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Ubiquity #1
Uriel's Fall
What's a corporate demon to do when the voice in her head is devouring her sanity from the inside out, and the hosts of heaven and hell would rather see her destroyed than surrender a power no one should possess?
Ronnie has the job any entry-level angel or demon would sell their soul for—she's a retrieval analyst for the largest search engine in the world. Ubiquity is a joint initiative between heaven and hell. Because what better way to track all of humanity's secrets, both good and bad, than direct access to their web browsing habits.
She might appreciate the position a little more if a) she could remember anything about her life before she started working at Ubiquity, b) the damn voice in her head would just shut up already, and c) her boss wasn't a complete control freak.
As she searches for solutions to the first two issues, and hopes the third will work itself out in performance reviews, she uncovers more petty backstabbing than an episode of Real Housewives, and a conspiracy as old as Lucifer's descent from heaven. On top of all that, if she forgets the cover sheet on her TPS report one more time, she's absolutely going on final written warning.
Now Ronnie’s struggling to keep her sanity and job, while stopping the voice in her head from stealing her life. She almost misses the boredom of retrieval analysis at Ubiquity. Almost.
Ronnie has the job any entry-level angel or demon would sell their soul for—she's a retrieval analyst for the largest search engine in the world. Ubiquity is a joint initiative between heaven and hell. Because what better way to track all of humanity's secrets, both good and bad, than direct access to their web browsing habits.
She might appreciate the position a little more if a) she could remember anything about her life before she started working at Ubiquity, b) the damn voice in her head would just shut up already, and c) her boss wasn't a complete control freak.
As she searches for solutions to the first two issues, and hopes the third will work itself out in performance reviews, she uncovers more petty backstabbing than an episode of Real Housewives, and a conspiracy as old as Lucifer's descent from heaven. On top of all that, if she forgets the cover sheet on her TPS report one more time, she's absolutely going on final written warning.
Now Ronnie’s struggling to keep her sanity and job, while stopping the voice in her head from stealing her life. She almost misses the boredom of retrieval analysis at Ubiquity. Almost.
215 pages, Kindle Edition
First published June 13, 2014
90 people want to read
About the author
Loralie Hall
7 books23 followersThis Goodreads account is now maintained by Loralie's assistant. I'll make sure to pass on messages to her, but I won't be accepting friend requests, since I'm not Loralie. :)
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Displaying 1 - 22 of 22 reviews
May 11, 2015
Uriel's Fall is the first in the Ubiquity series and follows Uriel (AKA Ronnie), a demon, as she plods her way through her corporate level job of working at Ubiquity, which is essentially a giant search engine that patrols for illegal cherub activity. She suffers from memory loss regarding her own days as a cherub, before Lucifer turned her into a full-fledged demon. Further complicating matters, she hears a constant, nagging voice in her head. But not jut any voice. It's the essence of Metatron, an ancient, powerful original angel. There are four originals: Michael, Gabe, Lucifer, and Metatron. Uriel has to learn who is trustworthy and who is using her situation for personal gain.
Interesting take on angel/demon urban fantasy. Hall does a good job with world-building and pacing. Her writing is vivid. Looking forward to continuing the series.
As a side note: Sometimes, if I'm short on reading time, I'll set my Kindle to text-to-speech and listen audio style as I commute. If anyone else does this, I wouldn't recommend it for this book. Even when the character is alone, there is always a running mental dialogue, and there were a few times I had to run it back to see who was saying what.
Interesting take on angel/demon urban fantasy. Hall does a good job with world-building and pacing. Her writing is vivid. Looking forward to continuing the series.
As a side note: Sometimes, if I'm short on reading time, I'll set my Kindle to text-to-speech and listen audio style as I commute. If anyone else does this, I wouldn't recommend it for this book. Even when the character is alone, there is always a running mental dialogue, and there were a few times I had to run it back to see who was saying what.
September 8, 2014
Ronnie is a sassy demon working for Lucifer and finds herself in an interesting predicament. Not only does she not remember her past since starting work at Ubiquity as a corporate retrieval analyst, but she’s battling a voice in her head driving her insane with its constant jabbering. Of course everything happens for a reason, right, and this is where Loralie Hall kicks butt with Uriel’s Fall. Ronnie tries to uncover who exactly is sharing her head—not going to give it completely away, but think an original angel. The situation gets very complicated when archangels Michael, who made me laugh so much, and Gabriel are drawn into the scene, then we find out Lucifer has been keeping secrets from Ronnie. There were so many scenes to adore in this book—one of my favorites was Ronnie heading out to capture a rogue Cherub—awesome!! And then there was the romance… scorching hot. The twists had me guessing to the very end, and I really thought I had it worked out. Wrong… won’t spoil it, but I adored the ending. Hall created a highly imaginative and enticing world of angels and demons, and Uriel’s Fall is must on bookshelves of all Urban Fantasy readers.
April 16, 2015
So to be honest this book left me in a bit of a tail spin. I always liked the concept of angels and demons and so i thought this would be a great title to read. I was pretty much confused about the story, even until the end I just couldn't wrap my head around it. The book is called Uriel's fall but in the end she wasn't fallen she instead had an angel that shared her body. And also the fact that she merged with Metatron does that mean she is still Uriel with Metatron's powers? I found the story a bit confusing and though it will appeal to many people out there I dont think I am one of them.
October 18, 2014
Since the dawn of whenever, humans have lapped up stories of demons and angels. We have built civilizations and communities around such religious icons like Michael and Gabriel or Lucifer and Belial. For some cultures, we look to these creatures as the beginning and ending of man. They are the gods, demigods, or demons that we worship, fear and sometimes pray to never meet. However, even without believing in such religious icons, we often experience what it’s like to carry demons on our shoulders and what it’s like to look at paradise. Whether it be an addiction or an affliction, or the face of a new-born child smiling up at us. We carry them inside of us, even if we do not believe in their existence. They exist in our day-to-day lives.
