The Emissary 3: Love Hurts by @MarciaMeara #UrbanFantasy #TuesdayBookBlog

Author: Marcia Meara

Published: August 2020

Category: Urban Fantasy, Book Review

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The archangel Azrael created his emissaries to help mortals avoid choices that would doom them for eternity. He hadn’t planned on the youngest member of the team falling in love with one. In Marcia Meara’s final installment of her Emissary Trilogy, a Riverbend spinoff series of novellas, we find our heroes facing a new problem, and it’s all because Dodger died before having a chance to learn what love was all about. His request that Azrael help him correct that situation causes a multitude of problems no one could have foreseen. Except the angel, himself.

In Love Hurts we catch up with Jake and Dodger, both of whom have been given a second chance at life as emissaries for the Archangel Azrael. Azrael is in the process of building an army of emissaries to assist the angels in their quest to help troubled souls, despite the continued opposition from some of the members of the Council of Angels. 

Jake was Azrael’s first recruit after he drowned saving someone’s life, closely followed by Dodger, whose young life ended abruptly in a deserted alley in Atlanta. To outside appearances they looked as they always had, but now were immortal and endowed with special powers. Much to Dodger’s disappointment, his mortal life came to an end without him having ever felt loved or found that special person. It was something he would dearly love to experience. He knew Jake loved him as a father and those feelings were reciprocated, but being in love was a whole different thing.

Although Azrael wasn’t really familiar with the needs of humans he let himself be persuaded to give Dodger the chance to find what he’s looking for, but only if he follows the rules and guidelines laid down which must not be broken under any circumstances. Azrael knew, however, that this would be far from plain sailing.

Azrael—who freely admitted his concept of emissaries to the angels was so new, he had to make up the rules as he went along—understood the boy’s fervent desire. After all, one of the things that would allow his emissaries to excel at their jobs was that they, unlike angels, had lived their lives as mortals. They had a perspective on all aspects of being human that angels did not, which Azrael believed would make a vast difference in how they related to the very people they were trying to help.

Jake and Dodger, although getting more proficient, are still on a learning curve, as is Azrael, but all are adjusting and their relationships are growing ever stronger. However, that doesn’t stop Azrael appearing mischievously and in spectacular fashion, when Jake especially least expects it. Lessons, some harder than others, are learned on all sides as Dodger sets about trying to fulfil his ambition.

I’ve enjoyed this trilogy very much, with the mixture of light hearted, fun moments as well as more serious ones. Marcia Meara’s natural, easy writing style is very evident and the emotional content is strongly felt as always. Well drawn, empathetic and engaging characters round everything off nicely.

Book links ~ Amazon UK | Amazon US

About the Author

When not writing or blogging, she spends her time gardening, and enjoying the surprising amount of wildlife that manages to make a home in her suburban yard. She enjoys nature. Really, really enjoys it. All of it! Well, almost all of it, anyway. From birds, to furry critters, to her very favorites, snakes. The exception would be spiders, which she truly loathes, convinced that anything with eight hairy legs is surely up to no good. She does not, however, kill spiders anymore, since she knows they have their place in the world. Besides, her husband now handles her Arachnid Catch and Release Program, and she’s good with that.

Spiders aside, the one thing Marcia would like to tell each of her readers is that it’s never too late to make your dreams come true. If, at the age of 69, she could write and publish a book (and thus fulfill 64 years of longing to do that very thing), you can make your own dreams a reality, too. Go for it! What have you got to lose?

Marcia’s social media links ~ The Write Stuff | Bookin’ It | Twitter | Facebook | Goodreads