Of Love and Evil (The Songs of the Seraphim)

Like the first book, I found this one very enjoyable. I thought the adventure back in time was even more engrossing here than in Angel Time. However, like the first book, I felt the adventure was too truncated. I'm used to Rice really delving into detail and emotion and I thought this adventure was sadly slight. It was still entertaining, I just felt could have been expanded. It ended on such a startling moment that I am anxious for a continuation of this series though after so many years I'm not sure if I should expect that. Overall, a worthy follow-up and a good read.

Wikipedia can be a questionable source, but assuming it's information on this author is valid, I can tell this book was written during her return to the faith. There is a strong parallel between her and the main character. Toby is an ex-assassin, wanting to turn over a new leaf, so now he's solving mysteries for angels.
I can feel Rice's sense of unnecessary and exaggerated guilt, if there is any, through the experiences of Toby. It's a good book, but upon finishing it, I'm thinking, that's it? I guess so; it's the first novella I've read.
The ending is open for a sequel, but if Rice is now claiming to be secular humanist, there might not be one.

Malchiah the angel takes former government assassin Toby O'Dare with him on the latter's second case to right historical wrongs (see Angel Time). This time he is sent back to the era of Pope Leo X in the Holy City of Rome. There he is find out what led to an angry dybbuk spirit haunting modern day Manhattan.

Apparently in the realm of the Medici, a Jew has been accused of devilish witchcraft and murder by poison. He investigates the homicide and the accusations, which to a killing peer like Toby smells so Medici. At the same his mind wanders back to the recent revelation that he sired a son whom he just met in New York. The simple case turns darker and uglier as Toby finds himself in danger from diabolical adversaries back in fifteenth century Rome and twenty-first century Manhattan.

The second Songs of Seraphim is a terrific Christian historical metaphysical thriller. Toby is a stronger protagonist than when he worked the Angel Time case as the audience learns somewhat of his mortal past. Fast-paced in both eras, Of Love and Evil shows Anne Rice at her best as she effortlessly guides readers back and forth between the six-centuries ago past, Roby's human period, and modern day New York in an entertaining tale.

Harriet Klausner

Well, if there were half stars, I would give this book 3.5 stars only to say that I think it was slightly better than the first one in this series. What I loved about Anne Rice's previous books is the delving into the psyche of tortured individuals to the extent that we can sympathize with characters who are deeply flawed while having a clear plot line. While she attempts to do the same with the main character here (Toby) it feels too rushed and it just makes it much more unbelievable. While she does get into Toby's psyche, the storyline itself is weak. I think it would have made more sense to put both books together (and the next one) into one single novel to complete the development of the main character. To break the story up into separate books disrupts the flow of the main plot. I guess at the end of the day, I will probably read the third book, because the cliffhanger is intriguing, but overall, I wouldn't put this under the category "couldn't put the book down".

What happened here? The first book in this series wasn't perfect, for sure, and this certainly had potential...but what, exactly, did Ms. Rice do?

We were spared, mercifully, the pages and pages of emo at the beginning, and instead got right into the story...which was short, but not bad. As for the rest, instead of emo, we get an overabundance of religiosity and so much sweety-sweetness from Rice's horribly dull angels that we go into sugar-shock. The demon in this is so laughable it's not even funny (like that pun ;) ). Seriously, this seems like an attempt by the author to convince us that the flaws in the whole guardian-angel-who-always-watches-over-everyone thing (just talk to any victim of violent crime...) aren't really flaws; it's really quite sad, because she chooses to ignore the more rational arguments and instead focus, rather pathetically, on more abstract and new age arguments. This is one of those cases where it's better to leave the topic alone rather than try to convince the reader with a bad argument.

Another point that seemed off in this book was the things Toby notices. He meets a new angel (well, that's what he thinks) and immediately notices his beautiful eyes and "full lips", and "attractive" manner. How many guys think in terms like that about other guys? For that matter, who thinks like that at all?

All in all, the time travel part of this book was a 4 out of 5 points -- very short, but interesting. The rest, with very few exceptions, is 0. Overall, I give it 1 star for being, frankly, lame.