The fact that we all understand what it is like to carry both demons and angels inside of us, made me excited to read Uriel’s Fall, which is a fictional story about a young archangel who hangs with the demons in the underworld. However, don’t expect this story to be as black and white as Christianity has taught. Instead, in this story angels and demons are not so different from each other. The sides they fight on have more to do with political agendas than whether they are truly good or bad individuals. There is no bad or good in this story. For these angels and demons are as complicated as the humans who walk the earth. Like us, they are all shades of gray.
I’ve always had a thing for heavenly and demonic tales and any spin usually will incite my interest. Hall spun a unique and compelling story that I enjoyed immensely. The concept of an archangel (Uriel), who falls in line with Lucifer and who suddenly hears voices in her head was pretty fun to witness. I enjoyed all of her characters! And I loved the spin on several of them that you might never expect. Those who should be good are not always so good and vice versa. There were complicated character designs with questionable motives that was definitely an engaging tactic, which kept me reading more.
One large aspect of this story is the office culture that Hall creates. Uriel is just like one of us. She has a 9-5 job and that job is not exciting in any way — at least the office part isn’t. She is an office droid much like myself, and I found that I could completely relate to that part of her life completely. While the office culture is a big component of the atmosphere, it does not overshadow the main story, which is more about a girl with a serious mental issue than it is about office culture. In the mix of everything going on in Uriel’s life, you throw in a love triangle and steamy sexual tension and you got yourself a hot mess. Personally, I don’t need to always see the sexual tension come to fruition to feel the story did the sexy feelings justice. In this case, I actually would have preferred it not to have occurred. It felt a little over the top, like a non-alcoholic punch getting spiked. And I love me some sexy, erotic stories! But it just didn’t work for me this time. In addition, my only other gripe is that at times there were a few comprehension gaps and a lack of clarity regarding internal dialogue. Fortunately, these bumps were a small portion of the story and did not overshadow the tale itself.
If you like stories that involve angels and demons and want a unique spin on the concept then I recommend this book. Hall kept me involved and engaged the entire ride and I am definitely on-board to read any sequels or other stories she has in the works. She’s a good writer and I encourage you cherubic readers and addicts out there to give this book a try. I don’t think you will be disappointed. It’s a relatively fast read because you will never be bored and there is little to no downtime. Give it a peek!
The fact that we all understand what it is like to carry both demons and angels inside of us, made me excited to read Uriel’s Fall, which is a fictional story about a young archangel who hangs with the demons in the underworld. However, don’t expect this story to be as black and white as Christianity has taught. Instead, in this story angels and demons are not so different from each other. The sides they fight on have more to do with political agendas than whether they are truly good or bad individuals. There is no bad or good in this story. For these angels and demons are as complicated as the humans who walk the earth. Like us, they are all shades of gray.
I’ve always had a thing for heavenly and demonic tales and any spin usually will incite my interest. Hall spun a unique and compelling story that I enjoyed immensely. The concept of an archangel (Uriel), who falls in line with Lucifer and who suddenly hears voices in her head was pretty fun to witness. I enjoyed all of her characters! And I loved the spin on several of them that you might never expect. Those who should be good are not always so good and vice versa. There were complicated character designs with questionable motives that was definitely an engaging tactic, which kept me reading more.
One large aspect of this story is the office culture that Hall creates. Uriel is just like one of us. She has a 9-5 job and that job is not exciting in any way — at least the office part isn’t. She is an office droid much like myself, and I found that I could completely relate to that part of her life completely. While the office culture is a big component of the atmosphere, it does not overshadow the main story, which is more about a girl with a serious mental issue than it is about office culture. In the mix of everything going on in Uriel’s life, you throw in a love triangle and steamy sexual tension and you got yourself a hot mess. Personally, I don’t need to always see the sexual tension come to fruition to feel the story did the sexy feelings justice. In this case, I actually would have preferred it not to have occurred. It felt a little over the top, like a non-alcoholic punch getting spiked. And I love me some sexy, erotic stories! But it just didn’t work for me this time. In addition, my only other gripe is that at times there were a few comprehension gaps and a lack of clarity regarding internal dialogue. Fortunately, these bumps were a small portion of the story and did not overshadow the tale itself.
If you like stories that involve angels and demons and want a unique spin on the concept then I recommend this book. Hall kept me involved and engaged the entire ride and I am definitely on-board to read any sequels or other stories she has in the works. She’s a good writer and I encourage you cherubic readers and addicts out there to give this book a try. I don’t think you will be disappointed. It’s a relatively fast read because you will never be bored and there is little to no downtime. Give it a peek!
January 22, 2015
Disclosure: I received a review copy from the author in exchange for a honest review.
3 1/2 Stars.
Come to think of it, I read a lot of Urban Fantasies but books about angels are usually a miss for me. I don’t know why, they just are and I tend to pass them over in favor of other books. However, when Hall approached me to review Uriel’s Fall, my curiosity was definitely piqued. Angels and Demons working together in the corporate world, never heard of that before! I am so happy I decided to read this book, the world and characters (the angels) are intriguing and the idea unique; thus was an enjoyable read.
Uriel a.k.a. Ronnie has been suffering from memory loss. The last thing she remembered was waking up in her boss, Luicer’s office three months ago and starting work at Ubiquity, a search engine company run by angels and demons to find cherubs (angel/demon energy) that escaped to earth looking to take a host body and live a mortal life. Ronnie is doing everything she can to get her memory back, but things get a little complicated when she starts hearing a voice inside her head, a voice demanding Ronnie to give her body back.
