Angel Burn
by L.A. Weatherly
Somerville, MA: Candlewick, 2011.
Release date 5/24/2011, ARC reviewed.
Willow is just an ordinary 16 year-old girl, if the definition of ordinary includes psychic powers. Her most recent reading of a classmate leaves her with an impeding feeling of doom associated with a vision of a glorious, gorgeous man. When the girl runs away to join the Church of Angels, Willow decides to try to bring her back. Alex, on the other hand, is anything but an average 17 year-old boy. Alex is an assassin working for the CIA on a secret project, Project Angel. As it turns out, Angels are not beneficent beings, but rather creatures who feed off of the essence of our souls, leaving humans drained and sickly, but addicted and devoted to them. Alex doesn’t kill people; he is an Angel Killer, and his newest hit is Willow. When he senses that there is something completely unique about this her, he hesitates and decides to follow her. They are reluctantly catapulted into each other’s company in their high adrenaline, high speed escape across the country, and forced to rely on each other and fight their growing romantic feelings to survive. This action packed, supernatural romantic thriller is taut with excitement, anxiety, romance, and fun. It is strongly recommended for girls in grades 7-10, and for all public libraries in time for summer!
Book Talk Hook: Honestly, the bare plot points kind of do the dirty for you on this one, especially with avid and excited readers of a certain age; all you have to do is build the tension with your performance! I mean…heck. The simple book talk the Candlewick people gave at a preview geared towards adults got me, hook, line AND sinker, and I was OH so skeptical.
My less than professional thoughts after the jump:
