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Samael
Note: This book's publication has been cancelled.
Katie’s life went on pause last Bonfire Night when she suffered terrible burns. Resigned never to be happy again, her life takes an unexpected turn for the bizarre when her hippie mother invokes a spell to call upon an angel to help Katie love life again. The very next day, Sam moves in next door. With his two weird guardians, a spooky cat, and an unhealthy obsession with demons, Katie soon begins to suspect cosmic forces have bought her and Sam together. Now, all she needs to do is help him solve a perilous mystery dating back to the start of time, or she’ll lose him and her newfound love for life forever.
Katie’s life went on pause last Bonfire Night when she suffered terrible burns. Resigned never to be happy again, her life takes an unexpected turn for the bizarre when her hippie mother invokes a spell to call upon an angel to help Katie love life again. The very next day, Sam moves in next door. With his two weird guardians, a spooky cat, and an unhealthy obsession with demons, Katie soon begins to suspect cosmic forces have bought her and Sam together. Now, all she needs to do is help him solve a perilous mystery dating back to the start of time, or she’ll lose him and her newfound love for life forever.
426 pages, Kindle Edition
Published April 2, 2021
9 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 7 of 8 reviews
February 24, 2021
I'm beyond angry with the author's take on Chinese representation. The horrendous number of misinformation and overwhelming white supremacy in this book showed that while the main character is Chinese, the author paid no respect to the culture and didn't care to do any research.
- Review, updated 24 February after the author's response
When I realised that the main character is from Hangzhou, I had a moment of glee. It's my second or third hometown and I love this city. But then everything went downhill.
First of all, Hangzhou definitely is NOT a remote part of China, unlike what the author said in the response. It honestly pains me to see how my beloved hometown is portrayed in the book. Taiziwan (wrongly spelled as Taizuwan in the book, sigh) is one of the most touristic areas in Hangzhou. And like the whole West Lake area, it's packed with people even in low season. It's unimaginable that the Chinese character Sam, who is from Hangzhou and used to visit Taiziwan, has never talked to other people than his guardians. And the same Sam who's from Hangzhou, being absolutely delighted to see a small supermarket because he has never seen so many food in China?? I don't know what you think, but to me this is how a typical Westerner portrays a Chinese immigrant, basing everything from their prejudice.
It's important to note that villages in Zhejiang Province and Jiangsu Province are known for their affluence. Even the mountainous areas are not suffering from poverty, like how it's portrayed in the book. Maybe google 浙江农村 for a mood board?
The author mentioned her living experiences in HK. But it's important to realise that Hangzhou is 15x larger than HK and it has a totally different (political) history. How a HKer perceives Hangzhou would be totally different than someone from the mainland, or someone who's actually from Hangzhou. It won't surprise me if a HKer sees mainland Chinese as poor, uneducated and and that people are starving there everyday. It would then make sense that this line in the book 'most people struggle to feed themselves' is approved by some HKers. It makes sense, but it's still not true and really offensive. There are so many misunderstandings between mainlanders and HKers due to pride, prejudice, and political conflicts. If you write about Hangzhou, do consult someone from Hangzhou, or at least from the mainland of China. And especially considering the story is constantly referring to contemporary China, do not base your ideas on what it's like ten or twenty years ago because the country is rapidly developing.
On a side note, being friends with Chinese does not mean you can't be racist. What I have here is ownvoice criticism for the book. I won't call what my impressions of how my culture is portrayed in the book 'misunderstandings'. The portrayal and the story speaks for itself and I shouldn't need the author's note to convince myself that it wasn't meant to be offensive. I didn't read anything about China that is slightly positive. Am I supposed to feel proud because my culture is represented negatively throughout the book?
There are other points throughout the book that disturbed me or convinced me the author didn't do enough research.
- Mandarin usually refers to a spoken variant of the Chinese language. But in this book, it's something that the boy can 'read'. I remember someone asking me if I'm texting Mandarin or Chinese and I didn't know how to react. Congrats, it's indeed an accomplishment to know what's Mandarin. But Mandarin is a spoken Chinese language and the written form is usual just called Chinese. I have a discussion with my friends whether it's okay to say 'he reads in Mandarin' and there are different opinions. So I wouldn't say it's 100% incorrect but it's totally weird that the observer, who doesn't speak any form of Chinese, knows directly that the guy is reading in Mandarin because he's reading books with Chinese characters.