I was sucked in from the first page. Hall’s take on angels and demon is unlike anything I’ve ever read and I loved her fresh take on Gabriel, Michael and Lucifer; angels/fallen angels most people are familiar with. For most of the book Ronnie is trying to figure out why she lost her memory and who/why is there a voice inside her head. The whole internal dialogue Ronnie had with the voice reminded me a lot of The Host by Stephanie Meyers. The voice was amusing at first, but I thought that it was eventually go away. However, the voice was the main plot of the story and was the driving force for the characters and their actions. As much as I liked the big reveal of the voice and how she is connected to everyone around Ronnie, I wish there was more to the story. More action. Ronnie basically goes from one guy to the next asking for help and answers and every single person gives her the round-about or they outright lie to her.
Character wise, I didn’t really connect with Ronnie, even though she was the narrator. I don’t hate her, but I didn’t really like her either. For a demon, she was too nice and very naive; whether it is from having the hots for both of the angels or blinded to the fact/truth right in front of her. I know she lost her memory and all, but she just came off really whinny. It wasn’t till a little over half way through the book that Ronnie started taking things more seriously and actively trying/forcing people to tell her the truth…because everyone around Ronnie knew exactly who the voice was and how it got there…except for her.
Overall, this was a good book and I enjoyed it regardless of my issue with Ronnie. My favorite aspects of the book were the world and the history of the angels. I also like that this book didn’t follow the whole good versus evil route, which was a nice change for once. Uriel’s Fall is a good start to a new series, and I am looking forward to seeing where the author takes it.
3 1/2 Stars.
Come to think of it, I read a lot of Urban Fantasies but books about angels are usually a miss for me. I don’t know why, they just are and I tend to pass them over in favor of other books. However, when Hall approached me to review Uriel’s Fall, my curiosity was definitely piqued. Angels and Demons working together in the corporate world, never heard of that before! I am so happy I decided to read this book, the world and characters (the angels) are intriguing and the idea unique; thus was an enjoyable read.
Uriel a.k.a. Ronnie has been suffering from memory loss. The last thing she remembered was waking up in her boss, Luicer’s office three months ago and starting work at Ubiquity, a search engine company run by angels and demons to find cherubs (angel/demon energy) that escaped to earth looking to take a host body and live a mortal life. Ronnie is doing everything she can to get her memory back, but things get a little complicated when she starts hearing a voice inside her head, a voice demanding Ronnie to give her body back.
I was sucked in from the first page. Hall’s take on angels and demon is unlike anything I’ve ever read and I loved her fresh take on Gabriel, Michael and Lucifer; angels/fallen angels most people are familiar with. For most of the book Ronnie is trying to figure out why she lost her memory and who/why is there a voice inside her head. The whole internal dialogue Ronnie had with the voice reminded me a lot of The Host by Stephanie Meyers. The voice was amusing at first, but I thought that it was eventually go away. However, the voice was the main plot of the story and was the driving force for the characters and their actions. As much as I liked the big reveal of the voice and how she is connected to everyone around Ronnie, I wish there was more to the story. More action. Ronnie basically goes from one guy to the next asking for help and answers and every single person gives her the round-about or they outright lie to her.
Character wise, I didn’t really connect with Ronnie, even though she was the narrator. I don’t hate her, but I didn’t really like her either. For a demon, she was too nice and very naive; whether it is from having the hots for both of the angels or blinded to the fact/truth right in front of her. I know she lost her memory and all, but she just came off really whinny. It wasn’t till a little over half way through the book that Ronnie started taking things more seriously and actively trying/forcing people to tell her the truth…because everyone around Ronnie knew exactly who the voice was and how it got there…except for her.
Overall, this was a good book and I enjoyed it regardless of my issue with Ronnie. My favorite aspects of the book were the world and the history of the angels. I also like that this book didn’t follow the whole good versus evil route, which was a nice change for once. Uriel’s Fall is a good start to a new series, and I am looking forward to seeing where the author takes it.
August 15, 2014
3*s
Review posted here...
http://bookpassionforlife.blogspot.co...
Uriel’s Fall is the story of Ronnie/Uriel who is a demon working alongside angels at Ubiquity, a place where angels & demons are given physical forms so they can hunt down rogue cherubs that have come to earth illegally and inhabit humans. Ronnie’s job is quite sought after because of the physical form they’re allowed to take. Ronnie however can’t remember anything before a starting her new job in her new form, she is told the memories will return – but when? Then she starts hearing a voice in her head that starts to really become a problem as it gains more power…. Is she losing it? Is the voice her true self? And why can’t she get any answers from her so called friends? As the voice starts giving her some information about who she is and 3 of the powers that be become involved, Ronnie realises there is more to her amnesia than meets the eye and she is determined to unravel the puzzle… but can she even trust this voice along with the memories & feelings it evokes in her?
I liked Uriel’s Fall, didn’t love it but I could appreciate the story. The thing that kept me reading was the lost memories and finding out who Uriel was and who the voice was. I don’t want to say a great deal about how it could come about because that is explained throughout the book but at times it was hard to get my head around. I liked Ronnie/Uriel’s character, she was relatable and was easy to read, giving us some good humour but also giving us a good idea of the problems with having another inhabit your brain making it a believable portrayal. The voice in her head was interesting, it tried to gain more dominance/control as the story went along which brought another dimension to the main character but was very irritating at times when there is a lot of internal bickering going on. There are a couple of potential love interests which brought a bit of hotness to the story but I found it hard to become invested in them because of the dual voice/one person issue – who were they interested in? – which was also a big issue for the character. As I said, I appreciated the story but it was kind of hard to get into. In the beginning there was a lot of information overload so it took a while to understand what was going on and the dynamic of the world they lived in, I wouldn’t say that I 100% ‘got it’ but I got the gist. My curiosity was piqued more than anything and I was invested in finding out the who, why and what of the story. I will say that it steadily got better and better for me leading to a couple of great showdowns and the big reveals that left me satisfied at the conclusion. So, a mixed bag for me but I did enjoy it.
Review posted here...
http://bookpassionforlife.blogspot.co...