The best part about the book is that it dovetails so beautifully with the prior volume and gives you comfort and context. The subplot is also more interesting (to me) than the prior book. You learn more about the type of universe in which the story takes place, you get more excited to hear what's next. You get that lush language that the author uses to lull you from page to page until you wake up facing a cliff-hanger at the last... and now you're waiting for the next book, with the rest of us. Also, enjoy knowing there's no more serious religious speculation in these books than there is in television's 'Supernatural' series. ;)

This book was such a good read! I honestly couldn't put it down. I finished it in half the time of Angel Time. I do think you should read the first in the series though. This is a great stand alone novel but I think it would make a more enjoyable read go read them in order.
As always Ann Rice transportation to other times and places and puts you so in contact with her characters. I highly recommend this book. I can't wait for the next one!

I started _Of Love and Evil_ with modest expectations. I'd been underwhelmed with the previous SONGS OF THE SERAPHIM novel, Angel Time: The Songs of the Seraphim, Book One. I'm also increasingly annoyed with the trend toward publishing extremely slender books in hardcover. As it turns out, I was pleasantly surprised by _Of Love and Evil_. (I still think it makes a pretty skinny hardcover, though, at 192 pages.)

When we last saw Toby O'Dare, he had just learned that, ten years previous, his girlfriend Liona had given birth to his son. As _Of Love and Evil_ opens, Liona brings Toby junior to California. Toby gets to see his old love again and meet his son for the first time. He'd love to spend more time with this newfound family, but the angel Malchiah has another mission for him.

Toby is sent to Renaissance Rome, where he is needed to unravel a mystery. The "case" Toby needed to solve in _Angel Time_ was relatively simple, as was its solution. This one is more complex. There's more than one thing going on here: a young man taken mysteriously ill, and a restless spirit haunting a house. The answers are not so cut-and-dried, and Toby faces the possibility of making a tragic mistake. His newfound faith is tested by someone eager to exploit his uncertainties and doubts. The more nuanced nature of the plot makes this a more satisfying read than _Angel Time_, as does the fact that it's clearer in this book why Toby in particular was chosen for this assignment. Only someone who knew poisons and could play the lute would do.

Two scenes in particular stand out for their beautiful writing and emotional resonance. One takes place at an elegant party, where Toby is mesmerized by an array of earthly delights; the imagery is dreamlike and yet a sense of urgency looms in the background because we know Toby is in danger of making a huge mistake. The other is the pub scene just before Toby returns to our own time; it's a gorgeous scene revolving around music and divine love. These passages show that Anne Rice is still a master of description, and they remind me why I was once such a devoted fan of hers in the first place.

She does still have the habit of latching on to a particular word or phrase and hammering it excessively, rather like she used to do with phrases like "Dark Trick." The quotation "world enough and time" is one example of this -- as is, oddly, the word "caviar" (it's relevant to the plot, but it still feels overused). There are also a few sections that feel preachy, particularly Toby's theological discussion with his guardian angel upon returning to the present.

I'm still not sure I "know" Toby as a character, but it's starting to seem like that's the point. He doesn't know himself either, not yet. He has spent years shutting away his emotions and spiritual aspirations and now is trying to redefine himself. His diction may prove distracting to some readers -- it's hard to imagine a 28-year-old man of our time speaking this formally -- but one gets used to it after a while. And besides, Rice is better at elevated speech than at trendy speech, so she's playing to her strengths by characterizing Toby in this way.

Despite some flaws, _Of Love and Evil_ is far more compelling than I expected. It ends with a terrific hook for the next book, and for the first time in some years I find myself eagerly awaiting an Anne Rice novel.

Anne Rice's second installment in her Songs of the Seraphim series is titled Of Love and Evil. Protagonist Toby O'Dare returns and is sent on an assignment back to Rome in the 16th century. The story is imaginative and entertaining, and very brief, coming in at under two hundred pages. I recall that Rice's vampire novels were longer and more intricately written. I felt that this novel was more like a chapter in her early novels. Perhaps the dark side was easier to expand than the stories of angels. The early part of this novel refers back to the first in the series, and a cliffhanger ending prepares readers for a sequel. Those readers who started the series will enjoy spending a short while with the second. First time readers can sample here, and move back if interested. This is light entertainment that the author seems to be dribbling out in small installments.

