From Booklist
In Samaria angels and mortals share a peaceful world. Guided from on high by a watchful, interactive presence, different tribes live in cities and aeries, or wander the plains by the river Galilee. One wanderer is Susannah, an Edori who loves every aspect of her life and clan, including her lover, Dathan. But when she discovers Dathan's unfaithfulness on the same evening that archangel-to-be Gaaron announces that the god has elected Susannah to be Gaaron's Angelica--his bride--she packs her bags, brokenhearted, and departs to Gaaron's aerie to discover the heart of the reserved but powerful angel leader. She befriends Gaaron's flighty sister Miriam, unknowingly providing means of escape when Miriam does something from whose consequences Garron can't protect her. Meanwhile, Samaria is mysteriously threatened by powerfully armed figures who vanish at will, leaving charred farms in their wake. Resuming her Samaria series, Shinn blends romance and sf gracefully enough to satisfy fantasy fans, too, especially if they adore Catherine Asaro or Orson Scott Card's Ships of Earth series. Roberta Johnson
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved


Book Description
Two hundred years ago, in order to keep the peace in Samaria, the god Jovah created a legion of land-dwelling angels, led by an appointed Archangel. Now, Jovah has a new appointee: Archangel Gaaron. And for his life-mate, his Angelica, Jovah has chosen a woman named Susannah. With trepidation, she bows to the will of Jovah and an unspoken affection slowly develops between the two. But there is a terrible threat besetting the land-black-clad strangers who call fire down from the sky, leaving death and destruction in their wake. And the true hearts of Archangel and Angelica may never be known, as the future of the planet hangs in the balance...


Download Description
"The national bestselling author makes her long-awaited journey back to Samaria. Two hundred years ago, the god Jovah created a legion of land dwelling angels, led by an appointed Archangel. Now, Jovah has a new appointee: Archangel Gaaron. For his life-mate, his Angelica, Jovah has chosen a woman named Susannah. Slowly, an unspoken affection develops between the two. But there is a terrible threat besetting the land-and the true hearts of Archangel and Angelica may never be known."


About the Author
Sharon Shinn is a journalist who works for a trade magazine. She is the author of eight novels, including Angelica. A graduate of Northwestern University, she has lived in the Midwest most of her life.

FROM OUR EDITORS

The Barnes & Noble Review
Sharon Shinn returns to the world of Samaria (where angels coexist with mortals) in Angelica, a prequel of sorts to her popular Archangel trilogy (Archangel, Jovah's Angel, and The Alleluia Files). The story focuses on an Edori woman named Susannah -- the reluctant angelica -- a legendary character briefly referenced in the previous Archangel novels. Taking place approximately 200 years before the events of Archangel, the main plot revolves around the awkward relationship between the Archangel elect, Gaaron, and his chosen angelica (life-mate), Susannah.

Although Susannah is quite happy traveling with her nomadic clan (and is already romantically involved with someone else), she yields to the will of Jovah and goes with Gaaron back to the angels' stronghold, the Eyrie, where the beautiful sound of singing angels can be heard day and night. But before Gaaron can spend time with his wife-to-be, he must deal with mysterious black-skinned invaders who are burning whole villages to the ground and incinerating all that live there. To make matters worse, the invaders can somehow appear and disappear at will. With more and more people being killed by the invaders and the big wedding drawing closer, Gaaron and Susannah must try to save the people of Samaria while also salvaging their tenuous relationship.

The world of Samaria is a delightful temporary escape from the all too often depressing real world. I mean, how can you go wrong on a planet filled with romance and heavenly music where winged angels watch over you? Paul Goat Allen

FROM THE PUBLISHER

"Legend has it that the original settlers of Samaria were carried there by the loving hands of the god Jovah. To keep the peace - he created a legion of land-dwelling angels, led by an appointed Archangel. Now, two hundred years later, Jovah's latest appointee is the Archangel Gaaron, whose dependability and allegiance to the people of Samaria make him a wise choice. And for Gaaron's life-mate, his Angelica, Jovah has chosen the woman Susannah, of the nomadic Edori tribe." "With trepidation, Susannah bows to the will of Jovah. For her heart is still with her people and her Edori lover, faithless though he might be." In the lofty reaches of the Angel Eyrie, an unspoken affection slowly develops between the two. The word comes to Gaaron of a terrible threat besetting the land - black-clad strangers who call fire down from the sky, leaving death and destruction in their wake.

FROM THE CRITICS

Romantic Times

Not only is this for your keeper shelf, this superbly crafted stand-alone inspires a need to get the other Samaria books. Endearing characters, meticulous world-building and a melodic whisper that threads its way throughout the narrative create a page-turning treat.

Publishers Weekly

Beautifully told, with engaging depth and richness, this stand-alone novel, the latest in Shinn's Samaria series (Archangel, etc.), will win new readers and delight existing fans. In an expansion of a folk tale briefly related in Archangel, the Edori wanderer Susannah becomes the Angelica of the archangel Gaaron, giving up her peripatetic life and her faithless lover to live with the angels. One subplot concerns the mystery of the strange men who can literally disappear and have long sticks that shoot fire and destroy entire campsites and villages. In another subplot, Gaaron's sister, Miriam, a perverse and uncontrollable mortal, goes to live with the Edori but ends up involved in something much larger when her tribe captures one of the alien men. Underneath the action lies a love story, all the more realistic for its quietness, as a homesick woman used to showing her feelings comes to love an angel used to hiding his. Threaded through the intertwining plots is the gorgeous prose music, the bright strand that links all the Samaria novels. The fantastic tone of the novel belies its SF underpinnings: Susannah's dreams of silver and glass panels evoke technology, and the dramatic conclusion, melding machine and dream, is an emotional high point. This SF-fantasy hybrid will please lovers of plot and world-building as well as romance. (Mar. 4) Forecast: Women, the obvious target for this one, will be attracted by the ethereal yet far from glamorous female figure on the jacket. A review in Romantic Times will give an extra boost. Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information.

VOYA - Beth Karpas