Uriel’s Fall is the story of Ronnie/Uriel who is a demon working alongside angels at Ubiquity, a place where angels & demons are given physical forms so they can hunt down rogue cherubs that have come to earth illegally and inhabit humans. Ronnie’s job is quite sought after because of the physical form they’re allowed to take. Ronnie however can’t remember anything before a starting her new job in her new form, she is told the memories will return – but when? Then she starts hearing a voice in her head that starts to really become a problem as it gains more power…. Is she losing it? Is the voice her true self? And why can’t she get any answers from her so called friends? As the voice starts giving her some information about who she is and 3 of the powers that be become involved, Ronnie realises there is more to her amnesia than meets the eye and she is determined to unravel the puzzle… but can she even trust this voice along with the memories & feelings it evokes in her?
I liked Uriel’s Fall, didn’t love it but I could appreciate the story. The thing that kept me reading was the lost memories and finding out who Uriel was and who the voice was. I don’t want to say a great deal about how it could come about because that is explained throughout the book but at times it was hard to get my head around. I liked Ronnie/Uriel’s character, she was relatable and was easy to read, giving us some good humour but also giving us a good idea of the problems with having another inhabit your brain making it a believable portrayal. The voice in her head was interesting, it tried to gain more dominance/control as the story went along which brought another dimension to the main character but was very irritating at times when there is a lot of internal bickering going on. There are a couple of potential love interests which brought a bit of hotness to the story but I found it hard to become invested in them because of the dual voice/one person issue – who were they interested in? – which was also a big issue for the character. As I said, I appreciated the story but it was kind of hard to get into. In the beginning there was a lot of information overload so it took a while to understand what was going on and the dynamic of the world they lived in, I wouldn’t say that I 100% ‘got it’ but I got the gist. My curiosity was piqued more than anything and I was invested in finding out the who, why and what of the story. I will say that it steadily got better and better for me leading to a couple of great showdowns and the big reveals that left me satisfied at the conclusion. So, a mixed bag for me but I did enjoy it.
September 5, 2014
This review was originally posted on Corazones Literarios... This book was provided by the author in exchange of a honest review, which doesn't affect my opinion of it.
I like angel tales, because there is lot of creative ways to turn it out and create new stories. And this book didn’t disappoint on that matter, although the girl didn't fix with me.
Uriel’s fall is about Roonie, a demon who doesn’t remember her past before three weeks ago, and who work for Lucifer to capture the rogue Cherubs that land in the earth and threat the balance of the world. Also, she just started to hear this annoying voice inside her head, which claim to be the right owner of her body. Then the two marvelous angels show up to get things ever more difficult the situation. With the originals: Michael as a puppy lovesick, Gabriel tricking her pat, Lucifer hiding things from her and the last remain original popping up inside her head, how can she continuous her job, her life and don’t lose her mind in the process?
I really don’t know. XD
I like the inventions in this book. How we get all those tricks and twist, and how the characters are represented. Demons and Angels are the same, they came from the same energy, though, their intentions and purpose in life are what define them. All of them look for humans to grow up, but when angels work with knowledge and intelligence, demons think that humans need some chaos to learn their way into life.
Both, demons and angels have feelings and there’s more than just black and white to them. So, I like very much how the author bring that up and create this new way to look Heaven and Hell. What I didn’t like about it, is the constant moping of Roonie, she was there and then here. She got lot of move swing and I was already dizzy. But except of that I really like the book and enjoy it very much.
Overall, this book brings a new ways to look angels and demons, also the read is very entertainment and it keeps the reader caught into the story with twist. I really recommend it to people who love new stories and enjoy angels tales.
I like angel tales, because there is lot of creative ways to turn it out and create new stories. And this book didn’t disappoint on that matter, although the girl didn't fix with me.
Uriel’s fall is about Roonie, a demon who doesn’t remember her past before three weeks ago, and who work for Lucifer to capture the rogue Cherubs that land in the earth and threat the balance of the world. Also, she just started to hear this annoying voice inside her head, which claim to be the right owner of her body. Then the two marvelous angels show up to get things ever more difficult the situation. With the originals: Michael as a puppy lovesick, Gabriel tricking her pat, Lucifer hiding things from her and the last remain original popping up inside her head, how can she continuous her job, her life and don’t lose her mind in the process?
I really don’t know. XD
I like the inventions in this book. How we get all those tricks and twist, and how the characters are represented. Demons and Angels are the same, they came from the same energy, though, their intentions and purpose in life are what define them. All of them look for humans to grow up, but when angels work with knowledge and intelligence, demons think that humans need some chaos to learn their way into life.
Both, demons and angels have feelings and there’s more than just black and white to them. So, I like very much how the author bring that up and create this new way to look Heaven and Hell. What I didn’t like about it, is the constant moping of Roonie, she was there and then here. She got lot of move swing and I was already dizzy. But except of that I really like the book and enjoy it very much.
Overall, this book brings a new ways to look angels and demons, also the read is very entertainment and it keeps the reader caught into the story with twist. I really recommend it to people who love new stories and enjoy angels tales.
December 15, 2014
*This books was gifted me, courtesy of Netgalley, in exchange for an honest review*
Uriel, a.k.a. Ronnie, is a young demon with an unfortunate case of memory loss. She works at Ubiquity, a joint heaven/hell venture. Think massive search engine company. Their job is to track renegade cherubs (young beings of energy, angelic or demonic in nature) that have possessed humans in a quest for earthly sensory delights. Sounds like a peachy job for a young demon, doesn't it? Well, it’s not, when your boss at Ubiquity thinks you’ve slept your way to the top, your other boss, Lucifer is keeping secrets and calls you “sis”, and your remaining co-workers seem to have secret agendas as well.
To make matters even worse, every single original, remaining archangel in existence have taken a strong interest in our little demon, for reasons that are not immediately clear to Uriel, although a certain nagging voice insists it knows the reason.