- Hangzhounese people are incredibly proud of their Longjing. You can even say that's the only tea they drink except bubble tea. It surprised me that this made no appearance in the book despite the fact that guy owned a tea farm in Hangzhou. Instead, he talked about how Hangzhounese people scent tea with rosebuds. Really? What a great Hangzhounese representation.
- Saying 'Eastern literature is uplifting' and then refers to 'Scarlet Heart', as a comparison to Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet. Scarlet Heart is the title of the KOREAN adaption of a Chinese drama that is based on a WEB NOVEL. It's so wrong on so many levels. 1)The literary value is totally different than Shakespeare 2)At least call it by its Chinese name? Why would a Chinese person refer to a cdrama by the title of its Korean adaptation? 3)The drama is depressing and has a sad ending. I have no idea how it can be uplifting
- Chinese immigrant really don't go to school and give a self-introduction by saying 'I want to be an engineer because Chinese people rely on inventions to survive.' and of course, everyone in the class is left stunned. Being a Chinese immigrant myself, I know that's what is expected from me to say and is recognisable for all Chinese kids transferred to a school in a Western country. This sentence can 100% please my western teachers and classmates by giving them the impression of 'I'm educating this kid so this kid can contribute to his poor fatherland'. That's what makes them feel superior and feel like a hero. Wait, is this the white savior complex-
- As if it can't be worse, the kid literally said 'I am looking forward to be educated there.' There refers to a western school. Wow.
- The guardians of this Chinese kids are wearing sari in rural England. It has never been explained why they are Indians. It surely has a reason to make them Indians and speak Chinese? It gives me an impression of 'Asians are all the same' so let me just mix them up.
- Talking about criminal activities. 'Maybe in China, but not here'. Ewwww. This line is just as iconic as I'm here to be educated.
To conclude, the book has constantly put China in negative light by giving misinformations while appropriating reincarnations. I didn't feel like my culture is being respected, and I felt that my community is being ridiculed.
Perfect representation does not exist. Diversity is also not a requirement of a good book. But when you do include people from other cultures, at least show some respect and do more research. Knowing a little bit more about China than the general population does not mean you're now not ignorant about China, or exempts you from doing further research when writing a book and making this character the main character. This book reminds me of a white guy from my highschool who has lived in China for his primary school. Everyone was so enthusiastic about his experiences as an expat kid who attended an international school, living in an international bubble. And nobody really asked me how I experienced China as a Chinese kid who speaks Chinese as her native tongue. And they don't care, because everything I tell them will be deemed as propaganda and I will be told that I'm brainwashed. And I'm afraid that my ownvoice criticism will be labelled the same.
- Review, updated 24 February after the author's response
When I realised that the main character is from Hangzhou, I had a moment of glee. It's my second or third hometown and I love this city. But then everything went downhill.
First of all, Hangzhou definitely is NOT a remote part of China, unlike what the author said in the response. It honestly pains me to see how my beloved hometown is portrayed in the book. Taiziwan (wrongly spelled as Taizuwan in the book, sigh) is one of the most touristic areas in Hangzhou. And like the whole West Lake area, it's packed with people even in low season. It's unimaginable that the Chinese character Sam, who is from Hangzhou and used to visit Taiziwan, has never talked to other people than his guardians. And the same Sam who's from Hangzhou, being absolutely delighted to see a small supermarket because he has never seen so many food in China?? I don't know what you think, but to me this is how a typical Westerner portrays a Chinese immigrant, basing everything from their prejudice.
It's important to note that villages in Zhejiang Province and Jiangsu Province are known for their affluence. Even the mountainous areas are not suffering from poverty, like how it's portrayed in the book. Maybe google 浙江农村 for a mood board?
The author mentioned her living experiences in HK. But it's important to realise that Hangzhou is 15x larger than HK and it has a totally different (political) history. How a HKer perceives Hangzhou would be totally different than someone from the mainland, or someone who's actually from Hangzhou. It won't surprise me if a HKer sees mainland Chinese as poor, uneducated and and that people are starving there everyday. It would then make sense that this line in the book 'most people struggle to feed themselves' is approved by some HKers. It makes sense, but it's still not true and really offensive. There are so many misunderstandings between mainlanders and HKers due to pride, prejudice, and political conflicts. If you write about Hangzhou, do consult someone from Hangzhou, or at least from the mainland of China. And especially considering the story is constantly referring to contemporary China, do not base your ideas on what it's like ten or twenty years ago because the country is rapidly developing.
