Angel of Mercy

The Fallen #1

by Lisa Olsen

When Mercy wakes up in the hospital after a brutal stabbing, she has little recollection of the attack; only the blurred memories of a mysterious stranger with piercing blue eyes that haunts her dreams. Remembering enough of her own identity, (Name – Merceline Renault, check. Occupation – bartender at the nightclub Eden in Seattle, check. Phone number, ABC’s and the lyrics to every musical ever made, check.) Mercy struggles to piece together the events that brought her to the ICU at Northwest Hospital. When the blue-eyed stranger turns up in her hospital room, Mercy assumes it’s the medication that’s bringing her dreams to life.Mercy is stunned to find her wounds virtually healed with only the faintest trace of a scar left. Even more jarring, the surprised eyes that look back at her in the mirror are no longer her own familiar brown but a startling shade of blue – the same blue as her mystery man. After spotting the same man, that only she can see , Mercy follows him home, brazenly confronting him. (kids at home, never do that!) Her savior turns out to be less than human, or is it more?Samael is a fallen angel, bound to the Earth and living out his life among humans but apart from them. Sam and his brethren dwell among us, never seen, never heard, but always watching… and on occasion, intervening to atone for sins great enough to be cast down from heaven. Unwilling to let an innocent die, Sam bestowed some of his Grace to Mercy, healing her wounds and accidentally imbuing her with some of his angelic powers.Thrust into a world within her own where angels and demons coexist unseen by mere mortals, Mercy must learn to accept the fact that she is no longer strictly human; she is something new. Complicating things is Adamiel, the reckless fallen angel who is Sam’s enigmatic friend. In every way that Sam is light, Adam is dark, from his jet black hair to his wicked smile. Equal parts information and aggravation, Sam and Adam help Mercy acclimate to her new life.Determined to find a balance between her new abilities and juggling friends, family, job and others who are attracted to her Grace, Mercy struggles to play catch up before she draws too much unwanted attention from the powers that be and their minions. But now Mercy’s eyes are opened to a whole new world beyond the human realm… and their eyes are opened to her.

Genres: Angels, Paranormal, Romance, Paranormal Romance, Fantasy, Urban Fantasy, Fiction

247 pages, Paperback

First published June 15, 2011

About the author

Lisa Olsen is a writer, wife and mother of two, currently living in the Pacific Northwest. A complete TV addict, she also enjoys online RPG's, singing, reading, and cooking.

Reviews

[A.D. McLain · Rating 5 out of 5]

When I read a book, I usually have one of three reactions. I may hate it and can’t even finish reading it. I may like it but find myself distracted easily and thinking of how I would write the story differently. (Those books are part of the reason I became a writer). And the third reaction: I may love it and find myself unable to put it down. For those books, I find myself thinking of the story long after I’ve finished reading the book. Every page is a joy and I can’t wait to read more. That category is usually reserved for a few of my favorite authors, such as Sherrilyn Kenyon, Maggie Shayne and Jayne Castle. I now have a new author to add to that list. Her name is Lisa Olsen and the book is “Angel of Mercy.”

“Angel of Mercy” is the story of Merceline, a woman who unexpectedly finds herself thrust in the world of angels and demons after a near death experience leaves her healed by a fallen angel and imbued with some of his powers.

Mercy is a strong, funny and very likeable main character. Her interactions with her friends and family are believable and entertaining. When she complains of her family drama, I feel I am listening to an old friend. All of Olsen’s characters have depth and personality. In otherwords, they feel like real people. The action of the story flowed well. From page one, there was never a moment when I got bored and wanted to put the book down. But even so, each chapter wrapped up well enough that I could stop when I needed to go back to work or care for my children. It struck a nice balance that made it a very enjoyable read. I will gladly purchase this author’s other books and cannot wait to read the continuation of this story in “Mercy for the Wicked “

[Feminista · Rating 2 out of 5]

Nothing too interesting and missing a kickass heroine.

[anie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Mercy works as a bartender. One night after taking out the trash she is witness to the attack. She tries to help and gets stabbed. Doctors are not sure, if she will even survive, but she makes miraculous recovery and look and feels better than ever. She remember a guy with the piercing blue eyes, from the attack and from the hospital, so she thinks he might have some answers. One day, after spotting him, she decides to follow him.

She finds out he is a fallen angel. He healed her and transformed her in something else, she not just human anymore.

