Neophyte

Nov 17, 2012 Lissa & Alexa The Novel Lasses rated it 4 of 5 stars Recommends it for: Ages 16 and up

Shelves: 4stars_i_was_crazy_about_it, new_ya

I am such a sucker for angel stories. What makes this one so irresistible for me is the fact that it’s not filled with fallen angels. When I first started reading I was like a chicken with its head freshly cut off. I couldn’t get a handle on what was going on. But in the end Apple pulled the rabbit out of the hat.

I was a little off put the Links that insisted on keeping secrets from Addison. Oh, and how sweet is that her best friend is a guy. I was utterly and completely emotionally wrapped up i...more

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Jan 08, 2013 Jennifer rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: favorites

First off – let me say that I received this book via Goodreads program Read2Review. I enjoyed this book and rated it 4 Stars.

My thoughts:
I am very excited about Rogue and will be watching for it to come out from Emmalee Aple! Now, on to the review :)

I enjoyed this character – especially the boys – I mean really, who among us doesn’t love a good looking man with a personality?! I loved Hunter and his personality! Addi was great – I loved feeling as confused and conflicted as she was throughout th...more

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May 04, 2012 Lylaa rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: triple-zero, paranormal-supernatural-romance

“You’re not very stealthy,” he teased. His eyes let out a small glimmer of playfulness as I finally looked into them. “You’re laying directly above my room.” He pointed to the roof below his body. “It’s not December, so you couldn’t have possibly been Santa Claus.”

Addisyn:
I seriously wanted to slap you back to reality at times.
Your stubborn, but that I liked.
(view spoiler)[It's all your fault. (hide spoiler)]

Greysan:
Unfortunately, I fell in love with you.
I love your protectiveness over Addi.
I ju

...more

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Apr 10, 2012 Daphne rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: angels, argh-okay-book, r2r

Neophyte is about Addi a teenager who died and has been reborn to live as an angel. She will truly transform in her fifth year; becoming strong and gaining new talents. Until then she is more human and vulnerable to evil influency. Hunter an angel is Addi's companion and has been at her side since childhood all the way upto her death and reborn life. There close friendship is strong and he will do anything to protect her more so then the others in her link. Now we have the evil Farran who wants...more

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Apr 16, 2012 Barbara rated it 5 of 5 stars

I'm still working on reading this. I can't put it down. If I could get away with it I would read all day but I don't think my bosses would like that too much so I find myself sneaking to read a few pages here and there.

I will have my full review up in a couple of days.

OMG. All I have to say is I loved loved loved it. I am dying for the next book Rogue to come out.

Addyson was in her senior year just a few days away from graduation when she was shot and killed instantly. She became a part of a L...more

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Mar 27, 2012 Nick rated it 2 of 5 stars

Read more of my reviews at Nick's Book Blog.

First of all, I'd like to thank the author for having sent me a copy of her book for review.
When I first got the book, I had no idea of what to expect. Angels and I have not gotten along very well, in the past, but I still decided to give this one a try. I'm going to be honest, I don't like the cover too much. I'll be writing a mini-review for this one since I feel like I'll give away too much if I write my usual long review!

The book introduces us to A...more
Read more of my reviews at Nick's Book Blog.

First of all, I'd like to thank the author for having sent me a copy of her book for review.
When I first got the book, I had no idea of what to expect. Angels and I have not gotten along very well, in the past, but I still decided to give this one a try. I'm going to be honest, I don't like the cover too much. I'll be writing a mini-review for this one since I feel like I'll give away too much if I write my usual long review!

The book introduces us to Addisyn (how do you pronounce that ? Addi - sin or Addi-sine) who has recently died and has returned as an angel. She lives with 5 other angels in a group known in the book as a "Link". She soon realizes that her Link has been keeping secrets from her and they refuse to give her answers right away in order to protect her.

As soon as the book starts, there's action. It intrigued me and thrilled me since I love when books are action-packed. However, things were very confusing too in this case. It took me some time to get used to the world that the author has created, but I enjoyed the world of angels that the author has imagined. It's different from other angel books I've read and it'll appeal to readers looking for originality.

The characters are all quite likable. I enjoyed reading through Addisyn's mind. She was sweet and caring, but she could also be very ignorant, not realizing the dangers she could face. Those imperfections only made her seem more realistic. She was also very brave and stood up for herself. I liked that she didn't let the others guys "over-protect" her. I, especially, liked the relationship she had with the other angels in her Link. I'm not so sure I liked the romance in the book. It simply didn't do it for me, because I, as a reader, didn't get to see why Addisyn liked Greysan so much. Also, they lacked chemistry. I didn't really feel much whenever the two were present in a scene. I hope the author develops it further in the next books.