On a side note, being friends with Chinese does not mean you can't be racist. What I have here is ownvoice criticism for the book. I won't call what my impressions of how my culture is portrayed in the book 'misunderstandings'. The portrayal and the story speaks for itself and I shouldn't need the author's note to convince myself that it wasn't meant to be offensive. I didn't read anything about China that is slightly positive. Am I supposed to feel proud because my culture is represented negatively throughout the book?
There are other points throughout the book that disturbed me or convinced me the author didn't do enough research.
- Mandarin usually refers to a spoken variant of the Chinese language. But in this book, it's something that the boy can 'read'. I remember someone asking me if I'm texting Mandarin or Chinese and I didn't know how to react. Congrats, it's indeed an accomplishment to know what's Mandarin. But Mandarin is a spoken Chinese language and the written form is usual just called Chinese. I have a discussion with my friends whether it's okay to say 'he reads in Mandarin' and there are different opinions. So I wouldn't say it's 100% incorrect but it's totally weird that the observer, who doesn't speak any form of Chinese, knows directly that the guy is reading in Mandarin because he's reading books with Chinese characters.
- Hangzhounese people are incredibly proud of their Longjing. You can even say that's the only tea they drink except bubble tea. It surprised me that this made no appearance in the book despite the fact that guy owned a tea farm in Hangzhou. Instead, he talked about how Hangzhounese people scent tea with rosebuds. Really? What a great Hangzhounese representation.
- Saying 'Eastern literature is uplifting' and then refers to 'Scarlet Heart', as a comparison to Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet. Scarlet Heart is the title of the KOREAN adaption of a Chinese drama that is based on a WEB NOVEL. It's so wrong on so many levels. 1)The literary value is totally different than Shakespeare 2)At least call it by its Chinese name? Why would a Chinese person refer to a cdrama by the title of its Korean adaptation? 3)The drama is depressing and has a sad ending. I have no idea how it can be uplifting
- Chinese immigrant really don't go to school and give a self-introduction by saying 'I want to be an engineer because Chinese people rely on inventions to survive.' and of course, everyone in the class is left stunned. Being a Chinese immigrant myself, I know that's what is expected from me to say and is recognisable for all Chinese kids transferred to a school in a Western country. This sentence can 100% please my western teachers and classmates by giving them the impression of 'I'm educating this kid so this kid can contribute to his poor fatherland'. That's what makes them feel superior and feel like a hero. Wait, is this the white savior complex-
- As if it can't be worse, the kid literally said 'I am looking forward to be educated there.' There refers to a western school. Wow.
- The guardians of this Chinese kids are wearing sari in rural England. It has never been explained why they are Indians. It surely has a reason to make them Indians and speak Chinese? It gives me an impression of 'Asians are all the same' so let me just mix them up.
- Talking about criminal activities. 'Maybe in China, but not here'. Ewwww. This line is just as iconic as I'm here to be educated.
To conclude, the book has constantly put China in negative light by giving misinformations while appropriating reincarnations. I didn't feel like my culture is being respected, and I felt that my community is being ridiculed.
Perfect representation does not exist. Diversity is also not a requirement of a good book. But when you do include people from other cultures, at least show some respect and do more research. Knowing a little bit more about China than the general population does not mean you're now not ignorant about China, or exempts you from doing further research when writing a book and making this character the main character. This book reminds me of a white guy from my highschool who has lived in China for his primary school. Everyone was so enthusiastic about his experiences as an expat kid who attended an international school, living in an international bubble. And nobody really asked me how I experienced China as a Chinese kid who speaks Chinese as her native tongue. And they don't care, because everything I tell them will be deemed as propaganda and I will be told that I'm brainwashed. And I'm afraid that my ownvoice criticism will be labelled the same.
February 24, 2021
I am Chinese. This author thinks one of the richest cities in my country is a place where people starve. The Chinese character here doesn't know what Excel is. Do you think we all live in a cave as well??? Excel is literally taught to middle schoolers and we all have mandatory computer class since PRIMARY SCHOOL.
