Marked for Vengeance (Alyx Rayer Chronicles #1) - S. J. Pierce

Description

Alyx Rayer’s existence in Atlanta, the eternally bustling capital of Georgia, is one of routine and blending in among the worker bees. But her ‘normal’ life is actually a façade for a higher calling; she's a three hundred year old soul, encased in a human vessel and sent from the darkness between heaven and Earth to capture her Marked when summoned by her superiors.

During the initial, routine stake-out of her Marked, a dream prophet named Isaac Walsh, Alyx is thrown for an emotional loop when his allure captivates her heart from two rooftops away. The event marks the very instance when her sense of what’s right and what’s wrong is brutally challenged as her contact with him is strictly forbidden.

While already trapped between honor and desire, her emotional struggles are further challenged by a man in a black suit who continually pops up when she least expects it, his presence evoking a strange response from the scar she was branded with at birth. The scar tingles like a warning beacon, alerting her that something is amiss. Because her superiors never told her what this would mean, or much of anything except what to do when they summon, she can only conclude to try and keep her sanity, and her life, from completely shattering to pieces.

This engaging first book of the series is a Paranormal Romance novel interlaced with twists, turns, and thrilling suspense that is sure to satisfy readers of any genre. 

My Opinion

First of all I must say that I really like the cover of this book, it is simple but the colours work really well. Also it reminds me of the Hunger Games logo slightly. Anyway this book was an interesting read with a different take on angels, as they are assigned to protect one human but without interaction. There was a lot of mystery surrounding what Alyx was and her mark at the start of the book which was slowly unraveled throughout the novel. This was good as it left me with questions that made me want to read on. There was also mystery about random strangers appearing which led me to hope about something happening. As well as this I liked Isaac's character. His love for his son was believable and he was one character I was able to engage and relate to as his feelings were realistic . However this is probably the only character I could do this with.  

Written in the third person I became very detached from the characters as the book switched POV. The book became repetitive as well with the phrases "he did & she did" starting sentences constantly. I think I was so detached as Pierce described unnecessary daily actions in huge amounts of detail yet never went into the same amount about the characters/action. Due to this the book was a slow read at times so I found myself skimming pages waiting for the action to start (when it did it was very brief). The unnatural speech and the emphasis on minor words "TOO" or "too" also detracted from the story as it became slightly annoying as the book went on. As well as this I wasn't so keen on Alyx. She was too wishy-washy and took too long to realise things. After spending 2 lives on Earth previously it wasn't believable. There were also quite a few grammatical errors, missed out words and typos which added to the slowness of the book.

Over all this book had an interesting concept with a new take on angels. However for me it needs less detail on everyday actions and more development of the main story line and characters so readers can engage with them better and not want to skim read. As well as this the book could use another round of editing but it was an ok read that may be of interest to paranormal readers.