Review copy was received from Publisher. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.
Archangel's Light by Nalini Singh Narrator: Justine Eyre
Series: Guild Hunter #14
Published by Tantor Audio on October 26, 2021
Genres: Paranormal Romance, Urban Fantasy
Format: Audiobook
Source: Publisher
Goodreads
Amazon, Audible, Audiobook, Barnes & Noble, Apple
Illium and Aodhan. Aodhan and Illium. For centuries they’ve been inseparable: the best of friends, closer than brothers, companions of the heart. But that was before—before darkness befell Aodhan and shattered him, body, mind, and soul. Now, at long last, Aodhan is healing, but his new-found strength and independence may come at a devastating cost—his relationship with Illium.
As they serve side by side in China, a territory yet marked by the evil of its former archangel, the secret it holds nightmarish beyond imagining, things come to an explosive decision point. Illium and Aodhan must either walk away from the relationship that has defined them—or step forward into a future that promises a bond infinitely precious in the life of an immortal…but that demands a terrifying vulnerability from two badly bruised hearts.
We are now at book 14 of the the Guildhunter series with Archangel’s Light and it seems like I’ve been reading Nalini Singh my entire life now or my reading life of about 9 years. She consistently delivers good books so I wasn’t too concerned going into this one.
Illium and Aodhan’s story has been coming for awhile, hinted at in many of the previous books. I really was the most excited to learn of Aodhan’s past and what broke him so badly that he needed so much time to heal when we first met him. He has come a long way from the broken Angel we first met. Some of my favorite moments in this book were of the Boys when they were young, first becoming friends and getting into trouble, with Raphael there to mentor them into the angels they are now.
Aodhan’s been in China helping to restore some of the stability after all the horrors that have happened there. It has been about a year and now Illium has been sent by Raphael to assist and also to remind Aodhan of his life in NY so he might return. It is time for both Males to sort out their friendship and deal with the pain each has.
There is a side plot going on with China and trying to discover a mystery left behind after Lijuan’s destruction. Let’s just say China is creepy. The majority of the story is spilt between the past, to show how both Illium and Aodhan have some deep scars and how close they were since children, to the present and the Males figuring out who they are to each other today.
The romance is really played down in this book and I actually think that is a good thing. Guildhunter has had all hetero couple until now, I could see the need to handle this delicately for many of the readers of the series who may not have read a M/M relationship or that just isn’t their cup-o-tea. I think this is a solid intro to a M/M love story that many of her readers could enjoy without being overwhelmed. Since you have to read this story to progress along to others she has kept it lighter. I think Nalini probably has another steamier story in mind for these two possibly in novella form. That way her readers that want all the steamy will get what they want and the others who may not be into that can move onto the next full length story without missing any important plot points.
Narration:
Justine Eyre has been the voice of these books since the beginning and I can’t imagine them without her. She is fantastic in all of them and this is no exception.  I was able to listen at my usual 1.5x speed.
Listen to a clip:Â HERE
About Nalini Singh
I’ve been writing as long as I can remember and all of my stories always held a thread of romance (even when I was writing about a prince who could shoot lasers out of his eyes). I love creating unique characters, love giving them happy endings and I even love the voices in my head. There’s no other job I would rather be doing. In September 2002, when I got the call that Silhouette Desire wanted to buy my first book, Desert Warrior, it was a dream come true. I hope to continue living the dream until I keel over of old age on my keyboard.
I was born in Fiji and raised in New Zealand. I also spent three years living and working in Japan, during which time I took the chance to travel around Asia. I’m back in New Zealand now, but I’m always plotting new trips. If you’d like to see some of my travel snapshots, have a look at the Travel Diary page (updated every month).
So far, I’ve worked as a lawyer, a librarian, a candy factory general hand, a bank temp and an English teacher and not necessarily in that order. Some might call that inconsistency but I call it grist for the writer’s mill.
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I’ve really come to appreciate Nalini Singh so I expect I’ll get to this series at some point.
She delivers a good story every time. I’m not ever really blown away by them anymore but I know I will enjoy them all
Her books are so enjoyable! I have read the first two books in this series, as soon as I finish the Psy Changeling, I’ll get back to this world! Thanks for the review!
I didn’t really start to love this series until book 3 so you should be in for a great ride.
I do want to read this author. I am glad that you enjoyed the audio. I may need to listen to this series when I finally get around to it.
The audio fits the story well. I’ve read 3 of her series and they’ve all been good.
I’ve been wanting to try this author for ages now. Her books always sound so good!
She has so many it can seem daunting. But I think once you start one of them you will probably be hooked
Yes, good point about how it is a gentle intro to m/m if one isn’t familiar and I like the idea of a side novella. Thanks, Robin!
I think that would be an easy approach to give all her readers, especially since the series until now has been pretty solidly M/F. It is a difficult area to manage sometimes. I have read a few series where the couplings are very fluid but I also get that isn’t everyone’s jam and if 13 books have been m/f it could be a bit jarring.
Still sometimes it is nice to branch out and try something new, I think this could be that bridge for some readers.