I have to admit it, I never really warmed up to Michael. I always go for the geek. But I really liked Deirdre and found the world Morehouse created a lot of fun.

My obsession actually started in book two. :) ( )

'Archangel Protocol' is Lyda Morehouse's first novel and it is a commendable effort that few wanna-be-writers accomplish. I won't mention any names.

The story centers around a never seen in the flesh U.S. presidential candidate in a post war America where all parties must have a religious affiliation, where all citizens are connected to cyberspace by an implanted link and where recently, 'angels' have begun making appearances.

The author's metaphors always were just a smidgen off the mark. Her descriptions rarely left me with the feeling that I was there, although she did chose one of the very hardest destinations possible: Cyberspace, where, like the movie Tron, characters found themselves wandering cyberspace represented by an avatar. And try as she might to get the reader to gin up affections for her people, well it just did not happen.

Reading 'Archangel Protocol' Christians will be surprised to learn an angel impregnated Mary, mother of Jesus, rather than the Holy Spirit. Muslims will likewise be startled to read that Allah did not dictate the Quran to Mohammad, but the angel Jibril did. Yes, I know it is a work of fiction.

Once again, what may have dulled my reading enjoyment, was the fact that I read the book a very few pages at a time. However, I think the author simply had too many things going on, too many plots, too many characters for someone like me to keep track of.
( )

somewhere between cyberpunk and noir, Urban fantasy and noir. Really like it part of it. Sometimes it becomes boring.

Trite pseudo-religion in a fairly well-thought-out (albeit cartoonish) cyberpunk future. Deirdre McMannus was kicked out of the force, excommunicated from Catholicism, and outcast from the LINK (an uber version of the internet) for her role in a Pope's assassination. Since then, she's been barely squeaking by as a freelance detective while trying to come to terms with her partner's betrayal and the loss of her normal life. Then in walks Michael Angelucci, a preternaturally handsome detective who wants her to investigate the phenomenom of angels in the LINK. It is immediately clear that Michael is a real angel--within a few pages of his introduction he has a showdown with his "older brother" "Morningstar". (Morningstar is a jumbled character who gets terrible, anvil-y lines. For instance, Deirdre asks, "Where the hell did you come from" and and he responds, "Exactly.") Deirdre is a well-rounded character with a detailed persona, but the other characters don't fare so well. Michael is a bare sketch of a romantic love interest, while the motivations of the various antagonists are never revealed. I figured out the entire plot (to which Deirdre remains drearily blind for hundreds of pages) within the first thirty pages--I spent the rest of the book shouting "oh come on" and chortling in disgust. ( )

This book made me feel like I was watching a grade-B sci-fi cop thriller filmed in the 80's.
In a post-war New York, theocracy has been imposed.
Everyone except the down-and-out have been hooked in to the LINK - a cybernetic brain implant that gives one access to the Internet (basically).
Lately, everyone's been buzzing about the appearance of 'angels' on the LINK. But are these angels a miracle or a hoax? Things get more complicated when our protagonist, a private investigator who's been kicked out of the police force and off the LINK, meets some all too corporeal (and hunky) 'angels' herself.
Some may be annoyed by this book's somewhat pro-Christian stance - others may find some aspects of the story totally blasphemous. Still others may be offended by its favorable portrayal of Israeli terrorists. Anything else? hmm. Not that I can think of offhand. Not too many people are offended by portrayals of corrupt politicians. wink.gif
But really, it's just fairly cheesy, light reading. ( )