You see, aside from her memory loss, Ronnie’s got an additional problem. She keeps hearing a voice in her head, and that angry voice is hellbent on death and destruction. Not to mention vengeance... Could that voice have something to do with her curious nickname, the one that makes no sense at all, given that her name is Uriel?
From the moment I met Ronnie, I was sucked into the story, I was eager to learn about the voice inside her head. The romance was excellently done, the secrets and the paranoia even better.
Hall's descriptions create vivid characters that are tormented, deep and real. Whether angel or demon, I couldn't get enough of them. Though there was one angel I'd like to see a lot more, and I’m hopeful we will be seeing more of him in books to come. The ending had me hooked well beyond the last word.
Uriel's Fall is was an excellent take on angels and demons in the corporate world. It had intrigue, romance, and the insane, vengeful voice arguing with the main character and I couldn't have asked for a better combination. I will definitely be reading the next installment to discover what exciting place Hall takes us to next.
Uriel, a.k.a. Ronnie, is a young demon with an unfortunate case of memory loss. She works at Ubiquity, a joint heaven/hell venture. Think massive search engine company. Their job is to track renegade cherubs (young beings of energy, angelic or demonic in nature) that have possessed humans in a quest for earthly sensory delights. Sounds like a peachy job for a young demon, doesn't it? Well, it’s not, when your boss at Ubiquity thinks you’ve slept your way to the top, your other boss, Lucifer is keeping secrets and calls you “sis”, and your remaining co-workers seem to have secret agendas as well.
To make matters even worse, every single original, remaining archangel in existence have taken a strong interest in our little demon, for reasons that are not immediately clear to Uriel, although a certain nagging voice insists it knows the reason.
You see, aside from her memory loss, Ronnie’s got an additional problem. She keeps hearing a voice in her head, and that angry voice is hellbent on death and destruction. Not to mention vengeance... Could that voice have something to do with her curious nickname, the one that makes no sense at all, given that her name is Uriel?
From the moment I met Ronnie, I was sucked into the story, I was eager to learn about the voice inside her head. The romance was excellently done, the secrets and the paranoia even better.
Hall's descriptions create vivid characters that are tormented, deep and real. Whether angel or demon, I couldn't get enough of them. Though there was one angel I'd like to see a lot more, and I’m hopeful we will be seeing more of him in books to come. The ending had me hooked well beyond the last word.
Uriel's Fall is was an excellent take on angels and demons in the corporate world. It had intrigue, romance, and the insane, vengeful voice arguing with the main character and I couldn't have asked for a better combination. I will definitely be reading the next installment to discover what exciting place Hall takes us to next.
May 23, 2015
eARC review (NetGalley)
I thought this book was confusing at first, it opened with Ronnie doing her job which was unspecific and getting her butt kicked while doing it, because she seem to suffer from amnesia. Throughout the book Ronnie second-guessing herself, not only no one including her boss would clue her in, but everyone around her has a personal agenda that may not be in her best interest.
The story plot will keep you guessing what the heck was going on with Ronnie, at the same time it can be somewhat predictable. Once all the major characters were introduced, and what they each meant for Ronnie was reveal, you can kinda predict Ronnie's situation.
I didn't particular care much about the dual inner conversations Ronnie have with her other-self, which took up most of the book. Her other-self was basically a bully and Ronnie's personality seem weak compare to it.
The romance is neither there nor here, I didn't feel the chemistry or the connection. When Ronnie finally merge with her other-self, she appear to have a different personality that I can't say was entirely likable. The ending felt somewhat contraindicated, because in the end Ronnie was not "Ronnie", after merging she became what she was suppose to be before the experiment went wrong. Since I didn't like Metatron at all, it was not a happy outcome for me.
While I was reading this book I did find it difficult to invest into the story, even though I wanted to know what happen in the end, the process of Ronnie finding the truth can be a bit drag and repetitive at time. Overall the story has a new and interesting ideal of Angels and Demons, but it didn't leave me with a strong impression.
This book left with tons questions that need to be answered, and it will be interesting to see what happen to Ronnie in the next book.
Happy Reading!!XO
December 5, 2014
Robbie is a demon in a new urban fantasy series that sees heaven and hell working together to maintain balance. It's such an unusual premise that I found this book irresistible and had to find out just what the author had in mind. Add to the mix the fact that Ronnie works for the giant search engine Ubiquity and tracks down rogue Cherubs and you can easily see that this is certainly something a little different to the usual angel/demon analogies.
Ronnie has "lost" her memory but Lucifer has promised to help her get it back but strange things keep happening. First there's the fact that retrieving Cherubs is meant to be easy but suddenly Ronnie is having huge problems , second the very sexy arch angel Michael has reappeared on Earth which is unheard of! Oh and finally there's that little thing where Ronnie is hearing voices well a "voice" singular to be precise and she's got a hinky feeling that she knows just who the "voice" belongs to! It's starting to look as if there's a whole lot more going on at Ubiquity than Ronnie had previously thought and she's slap bang in the middle of it!
Heaven and hell, angels and demons, these are fascinating ideas to be playing around with and I got a huge kick out of the search engine idea as a place for them to work together. A certain entity that starts with the letter G anyone? Oh yes most definitely an original idea but what I found most interesting was the authors take on the origin of both angels and demons.. Like most I have visions of Cherubs being somewhat small and sweet creatures but the author exploids that idea and just let's it run! No spoilers here but not what I expected at all.
Ronnie is surrounded by secrets and lies and struggles to know who to trust but she has to make a choice if she is to survive . Faced with an angel who loves her whilst at the same time there's an angel who would kill her just how does Ronnie decide and as for that "voice"? It's trying to take over and Ronnie is about to have the fight of her immortal life on her hands!