Rating: Two-star (Mildly Recommended)

Toby O'Dare, former contract killer, repented of his old ways in "Angel Time" first book in the Songs of the Seraphim series. Part of his new life demands penance for the evil done in his career as a contract killer by saving the life, or lives, of innocent people wrongly accused of crimes. In this novel, he is transported back in time to Rome, in response to the desperate prayers of a Jewish physican named Vitale. The Roman Catholic church is firmly established under the rule of the Pope and the Jews, while required to wear yellow symbols identifying themselves as Jews, are free of persecution, but must live with the realization their security can vanish in a mob-defined minute, as Vitale well knows.

Vitale has a two-fold problem. The first is the son of his patron is dying and he can't find out why. He's under a growing cloud of suspicion from the patient's brother and some of the priests that Vitale has cast spells on the young man. Adding weight to the accusations is the well-known fact that the house that is owned by his patron and inhabited by Vitale is haunted by a spirit--the crashes and loud footfalls can be heard outside on the street. It is into this situation that Toby is thrust. He must determine the truth about Vitale's patient and the reason behind the restless spirit that haunts the house in order to prevent Vitale becoming a victim of personal and political jealousies.

But political intrigue and possible murder in ancient Rome aren't Toby's only problems. Toby may be forgiven of his previous life, but the consequences of his murders reverberate into his new life, with the potential of drawing in the very people he wants to protect. Anne ends the book with a quite the cliffhanger into the next novel.

"Of Love and Evil" is much shorter than the first book in the series and I'm not sure that's a good thing. Much of the conflict resolution happens fairly quickly--almost too fast. While I liked the twists and turns that occurred within the novel, I wish several of them had taken longer to develop.

This book was provided free through the store's Vine Program.

Can a once brokenhearted, life-shattered boy, as a grown man turned life-weary assassin, find redemption and even love as an angel-helper and serial answerer of prayers? If he's Toby O'Dare, Anne Rice `s intriguing lute playing musician-hero introduced to us first in `Angel Time' he certainly can.

In volume two of the `Songs of the Seraphim' series, entitled `Of Love and Evil' the angel Malchiah again whisks Toby through the Heavenly corridors of `angel time' to the defense of a dying brother and his personal physician in fifteenth century Rome. The physician is accused of witchcraft and if Toby's not in time, may face a murder charge as well. Toby not only must attempt to save a life and clear another man's name, he must also soothe (if he can...) a raging dybbuk, an agitated, and violent spirit on the haunt.

Toby may meet up with new and challenging aspects of the supernatural in `Of Love and Evil' but he also encounters the depths of his own heart. As he meets for the first time his own likeness in the shape of a ten-year-old present-time son and reunites with the woman, (the love of his life) that his son calls mother. He must feasibly devise a way to be a quality part of their lives and still attend his past-amending prayer answering duties.

If you are already an Anne Rice fan you will of course relish the lush historical landscape and the poignant tale telling that you are most accustomed to. You will realize with immediacy the voice that has taken you to impossible places and made them attainable.. That same voice which again has comfortably widened its scope to take you even farther than the confines of time and the dimensions the earth has to show us at any given moment. If you are new to Rice's work, you may be instantly pleased to have discovered an emotive author whose obsessions are woven tightly into enchanting, outlandish and very successful tapestries.

Either way, `Of Love and Evil' is a must have for any discerning reader. Anne Rice as an individual and as an author has an uncanny ability to unite people on her own uniquely universal plain. And by page one, you want to be a part of it.

I was underwhelmed. Although Anne Rice's tonal style is still very much in effect, the plot and characters were lackluster this time around, and I couldn't get myself to care about them. The fact that this book is relatively short for Rice (at under 200 pages) doesn't help; there is not enough to get me hooked. In the end, I still consider myself a casual fan of Rice's work, but her ping-ponging from vampires and occult themes to more spiritual ones has me wondering whether this may have dulled her sharper storytelling instincts.

