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Tuesday, May 31, 2016

ARC Review & Giveaway: The Angel Wore Fangs by Sandra Hill

Series:     Deadly Angels #7
Pub. Date:May 31, 2016
Publisher:Avon
Length:384 pages
Source:Edelweiss

The Angel Wore Fangs rounds out the seven deadly sins, one suffered by each of the seven Sigurdsson brothers that warranted their 700 year sentence to become vangels (vampire angels) in the war of good and evil. While I have not read all of the earlier books in the series, I followed along quite well and didn't feel like I was missing any world building or too much back story.

We start off the story in the 9th Century Norselands when Cnut Sigurdsson is a huge jarl... huge as in enormously fat. Over 400lbs.  His deadly sin, you guessed it, is gluttony. I have to admit that I was a little nervous to discover that our hero was a 400-lb glutton with a beard full of lice. Luckily for us St. Michael the Archangel sweeps in binding the jarl into an afterlife of servitude that forces him to change his ways. Present day, over a thousand years later, Cnut is a lean mean 225lbs at his towering 6'4 height driving a Harley and sporting a Ragnar Lothbrok braided viking mohawk. But even though our hero is now sex on a stick, he still has body image issues due to what he calls "phantom fat". He also struggles daily with his gluttony and has to be a concerted effort to not over-indulge in his various appetites. Cnut was a fun hero... I liked that he wasn't perfect and that he could take a joke.

This series deals with the fated mates trope... and it would figure that our vikings' mates would also challenge their proscribed sin. So of course Cnut's lifemate shows up in the form of a lithe pastry chef that smells of vanilla coconut (my favorite scent from Bath & Body Works by the way!). The heroine, Andrea Stewart, has some body image issues herself... though we don't get a clear understanding of where they came from. But let me tell ya, this book made me hungry. I think I may have gained 10lbs just reading about some of her concoctions and pastry delights. Andrea was a likable heroine as well. She rolled with the punches and accepted the demon-hunting time travel aspect of the story without too much fuss and fanfare. She also worked hard to help and improve the life of the people in the 9th Century.

For me, the romance of the story played second fiddle to the comedy and time travel. I mean, this story is not at all serious. It's full of fun hokey one-liners, slapstick comedy and crude sex jokes. And sometimes the jokes were so bad that you couldn't help but chuckle. I particularly liked the limericks offered by the skalds, and when the men's conversation devolved to sex talk while they were hunting.

The demon-hunting plot varied in this story.  We start out with a plan to root out and defeat ISIS which had me a tad worried as to how that would play out in a comedy. But that storyline became somewhat obsolete when Cnut and Andrea accidentally travel back in time to his 9th Century home. I did prefer the time travel to the terrorist eradication as it fit in better with the lighthearted feel of the story. It's been a while since I've read a viking story and this one was fun and entertaining.

I receive an advanced copy of this book from Avon via Edelweiss in exchange for an honest review.

About the Author

Sandra Hill is a graduate of Penn State and worked for more than 10 years as a features writer and education editor for publications in New Jersey and Pennsylvania. Writing about serious issues taught her the merits of seeking the lighter side of even the darkest stories. She is the wife of a stockbroker and the mother of four sons

Connect with Sandra Hill

Praise for Sandra Hill’s Deadly Angels series:

“Fans of paranormal and time travel will get a kick out of this sexy and often humorous addition to the Deadly Angels series. Viking vampire angel Cnut is a completely strong hero, and Andrea, his accompaniment, is matched with him perfectly. Their antics will make readers giggle, and their adventures will keep fans at the edge of their seats. Hill’s vivid imagination really shines!”
RT Book Reviews on The Angel Wore Fangs

“An awesome…series! Kept me up late into the night reading. Looking forward to the next installment.” 
New York Times bestselling author Lynsay Sands

“Hill has written another winner featuring her Viking vampire angels. In her fourth in the passion-driven Deadly Angels series, two of the most unlikely characters, Mordr and Miranda, are thrown together and the result is laugh-out-loud humor and unrivaled sex appeal.”
Romantic Times Book Reviews on Kiss of Wrath

“With her clever dialogue, often bawdy situations, and great cast of characters, including a warrior woman, a proverb-spouting wise man/healer from the East, and a saucy cook, Hill has created another wickedly wonderful story.” 
Booklist (starred review) on Kiss of Wrath

“The third book in Sandra Hill’s Deadly Angels series, Kiss of Temptation, comes out Tuesday. Along with it comes the temptation to play hooky that day so I can hang out with Ivak, who’s guilty of the sin of lust. Aren’t we all, when it comes to Sandra Hill’s books?” 
USA Today on Kiss of Temptation

“Thanks for the laughs and the heartfelt emotions, Ms. Hill. I loved this one and am looking forward to the next book in this exciting series.” 
The Romance Reviews on Kiss of Temptation

Earthy, laugh-out-loud hilarious, and lusty, this tenth-century revel takes readers back to a much-less-refined time and is just plain fun. Hill’s (Viking Heat) Viking series are legendary; her fans are sure to enjoy this latest addition.” 
Library Journal on Kiss of Surrender

“Sixth in the Deadly Angels series, Even Vampires Get the Blues is entertaining, solid and consistent in its storytelling. Fans of the Vampire Viking Angels series will be pleased.” 
Romantic Times Book Reviews on Even Vampires Get the Blues

Giveaway

Deadly Angels

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