy, Scyldian entities will once again walk the earth, sacrificing the human race to their dragon god in return for power. Without Morgan's knowledge, Grandmother Anlese binds him to Julienne to assure the possibility of the people of earth's survival.

Bound by blood and magic rite, Julienne and Morgan are powerful characters that will haunt the reader's memory. Julienne grows from self-centered supermodel to a woman of compassion and strength. Morgan is a powerful dark hero tortured by memories of the past and his own immortality. His determination to deny his legacy destroys his life's purpose just as surely as Julienne's own self-destructive lifestyle nearly destroyed her. Both are deeply wounded and self-tortured, determined to deny themselves forgiveness or redemption. Their binding becomes the only thread to salvation, and although Julienne embraces it, Morgan refuses.

Author Caitlyn McKenna has written a chilling, haunting tale of dark fantasy that binds its readers just as surely its hero and heroine are bound. The echoes of angels fallen from grace resonate in this powerfully rendered tale. Impossible to put down and even more impossible to forget, the echoes of this potent tale will remain with the reader long after the last page is turned. Winner of the WordWeaving Award for Excellence.

ECHOES OF ANGELS is really a test of the heroine's brave determnation to survive, the obstacles in her path seeming almost impossible to overcome. Seeing the unfolding of her love and the supernatural forces she and her lover face, I'm looking forward to the next novel in this trilogy.

Julienne Hunter's life is in chaos. Bad enough that her husband used her face like a chopping block, now on the road to recovery she gets help from an unexpected source out of her past. Her grandmother, the grand lady of Blackthorne Manor, the family estate, comes to her rescue. But is she really better off? Ten minutes alone with the man her mother despised and Julienne is starting to agree. What secret power does he possess? Why did her mother run away? The answer comes not in the form of a whisper, not in the form of polite dinner conversation ... the answer comes in a gripping nightmare that tears at Julienne's heart and soul ... and especially her mind. The answer that reveals the Blackthorne legacy and what role Julienne must play - even if it means her life. This descent into wickedness will keep you on the edge of your seat until the book is finished and you're begging for more. Beware what you ask for. There is more to come from this very talented writer. Read on ... if you dare.

In 1989 in a Scotland rehab center former model Julienne Hunter knows it is time to restart her life after kicking the drug habit that almost killed her six months ago. Still she has lingering fears before she returns to the public caused by the brutal slashing of her face by her abusive maniacal former husband, James.

When her deceased mother's estranged family offers hospitality to Julienne, she sees an opportunity to learn why her mother fled her Virginia home. Julienne also knows this solace will enable her to mentally heal. Her matriarchal grandmother welcomes Julienne in love, but Morgan Saint-Evanston, who her mother hated, prefers she stay away from Blackthorne Manor forever. Though Julienne and Morgan argue, they are also attracted to one another. Still she wonders what is the secret that drove her mother into the night and worries why he plans to vanish shortly. Julienne also frets over a nightmare in which Morgan kills her and she commits murder too, but soon she will find out that the truth is so much greater with worlds at stake.

ECHOES OF ANGELS is a tremendous, extremely dark and graphic gothic fantasy. The story line grips the audience from the moment her grandmother's lawyer drops the invitation on the heroine. Fans will admire Julienne, who at first survives what seems as overkill, but instead cleverly prepares her for her destiny. Morgan appears to be a classic gothic hero but is actually an immortal from another dimension. The weakness of this powerful fantasy is that the audience will want to read book II of the Keepers of Eternity series immediately following completion of this triumphant opening gamut.

Harriet Klausner