Me on A Touch Mortal

Title: A Touch Mortal
Author: Leah Clifford
Release Date: February 22, 2011
Publisher: Greenwillow Books (HarperCollins imprint)

Bored and alone, Eden didn't expect to meet Az, but she also didn't expect to end up stuck between living and dying, didn't expect to be ripped from his side after falling in love with him, didn't expect to have the ability to ruin people with her touch. But Eden's a girl who knows her heart, and isn't going to give up, even if Az is a Fallen angel tossed out of heaven.

This was the third YA book I've read in hardcover (Unearthly and Angelfire being the other two), all three even have the same publisher (if not published by the same imprint), but it had a different twist to it and so I wasn't totally bored while reading it.

It started off a bit different with Eden all depressed and possibly contemplating suicide, but what drew me in was the third person point of view. I think I've read far too much first person YA novels. This was so refreshing, following characters through terrible situations and being in more than one person's head. Often, there's more than one character in a book and sometimes you want to know what's going on in their head instead of just speculate about it with the narrator.

The Siders were really interesting, a new wrinkle in the eternal struggle between angels and the Fallen. It shows a different side to those who commit suicide, that they don't all end up in Hell, that there might be another place they go to, a place between life and death.

The darkness and death was almost too much, almost overwhelmed Eden's relationship with Az. I wanted more Eden and Az as the book went on.

Still, I found Leah Clifford's debut rather interesting, even if after reading it I was a little tired of reading angel YA novels. Not as much romance as I expected, more good versus evil and what happens after death/suicide, but still interesting. If there's a book two in the works, I'll read it.