Angelica (Hardcover)

by Sharon Shinn (Author) "Susannah lay in the tent alone, dreaming..." (more)
Key Phrases: burned campsite, plague flag, flying leathers, Windy Point, Mount Sinai, Galilee River (more...)

Editorial Reviews

From Booklist
In Samaria angels and mortals share a peaceful world. Guided from on high by a watchful, interactive presence, different tribes live in cities and aeries, or wander the plains by the river Galilee. One wanderer is Susannah, an Edori who loves every aspect of her life and clan, including her lover, Dathan. But when she discovers Dathan's unfaithfulness on the same evening that archangel-to-be Gaaron announces that the god has elected Susannah to be Gaaron's Angelica--his bride--she packs her bags, brokenhearted, and departs to Gaaron's aerie to discover the heart of the reserved but powerful angel leader. She befriends Gaaron's flighty sister Miriam, unknowingly providing means of escape when Miriam does something from whose consequences Garron can't protect her. Meanwhile, Samaria is mysteriously threatened by powerfully armed figures who vanish at will, leaving charred farms in their wake. Resuming her Samaria series, Shinn blends romance and sf gracefully enough to satisfy fantasy fans, too, especially if they adore Catherine Asaro or Orson Scott Card's Ships of Earth series. Roberta Johnson
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

Product Description
Two hundred years ago, in order to keep the peace in Samaria, the god Jovah created a legion of land-dwelling angels, led by an appointed Archangel. Now, Jovah has a new appointee: Archangel Gaaron. And for his life-mate, his Angelica, Jovah has chosen a woman named Susannah. With trepidation, she bows to the will of Jovah and an unspoken affection slowly develops between the two.

But there is a terrible threat besetting the land-black-clad strangers who call fire down from the sky, leaving death and destruction in their wake. And the true hearts of Archangel and Angelica may never be known, as the future of the planet hangs in the balance...

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 496 pages
• Publisher: Ace Hardcover; 1 edition (March 4, 2003)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 044101013X
• ISBN-13: 978-0441010134
• Product Dimensions: 9.3 x 6.3 x 1.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.7 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars See all reviews (37 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #1,174,989 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

14 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Triumphant Return to Samaria, March 7, 2003

By	J M "J M" (Somewhere in Ft. Worth, TX) - See all my reviews

... Sharon Shinn is always on my must-buy list, and another Samaria book immediately catapults her at the top of my list. I found that ANGELICA was a satisfying return to a very rich and engrossing setting, and I read it in record time.

For those of you not familiar with the setting, Samaria is a world settled by the remnants of a religious colony, led by a host of angels that protect the common people. Shinn's stories deal with love and discovery of the world around them and their past as two common themes, and I truly love the way she handles things. Characters are definitely her strongpoint, and she's able to immediately make you feel for them at the very beginning of the book. Her prose is magnificent as well, and she's apt at making you truly feel you are *IN* the story.

ANGELICA follows the story of three people: Susannah, an Edori woman; Gaaron, the steadfast angel destined to be the next Archangel, and his hellion of a sister, Miriam. This storyline was hinted at in the pages of ARCHANGEL, and those wanting more of a taste of the Edori of Samaria will find this book a wonderful read. The Edori really play more of a role than the angels do, so those purely interested in the romance/angels aspect might be a bit disappointed if expecting it to be a clone of Archangel. The storyline follows Susannah the most, though the entire story is not romance-based like ARCHANGEL. Rather, we are thrown into the turmoil of the year just before Gaaron is to ascend to power, when strange visitors are attacking the peaceful people of Samaria, and they must decide what to do with the new, frightening threat. Shinn's storyline truly surprised me, and I found it very interesting. She always makes me wonder what she is doing next, and I find that delightful in an author.

I would not recommend this as a starting point for the series--go out and buy ARCHANGEL instead. After you've read the first trilogy, this will be a satisfying return to the world that Shinn has so masterfully created. If you start out reading this book without the tidbits from the others, you will miss some of the better hints of the story that Shinn never explains fully, expecting you, the reader, to be a returning friend to the setting. The details of Samaria are subtle in this book, and first-time readers of the series will miss all the parts that made me smile with happiness.

Bottom line: A wonderful read. The ending is a bit abrupt, but still satisfies. If you're looking to start the series, skip this and go onto ARCHANGEL instead. If you're looking to pick up an easy, wonderfully told read, please pick up Angelica. Truly worth the hardcover price (something you cannot say about a lot of books nowdays).

6 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Meshing Science Fiction, Romance, and Song, March 24, 2003

By	Lawrence E. Wilson (Mayfield, East Sussex, UK) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

Return to the planet Samaria, where a secretive god watches over the land, where winged angels sing prayers to control the weather, and where opposites meet and find true love...Once again, the talented Ms. Shinn had created one of her fascinating melanges of fine world-building, music, and excellent characterization. ANGELICA takes place only a few hundred years after the founding of Samaria by interstellar colonists fleeing seeking peace and harmony, and at first glance, the plot may seem to echo that of ARCHANGEL, Shinn's first book in this series: Susannah, a woman of the wandering Edori tribes, has been selected by the overseeing "god" to marry Gaaron, the archangel-to-be. But as the story takes place much earlier in the history of the culture, and with mysterious violent invaders threatening lives and stability, the fascination with these people and this planet is woven anew, and differently, and engagingly. What is not different is Shinn's marvellous ability to evoke the glories of song, whether in formal prayers in an angel hold, or around an Edori campfire, along with her talent for creating the most memorable of characters and a truly unique socio-cultural matrix. Shinn is one of my favorite writers working today, and as I applaud her for this novel, I am impatiently awaiting the next.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Singing angels, wandering tribes, an unknown evil..., April 11, 2004

By	vampyredaemon "Laura" (Westminster, CA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Angelica (Samaria, Book 4) (Mass Market Paperback)

Boredom propelled me one day to surf books on Amazon.com. While I love the fantasy and vampire genre, I somehow accessed someone's scifi/romance listmania...which isn't bad at all. Then I saw Arhangel and Angelica on a lot of other lists too and the ratings seemed great, so I decided to buy them.

To tell the truth, I expected much more. Archangel was definitely a good read, but it wasn't exciting. Angelica is even longer and although the author's writing is descriptive, it's a bit tedious. Don't get me wrong, I love long books just because you have more to read, but Angelica didn't have very many exciting, heart-stopping scenes of adventure and intrigue. The action stays in one place and many of the events are very long. Sharon Shinn's plotlines are very interesting (which is why you can't say her books are bad) but her writing style is a bit boring. I like the world of Samaria that she has created; it's unique and fascinating.

I would actually give Angelica 3.5 stars, but there's no such thing so I bumped up the rating a little. It's a good book, but it's one that I wouldn't buy. Archangel, the first in this series, is probably better.