Review: Heavenward by Olga Gibbs

With the power to end the world, would you protect humanity when it broke you or would you take revenge?

Meet Ariel: a quiet, unnoticeable girl with an incredible gift…

Ariel never had an easy or pleasant life, but the arrival of three gorgeous strangers meant her measured life is turned upside down, as she discovers that angels exist.
Now against her will, she’s drawn into an ancient celestial conflict where her powers will decide the fate of humanity.

Deceived, threatened, hunted and now on the run, who can she trust?

Olga Gibbs was kind enough to offer anyone who read one of her blog tour stops a free copy of Heavenward if they were interested. I was; the blurb drew my attention right away. And the reviews in the book tour were mostly positive. Maybe I set my expectation too high because I wasn’t that positive anymore after three chapters.

The writing is way too descriptive. I skipped about one third of the book without losing track of the story. Not every bit needs three adjectives. I understand the need to paint that picture, but it’s too much. Some descriptions are repeated throughout the book, which is mostly just filler. I’ve read books following Stephen King’s approach to description, ‘only share the necessary’. And I’ve read books with long exposition, creating a vivid, dynamic world. Gibbs does nothing of that. A door is no longer just a door, but golden, heavy, decorated.

The story itself was okay. Halfway through it turned much darker than I expected—which is a good thing—but the ending is weaker than the middle part. It all felt forced somehow, just getting from A to B. The characters are equally predictable, even when the story might not be. Ariel isn’t likeable, no matter how hard she tries. I feel no sympathy for her at all. Her sister in the hospital is a weak motivation since I really don’t care about her yet. I would’ve liked to see more character development, instead of the long lines of adjectives.

I give Heavenward three stars. There’s a lot of potential, but the writing disappointed me. If I can skip a third of the book without missing any of the story, something’s wrong. I don’t know if I want to read the sequel yet. It’s very probable that I’ll forget about it in a few months. Not very memorable.