2 out of 4 stars
Share This Review
Where Angels Play sounded like a phenomenal book - it promised a mix of Egyptian and Greek mythology with the Bible, interpretations of dreams, epic battles and the clash of good and evil. As a fan of things like The DaVinci Code and both movies and games that put a good twist on the Bible, I was excited and jumped at the chance to give the book a read. Unfortunately, high expectations can lead to even bigger disappointments.
The book begins in first person, showing us a day in the life of Adam, a paramedic. He's picking up a body in critical condition, and then proceeds to have to deal with a "Frequent Flyer" (someone they deal with frequently) by the name of Eugene. He's an EDP (emotionally disturbed patient) running around like a maniac. These segments are dark and poignant with a little injection or humor, and they really give some insight into what it really would be like to be a paramedic, so much so that I'd be blown away if the author never was one.
Following this first chapter, we're introduced to a priest who's performing an exorcism on a young boy, and the third chapter introduces Father Hogan, a member of a branch of the Catholic Church, the "hush hush" branch, "the paranormal part of the Catholic Church." He speaks with a woman named Mary who tells him about her wild dream with all sorts of Biblical imagery. We're then given a brief look at David's day, also first person. David is a firefighter and a friend of Adam. Following this are some interesting dreams that Mary, David and Adam have, which are some of the most intriguing portions of the book.
From here, the book goes downhill, so much so it's almost like a different writer took over. The first several chapters worked like a really interesting hook, pulling me into the meat of the story, but once I was on the line and reeled in I discovered the pain of being thrown in a cooler and left unfulfilled. Adam and David have dreams and Father Hogan speaks with a woman concerning dreams and the bible, as well as books not actually in the Bible such as the Book of Enoch (where most of the dreams focus) and additional books focused on Adam and Eve. Some of the dreams the characters have are very enlightening and fascinating, throwing the reader right into the action while others take the "one-sided dialogue where one character tells a story while the other barely opens their mouth" approach, much like almost every moment with Father Hogan.
The dreams primarily focus on 200 watchers (those in Heaven devoted to watching those on Earth) that made a pact to go to Earth, giving up their Heavenly lives to choose brides and have children despite whatever consequences may come, becoming "fallen angels." They share their knowledge with humanity, progressing our wisdom in things like gravity and outer space, and father children that become giants. Different dreams tell different tales, from the 200 making the pact to one of them talking with their wife and even how other mythologies look at the event. This story is drawn from the Book of Enoch, often referred to in the book alongside countless Bible passages and quotes. I wish the book said at some point, however, that the Book of Enoch is NOT part of the Bible or even considered canon for the vast majority of Judaism or Christianity. As it's referenced so frequently alongside Biblical passages I assumed it was a genuine book within, but it's not, and if I hadn't gone out of my way to look it up I'd still think it was indeed within the Bible.
The man speaking with his wife is perhaps the most interesting - in researching them I learned that Amun (the man in the dream) was an Egyptian diety that also was married to an Amaunet (the woman he speaks with in the dream). This is the first blend of mythology with religion and it played well. Unfortunately, this isn't always the case - I researched the name of the man in the next dream and found nothing but this book. This inconsistency makes it difficult to fully trust in the characters and concepts within. Other noteworthy dreams include Zeus rallying to battle the Titans (presumably these giants born of the "fallen angels"), Raphael battling Azazel on the backs of giant creatures and one even has someone speaking to Zeus about Noah and his building an ark, leading Zeus to make the claim that he's the one who will flood the earth to make sure no one starts following God.
The main issue with these dreams and the dialogue with Father Hogan, though, is that many of them simply aren't interesting and they can be very redundant. The story of Adam and Eve is discussed at least twice back to back, one of which comes directly from the bible and the other told from Eve's point of view. Without the added redundancy, leaving just the dream of Eve in the Garden would have been wonderful.
Because most of the book is either the dreams themselves or Father Hogan speaking, the characters themselves have no time to grow or even have a personality of their own aside from the first few chapters. Dialogue is delivered almost identically across all characters and feels flat.
Perhaps worst of all is that, although there are three different sets of dreams from three different characters, we only see a true conclusion to one. While I learned some fascinating things, this is a fiction novel that has no real plot or ending despite there being nothing hinting there will be a sequel. I really wanted a lot more closure and a lot more actual plot; as I read further and further into the book I kept expecting some sort of plot or mystery, perhaps that these "fallen angels" were around now and plotting something, or that the dreams somehow related to other events that would come to pass for our main characters, but it never happened.
Despite the fact that the book was well edited, I found some portions of the book redeeming and the book really called out to my inner nerd (nephilim is mentioned and defined, which is very similar to Nephalem from the video game Diablo III, and David and Adam mention Stargate a bit at the end of the book, and even Tesla is discussed), a lack of a real plot just kills it for me. My rating for the book is 2 out of 4 stars. Even though the book doesn't get a general recommendation from me, I would absolutely recommend it for those who enjoy theology.
******
Where Angels Play
View: on Bookshelves
Like CataclysmicKnight's review? Post a comment saying so!