Ronnie has "lost" her memory but Lucifer has promised to help her get it back but strange things keep happening. First there's the fact that retrieving Cherubs is meant to be easy but suddenly Ronnie is having huge problems , second the very sexy arch angel Michael has reappeared on Earth which is unheard of! Oh and finally there's that little thing where Ronnie is hearing voices well a "voice" singular to be precise and she's got a hinky feeling that she knows just who the "voice" belongs to! It's starting to look as if there's a whole lot more going on at Ubiquity than Ronnie had previously thought and she's slap bang in the middle of it!
Heaven and hell, angels and demons, these are fascinating ideas to be playing around with and I got a huge kick out of the search engine idea as a place for them to work together. A certain entity that starts with the letter G anyone? Oh yes most definitely an original idea but what I found most interesting was the authors take on the origin of both angels and demons.. Like most I have visions of Cherubs being somewhat small and sweet creatures but the author exploids that idea and just let's it run! No spoilers here but not what I expected at all.
Ronnie is surrounded by secrets and lies and struggles to know who to trust but she has to make a choice if she is to survive . Faced with an angel who loves her whilst at the same time there's an angel who would kill her just how does Ronnie decide and as for that "voice"? It's trying to take over and Ronnie is about to have the fight of her immortal life on her hands!
December 29, 2014
Genre: Paranormal
Author: Loralie Hall
Book: Uriel’s Fall (Ubiquity, #1)
My Star Rating: 3.5 out of 5
Will I read I read it again?
Intro: What's a corporate demon to do when the voice in her head is devouring her sanity from the inside out, and the hosts of heaven and hell would rather see her destroyed than surrender a power they shouldn't possess?
Ronnie has the job any entry-level angel or demon would sell their soul for—she's a retrieval analyst for the largest search engine in the world. Ubiquity is a joint initiative between heaven and hell. Because what better way to track all of humanity's secrets, both good and bad, than direct access to their web browsing habits.
She might appreciate the position a little more if a) she could remember anything about her life before she started working at Ubiquity, b) the damn voice in her head would just shut up already, and c) her boss wasn't a complete dickhead.
As she searches for the solutions to the first two issues, and hopes the third will work itself out in performance reviews, she uncovers more petty backstabbing than an episode of Real Housewives, and a conspiracy as old as Lucifer's descent from heaven. On top of all that, if she forgets the cover sheet on her TPS report one more time, she's absolutely going on final written warning.
Now Ronnie’s struggling to keep her sanity and job, and stop the voice in her head from stealing her life. She almost misses the boredom of data analysis at Ubiquity. Almost.
This story had an interesting twist to the book that I have not yet come across with. The voice in the head was different. I did find the main character Ronnie was kind of a pushover and I was shocked that the voice didn’t take over more than what she did. I also found this book to be a little slow at times during the story.
I was given this book to read and give an honest review. This review is my honest opinion and I have fully read this book.
Author: Loralie Hall
Book: Uriel’s Fall (Ubiquity, #1)
My Star Rating: 3.5 out of 5
Will I read I read it again?
Intro: What's a corporate demon to do when the voice in her head is devouring her sanity from the inside out, and the hosts of heaven and hell would rather see her destroyed than surrender a power they shouldn't possess?
Ronnie has the job any entry-level angel or demon would sell their soul for—she's a retrieval analyst for the largest search engine in the world. Ubiquity is a joint initiative between heaven and hell. Because what better way to track all of humanity's secrets, both good and bad, than direct access to their web browsing habits.
She might appreciate the position a little more if a) she could remember anything about her life before she started working at Ubiquity, b) the damn voice in her head would just shut up already, and c) her boss wasn't a complete dickhead.
As she searches for the solutions to the first two issues, and hopes the third will work itself out in performance reviews, she uncovers more petty backstabbing than an episode of Real Housewives, and a conspiracy as old as Lucifer's descent from heaven. On top of all that, if she forgets the cover sheet on her TPS report one more time, she's absolutely going on final written warning.
Now Ronnie’s struggling to keep her sanity and job, and stop the voice in her head from stealing her life. She almost misses the boredom of data analysis at Ubiquity. Almost.
This story had an interesting twist to the book that I have not yet come across with. The voice in the head was different. I did find the main character Ronnie was kind of a pushover and I was shocked that the voice didn’t take over more than what she did. I also found this book to be a little slow at times during the story.
I was given this book to read and give an honest review. This review is my honest opinion and I have fully read this book.
May 24, 2017
I came across the audiobook for Uriel's Fall while looking for a narrator for my own work, and I must say the short two-minute sample I heard was enough to drive me over to Audible, register for an account, and download it.
Uriel's Fall doesn't waste time with the old good vs. evil rhetoric when it comes to demons and angels, and I couldn't be happier for that. Hall brings a fresh look into the day-to-day lives of the inhabitants of Heaven and Hell, and Ubiquity is very much a day-to-day job. I love how she manages to meld the supernatural with the mundane seamlessly. This could very well be happening in the real corporate world and we would never know.
Ronnie is a fun character. Her snark helps to save her sometimes whiny and naive disposition. I mean, when you are a demon who can't remember anything past three months ago, and had to have Lucifer pull strings to get you a job that feels daunting, I guess you have some things to whine about. And things don't seem to be getting any better when an aggressive, bully-centric, and blood-thirsty voice suddenly starts talking to you, mocking your private thoughts. Especially when the voice appears to want a bloody vengeance against the three most powerful angels of all time.
Hall manages to keep the story flowing, effortlessly dialoguing Ronnie and the voice as she sets out to juggle a confusing love triangle between her, Gabriel, and Michael, figure out why Lucifer has suddenly become distant and unhelpful with getting her memories back, fighting with a d*** boss, and discovering what, or who, killed Metatron centuries ago and why she is connected to her death.
This book has quickly become one of my favorites and I can't wait to sink my teeth into more. DEFINITELY worth a read, or listen!