This is the second in the series that started with Angel Time. I enjoyed Angel Time for the most part, though I liked the first half of the book more than the story within a story in the second half.

This review contains *** SPOILERS *** for the 1st book Angel Time:

In Angel Time Toby, the professional assassin, meets with an Angel and starts out on the road of repentance and gives his life story. As part of his reparation he is helping an Angel to answer prayers and is taken back in time to help a Jewish family in time of persecution of Jews by Catholics.

In "Of Love and Evil" Toby continues on his journey in reparation and repairing the mistakes of his past. The first part of the book is quite good in relating his spiritual life as he realizes he can actually love and not be the walking dead emotionally he had been during his years as a assassin. Once again he goes on a journey in Angel Time to help answer the prayers of a Jewish man, this time during the reign of Pope Julius II. I frankly don't get the point of this theme running through the series thus far in relating persecution of the Jewish people by Catholics. Maybe this theme will explain itself later -- but so far it seems to me more like an ax-to-grind than a thematic element. Though she presents this era as being much friendlier to the Jewish people, at least in Rome -- though details a horrid story plucked from history in another city in a previous decade. Plus of course the reality is that such persecution did exist historically.

Regardless I found much to like in this continuation of the story which showed spiritual growth, fighting temptation, development in love, and the kind of plot developments adding tension to the story where you want to see how it all pans out in the next book.

Considering Anne Rice's Facebook fit where she "quite Christianity" it is hard to match what she said since then with what she writes in this book. This book no doubt was written prior to this happening. It is especially ironic considering the last chapters in this book that are really quite solid from a Catholic point of view especially in regards to being in communion with the Church and wanting to receive the Holy Eucharist. The spiritual dimension of the book is far from being wonky and offer much in the way of the spiritual dimension of the Church, the reality of evil, and the necessity to resist evil. New-agey spiritual blather is rightly mocked in this book and there was much in it I found highly ironic considering the authors breakup with the Catholic Church. She could take some advice from some of the things said in the book. Though it did once again remind me that she is much sharper and wiser than the Facebook post she wrote and to continue to pray for her to be able to separate the secular dogmas from what was delivered to us in the Gospels and Sacred Tradition.

I am hoping for a continuation in the series that hopefully is not poisoned by the straw man view of Christianity she railed against.

Acclaimed author of thirty books, Anne Rice returns with a sparkling new celestial novel. No vampires or witches, "Of Love and Evil" is rather, a quiet look at Archangel Malchiah, and his noble charge Toby, and their mission back into the medieval past. Back into ancient Rome. Former government assassin Toby O'Dare has a reunion in southern California with the woman he deserted 10 years ago. And a reunion with his 10-year-old son. A son he never knew he had. A strong, aching love captures Toby's heart. Here is the lover and potential family he fled. Now he needs that family. A lot. Malchiah explains: "Consider what's already happened. By the love you now share, you're already transformed. In this brief visit you've altered the course of Liona and Toby's lives forever. You'll never go a day without knowing you have them, and that they need you.They will never have a moment without knowing they have your love." But no time for this now: Malchiah and Toby's guardian angel transport Toby back to 15th-Century Rome. Back to the time of Michelangelo and Raphael...and devils...Toby must channel his loving energy into a tortured, frantic soul, Vitale, who is haunted by persecutions of poisoning, and followed by a ghost called a dybbuk. Malchiah tells Toby that he is: "one who is imperturbable and can bring consolation to the troubled with music". Anne Rice's Songs of the Seraphim series began with last year's "Angel Time" and now brings "Of Love and Evil". Called metaphysical thrillers, she is working on the third book. In July, Anne Rice announced on Facebook that she was through with Christianity. "For those who care, and I understand if you don't: I quit being a Christian. I'm out. I remain committed to Christ, but not to being "Christian". I'm an outsider." This complex, evolving writer-artist is happily here for us all to enjoy. And learn from. And by the way, she's not really quiting. No. She's just getting started.

