Kiss an Angel by Susan Elizabeth Phillips Summary and Reviews
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Book Reviews of Kiss an Angel
Book Review: Too Good to Pass Up
Summary: 5 Stars
This has got to be one of the best books I've ever read; it's one of my "keepers". Funny and sad at the same time, this author really knows how to sketch characters that keep me coming back for more. I love the vulnerability of Daisy in this story, and the idea of a rich girl joining a grimy little traveling circus was a hoot. Buy it, read it, and keep it!Book Review: Unexpected and delightful
Summary: 5 Stars
I never imagined a book set in a circus, where the hero is really a little mean to the heroine, would touch me so deeply. The emotions were vivid and real, the laughs riotous but also a little sad. My first Susan Elizabeth Phillips book and so far my favorite.
Book Review: Very Disappointed-sloppy writing and glorifies abuse
Summary: 1 Stars
Having recently delighted in the discovery of Susan Elizabeth Phillips, especially in her way with comedy, character, relationship dynamics and especially witty, snappy dialog, I was pleased to find Kiss An Angel on my library shelves. I am so glad I didn't buy it. I could hardly stand to finish it. With the exception of the pretty good running joke concerning waitresses, the dialog was just ordinary. And frankly, I can handle stupid plot if the characters are fun or sympathetic, but that was not the case here. The mega-alpha male hero is just plain abusive. I can't put it any other way. So he "softens" with the love of a good woman at the end. You think he's not going to revert to type later in their lives any time he doesn't get his way? Please. And sorry to all of you who love the wonderful Daisy. She's a dishrag. When I realized where the story line was going, I actually felt physically ill, and finished it just in the hope that it wouldn't be as bad as it was. This story suggests that the abusive controlling male can be redeemed and made human by the unselfish love and devotion of a good woman who takes all his crap and keeps coming back because "he needs her." I have no time for that, and am very disappointed to find it in the work of an author I had come to respect.
A couple of other points that bothered me because I thought they were uncharacteristically sloppy for this writer:
We are told a couple of times that although Daisy is a ditz, she is actually very bright and has an excellent if unorthodox education. Great, and I kept waiting for that to somehow come into play in the story, but it never does. A missed opportunity, in my opinion.
Secondly, what's with the cigarettes bursting into flame? It happens three times in the beginning of the story, and we are let to believe that somehow the hero has a special power. But it never comes up again in any way. Is this just bad editing?
If you've gotten this far in my review, you must know that I cannot recommend this book. If you want a good SEP, read This Heart of Mine, or Natural Born Charmer.
Book Review: Very dated plot.
Summary: 2 Stars
This book seemed VERY dated to me. I know it was supposedly copyrighted in 1996, but I strongly suspect it was written in the 80s. It contained no modern references (no computers, cell phones, Internet). At one point Daisy hopes the property Alex is taking her to is a large ranch like in the TV show "Dallas." The circus crew don't live in RVs, they live in "Airstream trailers." Daisy is actually excited by the prospect that Alex might be a descendant of Czar Nicholas I, a subject that was all the rage a couple of decades ago. Add to that the verbally abusive, autocratic father who sells his wide-eyed innocent daughter to the brooding, emotionally distant stranger, and you have a very Harlequin Romance-esque book. As a result, this book comes off as cliched, contrived and, therefore, not the least bit interesting.Book Review: Witty, memorable, moving - just great
Summary: 5 Stars
Phillips took an unlikely premise (modern day arranged marriage), dropped it into a even more unlikely setting (travelling circus), and created a book that is funny, engaging, and completely believable. Her smart wit is evident throughout and she takes care to make her details, such as circus life and historical information, true, but it never gets in the way of her characters. You like them, laugh with them and want to shake them, but you believe in them and want to spend far longer in their company than the page count allows. Very well done, Ms. Phillips, and thank you very much!