I loved the concept and the fast pace of the book. The story pull you right in. What I didn't like is romance in it. Especially Ben, I really dislike him...

[Suleika Santana -All About Books · Rating 5 out of 5]

LOVED, loved, loved it! Super awesome characters and great story line! In the beginning it reminded me of the movie City of Angels and I absolutely love that movie. I have to say that having so many (OK just 3) book boyfriends in one book normally bothers me but not in this one, I am in love with all 3, don't really even know who I want for Mercy in the end as I am conflicted. I guess maybe Adam is the one I would pick but I really love Sam and Ben. It's very difficult... Do I want a Fallen Angel or do I want the cop? Whoever Mercy decides in the end I will be OK with it as I am in love with all 3. Although I don't think Sam is in the running but I do know he loves her or at least I think he does.
Will definitely recommend to my friends.

[Ms. Cyn · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loce it

Love this book! Not l9ving the cliffhanger so much bet it will definitely get me to read the next book. The heroine, Mercy gets caught up into quite an interesting world of angels and demons.

There is a bit of a love triangle with Ben and Adam going on so hopefully that will be resolved soon. I really like Sam. He is so sweet and good. It's horrible that he became fallen. He doesn't deserve that. Adam is much more than he seems too. He is funny as well as protective. At first I thought Mercy would be into Sam but it looks like he is more brother material. I am really wondering how it will work with Ben. He doesn't seem the type to let things go for long.

[Donna · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book was ok for me. I missed the action because there really isn't a whole lot. It definitely gives you the background for the series. The characters are ok but with the lack of action it fell kind of flat or unfinished, maybe. I have found that, in some series, book 2 is better. I may read book 2 at some point but it is not a priority as I have many other series that I am more in interested in finishing at this time.

[Criss · Rating 4 out of 5]

First off....FREE.....nook book. Did I ever mention that I love free books?

Better part, this is a good, well written book. I wouldn't call this an all time best seller but the book flows smoothly, the characters are interesting and funny, and there is a good plot. It kind of reminds me of the tv series angel. Not the vampire part but the part that people are complex and who you think is a bad person is just normal. Flaws and all. Even angels and fallen angels.

I didn't like Adam and after reading the whole series I still don't particularly like Adam but the dislike makes it even more interesting! A recommended read.

[Pamela · Rating 1 out of 5]

I'm in the minority once again. I had to stop when I got half-way thru. I didn't find the story or the characters interesting at all. In fact, I thought I was reading about teens in high school. Didn't help that it was hard to believe that Mercy is 26 years old and not a teen because she acted and talked like one. Didn't enjoy this one at all.

[Pam James · Rating 5 out of 5]

Angel of Mercy.

Totally intriguing. There are 3 possible love interests for Mercy. Tending Bar is not her only talent. Being able to read Aura's seems a fun thing to do. There were times I LOL. Got teary eyed. Wanted to scream at Mercy to warn her of impending danger. Can't wait to read the next book. A Fan... Pam James.

[Kim · Rating 4 out of 5]

You can read my full review on my WordPress blog Flora's Musings...

...So, what did I like about it?
I have come across Ms Olsen before; I find her writing style easy to read and I was once again impressed at how quickly she managed to submerge me into her world. All of the characters we met in this book were complex and multi dimensional and I found them all to be very believable. I am not from a religion background so I came into this story with no “baggage” when it comes to angels; what they’re like, what they do, how they interact, what the rules are, etc.
I found the subtle humour very much to my taste and I loved Mercy’s very real mix of intelligence and strength and I found myself engaged with her tale from the very beginning; wondering how she was going to go back to her “human” life or if she’d have to abandon it.
I know what it’s like to feel varying degrees of love/lust/friendship with those of the opposite sex but usually I get frustrated with these situations in paranormal romance (PNR) books, however, I liked the way Ms Olsen tackled this very human (fickled?) state in this story; we’re lucky here to have a few angels and a human cop to muddy the emotional/romantic waters, all of who are, in my view, able to be our main male heroic lead alongside Mercy.

...So, ummm, was there anything I disliked about it?
Not really.
Although I will be honest, I wished that the ending hadn't been a cliff-hanger because, well, it’s frustrating, but I’m sort of ok with that because it’s more of a soft one rather than “oh no Mercy’s plummeting to her death will she survive the 10000ft drop to the bottom of the ravine…” sort of thing, just lots of questions left unanswered and an imminent danger looming. But hey, it is the first book in the series so, of course there will be tons of questions left unanswered, right?!