Having read the first novel in this series, I was thrilled to read this one. This is the second novel in a planned series by Anne Rice, who in recent years has reconnected with her Catholic upbringing. She has written a series, which I have not read yet, about Jesus. And now she is creating a series about angels and absolution. The first book in the series bears a bit of a hokey title, that isn't so hokey once you learn what the story is about - Angel Time. Of the two books in the series that I have read now, the first one was definitely the best.

Of Love and Evil picks up where Angel Time left off. We are immersed in the life, longing, and regrets of Toby O'Dare, a reformed contract killer. Shortly into the story, Toby reconnects with the girlfriend of his former life and the son they share - one that he was unaware of until the angel told him that he had a son. He knows he is needed for another mission for the angel Malchiah and has his reunion cut short by the mission. Just as he had been thrust back in time in Angel Time, he is again thrust back in time to work hard to right a great wrong. This one seems insurmountable, creating a truly suspenseful tale.

I'm not entirely sure what genre this book fits into. Perhaps fantasy? Given some of the fantasy reading I have read recently, I can see that it can be flexible genre that doesn't just involve elves, fairies, vampires, and sword play. It can also involve stories of the bizarre and supernatural with roots in the present. This story most definitely fits the latter.

This story was an excellent and suspenseful tale. Beautifully created by Anne Rice, who gives description without inundating the reader with it - subtle description brought this story to life. This book would appeal to anyone who likes well written fiction be it contemporary or fantasy. It has earned keeper status on my shelf.

This book has a very religious undertone, which is okay in and of itself. However the book itself doesn't have many layers of story and plot that we normally see in an Anne Rice series. If you are expecting something in line with the vampire or witch series you will be disappointed.

"Of Love and Evil"
By Anne Rice
Release Date December 1st, 2010
Knopf Publishers, New York
$24.95

The second novel in Anne Rice's ambitious and brave new saga, The Songs of the Seraphim, is even more intriguing and captivating than the first installment, Angel Time. What the novel lacks in bulk (perhaps the shortest novel from Rice yet, a mere 192 pages) it makes up with mystery, horror and the ultimate quest for redemption.

In Angel Time, former hit-man for hire Toby O'Dare is shown the error of his ways. Realizing that Hell is closer than ever, he is given the chance to begin making atonements when a seraph (a hierarchy of Angels) called Malchiah appears to him and presents Toby with a mission to set him on the path of the righteous.

Originally from New Orleans (a common local in Rice's writing), O'Dare has not seen the city since a tragic event drove him from it ten years prior. Now, Liona Carpenter, his great love from the Crescent City comes to San Juan Capistrano, California bearing a gift for Toby that will change his life forever. In addition to Liona, Toby also begins to interact with his guardian angel, Shamarya.

But Toby's work is far from over. After an ever so brief visit, Toby must send Liona away and prepare for his next mission. Almost reluctantly, Toby is sent to fifteenth-century Rome to answer the prayers of Vitale, a Jew living in Rome in a house belonging to a wealthy Gentile, Signore Antonio. The house is haunted by a dybbuk (a possessing spirit believed to be the dislocated soul of a dead person in Jewish folklore). Vitale is also being accused of poisoning one of Signore Antonio's sons, Niccolo. Toby must set out to discover what is slowly killing Niccolo and what is haunting the home meant for Niccolo and his future bride.

But along the way, Toby meets a mysterious man who will do anything in his power to stop Toby from saving Niccolo and setting free the dybbuk.

Beautiful and haunting, Of Love and Evil is just as epic as the title suggests. It's like reading Mary Shelley or Edgar Allan Poe before your bedtime prayers and knowing that someone or something is always watching. It's an entrancing and haunting novel where the horror and the mystery aren't presented in an "in your face" blatant manner; the story, like those of the above mentioned authors, relies more on human intervention and interaction than it does the actual supernatural element.

It also brings into question what evil is? Was the House in The Fall of the House of Usher to blame for the occupants woes or were its occupants the true evil who brought the woes upon themselves? Was the Creature in Frankenstein the real monster or was Dr. Frankenstein the true monster for creating it. Was Turn of the Screw a ghost story or a mystery? Is evil just pure evil because it has been and always will be, or is it that man creates and fuels the evil?