As I mentioned before, the plot of the book itself is interesting. Initially, I admit, I was a bit perplexed by what was happening, but fortunately, the author does a great job at clearing up my confusions.
Overall, I think the book had huge potential and I look forward to reading the next installments of this series.(less)

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Mar 17, 2013 Brittany rated it 3 of 5 stars

Its a pretty good book and definitely worth a read. Angels are not my thing but it is still enjoyable. The premise and characters are interesting. I particularly liked Hunter and his loyalty to Addisyn. There is action right at the start and it continues on pretty well throughout the book. How little Addi's link tells her about being an angel does get a bit repetitive. Also her whining gets to be a bit on the extreme side although I understand her frustrations.
Something I loved about the book wa...more

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Jan 27, 2013 Aly rated it 3 of 5 stars Recommends it for: Any Angel Loving Fanatic.

Shelves: 2012-summer, angels

I'm on the fence with most Angel books/ supernatural books (god knows why I keep reading them, they only make me frustrated) simply because they all follow the basic plot line. I'd be lying if I said I hated this book because it wasn't that, I actually loved it, I read every free second I had and maybe a couple not so free strictly-for-exam-review seconds, but the problem for me was that it felt like I was reading Passion. Or Unearthly. Or Hush, Hush. Or Daughter of smoke and bone. Or Halo.
Poin...more I'm on the fence with most Angel books/ supernatural books (god knows why I keep reading them, they only make me frustrated) simply because they all follow the basic plot line. I'd be lying if I said I hated this book because it wasn't that, I actually loved it, I read every free second I had and maybe a couple not so free strictly-for-exam-review seconds, but the problem for me was that it felt like I was reading Passion. Or Unearthly. Or Hush, Hush. Or Daughter of smoke and bone. Or Halo.
Point is I read a lot so everything connects to another book in some way, it's not the authors fault really. The book was well written and interesting, the characters were detailed (at times a little too much) and dynamic, and overall it was a fun read. The first chapter was confusing because it jumps straight into action- a refreshing change from most books which start with a life history lesson.
(view spoiler)
Her obsession with Grey is obvious from the second page in the book where she sorta goes off into the night with him...Yeah that was awkward...(view spoiler) It gets really annoying later on when all I can think about is Hunter and she's busy obsessing over Grey, aka. Not Hunter. (view spoiler) Some parts the author seemed to jump over facts that we sorta need and there were gaps that made me want to stop reading. (view spoiler)
I probably will read the sequel :)

P.S The guys are hot. Hot Angel guys= Reason I put up with recurring plot lines.
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Apr 23, 2012 Millypre rated it 2 of 5 stars

Start by saying that, being passionate of these kinds of stories, I began to read with lots of expectations. Althought i'm very fascinated by stories where the protagonists are angels, I must say that I haven't been very satisfied by the reading of this book.
In particular, I found the start too fast, in contrast to the next chapters that have been rather slowand, and especially, an introduction almost absent.
What I liked, however, was the style of the writer and the way in which he gave life to...more

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Jun 17, 2012 Snowwygirl4 rated it 4 of 5 stars

Synopsis
Addisyn White thought she had her new life, her after life, all figured out. Granted death had not brought her to the pearly white gates, she hadn’t even left Earth. But death had its perks; she got to live forever with her best friend and her assigned Link of Angels, in a beautiful beach house. Even with the changes she was going through to turn her human body into an angelic one, everything seemed pretty easy. Until a gray winged angel comes into her life, then all the secrets and lies...more Synopsis
Addisyn White thought she had her new life, her after life, all figured out. Granted death had not brought her to the pearly white gates, she hadn’t even left Earth. But death had its perks; she got to live forever with her best friend and her assigned Link of Angels, in a beautiful beach house. Even with the changes she was going through to turn her human body into an angelic one, everything seemed pretty easy. Until a gray winged angel comes into her life, then all the secrets and lies her Link had been keeping start crumbling away, exposing a whole new world of dangers she didn’t even know about.

Now Addisyn must fill in the blanks before things escalate too far. Will she save her Link? Or will she be buried in their secrets forever?

