Title : Angelology
Author : Danielle Trussoni
Genre : (Mythological) Fantasy
Pages : 452
Publisher : Viking Penguin
Rating : 3.5/5

You might say “don’t judge a book by its cover”, but I did. It looked so intriguing – a large “angel” wing attached to a human (?) body. Yes, this is fantasy, and I was under no impressions that I was getting anything else. It read like a more intricate and elaborate extension of “The Da Vinci code”; a mystical interpretation of Biblical words.

The premise is fascinating enough. Angelology, as one might guess is the study of angels. This novel deals with the “fallen” angels, the not so good ones, the ones who had to be punished because they mated with humans and spawned a hybrid – half-human and half-angel – called the Nephilim. The beautiful Nephilim are a cruel race, almost moral-less by human standards. Physically stronger, better looking and immortal, they remain incognito (their large, luminous wings can be conveniently retracted) and appear to be tall, elegant, beautiful human specimens to the world.

The Nephilim are powerful in the present day, having infiltrated influential families and organizations. However because of cross-breeding, they are losing their physical prowess and beauty, and becoming susceptible to human diseases and frailities. Their only hope to regain the much valued angelic purity lies in a mystical object, closely guarded by Angelologists across generations. The book details out the battle between the Nephilim and Angelologists, when Sister Evangeline, a 23 year old nun, realizes that it is up to her to save the earth from being overrun by these angelic monsters.

Trussoni shores up her novel with rather grand events. The story spans generations and world events, encompassing World War II and the onslaught of the Nazis. The way the story sits together seems a little too orderly – the Angelologists seem to be such a dedicated and meticulous bunch that I wish they ran the world economy instead of the current governments. But apart from that, it is the author’s imagination and quite an interesting one – grain of salt required or not.

What I did find jarring was Trussoni’s dry, clipped, almost clinical descriptions of events. Her language seems to not have any of the flow or the “dreaminess” required to explain fantastical phenomena like angels or the Nephilim. Since many of the characters in the book sport wings and un-humanly characteristics, I was devouring the pages just to get a better understanding of the Nephilim world. However the narrative fragments into a meandering search, and Trussoni has trouble keeping the pace up, at least on paper – I can so see this as a movie (the angel wings would make great visuals).

The characters in the book are fleshed out inadequately; I had a hard time viewing them as “real” people and understanding their thoughts and reasoning. Also the whats and the whys are pretty hazy. Lots of ether-y, sophisticated sounding mumbo-jumbo appears in the text. I wish that the moorings of the story had been better grounded, rather than having this up-in-the-air feel – it’s all really just one big whiff of smoke. And really, I’m OK with fantastic conjecture (after all, how wonderful to be able to share someone’s totally wild imagination!) except when coupled with clunky writing as it is here. So while I started this novel with excitement I had a hard time finishing it – the last few pages took forever, and I must say that it is the lackluster verbosity of the book that made it so. Trussoni’s amateurish word-play is a little unexpected; this is her second book, the first being the much acclaimed “Falling Through the Earth” (and I haven’t read that).

The novel peters out on an open-ended , anti-climactic note, one that calls out for a sequel (apparently Trussoni is working on one). This was an average read, not spectacular, and in my view, inferior to “The Da Vinci code”, which while not purporting to be literature itself, did what it tried to do, well – i.e.; be a fast-paced, commercial suspense novel with mythological origins.