Broken by Marianne Curley

Bloomsbury, 2014. ISBN 9781408822616
(Age 13+) Deep inside, Ebony has always known she was not just an ordinary girl. But when she discovers that she was taken from her mysterious home planet and hidden on Earth, her life is shattered. The only thing that keeps her grounded is Thane, a Seraphim Prince, an angel and the love of her life and her friend; Jordan who she knows loves her too. When Thane is arrested and taken away to her home planet, Ebony is lost and yearns to travel to him, no matter the distance. But Jordan, who has agreed to a deadly deal, tries to keep her from running to him. On top of that, Ebony has found out more about her unshakeable past from a surprising source which leaves her torn between her future and the one she loves.
Broken the sequel to Hidden appeared to be a tantalizing read. I genuinely wanted to delve into the depths of this story and find myself surrounded by beautiful literature. But this book was not the case. I desperately wanted to get into this book but the writing style and characters let me down. Before I criticize, I truly liked the plotline. The subject of angels isn't very common in young adult literature and I felt that Marianne Curley did a great job in playing out heavenly angels with a modern twist. The writing style, though was what stopped me become invested into this book as it was very basic and the beautiful imagery that should encompass a story was bare. The characters were very monotonous and I couldn't put myself in their shoes as I wasn't able to empathize with them.
What appeared to be an interesting read became an appealing storyline but with no spark. Readers who would be interested in delving deep into other angel-esque books would enjoy both series, Penryn and the End of Days by Susan Ee and Fallen by Lauren Kate.
Samantha May (Student)