Review
I was given this book to do an R2R on Goodreads, I was thoroughly impressed with Emmalee Aple and this novel. This is actually my first ever book having anything to do with angels. I was a tad skeptical at first but then actually fell to actually really like this book. The main issue was that yes it was a self-published book so there will be some mistakes, but when a characters name would switch I would go back and see if I was paying attention. But other than that there was a couple spelling errors but they didn't really disrupt the work. When I first got it I started to read it but wasn't fully interested with the book, but then some days later I re-started it and was grabbed into it. I read it when ever I had the time. I wanted to read instead of doing things that I actually really needed to do. I probably read it in like four days. I read instead of slept at night (and I really do love my sleep, it is a necessity in my life), but I still read. One thing that I noticed was that the chapters would only seem to "end", but really the next chapter left off immediately where the last one did, so there was no real cliff-hanger moment which sorta upset me, because since I loved it that much it gave me no chance to get cliff-hanged, until the end. The end has made me want to know what happens next with Addisyn, Greysan, and the rest of the link. (less)

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Jun 16, 2012 Jen Wagner rated it 2 of 5 stars

Synopsis:
Addisyn White thought she had her new life, her after life, all figured out. Granted death had not brought her to the pearly white gates, she hadn’t even left Earth. But death had its perks; she got to live forever with her best friend and her assigned Link of Angels, in a beautiful beach house. Even with the changes she was going through to turn her human body into an angelic one, everything seemed pretty easy. Until a gray winged angel comes into her life, then all the secrets and lie...more Synopsis:
Addisyn White thought she had her new life, her after life, all figured out. Granted death had not brought her to the pearly white gates, she hadn’t even left Earth. But death had its perks; she got to live forever with her best friend and her assigned Link of Angels, in a beautiful beach house. Even with the changes she was going through to turn her human body into an angelic one, everything seemed pretty easy. Until a gray winged angel comes into her life, then all the secrets and lies her Link had been keeping start crumbling away, exposing a whole new world of dangers she didn’t even know about.

Now Addisyn must fill in the blanks before things escalate too far. Will she save her Link? Or will she be buried in their secrets forever?

Review:
I am a dedicated reader when it comes to angel themed stories. I discovered Lauren Kate and Becca Fitzpatrick last summer, and devoured their stories. I quickly fell in love with their characters and daydream that the novel I am writing will one day live up to the beauty of theirs. This past winter I stumbled upon Susan Ee’s Angelfall and embraced her apocalyptic angel-themed story as well. Hence, when I was chosen to participate in a Goodreads R2R, I was super excited. And, the cover is absolutely breathtaking. (Thank you, Ms. Aple for choosing me to read and review your book!)

Therefore, I immediately dove into Aple’s story, Neophyte, expecting the unexpected and hoping to be swept off my feet. Instead, I found myself floating somewhere in the middle. I read to escape my daily life-stay-at-home mom. I am the daily referee of two little boys and deal with whining and tantrums all day long. So when Addisyn fell into the category of “whiny” and “annoying,” I quickly lost interest. I enjoy a strong, female lead. Addi tried to be strong. I just saw her as immature and irritating. One of the characteristics of the novel that I struggled with was the repetition of Addi’s whiny-ness. She complained, a lot. She was angry, a lot. She irritated me, a lot.

I truly commend Aple for writing and completing a novel. (You go girl!) I aspire to do the same and know how difficult it is. I also know that the first attempt isn’t always the best. But, I believe Aple put her best foot forward, created a wonderful storyline with many new and entertaining details among the angel story category. She developed some fantastic imagery and detail. And I do look forward to any sequels there may be. I want to see Addi grow, as well as the rest of the supporting characters.

While this story wasn’t exactly in my top 20 list of favorites, it isn’t on my list of top 20 despises. There were things that just weren’t for me (the repetitive nature and character development) and other aspects of the story that I did like (the idea of the Link, predestined angels and being reincarnated as an angel). And so, my impression is a bit wishy washy. I'm on the fence. All in all, I would give this book two out of five stars. (less)

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Apr 28, 2012 Gabriela rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: r-r-arr-books

Spoiler Alert:
I received this book through the ARR program so I want to thank the author for giving me the opportunity to read her book. Neophyte is a book about a girl whose life has been predestined to become an Angel. She dies an untimely death; shot in her school cafeteria while trying to save someone else and is reborn into an Angel with five "Guardians"(angels)at her side to protect her and guide her for five years until she trains and receives her assignment as an Angel. She finds love an...more

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Apr 23, 2012 Quiana rated it 2 of 5 stars

Shelves: angels, paranormal, romance, young-adult, slow-read, boring, never-again

Synopsis:
Addisyn White thought she had her new life, her after life, all figured out. Granted death had not brought her to the pearly white gates, she hadn’t even left Earth. But death had its perks; she got to live forever with her best friend and her assigned Link of Angels, in a beautiful beach house. Even with the changes she was going through to turn her human body into an angelic one, everything seemed pretty easy. Until a gray winged angel comes into her life, then all the secrets and lie...more Synopsis:
Addisyn White thought she had her new life, her after life, all figured out. Granted death had not brought her to the pearly white gates, she hadn’t even left Earth. But death had its perks; she got to live forever with her best friend and her assigned Link of Angels, in a beautiful beach house. Even with the changes she was going through to turn her human body into an angelic one, everything seemed pretty easy. Until a gray winged angel comes into her life, then all the secrets and lies her Link had been keeping start crumbling away, exposing a whole new world of dangers she didn’t even know about.

