Queene of Light (Lightworld/Darkworld Series #1) Book

Queene of Light was an interesting read. Regular readers of the Mira line will find the style and tone familiar.

The prose was formal, perhaps a little florid; for example, Armintrout's continuing descriptions of voices as "rustling leaves," et cetera. At times, she borrowed some old-fashioned language appropriate to the ancient races, fae and angels, running the novel. Likewise the dialogue.

Personally, I'm not a fan of heroes who speak in "I do not understand" and "You will explain this to me" archaic forms, but I did find Malachi's characterization before his Fall very interesting. Formerly a death angel and soulless, Malachi is almost alien in his apathy and animal-like savagery. These are angels as thoughtless killing machines, and I found him very convincing and plausible. I admire Armintrout for writing him so unflinchingly at the risk of drawing him as a less desirable hero, though I find that he could have developed further. Indeed, Malachi gets the short shrift, particularly when the narrative shfits to Ayla's battles. After he acclimates to humanity and learns some emotion Hollywood-style, he's almost nonexistent.

The concept of predator and prey is key to the world that Armintrout builds here. I liked the dystopic setting: a world in the sewers and subways. I liked the unique Fae that she's constructed: slim, fragile people with dragonfly wings and antennae.

I also enjoyed some of the political maneuvering. Unfortunately, too much of the politics was conducted in a very Romance way with the Queen having frank conversations with Ayla Nobody and so on. Some official functions besides the ending scene might have gone a long way. Maybe I'm nitpicking, but considering that the struggle for the throne was the climax of the novel, the scope was shrunk to a limited cast of characters whom we saw in a mostly personal, intimate, non-political capacity, and of them, only Ayla was developed and possibly the villain. Okay, and the advisor. Everyone except the hero.

So this little story might have bitten off a bit more than it could chew, but it flows from one scene to the next with little excess. This 'un is lean. LOL. So if you're a big paranormal romance (light on the romance) fan, don't mind the prose and fancy the idea of an outcast Faery -I did like the focus on her halfling heritage- fighting to carve a place for herself among her people and court and helping an angel learn it's not cool to kill along the way, check this out. :)