Where Angels Tread

The Garden Gate, by Christa Kinde.  Zondervan, 2014, 301 pages.  

Age level: 10-up

Prissie Pomeroy can see angels.  In fact, most of her friends are angels.  In this fourth book in the Threshold series, change is coming to West Edinton.  Prissie and her family face change firsthand as their family business, both orchard and bakery, are wrecked by a storm.  (More than a natural storm, as Prissie knows.  There is a spiritual battle raging, invisible to most human eyes.)  In this sweet and comfortable story, Prissie’s faith grows as her understanding of prayer, God’s will, and friendship deepen.

Christa Kinde captures the love and joy of Christian family life, and I enjoyed her portrayal of a large, happy family.  Coming from one myself, I love when an author “gets” big families!  While the story is sweet, the portrayal of angels as very human and yet not human may be confusing to younger readers.  Prissie is very close friends with a young male angel, and while no romance at all is implied, the two often hold hands.  I, for one, found this emphasis distracting.

Worldview Value: 4 (out of 5)
Literary Value: 3 (out of 5)

The Ether: Vero Rising, by Laurice Molinari.  Zondervan, 2014, 346 pages.

Age level: 10-up

Middle school is hard enough without being odd, and Vero Leland is certainly odd.  Vero cannot understand nor explain the strange things that happen in his life until one day, he learns the truth.  Vero is an angel, placed in a human family.  Soon, he is attending guardian angel school with a group of young angels from across the country.  They all hope to pass because, well, if you flunk out of guardian angel school, you end up in the eternal choir…

While the storyline is interesting, the narrative falters toward formulaic Christian fiction.  Also, rather than focusing on the Bible, the story focuses and builds upon the work of angels.  These are speculative waters, but the lessons Vero learns about friendship and compassion are certainly applicable to readers.

Worldview: 3.5 (out of 5)
Literary Content: 2 (out of 5)

Books received as ARCs from the publisher in return for a fair review.