In Of Love and Evil, Toby must sort out what is good and what is evil and look within himself for the power to overcome his own personal demons. Along the way, he discovers just how far people will go for love and he begins the internal struggle to bring his personal love for Liona to the surface.

But of course, what would any good book be without a cliffhanger? Of Love and Evil leaves us with one and when I asked Anne Rice about it she responded,

"I can't resist ending with a cliffhanger. I believe life goes on, that life is always sliding out and beyond the fixed frame of the novel."

Well, I'm hooked.

Anne Rice has famously returned to her belief in God, while also famously--perhaps infamously--renouncing her attachment to Christianity, at least in regards to the social and cultural trappings that have become part of that name. As a man who aims to follow God's will each day (and often fails), I understand Anne's frustrations. I may not always agree with her, but I certainly admire her commitment to writing stories that reflect her faith.

"Of Love and Evil" once again puts us in the mindset of Toby O'Dare, a former professional assassin who now tries to carry out angelically-directed assignments. These missions take him back into history, through the use of Angel Time, the outside-of-time that is the realm of angels...and demons, too. Toby finds this out firsthand when he encounters not only old friends but new enemies, while working within the time-frame of fifteenth-century Rome. Jews and Catholics are at odds, a family is hounded by secrets from the past, and Toby must step in and use his knowledge of poisons and his gift with music to assuage the souls of those around him. In so doing, he must also deal with his own love for his former girlfriend and the son they had together.

As stories go, this is a thin plot and a waif of a novel--especially if you're plunking down $25 for it. Nevertheless, the prose is elegantly rendered, and the biblical themes are laced into the narrative with humility and beauty. Rice does a nice job of dealing with spiritual issues such as free will, evil, angels and demons, and the inner wrestling with sin and temptation. She boldly expresses, through Toby O'Dare, a belief in God that is beautiful and divine, while also eminently relatable and human. She marries a reverence for the rituals of Catholicism with an honor for the suffering of the Jews. Through her flawed protagonist, she exemplifies the restoration and unity that is integral to true Christianity--whether she claims that title or not--and I look forward to the next story in her Songs of the Seraphim.

No one is better than Anne Rice at combining history, adventure, and romance with the supernatural. She continues to exercise those skills in the second book of a series about a former assassin turned field agent for an angel. This time the hero travels to old Rome and discovers that demons are as real as angels. Some important spiritual ideas are considered here in the context of a suspenseful thriller. Mrs. Rice also remains in a league of her own when it comes to blurring the lines of sexual orientation and gender expectations in a way that reflects real human thought and feeling more honestly than most writers can express. It takes more balls than most can manage. Fans will only be disappointed by the brevity of this story.
Michael Travis Jasper, Author of the Novel "To Be Chosen"

Such a wonderful continuation of the series! This book continues the story of Toby O'Dare, a former assassin who is trying to make things right not only within the present, but within the past as well. Again, the historical aspect that was incorporated into the story was wonderful. I could feel the emotions that went through the book as I did with Angel Time, and I loved the connection between Toby and the people he was helping in the past. One of my favorite parts of the story was Ankanoc coming and trying to steer Toby away from his task. Anne was really able to bring back the struggle between Heaven and Hell/Good and Evil with Ankanoc's temptation of Toby and Malchiah saving him. While Toby found his way back to God and made confession to a priest, the book ended on a cliffhanger, and I can only hope that there will be another book in the series.

This second writing of Anne's, Angels of the Seraphim, series for me is much better than Angel Time.

It is more simply written, which per Anne in one of her video blogs/interviews, is a harder thing to do and is a quality that she continually strives for in her writing.

And if you think that because the element of simplicity is present in a work, quality and substance are sacrificed then think again, for only a master of the craft, like Anne, can give all these and leave us wanting more.

And perhaps it is in this light, that we find this book a thinner one to read but one that is not bereft of plot, conflict and more questions for us the reader and for Toby who continues to struggle in his personal journey of redemption.

