Shadow of the Sun by Laura Kreitzer

With no memory of her past, Doctor Gabriella Moretti throws herself into her present. Intelligent, anti-social, quiet Gabriella is a supernatural specialist who works at Zelko Corporation in an extraordinary lab nicknamed “the fishbowl.” Within the glass walls of the lab, Gabriella attempts to uncover the truth about legends and myths by unearthing answers to the bizarre and abnormal. Zelko Corp.’s investors have yet to throw her a curve ball she can’t handle until three bodies from Italy arrive that look awfully alive for being two thousand years old. What she reveals both frightens and intrigues her, but fear wins out and Gabriella flees to the comfort of her office.

As the hours pass, Gabriella tries to gather her wits for the impending storm of her newest revelation—the bodies are regenerating. Her peace is short-lived when a shadow-like creature destroys her office in a black windstorm as it warns her about “waking the angels.” Confused and terrified, Gabriella tries to question the dark creature but is only told that they should be “buried back in the earth where they belong.” When her boss opens the door, everything returns to normal as if the event had never happened. Shaken, Gabriella is now anxious at what the bodies could possibly be hiding. Surprisingly, she finds solace in those three beings locked in the fishbowl; those same three beings that the dark creature warned her about. Angels can’t be too bad, can they? Reassured by this thought, she feels the need to protect them.

Unfortunately, the dark creature is only the beginning of Gabriella’s problems. FBI agents swarm the lab to seize and deliver the bodies to a Paranormal Investigations lab in Washington, D.C., where Gabriella will accompany them to continue her research. Karen, a very stunning and calming FBI agent, approaches Gabriella and soon reveals to her that she is an angel that has been tasked with guarding her. It isn’t long before our heroine’s life veers off track and spins wildly out of control in an unexpected twist. A group of angels called the Elders are summoned to her house by Karen. Gabriella discovers that extreme intelligence is not her only gift; she also holds a unique power that will save the angels, the gift of light. She is the Illuminator, the chosen one, the one prophecies are written about. More than that, she is the one who will stop the Shadow of the Sun, beings that were once part of the sun—the light—cast out to forever be a shadow of the blazing sun, who are consumed by nothing but darkness.

When your world starts crumbling around you, what do you do? Persevere. And that is exactly what Gabriella does as she packs her suitcase and heads straight to the air field where she meets none other than intriguing FBI agent Joseph Carter. He is witty and charming, and even when the very plane they are flying on literally somersaults out of the air and rockets to Earth, he remains steadfast in his uncanny ability to become a rock for Gabriella to lean on. In a plea of desperation, Gabriella begs Karen to help, but Karen is at a loss; her gift is empathy. Golden tears streak down Karen’s face as all is revealed right in front of Joseph. Angels are real. They are so real, in fact, that the three bodies come back to life to save them all just seconds before the plane crashes to the ground.

Andrew, Ehno, and Lucia, the now-alive angels, are thrust into this new, strange, and frightening world. Within minutes Karen has informed them that Gabriella is the Illuminator. They are startled by the insight and everything else around them, especially the heavily armed FBI agents that surround the survivors, who are assumed to be terrorists. Andrew, the only angel that can fly, seizes Gabriella and flies away in front of the stunned agents, leaving everyone else behind.

The bond between Gabriella and Andrew is instant and undeniable, but there is no time for pleasantries because they are now on the run. The supernatural world has only begun to unfold before her as more angels appear, her dreams start to haunt her, and the very past she has forgotten comes back with startling clarity. Romance blooms, escape plans are made, and an assassin is out to kill her. Death itself is just around the corner. But what is more terrifying than all of this is the fact Gabriella is supposed to be the chosen one, the Illuminator, the one who will save them all—and she has no clue where to start.

Shadow of the Sun, the first book in The Timeless Series, will grab your attention from the very first page; the story and the characters are so amazing and alluring that you will hardly be able to put it down. Unlike many novels that start out slowly and just pile on background information, this story starts out with action and brilliantly develops the characters as the story progresses. It’s a guarantee that you won’t be able to predict any of the dramatic twists and turns that this story will take.

Laura Kreitzer is a master at bringing stories to life and creating stunning imagery. The entire novel plays like a movie in your head.

This book has it all: romance, mystery, suspense, action, and supernatural lore.
Other than the fact that Twilight and Shadow of the Sun cast immortals as their main characters, there aren’t many similarities in the story line.

Edward vs. Andrew: Andrew, the main characters love interest, is a regular angel (no fallen angels here). Andrew and Edward are similar in two ways: immortality and their pure love.

The differences between the two are vastly different. The main character, Gabriella, can share her thoughts with Andrew via her electrical touch. I have a feeling that this is going to lead into some smokin’ hot lovin’ later on—he’ll know exactly what makes her tick *wink wink*. Unlike Edward, Andrew is Italian with dark skin, is warm blooded (with a heartbeat), tender, sexy as hell (well, Edward is too), and his accent could bring the strongest woman to her knees! By the end of this book, you’ll be saying “Edward, who?”

Bella vs Gabriella: Their names are similar in two ways: they both end in “ella” and are both Italian. But, of course, what else would you expect from an Italian main character? Gabriella and Bella also share a passion for reading, care deeply for their families, and love with unwavering devotion. Gabriella is uncannily brilliant; graduating high school at the young age of 12 and earning her Ph.D. at 19. Gabriella never quite fit in with her peer group (sound like Bella?), but it was based on age difference in school, she was not an outcast. Gabriella is a strong, independent, brilliant young woman who knows what she wants and pursues her goals with passion.

While this book does fall into the Young Adult genre, the main characters are a bit older which make it more appealing to an older crowd (and make some of us feel less like perverts for ogling high school students), but will still appeal greatly to junior high and high school students. The best part about the characters being a bit older is that we can skip the “high school drama” and focus on an outstanding story line (while ogling the angels & delicious FBI agents that grace the pages). You will laugh throughout the book, but keep the tissue handy because you’ll probably shed some tears, too!

In terms of similarities to Twilight, I’d give this a 1 out of 10.

When you compare this book to other “angel” novels, this one differs entirely because the world is nothing like the Bible, there are no fallen angels, and, because of that, there is no other like it.

Overall ranking: 10 (there wasn’t a higher ranking.)

I see a very bright future for this up and coming author!

To find out more about Laura Kreitzer and The Timeless Series, visit http://www.laurakreitzer.com or @laurakreitzer on twitter.

~ by whattoreadaftertwilight on April 16, 2010.