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Testament to Love
An angel and a mortal find salvation in each other’s arms, but are they willing to live with the consequences? *Wet Dream*
52 pages, ebook
First published September 1, 2008
About the author
Ariel Tachna
159 books408 followersAriel Tachna lives outside of Houston with her husband, her daughter and son, and their cat. Before moving there, she traveled all over the world, having fallen in love with both France, where she found her husband, and India, where she dreams of retiring some day. She’s bilingual with snippets of four other languages to her credit, and is as in love with languages as she is with writing.
Visit Ariel at her website http://www.arieltachna.com or on Facebook, https://www.facebook.com/ArielTachna, or e-mail her at arieltachna@gmail.com.
Visit Ariel at her website http://www.arieltachna.com or on Facebook, https://www.facebook.com/ArielTachna, or e-mail her at arieltachna@gmail.com.
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Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews
June 14, 2014
I love angel stories and this one that completely enthralled me with it’s premise. The questions it asks is, essentially, “What happens when an angel who is sent to return hope to a human’s life so he can return to grace, falls in love with that human?” It is made clear that the angle’s job should be to help the human, not make him dependent on the angel. Apparently, “The Adversary had fallen from grace for drawing souls to himself instead of returning them to the Most High.”
That is Emmanuel’s problem in a nutshell. Emmanuel is an angel whose job it is to return souls to grace. It looks as if he’s made Cameron fall in love with him, rather than refocus the despondent human on “the Most High”. Only, Emmanuel did not want it to happen, didn’t do it on purpose, and the situation made him desperate enough he went into hiding. Not that this helps, of course, because “the Most High” sends his two angel friends after him to find out what is wrong. Emmanuel is desperate. He knows he has committed the ultimate sin, his heart hurts for Cameron, and he has no idea what to do. He has the toughest choice imaginable: be true to his heritage and return to heaven, hoping Cameron will somehow survive without him, or be honest and face his punishment, hoping he can be with Cameron instead. Not an easy choice, and one that almost tears him apart.
Cameron has reason to be despondent. His ex-wife has cleaned him out financially, he can barely keep his head above water because all his money goes to her for child support, and he has lost the will to paint and, worse, the will to live. Emanuel brings light back into his life, but Cameron has no idea who he really is, and decides to kill himself when he leaves without an explanation.
I totally adore this story about the true meaning of love, and the ultimate message that love takes many forms and may not always be what we expect. If you like stories about angels and their moral dilemmas, and if you’re looking for a touching read that will tear at your heartstrings then you should give this novella a go. It made me cry before putting a smile on my face, and I loved the confirmation of what I believe to be right as much as Ariel Tachna does in this story.
That is Emmanuel’s problem in a nutshell. Emmanuel is an angel whose job it is to return souls to grace. It looks as if he’s made Cameron fall in love with him, rather than refocus the despondent human on “the Most High”. Only, Emmanuel did not want it to happen, didn’t do it on purpose, and the situation made him desperate enough he went into hiding. Not that this helps, of course, because “the Most High” sends his two angel friends after him to find out what is wrong. Emmanuel is desperate. He knows he has committed the ultimate sin, his heart hurts for Cameron, and he has no idea what to do. He has the toughest choice imaginable: be true to his heritage and return to heaven, hoping Cameron will somehow survive without him, or be honest and face his punishment, hoping he can be with Cameron instead. Not an easy choice, and one that almost tears him apart.
Cameron has reason to be despondent. His ex-wife has cleaned him out financially, he can barely keep his head above water because all his money goes to her for child support, and he has lost the will to paint and, worse, the will to live. Emanuel brings light back into his life, but Cameron has no idea who he really is, and decides to kill himself when he leaves without an explanation.
I totally adore this story about the true meaning of love, and the ultimate message that love takes many forms and may not always be what we expect. If you like stories about angels and their moral dilemmas, and if you’re looking for a touching read that will tear at your heartstrings then you should give this novella a go. It made me cry before putting a smile on my face, and I loved the confirmation of what I believe to be right as much as Ariel Tachna does in this story.
September 15, 2018
Love hits us when we least expect it. Good book.
Read
August 21, 2014This book was reviewed by Love Bytes Reviews!
July 10, 2018
This was a quick wonderful read. You really feel for Emmanuel and Cameron. I don't want to give away the ending but it is EXACTLY what I was hoping would happen. I loved this, and it completely satisfied my wing-kink ;)
July 8, 2014
2.5 Stars
An angel is bored. Hard to believe given they live to serve The One, yet for Emmanuel the truth remains: he cannot muster up the same joy he once had in the heavenly realms. When he is sent to earth to bring a soul back to grace, and back to the joy of serving The One, it is no surprise that his mission goes awry. Sent to search for the missing angel, two others stumble upon a broken man—the very one Emmanuel was sent to help. And the cause of his brokenness? The loss of a man he has grown to love, Emmanuel. Now, it comes to light that perhaps the greatest sin an angel can embrace has happened. Emmanuel has fallen in love…with a human.
