Angels, Book Review, Paranormal, Romance, Series

Celestial (Angels of Elysium #2) by Olivia Wildenstein

ABOUT THE BOOK

In ninety-two days, the feathered appendages that link me to the people I loathe finally come off. Dear, winglets, you will not be missed.

Celeste has spent the last four years building a life outside of angelic guilds—parties, check—pursuing human ambitions instead of celestial ones—college, check—and shedding feathers across Parisian cobblestones and more recently New York sidewalks—speaking her mind, always check.

She swore off angels, but the death of the woman who took her in the night Leigh died brings them soaring back into her life . . . and not just any angel but the most detestable one, the one complicit in Leigh’s death—Seraph Asher.

Although Celeste tells the archangel to feather off, the unreasonably pretty and obstinate man doesn’t leave her alone. He returns and insists she complete her wings. When she asks him for one good reason to do so, he gives her an unbeatable one: what he did with Leigh’s soul.

Asher never meant to share his damning secret, but he knows it’s the only way to save Celeste—the rebellious Fletching he can’t get out of his head . . . or heart.

MY REVIEW

The ending to Feather, book 1 of the Angels of Elysium series was heartbreaking and I couldn’t wait to see how Ms. Wildenstein played it out. Let me say she blew my mind again with grace and finesse while she continues the series with Celeste and Asher’s magnificent celestial romance story while they battle an angelic hierarchy determined to destroy their lives.

Who would’ve thought a vertically-challenged angel with stunted hybrid wings could inspire such fear?

Celeste is a badass hybrid Fletching, an angel who hasn’t completed her wings and she plans to keep it that way. She’s lost everyone she loves and is happy on Earth going to school and hanging with her dicey friends. Then Asher, a seraphim, an archangel, the highest ranking celestial being, and the man who burned her best friend’s wings and tossed her back to Earth, decides to make Celeste his pet project to complete her wings. Not if she can help it!

I’d prostrate myself at the feet of the Seven and beg for her life, because this woman was all I had left in this miserably unfair world.

Asher is extraordinarily generous and what he sacrifices for Leigh and Jarod is amazing and selfless. His determination to help Celeste get her wings so she can ascend to Elysium is to be commended due to her stubborn nature and ability to lose feathers as fast as she gains them.

I love this author’s prose. It flows beautifully while she educates the reader about immortal beings and saving souls. Her characters are strong and complex with very raw and painful moments that caused this reader to shed a tear or two. In addition, there are plenty LOL occasions, not to mention, Celeste’s hilarious t-shirt collection.  As Celeste and Asher fight for their own souls and others, the supporting characters are essential to how this story plays out.

Kudos to Ms. Wildenstein for persevering with this series. She has definitely met her goal of delivering a love story “worthy of her first couple”. It’s a fascinating tale that immerses you into the immortal realm of Elysium where angels are fallible, humans are vulnerable, and love is eternal. By the way, there is a HEA in this one. I can’t wait for book 3.

BUY THE BOOK

Celestial

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ABOUT THE AUTHOR

OliviaWildensteinUSA TODAY bestselling author Olivia Wildenstein grew up in New York City, the daughter of a French father with a great sense of humor, and a Swedish mother whom she speaks to at least three times a day. She chose Brown University to complete her undergraduate studies and earned a bachelor’s in comparative literature. After designing jewelry for a few years, Wildenstein traded in her tools for a laptop computer and a very comfortable chair. This line of work made more sense, considering her college degree.

When she’s not sitting at her computer, she’s psychoanalyzing everyone she meets (Yes. Everyone), eavesdropping on conversations to gather material for her next book, and attempting not to forget one of her kids in school.

She has a slight obsession with romance, which might be the reason why she writes it.

Follow Olivia on her websiteInstagramFacebookTwitter, and Goodreads.