Reviewed by: Sue Eaton

TITLE: A Beginners Guides to Revenge, Chaos and Other Absurd Escapades

SERIES: Demonic Disasters and Afterlife Adventures

AUTHOR: Shannon Mae

PUBLISHER: Self Published

LENGTH: 246 pages

RELEASE DATE: October 30, 2023

BLURB:

Arioch:
Arioch loves his job; creating chaos and encouraging revenge is fun, and if he pranks a few demons, angels, and humans along the way, all the better. When an archangel shows up with a message from god, Arioch knows he ought to take it seriously, but what’s the fun in that? Michael, the human he’s supposed to help, takes everything seriously enough for both of them, and Arioch is determined to teach the guy how to have a little fun with life. If he starts to fall for the human along the way, well, another human-demon pairing can only cause more chaos, which is definitely Ari’s specialty. Now he just has to convince Michael that although the two of them are polar opposites, they actually work perfectly together.

Michael:
Michael has been the dependable, practical older brother his entire life; he took the weight of the world on his shoulders when he was too young to realize how heavy the burden would be. If he can guarantee happiness for his siblings, that will be enough for him, even if all he can see in his own future is loneliness. However, when Michael realizes that someone from the afterlife lied to him and attempted to cause his family harm, he is determined to do something about it. With the help of a certain demon, maybe he can figure out who targeted his family and get a little revenge. He’ll just have to refrain from killing the demon that is messing up his perfectly ordered existence. When the cheerful prankster actually starts looking attractive to Michael, maybe he’ll finally step out of his comfort zone and find out how fun chaos can actually be.

Tags: Michael is serious about revenge, and Arioch isn’t serious about anything; opposites attract; maybe being impractical for once in his life won’t kill Michael (and if it does, at least he’ll have a demon to keep him company in the afterlife); meddling families are annoying; Michael has never done that before, but Arioch would be happy to show him how it all works.

REVIEW:

I loved this book, it is fun and lighthearted, a nice easy read with a great storyline.  It follows on from book 1 in this series with Michael determined to right the wrong that he nearly did.

Michael is staid and singled minded with his focus being on raising his siblings since their parents died when he was 7.  He has been labelled a stick in the mud and hasn’t really connected with anyone outside his family and that relationship is more parental than brotherly.  He likes to plan and research all facets to understand what he needs to do; this has helped in his job as a Police Detective but not so much in his private life.  After the events with Gabe and Az, in book 1, Michael decides that being a rule follower all his life hasn’t helped and in fact has led him to nearly make the biggest mistake of his life.  Throwing caution to the wind, he decides to summon a demon to help him get the revenge he desperately needs.

Ari, Demon of Chaos, and Revenge, you’d expect him to be all fire and brimstone wreaking havoc on those you want revenge on.  The reality is, he is a fun-loving demon, causing chaos in his wake, pulling practical jokes on demons and angels alike.  He is flighty and easily distracted but he has no malice and has a humorous, joyful outlook on life.

Michael and Ari couldn’t be more opposite, but as the saying goes opposites attract.  Ari is determined to loosen Michael up and get him out of his staid controlled and ordered life.  Michael keeps trying to rein Ari in.  It was lovely to see Michael lose a bit of his control and start to have fun, laugh and be a bit silly with Ari.  It was also nice to see that they both instinctively understood what the other needed.  Ari is used to people getting annoyed with him as his silliness and pranks grate on them.  Michael is used to being hyper focused and called boring.  Michael finds Ari amusing and doesn’t get annoyed and wants to spend time with him.  Ari finds Michaels need to research amusing and is happy to indulge this aspect of Michaels personality.  When Michael he isn’t as straight as he assumed, Ari is happy to explore this new reality with him.

As the investigation into which Archangel lied to Michael and the nefarious reason behind that lie continues.  Both Ari and Michael start to wonder if they can continue with their relationship once the investigation is over.  Are they soul mates?  Or are they destined to part?

A lovely romance with an added supernatural mystery to solve.

RATING:

BUY LINKS: 

Amazon