In every story we read there is the need for a certain degree of willingness on the part of the reader to suspend their disbelief. After all, it is fact that we are indulging in fiction, romance, and sometimes realms that may not even exist. We do so willingly to be entertained, and the degree to which we agree to park our cynicism at the door and embark on the adventure varies with each novel we read. I was good with the idea that this story by Ariel Tachna would indeed be centered on the idea of a greater being and his angels. I was additionally willing to believe that angels could come among us and help us—lead us back to this place of grace where we could have renewed faith in something greater than ourselves. However, I felt the story was just a bit too sweet, too neatly resolved, and the idea that a human could so completely buy into the idea he had fallen in love with an angel, at least this rather bitter, cynical human? That is where the story fell apart for me.
Emmanuel was very convincing as a heavenly being torn by the idea that he would only ever be a shadow to the humans he was sent to help. I felt his story was well drawn and believable, that he could step away from the heavenly realms and feel the need to have something more in his life. However, the man he is sent to bring back to grace, Cameron Anderson, is another story. Here is a man who has lost everything. His wife has taken their two daughters far away and apparently in a sweeping settlement, not only took away nearly all his visitation rights but his money as well. So, this budding artist is bound to work soul-sucking jobs painting other’s homes, and loses his desire to paint from his heart. He is a bitter, broken man and when Emmanuel arrives under the guise of a homeless young man needing help, Cameron’s true nature comes forth and he takes this stranger in.
This part of the short story worked well, and I felt it was a solid premise. However, there were so many unanswered questions. When exactly did Cameron switch teams? Was he bisexual or a closeted gay man? What went wrong for such a severe edict to be handed down on this man’s life that prevented him from seeing his children? The questions seemed endless. And remained unanswered. Then there was the real fear that Emanuel would become part of the fallen—the other team that had been thrown out of heaven. After all, rather than bringing Cameron back into a worship and love of The One he had allowed Cameron to fall in love with him, and had fallen in return. This was grounds for expulsion. Yet, that is not exactly what happened in the end.
I felt Testament to Love had a nice premise and potential to be a sweet romance. While there were moments in it that rang true and were palatable, the overall feeling I came away with was rather so-so. I simply could not suspend enough of my disbelief to buy into the idea that angels abound and can be content with returning to an earthbound status so easily. I needed to see more turmoil and, forgive me, soul searching from both these characters.
An angel is bored. Hard to believe given they live to serve The One, yet for Emmanuel the truth remains: he cannot muster up the same joy he once had in the heavenly realms. When he is sent to earth to bring a soul back to grace, and back to the joy of serving The One, it is no surprise that his mission goes awry. Sent to search for the missing angel, two others stumble upon a broken man—the very one Emmanuel was sent to help. And the cause of his brokenness? The loss of a man he has grown to love, Emmanuel. Now, it comes to light that perhaps the greatest sin an angel can embrace has happened. Emmanuel has fallen in love…with a human.
In every story we read there is the need for a certain degree of willingness on the part of the reader to suspend their disbelief. After all, it is fact that we are indulging in fiction, romance, and sometimes realms that may not even exist. We do so willingly to be entertained, and the degree to which we agree to park our cynicism at the door and embark on the adventure varies with each novel we read. I was good with the idea that this story by Ariel Tachna would indeed be centered on the idea of a greater being and his angels. I was additionally willing to believe that angels could come among us and help us—lead us back to this place of grace where we could have renewed faith in something greater than ourselves. However, I felt the story was just a bit too sweet, too neatly resolved, and the idea that a human could so completely buy into the idea he had fallen in love with an angel, at least this rather bitter, cynical human? That is where the story fell apart for me.
Emmanuel was very convincing as a heavenly being torn by the idea that he would only ever be a shadow to the humans he was sent to help. I felt his story was well drawn and believable, that he could step away from the heavenly realms and feel the need to have something more in his life. However, the man he is sent to bring back to grace, Cameron Anderson, is another story. Here is a man who has lost everything. His wife has taken their two daughters far away and apparently in a sweeping settlement, not only took away nearly all his visitation rights but his money as well. So, this budding artist is bound to work soul-sucking jobs painting other’s homes, and loses his desire to paint from his heart. He is a bitter, broken man and when Emmanuel arrives under the guise of a homeless young man needing help, Cameron’s true nature comes forth and he takes this stranger in.