Uriel's Fall doesn't waste time with the old good vs. evil rhetoric when it comes to demons and angels, and I couldn't be happier for that. Hall brings a fresh look into the day-to-day lives of the inhabitants of Heaven and Hell, and Ubiquity is very much a day-to-day job. I love how she manages to meld the supernatural with the mundane seamlessly. This could very well be happening in the real corporate world and we would never know.
Ronnie is a fun character. Her snark helps to save her sometimes whiny and naive disposition. I mean, when you are a demon who can't remember anything past three months ago, and had to have Lucifer pull strings to get you a job that feels daunting, I guess you have some things to whine about. And things don't seem to be getting any better when an aggressive, bully-centric, and blood-thirsty voice suddenly starts talking to you, mocking your private thoughts. Especially when the voice appears to want a bloody vengeance against the three most powerful angels of all time.
Hall manages to keep the story flowing, effortlessly dialoguing Ronnie and the voice as she sets out to juggle a confusing love triangle between her, Gabriel, and Michael, figure out why Lucifer has suddenly become distant and unhelpful with getting her memories back, fighting with a d*** boss, and discovering what, or who, killed Metatron centuries ago and why she is connected to her death.
This book has quickly become one of my favorites and I can't wait to sink my teeth into more. DEFINITELY worth a read, or listen!
December 11, 2014
I'm not sure how I managed to read two books back-to-back about female protagonists having unwanted hitch-hikers in their pysche, but somehow I have.
What I am sure of: this is how you do that concept right.
Without spoiling the story, I will just say that the explanation for how it all works is both simple, and makes sense. It's a definite case of less is more, but remains satisfying to read. I'd almost suggest that Madison read this book, to get an idea of a better way of pursuing the concept.
This book is also superior in another, critical way: I like both our protagonist and her hitch-hiker. They have their own voices, their own personalities and they're both likable. Critically, too, I think, is that Hall worked the hitch-hiker's story has a purpose, it's ties into the greater story of the world. It feels more thought out and it feels complete. And most important, it's interesting!
As for the world, it's a story of angels and demons. The mythology is, for the most part fairly traditional, but that's okay. It's gave Hall the platform she needed to tell the story she wanted to tell, which was ultimately Uriel's story and Uriel's story was interesting. Plus there were some nice bits of chemistry going on and a nice little steamy sex scene to boot.
Overall, this was a really clever, really fun urban paranormal fantasy. If you like the concept or the genre, you should enjoy yourself here.
ARC provided through NetGalley
Review available at my blog: http://gildedlady.wordpress.com
What I am sure of: this is how you do that concept right.
Without spoiling the story, I will just say that the explanation for how it all works is both simple, and makes sense. It's a definite case of less is more, but remains satisfying to read. I'd almost suggest that Madison read this book, to get an idea of a better way of pursuing the concept.
This book is also superior in another, critical way: I like both our protagonist and her hitch-hiker. They have their own voices, their own personalities and they're both likable. Critically, too, I think, is that Hall worked the hitch-hiker's story has a purpose, it's ties into the greater story of the world. It feels more thought out and it feels complete. And most important, it's interesting!
As for the world, it's a story of angels and demons. The mythology is, for the most part fairly traditional, but that's okay. It's gave Hall the platform she needed to tell the story she wanted to tell, which was ultimately Uriel's story and Uriel's story was interesting. Plus there were some nice bits of chemistry going on and a nice little steamy sex scene to boot.
Overall, this was a really clever, really fun urban paranormal fantasy. If you like the concept or the genre, you should enjoy yourself here.
ARC provided through NetGalley
Review available at my blog: http://gildedlady.wordpress.com
June 24, 2014
This is not a straightforward book in any way. The cast of characters includes a pantheon of angels and demons, Lucifer, archangels Michael and Gabriel and more.
Ronnie has just become a drone at Ubiquity, Heaven's newest venture - a search engine that allows its staff to find displaced cherubs and bring them home. Ronnie's memories begin with the day Lucifer made her corporeal and this frustrates her. What's worse is the voice in her head that won't shut up.
It becomes clear that the voice is Metatron, the 4th of the original angels. But how did she get into Ronnie's head? And why won't she leave? Desperate to discover who is sharing her mortal form, Ronnie seeks help from everyone around her.
But even angels aren't perfect and everyone has their own agenda. Soon Ronnie has no one she can trust and Metatron's voice is just getting louder.
The world Hall has created is unique. The idea that even angels have to have boring desk jobs is fun, and the inter-office competitiveness has a whole new edge to it when the participants have supernatural abilities.
With just the right mix of mythology, modern life and paranormal elements, Uriel's fall is a fun, fast and compelling read.
Ronnie has just become a drone at Ubiquity, Heaven's newest venture - a search engine that allows its staff to find displaced cherubs and bring them home. Ronnie's memories begin with the day Lucifer made her corporeal and this frustrates her. What's worse is the voice in her head that won't shut up.
It becomes clear that the voice is Metatron, the 4th of the original angels. But how did she get into Ronnie's head? And why won't she leave? Desperate to discover who is sharing her mortal form, Ronnie seeks help from everyone around her.
But even angels aren't perfect and everyone has their own agenda. Soon Ronnie has no one she can trust and Metatron's voice is just getting louder.
The world Hall has created is unique. The idea that even angels have to have boring desk jobs is fun, and the inter-office competitiveness has a whole new edge to it when the participants have supernatural abilities.
With just the right mix of mythology, modern life and paranormal elements, Uriel's fall is a fun, fast and compelling read.
January 12, 2015
I’m torn on how I feel about this book. It has some interesting ideas, and some witty banter, but it’s also very predictable, and some of the romance scenes were eye-rolling.
The presentation of angels and demons was good. I like the concepts used, with the only difference between them being which side they’re on. I didn’t really get the concept of the cherubs. I’m not sure if it had to do with how it was explained, but it just left me confused. I don’t get the importance of them.
