Here is the real review, my original rant/ Flynn love fest can be found below the review. And, again, spoilers are here peeps ~ beware! Angel of Mercy is a much more emotional installment to the Cambion series. Though, some of the signature humor of the characters was still there, it really was understated and played second fiddle to the roller coaster ride that is Mercy's tragic love life, that used to be some sort of confusing geometric shape but is now whittled down to a good old fashioned triangle.Angel of Mercy picks up two weeks from where Waiting for Mercy leaves off...and what a major cliff hanger that was. My favorite chocolaty boy, Flynn for those of you not aware of where my allegiance lies, had his life hanging in the balance when he threw his chest between Mercy and a hatchet aimed at her heart.The game has changed dramatically. The demon hunters are hell bent on taking Mercy out and whoever gets in their way. Flynn is dying a slow death that only Mercy can save him from. Luke is now also targeted by a group of powerful angels. Oh, and Mercy's tight lipped mother finally reveals some very major secrets. All of these things combine into a huge cluster of drama, turmoil and life threatening problems.Pretty much most of these problems could be disarmed by one simple step. Break up with Luke. Stay away from him, move on, hook up with your demon counter-part.Of course the easiest answer isn't the most popular choice for Mercy. Mercy and Luke are determined that their love will and can conquer all, that they can find some miraculous loop holes in the system that will give Luke his wings back, sever the tie that holds Flynn's life force to Mercy and set right all the things their love and Mercy's mere existence have torn apart.New players enter the field and muddy the water, old players return to wreak havoc and chaos ensues. Chaos with some epic battle scenes that have Mercy letting her little hidden demon loose - which I loved! I am such a fan of McKayla, Mercy's demon personality. She is a riot of fun and games and trouble. Lots of trouble. But she's also the bad ass that has the balls to do what needs to be done and I can't help but wonder how things would have turned out if she had gotten to take the lead much sooner.Now time for a little love triangle rant. I think Luke and Mercy deserve each other based on one fact. They are both utterly selfish. They talk a good game, saying they want to fix everything and help everyone but they do little but destroy lives. Including their own. Even if it isn't intentional. Love is selfless and these two don't have that figure out yet. Luke, in book one, came across as super sweet and squeaky clean but that has faded over time and now I see a tainted boy that just wants to hold on to the forbidden fruit he managed to grab hold of. But only if it means it happens on his terms, by his rules. Mercy isn't really much different. She wants Luke in her life more than anything else, right or wrong, good or bad. I wonder though, if guilt plays more in to her decision to stay with Luke than love. I know they love each other, it just feels more like a love born out of the need to have the one thing you know you can't have. Flynn, the boy who came across as utterly arrogant and kind of cruel in the first book, has grown in to something amazing. His love for Mercy and Luke knows no bounds. Flynn is willing, and has attempted, to give his life up for Mercy. He'll set his heart aside for her and Luke to be together and now he'll set his life aside for it too. Can you get a truer love than that? I say, hell no. Luke may be the angel in this story but Flynn is the one who acts like one. He deserves someone who will love him as unconditionally and selflessly as he does Mercy. Mercy and her unstable ways don't deserve Flynn. But, I hope one day she will and I hope one day she can be what Flynn deserves.Dermott has written characters that pull out all my emotions. Good and bad. The Cambion series elicits some huge emotions from me and I am forever a fan. It's only flaw, other than all the 'Luke, I love you's' when it should so obviously be 'Flynn, I love you and only you, take me now'...is the editing. With a thorough editing this series would be perfectly, mouth watering, deliciously amazing! It's almost there it just needs little morsel of love.Overall, it was nice to have more action and more emotions and I will be stocking up on different flavored chocolate chip cookies to bide the time until book four arrives.********************************************************************My Flynn Campaign (not my official review ~ just my rant)*Contains Spoilers ~ don't read if you don't want to know*I need to get some things off my chest. I've never truly loved Luke and have always felt Flynn was "the boy" Mercy should chose. As the series has moved, my feelings have become more cemented. Why does Flynn deserve Mercy more than Luke? Oh, let me count the ways...Love, at its core, is selfless. Flynn may come across as an arrogant self absorbed boy-whore-wonder. And he is those things, except with Luke and Mercy. He has shown time and time again that he is willing to put his feelings, his heart and his life aside for them to have a chance at being happy together. He left town. He threw himself in front of a fucking hatchet to save her life. He's willing to die rather than force fully bonding with her. That's love.What did Luke give up? Just his wings, which he's always kind of rebelled against anyway. And what good did it do? None. It only made it harder for him to protect the ones he cares for. And now he wants them back. Also, he knew from the start...before he knew Mercy enough to fall in love with her, that being with her was wrong. That she may be the only chance for Flynn's happiness and that he was supposed to be protecting her. Okay, so at the end of Angel of Mercy he finally makes a grand sacrifice. You know, the same one Flynn made way before. But too late in my mind. Luke is the selfish one here. Well, and Mercy.It frustrates me to no end that she keeps 'seeing the love in Luke's eyes' but can't see Flynn's love for what it really is. True, selfless, unconditional. She's so damn wishy-washy with her decisions and determined to save everyone and still be with Luke even though that is really what's threatening to destroy everything. Then she goes and blames Sebastian for everything. Like she has no personal culpability in the situation.Mercy and Luke deserve each other. They are both silly and selfish. Flynn deserves better but he loves Mercy and I want him happy, for once. So, I want Mercy to pull her head out of Angel Boy's ass and realize that Luke is not a boy who spews candy hearts and shits gold. He's been looking out for himself. Flynn on the other hand has been looking out for her and Luke first, putting his own health and heart to the side. Every. Damn. Time.Okay, I'm done. For now. When I am finished reeling I will write a proper review. ;)Side Note ~ Thanks Shannon for writing characters that elicit such big emotions from me. Doesn't happen often and I so love it when it does!!