This part of the short story worked well, and I felt it was a solid premise. However, there were so many unanswered questions. When exactly did Cameron switch teams? Was he bisexual or a closeted gay man? What went wrong for such a severe edict to be handed down on this man’s life that prevented him from seeing his children? The questions seemed endless. And remained unanswered. Then there was the real fear that Emanuel would become part of the fallen—the other team that had been thrown out of heaven. After all, rather than bringing Cameron back into a worship and love of The One he had allowed Cameron to fall in love with him, and had fallen in return. This was grounds for expulsion. Yet, that is not exactly what happened in the end.
I felt Testament to Love had a nice premise and potential to be a sweet romance. While there were moments in it that rang true and were palatable, the overall feeling I came away with was rather so-so. I simply could not suspend enough of my disbelief to buy into the idea that angels abound and can be content with returning to an earthbound status so easily. I needed to see more turmoil and, forgive me, soul searching from both these characters.
July 19, 2014
Emmanuel is an Angel on a mission to save a lost soul, only to find his charge and discover, he is just as lost as Cameron.
When Emmanuel is sent to earth on his latest assignment he finds a man at the end of his rope. Cameron is struggling to make ends meet due to an angry ex wife that took his children and moved away, and now bleeds him dry with child support. All his time is spent earning money to give away, none is spent on his passion anymore, painting. Emmanuel presents himself as a drifter looking for work and a place to stay. The two are instantly drawn to each other, but the romantic edge to that doesn't present itself straight away. When it does, Emmanuel freaks out and fears what would happen to his wings were he to act on the attraction. So he leaves, and leaves Cameron in a worse state than he was when he first found him.
In the end, Emmanuel will have to choose between his love for a mortal and his wings.
This is the first book I've read by Tachna, but it will not be the last. I absolutely LOVE a book that has religious undertones without being overbearing or completely inaccurate, and that is what Testament of Love is. The words Tachna used, The Voice, The Adversary, in lieu of the traditional words for these beings was genius and conveyed a different view of Angels, Heaven and Hell. The lesson Emmanuel had to learn and the choice he made were formidable and endearing, as was this story.
This was just a fast, fun, sexy read. My favorite part was the way their first time was wrapped up in Emmanuels wings, it was so sexy and sweet and added a depth of feeling that set this story apart from other similar stories. Definitely recommend this read.
When Emmanuel is sent to earth on his latest assignment he finds a man at the end of his rope. Cameron is struggling to make ends meet due to an angry ex wife that took his children and moved away, and now bleeds him dry with child support. All his time is spent earning money to give away, none is spent on his passion anymore, painting. Emmanuel presents himself as a drifter looking for work and a place to stay. The two are instantly drawn to each other, but the romantic edge to that doesn't present itself straight away. When it does, Emmanuel freaks out and fears what would happen to his wings were he to act on the attraction. So he leaves, and leaves Cameron in a worse state than he was when he first found him.
In the end, Emmanuel will have to choose between his love for a mortal and his wings.
This is the first book I've read by Tachna, but it will not be the last. I absolutely LOVE a book that has religious undertones without being overbearing or completely inaccurate, and that is what Testament of Love is. The words Tachna used, The Voice, The Adversary, in lieu of the traditional words for these beings was genius and conveyed a different view of Angels, Heaven and Hell. The lesson Emmanuel had to learn and the choice he made were formidable and endearing, as was this story.
This was just a fast, fun, sexy read. My favorite part was the way their first time was wrapped up in Emmanuels wings, it was so sexy and sweet and added a depth of feeling that set this story apart from other similar stories. Definitely recommend this read.
June 10, 2014
Testament to Love is exactly that. A testament to the love between Cameron the human, and Emmanuel the angel. It is gentle and sweet, and very lovely. It had the potential to be preachy and sappy, yet it is neither! Just goes to show you what a great author can do with a simple story. And I don’t mean simple in a bad way at all! It was just perfect as it was.
It’s hard to talk about the plot in such a short story without giving anything away. I’ll just say this is a nice little love story between Emmanuel, an angel sent to give a human some direction and inspiration. Cameron is an artist, truly struggling. He’s lost his family and his direction. One day a man shows up at his doorstep and Cameron, with his generous soul, let’s him in. Emmanuel has been given the task of saving Cameron, so he tskes on human form to spend a little time re igniting Cameron’s passion. His artistic passion! But it turns in to more than that. With the help of a couple of Emmanuel’s angel friends, the two get exactly what they need. This was just a short, sweet, little story, a lot of love, and some beautiful angel sex!
I can count on Ariel to give me a fantastic story, she does wonderful things with big intense novels, and sweet little ones like this. She was actually my first m/m author and will always have a place in my heart!
A copy of this book was provided for reviewing. Please visit www.lovebytesreviews.com to see this and many more reviews!