...So, basically what I’m saying is...
I really enjoyed this book, perhaps more than I was expecting due to my usual avoidance of “angel” themed romances. I couldn’t stop reading! I’d recommend this book if you like reading paranormal stories based in our contemporary world where the main character has to come to terms with a new ability/lifestyle and where the relationship/romance/sexual tension part is very real to life (I don’t actually jump into bed immediately when I meet a hot new prospect – I do luuv the anticipation and build up though)!

[Karen Harper · Rating 4 out of 5]

Let's face it, there are lot of angel series around. I've probably read all of the "big ones", but Angel of Mercy is a little bit different. I loved the way she started the book; it drew me in straight away and although there were a few times it fell a little flat, just in time the story would take a turn and my interest would be revived.

I'm not a fan of cliff hangers, but since there was a warning, I was prepared. I will be reading the next book in the series because I want to know what happens next to Mercy and most of the other characters in this series.

Written by Karen from A Thousand Lives Book Blog

[anna schrul · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good read made me want more

I really enjoed your book and immediately after reading went and bought the next two in the series.. i enjoy vampire books as well. I liked this as it was paranormal enough yet included some truths ie auras ,to make it more realistic. Romance but not gross. Just a good but the kind of book you put off everything to finish andcthan cant wait to start the next one .

[Lisa O Brien · Rating 5 out of 5]

Angel of Mercy

In a way it is a slow burn. Things change for Mercy over night and not in a way you would expect. But l feel this is a book about how you overcome your struggles with what you are given. But there is also so much love and how it can be given in different ways. Loving the series so far as this is book 1 onto book 2

[Lynn · Rating 2 out of 5]

Give me an ending to this book

I do not like books that leave you stranded in the story. Give me some closure to this story. What a waste of a read! The characters needed more personality and the plot needed a story!

[Flamingcrystal Flamingcrystal · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very well written.

I love the witty main character Mercy, who let me laugh out loud a few times. The story is very well written and I would recommend that readers who love books about angels, should read this book.

[Tanya · Rating 4 out of 5]

Book one of the fallen series, I loved reading this book, I enjoyed the introduction to the characters of Mercy, her brother Matty her best friend Daphne, her boss Parker, detective Ben gates, I loved the angels Samael aka Sam, the social kooky Angel Adamiel aka Adam a huge flirt and Nathaniel. I loved the pace of the story of the book the only thing I can say as a slight critique is this book ended abruptly but not to worry there are four other books in this series, I loved the love triangle between mercy,Ben and Adam. This is a fantastic modern setting with angels and demons. I liked the fact that first Adam comes across as flirty sex obsessed angel but reveals a deeper layer to himself, I liked detective Ben Gates character friendly and kind to mercy but seems to have a jealous streak to his personality. this book was highly entertaining and enjoyable book to read I definitely recommend reading this book, I am looking forward to book two.





