"Dark romance with no HEA"

1989 AD
Julienne Hunter is making a new beginning. Recovering from cocaine addiction, an addition that four months ago almost cost her life, Julienne was forced to live by society's interventionists. Today she would leave the hospital and have to decide on the path her life would take.

She is shocked to find that close relatives she'd almost forgotten existed have been paying her bills. Because of this, Julienne finds herself staying at Blackthorne Manor, the home her mother ran away from. There she again meets her grandmother, Anlese Blackthorne and the man her mother hated, Morgan Saint-Evanston. And there she meets her death.

The immortal Morgan was born into the mortal world; yet he had never been one with it. It is within his power to save Julienne, but not truly his desire and he was certainly not attracted to her. He does save her and in doing so, makes her life his own--in more ways than even he knows. He knows he is leaving and he swore he would not take her with him, nor leave her behind--alive. Then again, love wasn't part of his plans, either.

Samhein is soon to come and when it does, an evil such as this world does not recall will be unleashed. Morgan could help fight it but he won't. Julianne will be left here to defend her world alone--or will she?

The author is skilled and has a way with words that kept me coming back even though I wasn't really enjoying the story. The hero has much angst and is very dark spirited. I found Morgan unlikable most of the time and I never really felt I got to know Julienne.

ECHOES OF ANGELS is a bit slow in starting and it doesn't really pick up speed. This is a dark story in which there is very little humor and it could have used some. As it was, for most of the story, I felt I was just being set up for the next in the series. If the next book is as dark and depressing as this story was, I may not be meeting up with Julienne and Morgan again, no matter how much I hope for a happy-ever-after for them.

PNR Reveiws © Copyright 2002
Reviewed by Flora Bell

Reviewed by Flora Bell
Posted July 11, 2002

Summary

Twenty-one years ago, Cassandra Blackthorne and her daughter, Julienne, fled their family home. Ironically, circumstances lure Julienne Hunter back to her birthplace--Blackthorne Manor in Virginia--and into the clutches of the man her mother hated, Morgan Saint-Evanston. She soon discovers that Blackthorne balances between two worlds, that of mortal reality and the dimensional enigma known as Sclyd. Come Halloween, they will merge and Scyldian entities will be free to hunt the weaker human race for slaves and sacrifices to appease their dragon god, Ouroborous. Destined as a keeper of eternity's gates and protector against the armies of darkness, Julienne's legacy will be costly, for she must sacrifice her soul to save mankind.