It’s hard to talk about the plot in such a short story without giving anything away. I’ll just say this is a nice little love story between Emmanuel, an angel sent to give a human some direction and inspiration. Cameron is an artist, truly struggling. He’s lost his family and his direction. One day a man shows up at his doorstep and Cameron, with his generous soul, let’s him in. Emmanuel has been given the task of saving Cameron, so he tskes on human form to spend a little time re igniting Cameron’s passion. His artistic passion! But it turns in to more than that. With the help of a couple of Emmanuel’s angel friends, the two get exactly what they need. This was just a short, sweet, little story, a lot of love, and some beautiful angel sex!
I can count on Ariel to give me a fantastic story, she does wonderful things with big intense novels, and sweet little ones like this. She was actually my first m/m author and will always have a place in my heart!
A copy of this book was provided for reviewing. Please visit www.lovebytesreviews.com to see this and many more reviews!
June 29, 2020
In a book this small you pretty much have to condense something, I was just disappointed that it was the whole beginning. Instead of showing how the human and the angel fell in love the book decides to focus on the drama at the end. All the relationship building is condensed to a terse retelling by the MCs.
Instead, we get a suicidal Cameron and an unhappy Emmanuel, sure he'll fall for falling in love, since the Adversaries sin was similar. Until his fellow angel's pat him on the back and are like "It will be fine" and suddenly he thinks so too. I don't know, I thought some of the reasoning in this was pretty poor. I can suspend my disbelieve, but I need some internal consistency, or it won't work.
So for the second half of the book we get sex. A long, prolonged sex scene, kinda slow and thoughtful, but nothing special, unless you count the wings as erogenous zone part. Then a short trial in heaven and more sex.
I was just mildly disappointed. The characters are flat and for all intents and purposed it's insta-love. What I love in stories with supernatural entities is the falling in love part. That was omitted entirely. There's a lot of conflict set up that all just fizzles out to nothing, making everything feel too easy and effortless, considering the conflict is the whole base for the story.
If I just wanted to read some hot human on angel banging, there's a lot better titles out there.
Instead, we get a suicidal Cameron and an unhappy Emmanuel, sure he'll fall for falling in love, since the Adversaries sin was similar. Until his fellow angel's pat him on the back and are like "It will be fine" and suddenly he thinks so too. I don't know, I thought some of the reasoning in this was pretty poor. I can suspend my disbelieve, but I need some internal consistency, or it won't work.
So for the second half of the book we get sex. A long, prolonged sex scene, kinda slow and thoughtful, but nothing special, unless you count the wings as erogenous zone part. Then a short trial in heaven and more sex.
I was just mildly disappointed. The characters are flat and for all intents and purposed it's insta-love. What I love in stories with supernatural entities is the falling in love part. That was omitted entirely. There's a lot of conflict set up that all just fizzles out to nothing, making everything feel too easy and effortless, considering the conflict is the whole base for the story.
If I just wanted to read some hot human on angel banging, there's a lot better titles out there.
June 11, 2014
A search for angel, Emmanuel, by his two closest angel friends at the request of The Lord. Apparently, Emmanuel has disappeared since his last assignment and could not be located. Emmanuel had become too closely intertwined with the human he was sent to save, and a bond of love developed. And that is the problem, a love bond is not supposed to develop between the angel and the human.
Angel Emmanuel is very distraught when his friends find him. He knows that to complete his job with his human subject, he will have to forego all memories, and Emmanuel seems to be unwilling to do that. He wants to savor their love affair, whether it was frowned upon or not.
Well, it comes down that Emmanuel is allowed to leave to angel brigade and join the ranks of humans so he can live out the rest of his days with Cameron, his human love.
It sounds like this would be a sweet little book to zip through since it is so short, but reading it is like plodding through sludge to get to the end. Overall, this was not a good read, and I would rank it as 2 stars.
July 8, 2014
A Joyfully Jay review.
4.25 stars
Testament to Love had the necessary religious references but was not overtly preachy. I liked how the angel Emmanuel was tired of his role in heaven and unsurprised when he formed an attachment to his lost soul, Cameron. The timing was just right. I mean, if I had been doing my job, the same job, for millennia, I am sure I would feel the same way as Emmanuel, despondent and bored.
Read Jason's review in its entirety here.
4.25 stars
Testament to Love had the necessary religious references but was not overtly preachy. I liked how the angel Emmanuel was tired of his role in heaven and unsurprised when he formed an attachment to his lost soul, Cameron. The timing was just right. I mean, if I had been doing my job, the same job, for millennia, I am sure I would feel the same way as Emmanuel, despondent and bored.
Read Jason's review in its entirety here.
June 16, 2013
Slightly more complete story. There is more development in the plot and it's quite interesting seeing the relationship between an angel and a mortal form. Despite all difficulties they end up together and happy. Sexual content present. Very romantic.
Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews