Exile

March 15, 2013
The second installment in the paranormal-thriller series Mercy draws readers into fast-moving scenes, introduces unpredictable characters and further refines the series' underlying celestial mythology. The novel reintroduces the fallen angel Mercy, who separated from her lover, Luc, due to an unrevealed transgression and is doomed to flit between Earth and the unknown with no control over her destination. When on Earth, Mercy inhabits a human body, becoming "a rough facsimile." In this installment, Mercy subsumes Lela Neill, a Melbourne college student who is helping to care for her terminally ill mother while making ends meet by working at a local coffee shop. As with previous inhabitations, Mercy fumbles at first, figuring out her host's personality, daily routine and so on. Unlike previous "soul-jackings," though, Mercy is able to remember past experiences--in particular, those from the first book in the series, Mercy (2011)--that may be able to reunite her with Luc, although humans seem to keep getting in her way. Building on a complicated mythology that was set out in the first book, this is not for series newcomers. Nor is it for readers looking for a light escape, as violence against women is one of its themes. A page-turning sequel that moves this series forward; it should please fans of the first. (Paranormal thriller. 15-18)

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