The banter between Ronnie and the voice in her head was my favourite part of the book. It was funny and the voices had definite personalities, which made it easy to separate them.
My least favourite part was the romance. Both Michael and Gabriel seemed oversimplified, and many of their scenes left me cringing and eye-rolling. I just didn’t buy into either of them, which is sad since they were a large part of the story.
Overall, the story had some unique ideas, but I felt they were partially ruined by the predictable romance angles. This was a quick and easy read, but I’ll be passing on the rest of the series.
The presentation of angels and demons was good. I like the concepts used, with the only difference between them being which side they’re on. I didn’t really get the concept of the cherubs. I’m not sure if it had to do with how it was explained, but it just left me confused. I don’t get the importance of them.
The banter between Ronnie and the voice in her head was my favourite part of the book. It was funny and the voices had definite personalities, which made it easy to separate them.
My least favourite part was the romance. Both Michael and Gabriel seemed oversimplified, and many of their scenes left me cringing and eye-rolling. I just didn’t buy into either of them, which is sad since they were a large part of the story.
Overall, the story had some unique ideas, but I felt they were partially ruined by the predictable romance angles. This was a quick and easy read, but I’ll be passing on the rest of the series.
September 8, 2014
An interesting concept, angels and demons working together on a search engine... I've never read anything like it, which is awesome. I love when I pick up a book and it's a completely fresh idea.
Ronnie is disturbed by her lack of memory, but that's only the beginning, she begins hearing a mysterious voice who soon attempts to take over her body. Occasionally succeeding.
Between Ronnie's own chaotic thoughts and the voice's, there's no wonder she feels that she's going insane. Combined with not knowing which of the guys to trust (Lucifer, Michael or Gabriel -great characters by the way)... I'd be losing my mind too!
The only negative thing I can say about Uriel's Fall is that while I enjoyed the back and forth between Ronnie and the voice, I sometimes had problems telling who was saying/remembering what. Other than that, this is a great read.
Loralie Hall managed to tie up loose ends and give the story a solid ending while at the same time leaving an opening for another book. Very impressive writing!
Ronnie is disturbed by her lack of memory, but that's only the beginning, she begins hearing a mysterious voice who soon attempts to take over her body. Occasionally succeeding.
Between Ronnie's own chaotic thoughts and the voice's, there's no wonder she feels that she's going insane. Combined with not knowing which of the guys to trust (Lucifer, Michael or Gabriel -great characters by the way)... I'd be losing my mind too!
The only negative thing I can say about Uriel's Fall is that while I enjoyed the back and forth between Ronnie and the voice, I sometimes had problems telling who was saying/remembering what. Other than that, this is a great read.
Loralie Hall managed to tie up loose ends and give the story a solid ending while at the same time leaving an opening for another book. Very impressive writing!
January 10, 2015
I received a copy of this book free in exchange for an honest review.
I tend to read book's fast, but it's not often one draws me in so much that I finish it in a single day. Uriel's Fall was one such exception. It actually started out feeling like a nice bit of fluff, but developed more depth than I'd expected. Loralie Hall dose a nice job world-building, though the company Ubiquity that gives the series it's title still feels a bit vague and undefined, and her characters have enough depth to make you care about them. She presents a rather different take on the concept of angels and demons - at least it's one I've not fun into previously - which is nice. There is one rather explicit sex scene and profanity used, so it's more appropriate for an older audience. A few things could be tightened up - some dialogues go a bit longer than really needed, but on the whole, it's a good book and a nice fast-paced read. I've already picked up the companion novella and will be watching for the second novel in the series next year.
I tend to read book's fast, but it's not often one draws me in so much that I finish it in a single day. Uriel's Fall was one such exception. It actually started out feeling like a nice bit of fluff, but developed more depth than I'd expected. Loralie Hall dose a nice job world-building, though the company Ubiquity that gives the series it's title still feels a bit vague and undefined, and her characters have enough depth to make you care about them. She presents a rather different take on the concept of angels and demons - at least it's one I've not fun into previously - which is nice. There is one rather explicit sex scene and profanity used, so it's more appropriate for an older audience. A few things could be tightened up - some dialogues go a bit longer than really needed, but on the whole, it's a good book and a nice fast-paced read. I've already picked up the companion novella and will be watching for the second novel in the series next year.
November 19, 2014
Ugh Michael irked me, "his laugh didn't have any joy in it. "Distractions of lust and love...I kind of try and stay away from them." That didn't make any sense. First of all, it was a kiss not a marriage proposal." I mean seriously was the boy an idiot his whole life, "I gave a tiny laugh, but his response made me ache inside. Had he really picked her over me? "I thought we were in this together. Is this going to be like last time? When I thought you were by my side, and you let Gabriel slaughter me instead?" This book wasn't much for romance which kind of disappointed me but I decided to give it a shot and read further and I was pleasantly surprised for what this book had in store for me.
January 25, 2015
Uriel's Fall is about a demon that has lost her memory. She's working at Ubiquity, a company that has angels and demons going through people's search history that has been flagged for possibly being a cherub. The angels/demons that spot it then track it down and boot it back to heaven/hell. The story itself was interesting, but I felt the execution wasn't what I was expecting. A few names we all know made appearances, Gabriel, Michael and Lucifer. I've only found a few angel/demon books that were really my style, this one unfortunately was not my cup of tea.
December 7, 2014
his is an exciting debut novel with an interesting concept. Angels you are familiar with Micheal, , Gabriel work together with demons including Lucifer on a search engine to track down cherubs. Uriel the main character has a memory loss. I was afraid at first this book was going to contain too much romance for me. But it is action packed and keeps you guessing. The angels are not completely good and the demons are not completely bad. I read this book in one sitting because I was so involved in the story . I look forward to the next part of the story .
January 4, 2015
I am thrilled that this series exists! I know that this was a big step for the author to take and it is an amazing book.
Full review to come.
Full review to come.
June 20, 2015
review to come
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