Now Addisyn must fill in the blanks before things escalate too far. Will she save her Link? Or will she be buried in their secrets forever?

Review

When I read the synopsis for Neophyte by Emmalee Aple, I was excited about the opportunity to read a book featuring angels. I’ve read books about werewolves, vampires, witches, the faye, etc., but never about angels. With that in mind, I eagerly signed up to read and review Neophyte. I had high hopes for this story.

This was a very slow read for me. The story started with a bang, but after that, it dragged for quite a bit. Half-way through, I’d pretty much lost interest in the story and the characters. Nevertheless, I continued reading because there were questions I needed answered, and secrets I wanted revealed. Speaking of secrets, there were so many, maybe too many. Addisyn’s Link kept many life changing, as well as dangerous, secrets from her. When one secret was revealed, another replaced it. I spent practically the entire book annoyed with most of the characters due to these secrets.

As for characters, a few were interesting; others were more annoying than anything. I was never truly invested in their lives, or their stories. Addisyn in particular was frustrating. She spends most of the book angry with members of her Link, being coddled, and swooning over Greysan, her love interest. It’s understandable that she was angry with them for keeping important information from her, but the multiple temper tantrums were too much. In the end, I was never able to relate to her. I found Graham and Hunter, Addisyn’s best friend, to be the most relatable and interesting characters in the book. I would not have minded learning more about them.

Overall, I give Neophyte two stars. The premise sounded promising, but in the end, the story and its’ characters fell flat.
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Mar 05, 2012 Jennifer Moody rated it 5 of 5 stars

I was given this book to review free from the author. First I want to say thank you to Emmalee Aple for giving me this amazing book to read, it was on my to be read pile since I heard of it.

Addisyn was shot in her high school cafeteria, worse part is she was killed automatically. But just 3 days later was re-born as a Neophyte. Neophyte's has 5 years before their tranformation from human to angel is completed and it has already been 2 years for Addisyn. Now she lives with 4 links, Greysan and...more I was given this book to review free from the author. First I want to say thank you to Emmalee Aple for giving me this amazing book to read, it was on my to be read pile since I heard of it.

Addisyn was shot in her high school cafeteria, worse part is she was killed automatically. But just 3 days later was re-born as a Neophyte. Neophyte's has 5 years before their tranformation from human to angel is completed and it has already been 2 years for Addisyn. Now she lives with 4 links, Greysan and Graham who are twins but Greysan is also a love interest for Addisyn, then there is Wilhem and Evertt. They call themself a link, they live in a beach house but what Greysan, Graham, Wilhem and Evertt also have in common is they are keeping a huge secret from Addisyn which they think is protecting her. What they dont know is that their secret is hurting her. One day Addisyn gets kidnap by an angel who looks like Greyson. Thankfullly, Addisyn link is there just in time to kill the angel who kidnap her. They decide to tell Addisyn some stuff but not all of it once again ebcause they think is protecting her but as they are telling Addisyn all of this the more confused and frustrated she gets. By the link not telling Addisyn everything is just putting her in more danger after the next. Can Addisyn save her link only knowing half the truth? Or will she die among them in their secrets?

At first I have to admit I was lost in this book. When I started reading it, I didnt know what was going on, who was who, nothing just lost. I actually had to write down some things while reading this book but the more the book went on the more I got a hang of everything and got pulled into the book more. I think what confused me was there was so much going on that I couldnt keep up, so if you find yourself stuck in that situation in this book just wait you will get the hang of it and you will love it! I wasnt sure on where this book was going with the end, I had something in mind but nothing to what the author wrote. Emmalee sure does know how to write a great story!

I give this book a 5 out of 5 stars. Yes it was confusing but without being confused I dont know if I would have loved this book. So give it a try you wont be disappointed!(less)

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Jun 21, 2012 Rachael Woohoo rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: 2012-challenge-books-challenge, book, 2012, ebook, june-challenge-2012, review-copy, reviewed, romance, june-2012, ebooks-i-own

Disclaimer: The fact that I received this book in exchange for an honest review has not affected my rating.

I think the main problem regarding my reading experience with this book is the fact that I read two favorites of mine right before Neophyte. I suppose when I read this book, I kept on comparing it to my favorites, therefore downgrading my rating slightly…

For me, the main problem with this book is the relationship between Greyson and Addiysn. I’ll admit that their romantic scenes are endeari...more Disclaimer: The fact that I received this book in exchange for an honest review has not affected my rating.

