Starred review from September 7, 2009
Chadda's fast-paced debut introduces 15-year-old Billi SanGreal, who is drafted into the modern remnants of the once-great Knights Templar by her fanatical, emotionally distant father, leader of the order (“How was school?” he asks while she's still “covered in slimy gore” after an exorcism). Though skilled in weaponry and educated in obscure religious history, Billi is a poor fit for the Templars: the lone girl in an otherwise all-male organization, of Muslim extraction but surrounded by Christians and lacking the unblinking ruthlessness required by the eternal war between the Knights and the forces of darkness. Nonetheless, she finds herself standing between the Angel of Death, Michael, who has become blinded by imagined glories of enforced salvation, and the multitude of innocents Michael would happily slaughter in the name of God. Scenes of spiritual warfare are gripping (and often gruesome), as is the undercurrent of supernatural romance. Chadda offers an original take on familiar creatures like vampires, the undead and fallen angels, but it's Billi's personality and tumult of emotions that will keep readers hooked. A promising beginning to both this series and Chadda's career. Ages 13–up.
November 1, 2009
Gr 8 Up-This fast-paced debut novel introduces readers to a modern London in which humanity is threatened by the hungry dead. The Knights Templar, an ancient order now operating in secret, is all that stands between the regular world and supernatural threatsand loner Billi is the only girl ever to become a member of that order. It is not a position of honor, however: her father, leader of the Order, demands ridiculously high standards without ever giving her a word of support, comfort, or love. Instead, he praises Kay, once Billi's best friend and possible love interest. She longs for a normal, simple life, which will have some readers sympathizing with her, while others more familiar with the genre will realize long before Billi does that normal is well outside her reach. Urban fantasy readers will also see plot twists before they are resolved. Chadda does an excellent job of drawing on Christian, Jewish, and Muslim folk stories to create the mythology for this world. Billi's mother's Muslim background and her father's oddly secular Christian devotion provide the book with a feeling of authenticity, as those traditions are meshed over the course of the book. The open ending leaves room for sequels, and Billi's growth makes her a more appealing narrator for future installments. "Devil's Kiss" will certainly find an audience, despite its prickly narrator."Alana Joli Abbott, James Blackstone Memorial Library, Branford, CT"
Copyright 2009 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.
October 15, 2009
Grades 7-10 Billi SanGreal has led an unusual life. The daughter of Arthur, one of the last Knights Templar, she has been raised to fight, kill, and battle the Unholy. Frankly, shed rather just be a teen. So when a handsome, tattooed guy starts showing her attention, she succumbs. Too bad hes the Angel of Death. This fast-paced thriller features plenty of blood and gore as the A of D (aka Michael the archangel) attempts to set off the Tenth Plague and kill all the firstborn in London. Meanwhile, Billis best friend, Kay, has wasted his psychic powers by showing off with King Solomons Cursed Mirror, and now all the souls trapped in the Ethereal Realm . . . well, it gets complicated. The plotting is problematic throughout. Often confusing and sometimes repetitious (the Angel of Death was working fine as an antagonist; bringing in the Devil wasnt really necessary), the story, ironically, is at its best when its exploring relationships, especially that of Billi and Arthur, who are finding the teenage years, quite literally, hell. An epic battle that is sure to spawn sequels.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2009, American Library Association.)
January 1, 2010
Battle-trained teen Billi; her cold, driven father Arthur; and her estranged friend, the psychically gifted Kay, battle the forces of evil as Templar Knights--an ancient, depleted group, but all that now stands between the exiled Angel of Death and the devastation of humankind. Chadda's supernatural world-building, steeped in dark-edged religious mythology, is compelling, and his envelope-pushing plot twists are ultimately rewarding.
(Copyright 2010 by The Horn Book, Incorporated, Boston. All rights reserved.)