Until Next Time by Amy Lignor

How does a girl choose between the one who steals her heart and the one who owns her soul? Matt and Emily were created for a specific job. Raised and trained as the ultimate angel/warrior team, they are sent down to save, defend, judge and forgive, depending on the 'life' they've been assigned. What they don't realize is that the power of human emotions, such as love, anger, passion and fear can take over even the best of souls, causing them to make mistakes and follow paths that lead to confusion and heartache. 

When the reason for their training is finally revealed, the angel/warrior team find themselves thrust into a world they know nothing about. Matt takes over the life of Daniel, a young man with a great deal of baggage. Emily becomes Liz, a girl living in a remote village who relies on nothing more than her own strength to survive. A violent storm erupts one night, and framed in the window of Liz's establishment is a frightening face. Let in by the soul of a Good Samaritan, the two visitors bring with them a past full of secrets that could literally change an angel's path and a warrior's plans. 

From murder to redemption, this angel/warrior team must find a way to keep the faith they have in each other in a world that's ripping them apart.
ebook, 1st Edtion
Published February 1st 2012 by Tribute Books

Four stars: A complex story involving angels trying to redeem humanity.

Emily and Matt are an inseparable team.  Emily is the angel and Matt the warrior.  They are meant for each other, soul mates.  They live in Heaven under the protective care of some of Heaven's most famous archangels.  Michael, is their ever wise teacher, Gabriel coaches on the warrior aspects, while Francis is a loving and supportive friend.  The pair has spent their entire heavenly existence training and preparing for their missions on Earth.  Emily's job is to answer the requests of those humans in need, while Matt's mission is to eradicate the evil doers, while protecting the innocent.  As the pair readies to ascend to Earth, they learn that while in their human shells, they will not retain any of their heavenly knowledge, nor will they recognize each other on Earth.  Yet, somehow their  souls will know one another, for they are destined to be together.  Or are they?  Can Emily and Matt as humans fulfill their mission to gather information to help save humanity? Will Emily lose her heart to another? 

 

What I Liked:

• My favorite aspect of this novel was Ms. Lignor's characterization of the arch angels.  I loved meeting Michael, Gabriel and Francis as she envisions them.  They are endearing, kind, patient and caring.  They also are a bit mischievous and funny as well.  St. Francis was my favorite, I loved the way he morphed into a form compromised of animals.  I enjoyed the snippets of famous quotable quotes that kept popping up as phrases the archangels were "trying out." I loved the cameo appearance of Joseph at the end.
• I enjoyed the scenes in the Heavenly realm.  I liked seeing Ms. Lignor's ideas of Heaven.  It was a beautiful but not uptight or too religious.
• I appreciated the complex philosophical ponderings  on souls, soul mates, free will and the redemption of humanity.  There are many deep concepts presented that I enjoyed exploring.
• I liked the Earthly characters of Faith and Liz.  Liz is Emily's human form and Faith is her best friend.  These two girls are resourceful and hardworking young ladies who take care of themselves.  They have spunk and a bit of sass.  I especially love Faith, she is not afraid to take on the dragons of the upper class and she does it with style. 
• I enjoyed the two plots in the book.  One story line follows Emily and Matt in their earthly forms of Liz and Daniel, while the other is about their heavenly education and purpose as an angel and warrior.  Even though on a couple of occasions it was a bit confusing to follow the shifting scenes between Earth and Heaven, I had fun with the alternating story lines. 

And The Not So Much:

• The book opens with Emily being disillusioned by her role to protect humanity, I never learned why she was unhappy fulfilling her mission on Earth as an angel. It is discussed in the beginning and revisited at the end, as an ongoing theme for future books.  I would like to know what happened to make Emily want to push away Matt and her heavenly calling.
• I wanted to get to know Daniel (Matt) better.  At first I thought that this book would be told from a dual perspective but there is only a couple of small chapters devoted to Daniel's point of view.  I would have liked more insight on his character and actions.
• I was a little perplexed by the insta-love between Faith and Charles and even Liz and Jason.  Liz and Faith are two resourceful young ladies running a small Irish pub in the 1800's.  One stormy night the bedraggled pair, Charles and Jason pound on their door seeking shelter from the storm.  Liz lets them in, despite Faith's misgivings.  Faith and Charles fall in love instantly and the four end up running off together.  I guess I am just not a big fan of the love at first sight theme, the relationships were a little too hurried for my taste.  
• I was confused a bit over Liz's dreams and visions.  I wasn't quite sure how that all worked and why she bled and bruised during the night. I think this needed a touch more clarification.