The whole Eastern stories have happy endings, bruh what kind of stories are you referring to, THE SCARLET HEART which you name dropped is literally a tragedy by the end, are we talking about the same thing. Not to mention it's literally a web novel adapted into a cdrama, it's not some old Chinese literature that's comparable to Romeo and Juliet. Also asking how many days Chinese people need to travel to get food to feed themselves?? Well ACTUALLY less time than you entitled westerners assume, since we actually have streetfood and more restaurants than you can count because the city you mentioned is ONE OF THE FUCKING RICHEST CITY IN CHINA. It got 10. 36 millions people living there and of course like every city they have issues to solve but no one is ACTIVELY STARVING.
I'm sorry my review is filled with screaming, because apparently I need to be "educated" in western countries because my home country don't have schools according to the representation in your book. Also the whole "i need to be educated here" in this western school thing is like, no self-respecting Chinese would ever say because we are already always being treated as if our education system is somehow inferior bc westerners believe we are all getting brainwashed there. Also how the hell did the boy take 6 alevel courses?? Without a computer?? You think a random Chinese child will learn the English standard diploma when we have a completely different education system, without a COMPUTER?? Or any knowledge of the outside world? Shouldn't he be studying Chinese stuff instead?
ps. Also the Chinese boy said he went to Taiziwan, but is surprised by the food in a random ass supermarket. Bruh if he been to Taiziwan, he'd either be squashed to death since that place has thousands people visiting in tourist seasons, or someone would have called the Fucking police because this boy can't shut up about how he's starving in China and never touched a computer or doesn't go to schools apparently. It's pretty much child abuse and considering how huge of a problem CHILD TRAFICKING is a problem in China, someone would definitely have called the police. Because a child STARVING is NOT NORMAL in China, let alone in Hangzhou, where 10. 36 million people live??
Also If his family is so poor they don't even have enough food (let's disregard the fact that they live on a TEA FARM and tea is one of the most profitable industry in Chin, also tourists pay to have a walk through the tea farms. It's also a huge tourist attraction bc hangzhou is known as the homeland of the best tea Longjing in the country. They might not be millionaires but they probably surely can pay their bills). How did they manage to purchase a plane ticket abroad? I haven't been home in years because i can't afford the plane ticket. Because plane tickets that flies internationally are not cheap. If they have that much money why don't they just, you know, go and live in the inner city of Hangzhou or buy FOOD?? Because food is in abundance contrary to what the author presents in this book.
Also Mandarin is NOT a written language. It's a spoken language, like Taiwanese people who also speak Mandarin (they have their traditional Hokkien but now most people speaks Mandarin in day to day life) but they write in traditional Chinese, just like Hong Kong people use traditional Chinese, but in a different format. Mainland people speaks Mandarin but writes in simplified Chinese. Yes Hong Kong has its own Cantonese writing style WHILE using traditional Chinese. But Taiwan and Mainland both speaks Mandarin but writes in completely different words because traditional and simplified Chinese are still different. So please tell me how does someone reads in Mandarin since it's not even a written form of Chinese???
Also can someone tell me why Sam's Chinese parents are wearing clothes that are worn bu people of India? Also Sam can take 6 alevels but not recognize his name's direct Chinese translation 山姆??
If you want to put a Chinese character in your story who is literally just to show off your western white saviorism fantasy , remember there are actually Chinese people who are going to read your book. And we actually are educated and not starving enough to give you a 1 star review because I can't rate this lower.
You couldn't be more racist than this if you try. You couldn't dehumanize an actual culture you know nothing about more than this. If you don't want to research about how my home is actually like, why even bother to write us in?? You think we'll be grateful??
The whole Eastern stories have happy endings, bruh what kind of stories are you referring to, THE SCARLET HEART which you name dropped is literally a tragedy by the end, are we talking about the same thing. Not to mention it's literally a web novel adapted into a cdrama, it's not some old Chinese literature that's comparable to Romeo and Juliet. Also asking how many days Chinese people need to travel to get food to feed themselves?? Well ACTUALLY less time than you entitled westerners assume, since we actually have streetfood and more restaurants than you can count because the city you mentioned is ONE OF THE FUCKING RICHEST CITY IN CHINA. It got 10. 36 millions people living there and of course like every city they have issues to solve but no one is ACTIVELY STARVING.