Mercy was a normal woman living in Seattle working as a bartender in a nightclub when her life changes forever she witnessed two men in the alleyway one was stabbed and she went to help him and got stabbed in the abdomen herself, she watches as the beautiful blue eyed stranger she helped heal her wound she wakes up in the icu after a few days she had emergency surgery on her abdomen for the knife wound she learns the doctors weren’t expecting her to survive it but she does, but she’s different her eyes are no longer brown but the same blue of her savour who has visited her in the hospital she sees peoples auras, she meet’s detective Ben gates who interviews her and she ID’s the photograph of her attacker a drug dealer who they are looking for. She notices she barely has a scar and panicks at what the doctors will think convinces her friend daphne to help her escape the hospital which she does back home her cat mimsy is wary of her, she keeps seeing her stranger especially when shopping at the market and notices no one else can see him. He’s following her, she jumps into the detective who has the suspect in a lineup needs her to come to the station to Id him officially she does. Charles Christopher Weatie. After visiting her brother catches sight of the stranger and follows him to his apartment he tells her his name is samael a fallen Angel, he did a forbidden thing by giving her his grace and gave too much now she’s changed something new, he’s a fallen Angel he healed her because she came to help him feels responsible for her she thanks him. She notices at work she’s getting a lot more male attention even from her boss Parker, she gets a call from detective gates warning her Charles out on bail he attacks her in her apartment she escapes and he disappears she stays with the detective and they begin dating, she visits Sam and meets another fallen Angel Adam who flirts with her calling her new and shiny. Adam turns up at bens apartment flirting with her and tells her his true name adamiel and if she calls his true name he will come, she tells Daphne’s the truth and she supports her. At work detective shows up with news that Charles has been murdered later visits Sam who admits to killing him because he hurt her, Adam tells her that humans finds angels irristible which is why she’s been getting so much attention Sam and mercy hang out often and learns that she’s the only female Angel like creature in existence they’re virtually all male with a small selection of gender neutral. She practices her powers of invisibility on her brother matty, despite being in a relationship with Ben is drawn to Adam. While on a date night with Ben she’s confronted by an Angel named Nathaniel questioning how she got grace and adam turns up, Nathaniel leaves, mercy and adam question each other she learns that Sam was an Angel of death but was cast out because he refused a direct order to kill someone, adam tells her to him she looks like an Angel and they share a kiss before he says goodbye, she visits Sam and overhears adam and Sam talking that adam is afraid of mercy’s safety and that he lost a woman named Mariah. He says goodbye to her and leaves Sam comforts her and tells her that he loved Mariah and when he was ordered to kill Mariah he refused and was cast out but raziel replaced him and killed her hence the grudge Adam bears against him. Ben goes over to mercy apartment to have dinner where she planned to tell him everything but he confronts her about Adam and Sam and basically accusing her of being dishonest she tells him to leave and they break up, she goes to the nightclub to drink and then goes to church bumps into a demon calls Sam for help no response calls Adam Who shows up gets rid of Cephas but is concerned about the imp reporting to his master about her says his goodbyes again, she doesn’t hear from sam in weeks and Ben and her get back together but at a work Halloween party sam arrives and tells her that Adam asked him to stay away to protect her but has secretly been watching her, he visited Nathaniel to come clean that he was the one to give her grace so Adam wouldn’t get the blame, the angels are reserving judgment on the matter for now, but warns her of some troubling rumours he has heard and needs to talk to her

[Rachel Krogen · Rating 5 out of 5]

Awesome

Loved this book. Great start to this series! First time reading this author. Great plot.. Loved the characters. I recommend!

[Pat Raab · Rating 4 out of 5]

A very different take on fallen angels. I'm still not quite sure what Mercy has become, but I'm sure to find out!

[Maria (a)]

DNF @ 8%. Not a fan of the tone.

[Anna · Rating 1 out of 5]

I don't want to offend anyone but I really don't understand all the high ratings of the book.

OK.Wednesday- I really want to like this one. I am intrigued and hopefull)) And so many 5star reviews!!!
Thursday-I can't even finish it. And it's a rare case,by the way.
My thoughts:
1. If you wright a book and one of your heroes is a police detective, you should ,at the very least, know the basic information on the subject. I mean, if you don't want to be ridiculous, of course.

2. Mercy is 26. Then why does she behave like a silly teenager? And I don't say that all the teenagers are silly,of course.

3. Her reaction to the very fact that angels do really exist is....no reaction at all

4.Her friend Daphne is no better. Considering the fact that they are both grown up women and Mercy had just gone through terrible things on physical and emotional level, a big stress as it is:

M: I was saved by an angel
D: Cool
M: I'm changed now
D: Fine
M: Let's talk about your boyfriend now
D: Bla-bla-bla
I mean,seriously?

5. Her relations with her own mother. Mercy is a bitch.

6.In situation with the Sam's crime Mercy stupidly ignores all the facts:
-that he can be invisible and most of the time he is
- that clearly angels can...teleport or whatever ( he just can't be locked in the cell))
- that he can't be caught by the human police
-....
and still insists on him laying low and..... having a haircut

7. Actually it was the last straw and I just stopped reading.

Maybe the problem in me)) But I really don't like immature(though she is supposed to be 26) , stupid heroines and the author's lack of the basic knowledge, in this very case, on the "police subject "

[Michelle Ehrich · Rating 3 out of 5]

I received a copy of this book from Goodreads for free through the First Reads program.