I think the main problem regarding my reading experience with this book is the fact that I read two favorites of mine right before Neophyte. I suppose when I read this book, I kept on comparing it to my favorites, therefore downgrading my rating slightly…

For me, the main problem with this book is the relationship between Greyson and Addiysn. I’ll admit that their romantic scenes are endearing and pleasing for the hormone-controlled teenager. However, especially at the beginning, I felt no chemistry between them – it was more like insta-love. For example, Greyson mentions that “from the moment I saw you being born, I knew that I would love you. I have watched you do this when you were five, this when you were seven…” I’m not sure if I’m the only one, but I’m pretty sure that was kind of stalker-ishk, considering Greyson is about 200 years old and is watching this seven year old girl.

Other than that, I suppose my only other problem is regarding my own personal tastes. During the majority of the book, I felt Addisyn was more of a passive character. I understand that the rest of the Link was trying to keep secrets from here, although I wished her involvement in the plot and knowledge about angels could grow more. Moreover, there were times I didn’t want to read about typical prom drama or scenes about kissing on the moonlight-filled roof – I wanted action and more about angels!

The redeeming factors, however, were Hunter and the ending. I loved Hunter’s relationship with Addi – it presented true bonds of friendship and loyalty. His actions actually show that he cares about her as a part of his family. Addi also pulls her side of the bargain by doing what she does in the end – in order to honor Hunter and protect her family. It is probably because of the ending that I may be interested in checking out the next book.

Overall, Neophyte is a good read for those who like angel love stories or Twilight or are romantic readers (there’s lots of romance/making out between Greyson and Addi – that’s for sure!) c:(less)

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May 01, 2012 Heather Boustead rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: action-adventure, ebook, fantasy, clean-romance, romance, young-adult, religious-inspirational

Neophyte
By Emmalee Aple

Addisyn White died two years ago, but three days after her death she was reborn as an angel. Not a full-fledged angel it will take her five years to become one, she is still mostly human and must still go through training with her Link five other angels who will protect her and teach her. There is Hunter her companion in this new life that can read her thoughts and will always share a special connection with and then there is Greysan, handsome and kind and the love of her...more

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Apr 08, 2012 Sandra "Jeanz" rated it 3 of 5 stars

MY REVIEW

I really like the cover of this book and that was what initially attracted me to it. I just love anything with white feathers because of what they represent. I also love the calligraphy style writing on the cover.
I have to be honest, I didn't like how the book was set out. There are no speech marks within the book so it was quite hard to really get absorbed into the book when you were battling to differentiate between the characters speaking and the actual descriptions within the book....more

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May 05, 2012 Alyssia rated it 2 of 5 stars Recommends it for: Angel fans, People who like the young girl/old guy in young body romance

Shelves: read-and-review, kindle

This book did not hold my attention, and so, despite the interesting premise, I find it difficult to assign it a high rating.

I constantly felt like I should have been much further along than I was. The pacing was strange, and very slow at first. Several characters were not terribly developed, but at the same time character development seemed to be all that was happening. This contradiction is confusing, admittedly, but it is one I will stand by.

Addy is completely unlikable. But apparently, that...more This book did not hold my attention, and so, despite the interesting premise, I find it difficult to assign it a high rating.

I constantly felt like I should have been much further along than I was. The pacing was strange, and very slow at first. Several characters were not terribly developed, but at the same time character development seemed to be all that was happening. This contradiction is confusing, admittedly, but it is one I will stand by.

Addy is completely unlikable. But apparently, that isn't really a rub to being an angel. In fact, even intentionally saving someone's life doesn't seem to be a prerequisite. Simply dying in the process of someone else not dying, which may be the reason why there are so many gray wings around. After all, accidents do not heroes make.

I didn't love Greysan either. His tortured act got old really quick. The unbending quality to the male characters was extremely frustrating. And although most of them had their downsides, I think Greysan may have been the most frustrating. Him, or perhaps Everett. Graham was the most interesting character, and he was at least decently developed, but of course, needed to take a backseat to his more broody and annoying twin and the ridiculous romance. At least no one can argue that Grey and Addy don't deserve each other...

Addy repeats herself a lot. She goes through the same motions and expects different results. She is constantly PMSing. She throws tantrums. She never states her case logically, and she instantly decides no one will listen. Some of these things might be "teenage girl", but they certainly aren't "angel". At least not to me. Also, Addy has been with these guys for a while already. But she knows nothing about them, apparently. And hasn't learned to tell when they are lying. And can't seem to string together simple cause & effect. Her unwillingness to use her brain to solve the "big secrets" they are keeping from her is pretty irritating. And the book itself is whine - secret - tantrum - confrontation - shuffle and repeat. Why would a guy as old as Grey possibly want anything to do with this hormonal infant? How could she alone be that special person to make him feel again? This is the trouble I have with these young heroines and their ageless boyfriends.

All of that being said, many people received the book quite well. It may simply not be my type of story. I found the pacing off, and that contributed to a very slow read for me. Perhaps if I hadn't read it in gulps and swallows I would have liked it more. I do think that there are some excellent characters and some very interesting ideas that went into the creation of this book. Personally, I did not enjoy the execution, but I do think the book would be great for some people.(less)

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Apr 26, 2012 Angieleigh rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: ya, bc11-12

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here. Ms. Aple's writing grips you from the moment you start reading about Addisyn and her Link. She has the ability to weave a spell as you turn page after page, your eyes hungry for more as you lose yourself in this book.

No, I'm not kidding. It took all of my Gryffindor willpower NOT to finish this in one sitting - I would force myself to put the book down to do mundane things such as make dinner, do the dishes, take a shower, pick the husband up for work and sleep.

Who needs sleep when you have a g...more

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Apr 24, 2012 Jeanette rated it 4 of 5 stars

I haven't read a lot of angel books and so I was definitely excited when I read the description of the book! I quickly signed up to review this book, and was not disappointed!

I loved the story line! It did kind of remind me of Twilight - clumsy girl kept in the dark about things that might hurt her. Love interest is much older/damaged and very protective, and the best friend doesn't seem to approve of the relationship. (view spoiler) That being...more I haven't read a lot of angel books and so I was definitely excited when I read the description of the book! I quickly signed up to review this book, and was not disappointed!

I loved the story line! It did kind of remind me of Twilight - clumsy girl kept in the dark about things that might hurt her. Love interest is much older/damaged and very protective, and the best friend doesn't seem to approve of the relationship. (view spoiler) That being said, I happen to like Twilight, and I also happen to like this book! After the first couple of chapters, I thought the story moved at a good pace and I loved the interactions between the characters. You really learn a lot about them by how they react to situations, and I found myself sympathizing with a lot of them (most surprisingly Graham)! I was only planning on starting this book last night, annnndd found myself finishing it at 2 in the morning, unable to put it down to go to sleep. By the end I was so emotional (view spoiler) that I made chocolate fondue to ease my feelings. (hey, there were apples...sooo it's not TOTALLY bad. right..?)

I would have liked to see the beginning play out a bit differently (delivery-wise). It was almost like the we jumped into the story too quickly without understanding enough about the world and the characters. For me, that made it a bit difficult to get into. THAT BEING SAID, as soon as I figured out who was who, I was hooked. I do like how we don't find everything out in the beginning and we learn things as the story progresses, but the start was a bit too unstructured for me. There were a couple of lines that I wasn't all that fond of (ex: "My lips begged for his like two starving piranhas hungrily anticipating the first touch of another’s flesh against them.") but they were few and far in between.

I can't wait for the next book to come out! I have a lot of questions from this book that I imagine will get addressed in the next one! Such as:
-why would the (view spoiler) relationship not be approved by the elders?
-why wouldn't the link just tell her what is going on?! It's clear she is putting herself in more danger not knowing anything...so there must be something big behind the scenes!
-what will her "powers" be!? ahhh I know there will be more and I am impatient! haha

In the end, the premise and the characters were what drew me into this story. I found that the writing was smooth and the ending unexpected. The author wrapped up a lot of character arcs but left enough open for the next book in the series (which I will definitely read)!

3.5 stars! :)
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Apr 23, 2012 Shelly rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: don-t-forget

I received a free copy of Neophyte on Goodreads from the Read it and Reap Giveaways and am so happy I did. Thank you!

As Neophyte begins, you jump right into the action. I liked the fact that the background was slowly revealed. It kept me engaged. You may feel a little disjointed at first, but the writing style is smooth and you'll be sucked in pretty quickly.

I loved the interactions with the characters. When there are a lot of characters, it's easy for them to blend together, but the author did...more

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Apr 12, 2012 Charlayne rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: young-adult, paranormal-romance

Eighteen year old Addyson White wakes up dead just before graduation. Someone came into the school cafeteria and shot her three days ago. This was not her plan for life and now she’s with her friend Hunter, living in a beach house with four other guys. These guys just happen to be angels and Addyson is now a Neophyte, the beginning stage of becoming an angel.

Everett is the leader of the “link,” which is the name of the grouping of angels who take neophyte angels and raise and protect them for t...more Eighteen year old Addyson White wakes up dead just before graduation. Someone came into the school cafeteria and shot her three days ago. This was not her plan for life and now she’s with her friend Hunter, living in a beach house with four other guys. These guys just happen to be angels and Addyson is now a Neophyte, the beginning stage of becoming an angel.