I'm sorry my review is filled with screaming, because apparently I need to be "educated" in western countries because my home country don't have schools according to the representation in your book. Also the whole "i need to be educated here" in this western school thing is like, no self-respecting Chinese would ever say because we are already always being treated as if our education system is somehow inferior bc westerners believe we are all getting brainwashed there. Also how the hell did the boy take 6 alevel courses?? Without a computer?? You think a random Chinese child will learn the English standard diploma when we have a completely different education system, without a COMPUTER?? Or any knowledge of the outside world? Shouldn't he be studying Chinese stuff instead?
ps. Also the Chinese boy said he went to Taiziwan, but is surprised by the food in a random ass supermarket. Bruh if he been to Taiziwan, he'd either be squashed to death since that place has thousands people visiting in tourist seasons, or someone would have called the Fucking police because this boy can't shut up about how he's starving in China and never touched a computer or doesn't go to schools apparently. It's pretty much child abuse and considering how huge of a problem CHILD TRAFICKING is a problem in China, someone would definitely have called the police. Because a child STARVING is NOT NORMAL in China, let alone in Hangzhou, where 10. 36 million people live??
Also If his family is so poor they don't even have enough food (let's disregard the fact that they live on a TEA FARM and tea is one of the most profitable industry in Chin, also tourists pay to have a walk through the tea farms. It's also a huge tourist attraction bc hangzhou is known as the homeland of the best tea Longjing in the country. They might not be millionaires but they probably surely can pay their bills). How did they manage to purchase a plane ticket abroad? I haven't been home in years because i can't afford the plane ticket. Because plane tickets that flies internationally are not cheap. If they have that much money why don't they just, you know, go and live in the inner city of Hangzhou or buy FOOD?? Because food is in abundance contrary to what the author presents in this book.
Also Mandarin is NOT a written language. It's a spoken language, like Taiwanese people who also speak Mandarin (they have their traditional Hokkien but now most people speaks Mandarin in day to day life) but they write in traditional Chinese, just like Hong Kong people use traditional Chinese, but in a different format. Mainland people speaks Mandarin but writes in simplified Chinese. Yes Hong Kong has its own Cantonese writing style WHILE using traditional Chinese. But Taiwan and Mainland both speaks Mandarin but writes in completely different words because traditional and simplified Chinese are still different. So please tell me how does someone reads in Mandarin since it's not even a written form of Chinese???
Also can someone tell me why Sam's Chinese parents are wearing clothes that are worn bu people of India? Also Sam can take 6 alevels but not recognize his name's direct Chinese translation 山姆??
If you want to put a Chinese character in your story who is literally just to show off your western white saviorism fantasy , remember there are actually Chinese people who are going to read your book. And we actually are educated and not starving enough to give you a 1 star review because I can't rate this lower.
You couldn't be more racist than this if you try. You couldn't dehumanize an actual culture you know nothing about more than this. If you don't want to research about how my home is actually like, why even bother to write us in?? You think we'll be grateful??
March 9, 2021
Samael is different than that i read but since the author messaged my bookstagram I decided to give it a try.
While we start off with Katie who is severly scared. Now her mother who is desperate calls upon a spell to an angel to help Katie find love. Sam a new neighbor started to show an interest in her. However he does have secrets of his own.
I liked the story but as others have stated there could definitely be more research into the area the author wrote the story in, and while the characters weren't that relatable and Katie seemed kinda shollow and mean at times. I think that if the author went back and did some more research that the story would be better. I liked the theme that there is more than what meets the eye is a great theme.
While we start off with Katie who is severly scared. Now her mother who is desperate calls upon a spell to an angel to help Katie find love. Sam a new neighbor started to show an interest in her. However he does have secrets of his own.
I liked the story but as others have stated there could definitely be more research into the area the author wrote the story in, and while the characters weren't that relatable and Katie seemed kinda shollow and mean at times. I think that if the author went back and did some more research that the story would be better. I liked the theme that there is more than what meets the eye is a great theme.
February 6, 2021
Thank you so much @alexdunn and @netgallery for this wonderful opportunity read this ARC and reviewing it on Goodreads, NetGalley, Amazon, and Instagram (adelinedreviews) !
