How does it compare to audio works by the same author?
Very good
Advantages:
Gripping, excellently written .
Disadvantages:
Richard and Judy like it, pretty tragic story
Recommend to potential buyers:
yes
Full review
I picked this book up for 25p from the charity booklist at work. I had never heard of R J Ellory before, and for the purpose of this review I'm going to find out a bit more about him!=== RJ Ellory ===
R J Ellory has an excellent website at - www.rogerjonellory.com To summarise…Born in Birmingham in 1965 Ellory seems to have had a pretty difficult childhood. He began writing in 1987, and trying to get his books published proved to be impossible since he is English but his books are set in the US. Disillusioned, Ellory stopped writing until 2001 when he began again. His first published book "Candlemoth" was published in 2003.
A Quiet Belief in Angels is Ellory's 5th book, published in August 2007 and seems to have taken the UK (and other countries) by storm, being selected for the Richard and Judy book club - whoopee! He has another 2 books due for release, and it seems that Ellory's career is going from strength to strength - he is evidently quite a prolific writer.
Before going on to talk about the book itself, I will just share a bit from the website:
"On numerous occasions people have tried to identify Roger's work with a particular genre - crime, thriller, historical fiction - but this categorisation has been a relatively fruitless endeavour. Roger's ethos is merely to work towards producing a good story, something that encapsulates elements of humanity and life without necessarily slotting into a predetermined pigeonhole."
When thinking about writing this review I had been wondering what genre "A Quiet Belief in Angels" really comes into, and was leaning towards the historical fiction (a genre I seem to be getting into) and thriller, and tragedy! But I think the above quote sums it up pretty well!
=== The Story ===
Joseph Vaughan is 11 when his father dies. Family friend Reilly Hawkins suggests that with a bit of work he will become an angel. Joseph hangs onto this thought through what goes on to happen.
The first murder victim is a girl who Joseph goes to school with, young, innocent and beautiful - Joseph believes that she will become an angel. The community is devastated, but the murders continue in Augusta Falls and the surrounding counties. Always young girls aged between 7 and 12, always brutally sexually assaulted and mutilated in the most horrific ways - there is a serial killer on the loose.
Concerned for Elena Kruger (daughter of the richest man in Augusta Falls, Gunther Kruger) as she is epileptic, Joseph vows to protect Elena. Along with a group of other boys, Joseph forms a group called "The Guardians" - together they hope to be able to stop the serial killer and protect all of the girls. But can they really compete with this evil person, and can Joseph keep his promise to Elena? After all, Sheriff Deering and the police forces aren't having much luck finding the killer.
The book starts in 1939 - the war is beginning in Europe. Could the German Gunther Kruger be something to do with the murders? After all, one of the young victims was Jewish. And then what is happening between Joseph's mother and Gunther Kruger?
Joseph finds solace in his writing, and through spending time with his teacher Alexandra Webber, a relationship which evolves over time.
To say more would be to give away too much of the story. Let's just say that just about everything that could possibly go wrong in Joseph's life does go wrong. And then, just as things start to be looking up, his life plunges into an all time low.
You might think that the book is pretty depressing, and at times I suppose it is. But really it is so tragic at times that you just have to laugh (if you don't, you'll cry). To survive what he goes through but still striving to stop the evil which continues, Joseph shows an immense strength of character.
While the book is fiction (thankfully!), I really felt that I got to know Joseph, and got to know where he was living - the descriptions are captivating - Ellory really is an excellent writer. The book spans over a long period of time, and we watch as Joseph turns into a young (and then not so young) man, and pursues his love of writing - sometimes I forgot that the book wasn't actually written by Joseph himself, and that Joseph isn't actually real!
The chapters follow chronologically, but are interspersed with short chapters written in italics which are Joseph as he is now ('now' being the event at the climax of the book) reflecting on what has happened. In this sense we know what happens at the end at the beginning of the book, although not the details of course! === Conclusion ===
This is a great book which I would recommend to anyone, but particularly those who enjoy the works of Steinbeck, or are interested in American history (if you can call it that!) I will certainly be looking out for more of Ellory's books and hope that I enjoy them as much as this one.
I've found it quite hard to explain the book really, so if there is anything you'd like to see added to this review, please let me know!
Other
The book is 396 pages.
A Quiet Belief in Angels can be bought new on Amazon for just £3.47.
There are some reading notes at the back of the book, and also some suggested further reading.
PS. I have said it compares very well to other works by the same author - that is based on reviews I've read, as I haven't yet read any of Ellory's other books.
Evaluate this review
How helpful would this review be to someone making a buying decision? Rating guidelines
This product has not yet been reviewed. 