The whole novel is tighter and takes us further on the path that Toby O Dare, assassin for hire, has begun in Angel Time. For this second outing, we find him on a mission for the Angel Malciah, in Renaissance Italy. Here Toby is assigned to a Jewish physician named Vitale who is tasked to find a cure for the ailing son of his sponsor, Signore Antonio.

In this journey, Toby is forced to reconcile both people from his past, as hinted at the end of Angel Time while making room to accommodate new people and rectify what he has been led to believe at the start of the series.

Written in true lavish Anne fashion and the proverbial cliffhanger, I can't wait what Toby O Dare undergoes in the next installment. :)

Oh and did I mention that there was a "Dybbuk" (Jewish term for Ghost) in the tale? So what are you waiting for?

Go get it and Enjoy. :)

Of Love and Evil is definitely by far the weakest of Anne Rice's works of fiction to date. I have read, loved or at least really enjoyed, and own, every book she has written (as Rice, not Rampling or Roquelaure). This one left me disappointed.

The actual story portion of this slim volume could have been distilled into 2 fairly short chapters. The remainder of the book should have been marketed as Ms. Rice's thoughts and musings on spirituality. The theme is largely a Cliff Notes version of Memnoch the Devil. Although Memnoch and all of her other books contain a spiritual thread, it's a subtext in the former works - woven into and supporting the story, not replacing it. The reverse is true of this book, in which a fascinating but undeveloped main character and a disappointingly meager plot are completely overshadowed by the spiritual aspects. If you want to read Anne Rice's views on spirituality, this is the book for you. On the other hand if, like me, you read her novels for the page-turning stories she usually writes, definitely wait until Of Love And Evil comes out in paperback, then buy it used.

I wasn't thrilled with the subject matter of this book, and though Rice's writing is very readable and the plot is well-planned, I had a hard time enjoying Of Love and Evil.

Plot: ' ' ' '
The plot of this latest Songs of the Seraphim novel can be easily divided into four distinct parts: 1)Toby meets with Liona and their son. 2) Toby helps solve an attempted murder mystery in Angel Time. 3) Toby helps solve the mystery of the so-called possessed house in Angel Time. 4) Toby comes back to the present and starts making amends for his past. I thought this progression of the story worked very well and I thought that the story neither moved to fast or too slowly.

Characters: ' ' '
While Anne Rice's characters are interesting, I find them, their responses to situations, and their dialogue incredibly unrealistic on the whole. All of them, except for Toby, feel almost hollow, and I never feel like I really understand them.

Ending: ' ' ' ' '
While reading this book there were a few times when I thought, "I think I won't continue with this series when the next installment comes out," but the ending left me hanging and I have to admit, I'm really curious about what happens next. There was a satisfying amount of closure while many important questions were raised and left unanswered.

Writing: ' ' ' '
Anne Rice is a gifted writer and her knack for weaving words serves her well, but I find her dialogue flowery and unrealistic. Overall, a very readable book though.

Cover: ' ' '
Good cover, but I think the designer could have used more creative fonts and a more interesting layout and background.

In "Of Love and Evil", by Anne Rice, former assassin Toby O'Dare/Lucky the Fox is back looking to complete the restoration of his soul. Picking up where she left off in "Angel Time (The Songs of the Seraphim)", Toby meets his former lover and 10-year old child and travels through time to save another person who stands wrongly accused. Readers who love the lyrical prose of Rice won't be disappointed with the style. However, I was very disappointed with the rehashed plotline and the lack of pages (only 170 ???). It's been a few months since I read "Angel Time", but the plotline in "Of Love and Evil" seems to be very familiar. I love Anne Rice's writing, but this book left me disappointed. Unless you are a hard-core Anne Rice fan, recommend you wait for the paperback/Kindle version.

SPOILER (Plot summary)
Toby wants to reform his ways after spending years as a contract hit man. As part of his penance, Malchiah, the angel, takes Toby back in time to save a Jew who stands wrongly accused of poisoning a wealthy merchant's son. Toby, a Catholic, while fighting the discrimination of the day, uses his knowledge of poisons to figure out who is poisoning the merchant's son.