I was very stoked when I received an email that my book request got accepted. I love a good Teen and New Adult Fiction. To avoid any spoilers, I will just write down what I thought of the book.
Let’s first talk about the cover. I thought the cover is absolutely beautiful and critically thought over. I really love the black background with a gold font and drawing because it adds significance to the story. The title, Samael, was very gratifying to explore as I read along each page of the book.
This was an extremely extraordinary and powerful book. If you love books that contain bad blood between exes, love, demons, angels, and CATS, then this is the right book for you. The reason is because there’s a bit of internal conflict in the characters which is a good thing because I was more connected with the characters. There’s only a few books that are able to capture my attention for a whole day without stopping, and unfortunately I am ashamed to say, I finished the book in one day. I started at 1:00 pm and finished it around 12:00 am. I could not help myself, it was so captivating and unforgettable. I will definitely be buying the physical book to add to my collection.
As a cat person, I really loved how there is a cat as one of the main characters. As for the characters, I loved Sam the most because he was overall a very mysterious person, and I loved the journey he led Lucy ( does most of the investigation through the book) along with him. On the other hand, I really enjoyed how Alex Dunn wrote in a way the reader can keep up and investigate with Lucy, but I much rather prefer Sam's mysterious aurora and backstory.
Finally, I really liked how Alex Dunn conducted research to perfectly mend this type of supernatural in one book. I love a book that contains angels and demons, I mean who doesn't, right?
______________________________________
100% recommend to everyone. Remember, Samael is coming out in April 2, 2021
Synopsis:
Katie’s life went on pause last Bonfire Night when she suffered terrible burns. Resigned never to be happy again, her life takes an unexpected turn for the bizarre when her hippie mother invokes a spell to call upon an angel to help Katie love life again. The very next day, Sam moves in next door. With his two weird guardians, a spooky cat, and an unhealthy obsession with demons, Katie soon begins to suspect cosmic forces have bought her and Sam together. Now, all she needs to do is help him solve a perilous mystery dating back to the start of time, or she’ll lose him and her newfound love for life forever.
I was very stoked when I received an email that my book request got accepted. I love a good Teen and New Adult Fiction. To avoid any spoilers, I will just write down what I thought of the book.
Let’s first talk about the cover. I thought the cover is absolutely beautiful and critically thought over. I really love the black background with a gold font and drawing because it adds significance to the story. The title, Samael, was very gratifying to explore as I read along each page of the book.
This was an extremely extraordinary and powerful book. If you love books that contain bad blood between exes, love, demons, angels, and CATS, then this is the right book for you. The reason is because there’s a bit of internal conflict in the characters which is a good thing because I was more connected with the characters. There’s only a few books that are able to capture my attention for a whole day without stopping, and unfortunately I am ashamed to say, I finished the book in one day. I started at 1:00 pm and finished it around 12:00 am. I could not help myself, it was so captivating and unforgettable. I will definitely be buying the physical book to add to my collection.
As a cat person, I really loved how there is a cat as one of the main characters. As for the characters, I loved Sam the most because he was overall a very mysterious person, and I loved the journey he led Lucy ( does most of the investigation through the book) along with him. On the other hand, I really enjoyed how Alex Dunn wrote in a way the reader can keep up and investigate with Lucy, but I much rather prefer Sam's mysterious aurora and backstory.
Finally, I really liked how Alex Dunn conducted research to perfectly mend this type of supernatural in one book. I love a book that contains angels and demons, I mean who doesn't, right?
______________________________________
100% recommend to everyone. Remember, Samael is coming out in April 2, 2021
Synopsis:
Katie’s life went on pause last Bonfire Night when she suffered terrible burns. Resigned never to be happy again, her life takes an unexpected turn for the bizarre when her hippie mother invokes a spell to call upon an angel to help Katie love life again. The very next day, Sam moves in next door. With his two weird guardians, a spooky cat, and an unhealthy obsession with demons, Katie soon begins to suspect cosmic forces have bought her and Sam together. Now, all she needs to do is help him solve a perilous mystery dating back to the start of time, or she’ll lose him and her newfound love for life forever.
February 18, 2021
3 stars for me personally, but objectively it's a 4!
This is a YA fantasy novel about angels, demons, and redemption.