Until Next Time, is a complex and engaging book that follows a pair of heavenly inhabitants as they endeavor to fulfill their mission on Earth, while being tutored by some amazing, celestial favorites.   Their time on Earth not only will test their will and faith in their teachings and humanity but also in each other.  Will Matt and Emily rise to the occasion and find redemption for the human race? Ms. Lignor leaves us musing on the outcome until next time....

Favorite Quotations:

"They were the color of the thin line that separated the ocean from the sky.  His gaze was that brilliant horizon that kept her steady so she wouldn't lose herself in the wide majesty of the stars, or the treacherous depths of the ocean.  Their souls were one, keeping each other on the right course, oblivious to the rest of the world."

"Even though I am sure the romantic candlelight that our kiss creates would burn through the night, I'm more the roaring inferno type."

"Your thoughts make you wise, your heart makes you strong, but your soul is who you are."

"I hope to never have a son.  I would have to hit him over the head and beg the good Lord to take him back and insert a brain."

"Some get tired of waiting and settle for less than what they really want. Their souls grow heavy and they forget what was good in the first place. They don't remember the wonderful things that they can have, the good people they can become, and the true love they can experience- so they simply settle for not being alone."

"Never settle for someone less than the one who can fulfill your soul."

"Her kiss was quick and light, like a butterfly landing on his soft cheek and then fluttering away."

A copy of this book was provided by the author in exchange for an honest review.

A big thanks to Amy for her patience and allowing me to reschedule my post due to illness.  Please come back tomorrow for a guest post and giveaway with Amy Lignor!

Comments

[cambria]

What a great review! I have seen this book on a few other blogs and I think it looks great! I will have to get a copy and read it! Thanks for sharing a great review!

[Mimi Valentine]

"A complex story involving angels trying to redeem humanity." <-- The very first sentence of your review had me hooked, Heidi! This is one of those books that I've never seen around before, but then I read an amazing review for it (yours!) and I'm craving to read it! And I love the idea of two alternating story lines in one. :)

Amazing review, Heidi! For a girl who loves her angel-books, I'm definitely excited to get my hands on this one! ;)

[FABR Steph]

Wow! Talk about love at first site. All in all, it seems like a good read. After hosting the tour and featuring it on Shelf Candy, I would like to read it. Great review.
It is good to see you back BTW.
-FABR Steph@FiveAlarmBookReviews

[Sam]

Wow! I am looking forward to starting this now. I'm glad you liked it, Heidi. And those quotes are getting me excited for this book, too. Awesome review as usual. :)

[Nicole Langan]

Heidi, I'm glad you are feeling better! Thanks a million for your review of Amy's book. I'm glad you pointed out the friendship between Liz and Faith - that's one of my favorite threads to the novel as well.

Good luck to all who enter the giveaway and thank you to everyone who left a comment :)

[rainydayramblings]

@Hi Cambria, thank you! Come back and enter to win!
@ Ahh thanks Mimi for the compliments! You are wonderful.
@Sam I hope you enjoy it. I am glad you are on the tour.
@Nicole thanks for everything!

[rainydayramblings]

@ Steph I saw this book on your shelf candy feature the cover is beautiful. Thank you! I am glad to be back!

[Natalie @ Mindful Musings]

I haven't heard a whole lot about this book yet, but I'm intrigued by the points you brought up in your review. The way the author constructed the mythology sounds interesting, and some of the quotes you pulled out definitely caught my attention.

Thanks for sharing your thoughts, and I'm glad to hear you're feeling better! :)

[rainydayramblings]

@Thank you Natalie. This book is much different than other angel books out there.

[Candace]

I don't think I've heard of this one before, but I love the cover! And the way you describe the arc angels has me curious. I feel a little burnt out on angel books but yet I do find a few that I end up really liking. So glad you mostly enjoyed it though!

And happy you're feeling better!

[Christy (Love of Books)]

Great review! I'm kind of burnt out on the Angel thing, but I'm going to add this one to my list for when I'm ready for them again. lol

[rainydayramblings]

@Candace and Christy you are both burnt out on angels...I am tired of vampires, so this was a nice departure!

[Carly @Fiction Fascination]

Great review Heidi, I really wanted to know Daniel (Matt) better too. My review will be up tomorrow with the tour stop. :)

[Amy Lignor]

Hey there! You were so kind to have Until Next Time on your site that I wanted to tell you and your readers about a HUGE event coming up that is a giveaway of cash and books!

Twitter Party
Tuesday, May 8, 2012
8 p.m. Eastern

Follow hashtag #UntilNextTime as author Amy Lignor answers your questions for 90 minutes live on Twitter. A $50 cash prize will be given to the person who has a receipt confirming an ebook purchase of Until Next Time and tweets at least once during the Twitter Party. We'll also be giving away a variety of ebooks and print books throughout the event. Let us know if you are planning to attend by tweeting @TributeBooks or @HelloWritersAmy to RSVP