Everett is the leader of the “link,” which is the name of the grouping of angels who take neophyte angels and raise and protect them for the five years it takes for the human to change to a full angel. Then they go off to be trained in whatever angelic job they are going to have. Wilhelm is his second and both angels were born as angels. With them are Hunter and the twins Graham and Greysan, all former neophytes who are now helping teach Addyson about her new life as well as trying to protect her from things that could harm her.

Their biggest challenge to Addy’s safety is another Link, formed by fallen angels who have gray wings, unlike the angels with Addyson who have white wings. Addyson is suddenly grabbed; she thinks by Greysan and carried off. But the real Greysan gives chase and ends up killing the fallen angel, which triggers a war between the two links.

Neophyte is a young adult novel. The angels Hunter and Addyson go to school, have homework, and go to prom. There is some romance involved but it’s confined to kissing. It starts out slow but quickly begins to build the story of Addyson’s new life and the choices she has to make. Emmalee Aple has made her heroine a strong girl who is not easily intimidated by the other angels of either link. She is kept in the dark by her own link but she keeps trying to find out what they know and demands to be trained to protect herself. There are times when she almost seems to be temperamental in some of her actions and demands.

This is Aple’s first book and the first of the Neophyte series. The book flows well, is well written with action and descriptions. The book ends with a well-done cliff-hanger and this book me interested enough to look for the sequel once it comes out.
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Apr 01, 2012 ⚝ Ŧáẅņá ⚝ rated it 3 of 5 stars

Literally just finished reading this book and I'm not exactly sure what to say about it.

The Story
When someone becomes an angel it takes them 5 years for the full transformation into becoming an angel. During this time the person is vulnerable as they are not as fast or strong or have the abilities that a full fledged angel has. Addi finds out that her angel "pack" called a Link is keeping secrets from her "for her own protection" and this puts everyone in danger. Love interest enfolds and a cho...more

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Jun 16, 2012 Audrey Wilkerson rated it 2 of 5 stars

Shelves: 2012-books-read, books-reviewed

So, you die. And now, you're an angel. Sort of. Addisyn White perished just a few months shy of her high school graduation. Reborn as a neophyte, she has a few years to lose her humanness and become a full-fledged angel. She lives with her Link, a quasi-commune of angels that are banded together. One of the angels is her partner, Hunter, who she is bonded to for all eternity. Another of the angels is her crush, Greysan.

The Link has taken a hiatus from their seraphic day jobs to train Addi during...more So, you die. And now, you're an angel. Sort of. Addisyn White perished just a few months shy of her high school graduation. Reborn as a neophyte, she has a few years to lose her humanness and become a full-fledged angel. She lives with her Link, a quasi-commune of angels that are banded together. One of the angels is her partner, Hunter, who she is bonded to for all eternity. Another of the angels is her crush, Greysan.

The Link has taken a hiatus from their seraphic day jobs to train Addi during her change to full angel. She knows absolutely nothing about the process, and it seems they are bent on keeping it that way. Addi does not understand why they won’t tell her everything she needs to know about being an angel and why the head of the link, Everett, feels she must be kept in the dark. She’s not brand-new, after all; she has already been a neophyte for two years. Teenage tantrums and selfish acts ensue, which put Addi and her Link in harm’s way. For you see, there are other Links, and leader of another Link is determined to force Addi into his Link.

I am torn. The premise of the book and the story is interesting; the writing is a good C-plus/B-minus. I am a huge fan of angel stories. While reading, however, I kept picturing an accordion; an accordion that is in the closed position. I so dearly wanted the author to s-t-r-e-t-c-h out the book so I didn’t feel like all the action (and no rest from it) was crammed into a too-short amount of pages. The pacing, however, had the opposite problem. While I think it extremely important to “hold out” on some key information to give the tale more mystery and drama, it can be tedious if overdone. Also, I understand what an angel is and where, supposedly, they come from. For a book that is secular in nature (as much as angels can be secular), there are a couple of times where God and praying is mentioned in a definite religious manner. These, along with one instance of the F-word, are jarring.

The lack of information that Addi was given regarding all things angelic makes for much tension. Honestly, the only point of not giving her this knowledge was to invent drama where it was wasted. Soon a pattern emerged: information withheld; fit thrown; selfishness ensues; bad thing happens; Link saves. It became a little hard for me to believe that those who were supposed to be teaching and training were not teaching and training. On the other side of the coin, Addi’s continued refusal to do what they asked got old. I didn’t want all of the drama to be there; I needed something more. Focus should have been on the other Link and the “bad” angels, Sebastien and Farran, as well. Then, about mid-way through the book, there is a huge but unexplained fight between her crush angel and her partner angel. I never understood exactly what happened there.