Katie gets hit by a firework on bonfire night, and suffers life changing injuries on her chest and arms. Desperate for her daughter to start enjoying life again, her hippie mother calls on the angels to help her. Soon after, Sam, his two rather strange guardians, and their even weirder cat move in next door. All is not what it seems, and there are ancient stories playing out in Katie's hometown. If Katie doesn't want to lose Sam forever, she must work out how to save him.
The premise of this book was intriguing when combined with its title "Samael", one of Lucifer's names when he lived in Heaven. I enjoyed the fantasy element a lot, especially with the mystery of who Sam really was.
The romance was not the core of the plot, but is featured throughout, and some of elements of it (one of the tropes), along with typical teenage betrayals, just weren't for me. But that's just a personal preference, as I also know many people would love that element!
The storyline, though predictable at times, and how it developed kept me reading - I wanted to know more even as we found out more.
It's tricky to rate this one, as I don't think I'm the target audience! So personally this was a three star read as I did enjoy it, but for those who would seek this genre of book out, and the type of book it is, it would be a 4 star. I don't think it's fair that my personal preference should lower the rating a book that is objectively well thought out, lovely to read, and easy to follow!
If you love supernatural YA fantasy with a bit of romance thrown in, then I'd definitely recommend it!
*Thanks to #NetGalley and Alex Dunn for the eARC!
This is a YA fantasy novel about angels, demons, and redemption.
Katie gets hit by a firework on bonfire night, and suffers life changing injuries on her chest and arms. Desperate for her daughter to start enjoying life again, her hippie mother calls on the angels to help her. Soon after, Sam, his two rather strange guardians, and their even weirder cat move in next door. All is not what it seems, and there are ancient stories playing out in Katie's hometown. If Katie doesn't want to lose Sam forever, she must work out how to save him.
The premise of this book was intriguing when combined with its title "Samael", one of Lucifer's names when he lived in Heaven. I enjoyed the fantasy element a lot, especially with the mystery of who Sam really was.
The romance was not the core of the plot, but is featured throughout, and some of elements of it (one of the tropes), along with typical teenage betrayals, just weren't for me. But that's just a personal preference, as I also know many people would love that element!
The storyline, though predictable at times, and how it developed kept me reading - I wanted to know more even as we found out more.
It's tricky to rate this one, as I don't think I'm the target audience! So personally this was a three star read as I did enjoy it, but for those who would seek this genre of book out, and the type of book it is, it would be a 4 star. I don't think it's fair that my personal preference should lower the rating a book that is objectively well thought out, lovely to read, and easy to follow!
If you love supernatural YA fantasy with a bit of romance thrown in, then I'd definitely recommend it!
*Thanks to #NetGalley and Alex Dunn for the eARC!
March 3, 2021
I was approached by the author to give fair review of Samael.
Unfortunately, I did not enjoy this story very much. I felt as Katie was very naive and immature for her age, and although I understand why, I felt like she was so self absorbed, she didn't even see the world around her most of the time. Sam was meant to have this infinite knowledge at the back of his mind, but he too felt immature and very young. I also didn't particularly enjoy the writing style, to me it seemed choppy and block-like and some parts didn't feel well gelled together.
That isn't to say that this book was awful, not at all. I think it will resonate with a younger audience that was intended to, in my opinion.
Thank you kindly to Alex Dunn and NetGalley for letting me read the copy of this book.
Unfortunately, I did not enjoy this story very much. I felt as Katie was very naive and immature for her age, and although I understand why, I felt like she was so self absorbed, she didn't even see the world around her most of the time. Sam was meant to have this infinite knowledge at the back of his mind, but he too felt immature and very young. I also didn't particularly enjoy the writing style, to me it seemed choppy and block-like and some parts didn't feel well gelled together.
That isn't to say that this book was awful, not at all. I think it will resonate with a younger audience that was intended to, in my opinion.
Thank you kindly to Alex Dunn and NetGalley for letting me read the copy of this book.
March 30, 2021
I felt that there could have ben more research done into this book. The characters weren’t that relatable and the story seemed to jump around.
I did not enjoy this book as much as I would’ve liked but I think that is more because I am not the target audience for the book.
I did not enjoy this book as much as I would’ve liked but I think that is more because I am not the target audience for the book.
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