HIDDEN

Angels bring bad tidings in this teen paranormal pastiche.

Violet-eyed, luxurious-haired, horseback-riding, rich, home-schooled Ebony Hawkins has a hard time fitting into her Australian high school. Strict parents, new superpowers and an interdimensional war for her affection just make things more awkward. After Ebony runs into Jordan Blake at a nightclub, they find themselves inexplicably linked. Ebony begins to question her origins, while Jordan works to forget his hard-luck life and the friend who fatally stabs him shortly after his meeting with Ebony. When Thane, an angel from the world of Avena revives Jordan and recruits him to look for a long-missing girl, Ebony finds herself torn between Thane, Jordan and the dark Luca. Ebony’s uniqueness and desirability is rooted in her foreseen power and magical potential rather than any inherent quality—though free will is prized, Ebony is a pawn. Beyond the unoriginal angelic element and trite romantic tension, the story suffers from inconsistent worldbuilding, arbitrary changes in superpowers, unbelievably dense characters and tin-eared dialogue. Narrative ping-ponging (in the present tense, natch) between Ebony and Jordan results in rehashed material and telegraphed plot points, with little resolution—with two more years to fight for Ebony’s love, the boys will battle again during inevitable sequels.

Another tempestuous supernatural romance for fans of Twilight-fare, but readers looking for an original or coherent story will have to seek elsewhere.