For some reason, Addi was made to repeat her senior year at a nearby high school. Is this to accentuate her age or the fact that she is still part human? Whatever the thinking, this part should be either expanded upon or removed completely. It was a distraction in that it did not seem to have any point in being in the story. One peeve I had was the character names, or rather, the cutesie-poo spellings. I understand wanting to have interesting names, and so many seem to have already been “taken;” but it was like having your tweenager do the work. I found it distracting and unsophisticated.

Lastly, the writing. The author communicates too much like a person thinks; it’s a little disjointed, with run-on sentences. There are way too many interruptions trying to amp up the drama. There was some misuse of metaphors, improper word usage and spelling errors. For example, “shutter” instead of “shudder;” “lips like two starving piranhas;” “mumble out a curse;” “awarding himself a grunt.” Also, the author needs to clarify for herself the difference between the use of “lay” and “lie.” The heroine’s constant chewing on the inside of her cheek makes me think it is more obsession than nervous habit. The worst offender, though, is the “code” words that Addi and Greysan come up with: sweet beef and funky muffin. Gross. Even if not meant as innuendo, clunky, clunky, clunky. Embarrassing.

Overall, I think readers who enjoy the paranormal/angelic experience will like Ms. Aple’s story. There will be a sequel, so maybe many of the answers that were held back in volume one will be answered.

2 of 5 Stars

Genre: Young Adult Fantasy Angel

Ages: Not stated. Mild kissing; no profanity except one-time use of the F-word

Neophyte by Emmalee Aple was published February 21, 2012 by Smashwords.

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May 04, 2012 Laura Thomas rated it 4 of 5 stars

Addisyn was your typical teenage girl with dreams and plans for the future. That all changed the day she died. Three days after a school shooting ends her life she awakens to the face of her best friend Hunter. Along with four other angels, they are her Link. She is now a Neophyte, a changed angel, and they will be training and protecting her for the next five years until she becomes a full fledged angel and gets her assignment. It has been two years that Addisyn has been living with her link. W...more

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Feb 17, 2013 Delaney Burton rated it 3 of 5 stars

I am going to go ahead and write my review even though I am not done reading this book. I am not sure when I will finish it as I can't seem to get into this book. I don't believe it is any fault of the author, it seems to be well written and I like the characters. I think it is just me at the time and I seem to be reading slow. I am giving it a 3 star rating as I am enjoying it and I will write a new review when I finish it.

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Mar 02, 2012 Sarah rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: r2r-complete, read-2012

(This book was given to me for free by the author on a read-to-review basis.)
18-year-old Addisyn is a neophyte. That is, she’s in the process of becoming an angel.

Shot in her high school cafeteria, Addi was killed instantly, then reborn three days later as a neophyte. That was two years ago, which means that she still has three more years to go before her body fully completes its transition from human to angel, and until then she can still die a human death.

Addisyn lives with 5 other angels: Eve...more

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Jun 09, 2012 Lexie rated it 5 of 5 stars

Wow. I just finished reading this book, and my emotions are all over the place. I was given a copy of Neophyte through Goodreads R2R. I was excited to read this, because I have read several other angel books and was curious how this would compare. I can truly say it captured my emotions and concentration in a way few books have (and none of them were angel or fallen angel books). I literally didn’t put it down for a couple of hours until I was totally done, I was that enthralled. I’m still think...more

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Jun 08, 2012 Melanie rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: read-to-review, ya, paranormal

Neophyte is an interesting take on the angel mythos, with white and grey angels. Unlike most of the other YA novels out there with angelic characters, Addisyn, our heroine, is in the company of her angel Link, other angels who are teaching her what she needs to know, after she dies and starts to change. There is some interesting conflict between the white and grey winged angels that never seems fully fleshed out, and I would like to have gotten a bit more information on that, maybe some backgrou...more

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Apr 30, 2012 Lauren rated it 5 of 5 stars

Where do I start with this? I really liked this book... like I freaking loved this book. That being said, this was my first angel book. I've been so hesitant to venture into the topic because I've read such mixed reviews. Well let me say that I'm so happy this was my first. This book has everything that really sucks you into a story and doesn't let you go. I was a goner from the first page. The story line flowed well and each character was so fun and unique. I really enjoyed trying to imagine ho...more

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topics	posts	views	last activity
Emmalee Aple Offi...: Neophyte	11	17	Mar 01, 2013 09:59am
Good YA Series: Looking for a Unique Angel Series?	10	87	Aug 22, 2012 11:20am
Emmalee Aple Offi...: Neophyte Group Read	1	8	Jul 20, 2012 05:18am
Goodreads Authors...: A New Angel Series - unlike anything else out there.	1	6	May 21, 2012 02:31pm
Young Adult Book ...: Looking for a Unique Angel Series?	2	23	May 18, 2012 12:20pm
YA Science Fictio...: Looking for a Unique Angel Series?	2	65	May 18, 2012 12:19pm

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