“My guardian angel is a drunk.”
Evelyn Casey’s life is at a standstill. She’s in her mid-twenties, struggling with the dating scene in San Francisco. Nothing seems to be working out, and she’s starting to think that she’ll live out her days in her crummy apartment with her overbearing roommate, Brooklyn. It’s absurd, but sometimes Evey longs for a guardian angel to show up and save the day.
And then he does. Seriously. His name is Lucian and he’s a guardian angel, been on the job for two thousand years. His sudden presence in her life is both good—he’s brilliant, witty, and warm—and bad—he’s brilliant, witty, warm, and hot as —-. But as perfect as Lucian seems, he’s got problems of his own. He’s taken up drinking and he’s brazenly inserted himself into Evey’s life, going against the greatest cosmic law ever created.
For Evey, the rules are simple: You are not allowed to hook up with your guardian angel. But sometimes fulfilling your destiny requires a leap of faith, a confrontation with God.
Yes, God as in God.
I have serendipitously discovered Renee Carlino and spent one wild weekend reading everything I could get my hands on from her. So of course when I saw an opportunity to try out her experiment I jumped at a chance. If you have read Renee’s stuff you will realize quickly that this book is a bit departure from her usual stuff. I use the word “a bit” because even though the book has a celestial/fantasy/supernatural aspect to it at the end of it all it is a DIVINE love story.
An almost Romeo and Juliet forbidden romance only in the tragedy of the tale. A Guardian Angel who has a bit of a bad boy streak to him falls in love with his Soul Charge. It was comical and tragic seeing the fast falling out of grace Lucian fall madly in love with Evey. Him learning to navigate his emotions and skating that oh so wrong line he has crossed by revealing himself to his charge. However, the events that cause their collision and everything that follows after makes me think that great loves arise from a bit of spiritual/celestial place.
There are quite a few comedic moments that give Renee artistic freedom to explain some serious things in a comedic light that I have found refreshing, such as the existence of angels. More specifically their role in the Pyramid Scheme of Life.
Even in this new genre, you can unmistakenly hear Renee’s voice. Although a voice that was a bit hesitant but playful, alas I wasn’t in LOVE with the story as much as I was with Lucian but I hope Renee keeps growing in this genre.
Renée Carlino is a screenwriter and bestselling author of contemporary women’s novels and new adult fiction. Her books have been featured in national publications, including USA TODAY, Huffington Post, Latina magazine, and Publisher’s Weekly. She lives in Southern California with her husband, two sons, and their sweet dog June. When she’s not at the beach with her boys or working on her next project, she likes to spend her time reading, going to concerts, and eating dark chocolate. Learn more at www.reneecarlino.com
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