Title: Of Love and Evil (Songs of the Seraphim Book 2)
Author: Anne Rice
Released: November 30, 2010
Publisher: Knopf
Pages: 192
Overall: ☆ ☆ ☆
Toby O’Dare, the assassin who started on the path to redemption in Angel Time, continues his quest for salvation. He has just learned that he’s the father of a 10-year-old boy and is nervously awaiting the arrival of his former lover, Liona, and their son at the Mission Inn in California. He longs to be a part of the boy’s life and to rekindle his relationship with Liona, but he is summoned on another time-traveling errand of mercy by the angel Malchiah. This time Toby is transported to fifteenth-century Rome to respond to the prayer of a Jewish physician named Vitale, whose best friend and patient, Niccolò, has clearly been poisoned. Given the city’s virulent anti-Semitism, Vitale is at risk if the real culprit isn’t discovered. In addition to helping Vitale save Niccolò, Toby must discover the origins of an angry spirit that is haunting the house Vitale lives in.
I wasn’t thrilled with the subject matter of this book, and though Rice’s writing is very readable and the plot is well-planned, I had a hard time enjoying Of Love and Evil.
Plot: ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆
The plot of this latest Songs of the Seraphim novel can be easily divided into four distinct parts: 1)Toby meets with Liona and their son. 2) Toby helps solve an attempted murder mystery in Angel Time. 3) Toby helps solve the mystery of the so-called possessed house in Angel Time. 4) Toby comes back to the present and starts making amends for his past. I thought this progression of the story worked very well and I thought that the story neither moved to fast or too slowly.
Characters: ☆ ☆ ☆
While Anne Rice’s characters are interesting, I find them, their responses to situations, and their dialogue incredibly unrealistic on the whole. All of them, except for Toby, feel almost hollow, and I never feel like I really understand them.
Ending: ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆
While reading this book there were a few times when I thought, “I think I won’t continue with this series when the next installment comes out,” but the ending left me hanging and I have to admit, I’m really curious about what happens next. There was a satisfying amount of closure while many important questions were raised and left unanswered.
Writing: ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆
Anne Rice is a gifted writer and her knack for weaving words serves her well, but I find her dialogue flowery and unrealistic. Overall, a very readable book though.
Cover: ☆ ☆ ☆
Good cover, but I think the designer could have used more creative fonts and a more interesting layout and background.
Other things you can do:
Visit the author’s website.
Purchase a copy of this book.
Disclosure: My review of this book is based on a galley copy that was provided by the publisher.
