Reviewed by: Sue Eaton

TITLE: Emissary

SERIES: Star Crossed Celestials Duet

AUTHOR: A.L. Morrow

PUBLISHER: Self Published

LENGTH: 294 pages

RELEASE DATE: January 25,  2023

BLURB:

The line between angel and demon is razor thin. No one knows this better than Kai.

As an Emissary of death, darkness follows Kai like a shadow, leaving him touch-starved and lonely. Tormented by the error in judgment that killed his only love, he accepts an assignment to redeem himself: hunting down the demons destroying the mortal realm. But fate takes a turn, and Kai finds himself drawn to one of his targets instead.

Demonic martial arts expert Byron Black has struggled to survive his entire life. He has fought for every breath he’s taken and each bite he’s eaten, yet in the instant when his demise finally seems inevitable, death incarnate steps forward and spares him. Kai is as beautiful as he is terrifying, and although Byron suspects the angel’s interest in him is more than it appears, he can’t stay away.

Together, the pair search for answers regarding who wants Byron dead—and why—but uncovering the truth might destroy them both in the process. Can Kai defeat his inner demons to save the one that has crawled into his bed?

REVIEW:

I really enjoyed this book about Angels and Demons.  There are different roles within the Angels and interestingly the Emissary’s appearance is different depending on the state of the soul of the person looking at them.  An innocent soul sees a beautiful man, with gorgeous black wings.  An evil soul sees a monster with vipers on the wings.  It’s one of the ways they ensure that the person they are killing is one that deserves to die.

Kai is an Emissary, an Angel of Death, whose role it is to see when someone is scheduled to die, conversely, he can see if it’s your time to die.  He has some cool powers, exhales a poisonous gas as well as his celestial sword.  Given up as a baby to become an Emissary, he has been trained and molded into the perfect killing machine, following orders as directed.  After being asked to kill the one he loved, he is wracked with guilt and sees himself as a monster whenever he looks in a mirror.

Demons live on Earth, offspring of a Human and Celestial Being.  Classed as the ultimate sin. Demons are reviled and to prevent them overrunning the earth Angels have been sent to cull them.   Are all Demons evil, violent creatures?  Are all Angels benevolent?

Byron is a Demon, skilled in Demon Martial Arts, which he uses fighting to survive and bring in some money to support his family.  He appears to be an anomaly as he is kind and innocent.  When Kai is tasked with killing Byron, despite knowing that it isn’t Byron’s time to die.  Kai resolves to find out more about Byron to find out what he is guilty of.  Why has the Chancellor ordered Byron’s death.

As Kai protects Byron and they set out to find out why he has been selected to die, they get closer to each other.  They both struggle with their attraction for different reasons, Kai sees it through his guilt and Byron sees it through his low self esteem and that all Demons are hunted and hated.

It was lovely to see them both overcome their insecurities and forge a relationship between them. But can they sustain a relationship when it seems the whole world is against them?  The courage and bravery they both show, their faith in each other and what they are trying to overcome and that opposites attract, especially when those opposites are so extreme.

I enjoyed the twists and turns of this book and rooted for Kai and Bryon from the start, and I was so pleased they had a happy ending.

RATING:

BUY LINK: 

Amazon