I really enjoyed this book, but it is much more of a set up for upcoming books than a story of its own. Not a lot actually happens, aside from the beginning event that changes the main character's life and is the basis for the entire series. The rest is more her learning who she is and about the new people in her life, as well as her man problems. It did make me want to read the rest of them though, as it's set up for more action to come. I was very impressed with the writing style, as I'm usually annoyed by first person narratives, and I didn't find this one distracting at all. My only complaint would be that she needs to come up with something to say other than "He's a nice (or good) guy." It's super repetitive through the whole thing.

Overall, it is really good. In fact, I had it rated at 4 stars until I went to write the review and realized the lack of plot. It wasn't something that bothered me while I was reading and it never felt slow in spite of it. Yes, the ending is annoying and screams "Buy my next book!" but that's so common anymore that it doesn't really bother me all that much.

[Lisa · Rating 5 out of 5]

I am not even sure where to begin. I read the entire series back to back to I will be careful not to get my stories mixed up. I loved everything about this book, the main character Mercy, was strong, yet not, flawed yet perfect. I loved Sam, and Ben, and Adam and Daphne and Matt....they all gave you someone to get invested in,

Mercy wakes up in the hospital, and literally her whole world is flipped upside down, she comes to find she has been thrown into a world where both Angels and Demons exist and sometimes you cannot tell one from the other, she comes to find out that that she just may be considered an abomination and tries to lay low, but the world around her has other plans for her.

Lisa Olsen has quickly become one of my favorite authors, and this series are helped raise her to the top. I could not put this book down once I started it.

[Ashley Scott · Rating 5 out of 5]

Angel of Mercy
By Lisa Olsen
*****

Like all of Mrs. Olsen's books, Angel of Mercy is a great opening number for the Fallen series.

Yet again we meet an incredible, down-to-earth, relate able female lead character, who, by no fault of her own, gets swept up in a supernatural world that is bigger than she could possibly imagine.

Another signature attribute of Mrs. Olsen's is the tough decision between two yummy men. In this series, Mercy is torn between Ben and Adam. They are two totally different men but both sexy men. Rough choice, right?

I truly enjoyed this book--just like EVERY Lisa Olsen book I've read--and am going right to the next in the series! Can't wait.

Only critique of this book is the obvious lack of strong proofing, which is not a problem in her later books.

[Rachel MacNaught · Rating 2 out of 5]

Written as though a child penned it, this book loped around in jolting tenses. There were odd cut aways where the narration turned from past to present in which the character awkwardly addresses her readers with the most asinine details. Telling us side notes about her favourite movies or cinnamon buns or God knows what else. It was embarrassing to read and it ended THE WORST I HAVE EVER SEEN a book end. Jolting, awkward, no resolution, no interest.. Lord it was awful.

But I'll give it an extra star because I liked the premise enough to be curious about how it'd unfold... Though it admittedly never even began to.

[Jessica · Rating 5 out of 5]

Solid 4.5
I really do love the whole Fallen Angel thing, because what worse can happen to Fallen Angel?!
Mercy was a super awesome protag. She took everything in stride but in a believable way. I thought Sam was going to be a love interest and was super glad to see he wasn't, he is way too innocent.
Though there was a love triangle, it wasn't bad. Very nicely done.
I really loved this book, and cannot wait to see what happens next. Hopefully the next will have some steamy sex or more action?

[AJ Olsen · Rating 5 out of 5]

I'm not usually a fan of first person POV books, but this one drew me right in from the start. The author set up an interesting world of fallen angels and demons mixed in with urban city living in Seattle. I liked the nifty set of powers that Mercy got from being touched by and angel. I just hope the next one comes out soon!

[Kelli · Rating 4 out of 5]

A problem I struggle with in this series is how quickly the main characters fall in love. They've spent about 3 hours together and now love each other.... Hmmmm. Life rarely works this way outside of high school.

[Ruth · Rating 5 out of 5]

I thought this book was really good. It starts out keeping you guessing what is really going on with Mercy. It just continues to evolve as the story goes on. I didn't want to put this book down. I will be reading the rest of the series from this author.

[Runningrabbit · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really love Lisa's book - another fine tome here with great and likable characters all in a fine setting with a good dose of mystery. There are some similarities to other 'academy' style novels, however, I don't feel that this detracts from the value of the essential tale.

[Sonia w · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great

It's very similar to the vampire diaries storyline...Adam is hot and mercy is a great main character my only issue is the amount off characters that don't play any role in the storyline but still looking forward to reading book two