Like with Bloody Valentine I found Misguided Angel far more interesting when it focused on someone other than Jack and Schuyler. It opens with them, though, so I will as well. Jack and Schuyler have discovered that the Countess’s protection is more like jail and plan to escape. In the process (that is by the time of their wedding in Bloody Valentine) they discover the Countess and many others are still loyal to Lucifer. In fact the number of Blue Bloods who are purposefully rejecting redemption, not just pretending it’s something it’s not, is higher than they expected.
They’re still after the gates that separate earth and hell, though all they’re finding is secrets layered on top of secrets, layered on top of nephalim. Wait, what? Yeah it’s not bad enough the Silver Bloods are corrupting and killing Blue Bloods they’ve been kidnapping, raping and impregnating humans, spawning children, which is supposed to be impossible. (The fallen are not supposed to be able to produce children, but then this shouldn’t be a major surprise because this is pretty much what Schuyler herself is, albeit from an uncorrupted angel, not a demon.)
Oh, plus, Mimi put a price on Jack’s head for leaving her at the altar.
Meanwhile Mimi has been elected leader of the New York coven, which is facing a new threat. Videos of capture Blue Blood teens are being released on the internet along with insidious threats. Someone, that is someone else, other than Silver Bloods, is killing Blue Blood teens. Mimi, while irritated at the pride and laziness of her coven is also determined to protect it. Which leads her to team up with and even start to like none other than Oliver, Schuyler’s Conduit and close friend. While bits of the old Mimi are still present it’s clear she’s not the same person she was in book one. Not even close. Character growth suites her well.
But it’s the third lead in this book that exposes the existence of Nephalim, like Silver Bloods with a half life. What their role is in Lucifer’s plans is isn’t clear, but they are an interesting new addition.
It’s a little amusing that the Schuyler bits are my least favorite of this book, since she’s framed as the most important player in the series. But the story being spread between so many lives is what makes the series engaging for me. Mimi and Deming Chen’s questioning of fate, the souls bonds and pretty much the whole establishment around them makes me want to cheer for them, and, of course, keep reading.