From my limited recollection of "Angel Time", Toby went back in time to save Jews that were being persecuted in the Middle Ages. Swap out the countries, and it seems like I had already read this book.

Rice continues her Toby McDare religious novellas with him traveling back in time to fifteenth century Rome to help rid a house of a spirited (pun intended) and extremely destructive dybbuk. For those not familiar with Jewish folklore, it's a malevolent wandering sprit that usually possesses another. Here, it just wreaks major destruction on a house. Rice as always, is a beautiful writer, and the slim length of the book keeps her prose on track, which are now starting to feel like "Interview With The Vampire" and Toby is our brooding Louis. Not that that's a bad thing, and I found this installment even better than the first. Obviously she intends to stay with this character for awhile based on it's abrupt ending, but with this outing she's definitely secured a fan in this new series.

I finished it, disappointed. It seemed thin and rushed. It was not well-written; there was much more telling than showing, "he was angry," etc. SHOW us how he was angry. It seemed she sent her first draft to a proofreader who didn't do a great job proofing it. I also found a typo.
It didn't seem up to her usual standard, like the work of an author who's burned out and is now just churning them out.

This very slender novel mystified me. I was expecting to be thrown deeply into Anne Rice world-building, and found that I simply could not get lost in it. Since Rice is usually a master of making readers *like* characters of ambiguous morality and mortality, I had high hopes for this tale of assassins and angels. Unfortunately, there was no one to like. Nothing resonated. The protagonist is...distant, and not in an intriguing way.

The writing style is an interesting choice. Reading Of Love and Evil is like glimpsing bits of a story down a narrow hallway, or listening to a poem that is rarefied but not relatible. It's a stained glass window in its pristine prettiness, but this window is barely visible high in the eaves of the chapel, and not where I can touch and enjoy it.

Suffice to say I had trouble making myself sit down and get through the book, short as it is. The premise of visiting old Papal Rome during the Renaissance sounded wonderful, too, so it's doubly disappointing.

It's probably a good novel and well written, if a bit experimental. I just did not cotton to the style.

I absolutely loved Of Love and Evil, the sequel to Angel Time! I couldn't put the book down and finally locked myself in the bathroom to read the last 20 pages. (I have two sons)! When I read books by Anne Rice I always learn something. I do not know much about Jewish History and she makes me want to read and learn more about that time period, 15th century Rome. There's even a couple pages in the back of the book referencing what books she researched and even recommended a compact disc called The Renaissance Lute which I am very interested and will probably look into. I completely recommend this book.

My spouse has read this book and gives her opinion:

I really did not enjoy this book. I found the whole thing repetitive, unbelievable, and disconnected with any sense of reality. It's not the fantasy part of the thing. I'm a big fan of fantasy and love immersing myself in imaginary worlds and situations. It was the characters and the story itself that fell flat. The plot was ill-thought out and totally predictable, which is a bad thing for a book that is supposed to be a mystery or thriller. The characters were plastic. Any emotions they display seem to be thrust upon them by the author, and not coming from within themselves...like puppets. I especially had a hard time with the love interest, Liona. For a woman who had been dumped, while pregnant with Toby's child, and abandoned for 10 years, she was inexplicably placid towards him when they reunited. And their little boy, Toby, who had never known his father, is completely loving and trusting as if they had never been apart. I can understand someone being forgiving about a difficult situation, but to show no emotion whatsoever over events that would send most people over the edge in despair is just ridiculous. That Anne Rice expects us to believe any of it is beyond comprehension. I made it as far as the first part of Toby's little adventure in Mediaval Italy, but finally put the book down. I just couldn't take it any more. This is the first time I have ever read anything by Anne Rice. If this is in any way representative of her work, I will not be reading anything by her again any time soon.

Years ago I enjoyed The Vampire Chronicles. When I came to Faith, I lost interest in Anne Rice's work. I am so glad to be able to enjoy Anne's work again in stories about faith, redemption & light in a dark world. Toby O'Dare is a character that I look forward to getting to know better in the future.
Thanks, Anne, I look forward to more.