Book Review: Halo

Title: Halo

Author: Alexandria Adornetto
Publisher: Feiwel and Friends
Pages: 484

From Goodreads
Nothing much happens in the sleepy town of Venus Cove. But everything changes when three angels are sent from heaven to protect the town against the gathering forces of darkness: Gabriel, the warrior; Ivy, the healer; and Bethany, a teenage girl who is the least experienced of the trio. They work hard to conceal their true identity and, most of all, their wings.

But the mission is threatened when the youngest angel, Bethany, is sent to high school and falls in love with the handsome school captain, Xavier Woods. Will she defy the laws of Heaven by loving him? Things come to a head when the angels realize they are not the only supernatural power in Venus Cove. There′s a new kid in town and he′s charming, seductive and deadly. Worst of all, he′s after Beth.

My Review
I've had a really hard time writing this review.  I wanted to love this book, I really really did.  I'd heard so much about it, and the summary sounded really good.  The truth is, I didn't love it.  That's not to say I hated it - I DIDN'T! I just didn't love it, and I was frustrated by some aspects of it. 

It started off strong! Hearing about the angel's adjustment to life on Earth was very interesting, and watching Bethany struggle through her first few days at school came across as very realistic.  I've watched new students come into my classroom, and I could completely buy into what was happening with her.  And the start of her relationship with Xavier was fantastic.  I found myself really pulled into the emotions and the excitement of their budding love, reading along really fast. Everything about it was new to Bethany, and the author did a great job capturing that feeling. Her lack of knowledge about human love could've been hard to capture, show and relate to, but it was well done. 

But then the whole story stalled.  I was half way through the book and "bad guy" hadn't even appeared yet.  It hit a point where I wondered if there ever was going to be a "bad guy".  I mean the romance was great and all that, but I could only read so many times how great Xavier smelled.  They had been sent to Earth of some sort of mission, but it felt like they spent the first half just hanging out.  Bethany didn't seem to be doing anything to help the people of the town. I will admit Ivy was doing a lot of things to bring the town together, but in total the mission seemed lost - like an after thought.  When the bad guy, Jake, finally does arrive the story picks up again some, but I felt like it never fully got off the ground.  This part seemed rushed.  As they confront this threat, we finally learn Bethany's "power" but to me it felt like a side note.  I wanted to know more about it and how it could be used.  I guess I just wanted to more in general about the angels and why they were there. This part of the story was lacking.

I could go into more things that bothered me, but I don't want to give away things and I don't feel the need to pick the book apart.  I just wanted to give a general understanding of what I liked best about the book (romance) and what frustrated me the most.

Final Thought: Don't get me wrong.  I didn't hate the book, and I know my 7th grade girls will love it.  I had just hoped for more.
Best stick-with-you image: Gabriel's wings.
Best for readers who: Like a romance with  bit more
Best for ages: 12+