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Brianna Winston-Beaufort thought it was weird enough to have to set up a temporary law office in the middle of Savannah's murderers-only cemetery. That was before she found a painting depicting her childhood nightmare, got covered in dog hair before meeting the dog, and received a cell phone that was already activated and taking messages although it had no battery and the caller had been dead for two hours. Fantasy author Stanton is making an intriguing move to mystery with DEFENDING ANGELS, the ambitious start to the Beaufort and Company series. Based on updated medieval theology, Brianna lives in a world stuffed with angels and demons in all shapes and guises, presided over by a rigidly rule-obsessed Higher Court that has reclassified the Seven Deadly Sins as the Seven Major Felonies. (The book is not, however, evangelical; no particular religion is upheld as the "right" one. It isn't stuffy either, not when it cites cases like "Lucifer v Celestial Court: Wrongful Dismissal.") Brianna has to pursue her first case on two planes – she has to prove to the temporal authorities that Benjamin "Blackheart" Skinner, Savannah's most notorious financier, died of murder and not a heart attack. She also has to defend Skinner on the charge of Second Degree Misdemeanor Greed in the Celestial Court. This means she has to fend off the threats of both Savannah social movers who don't appreciate being implicated in crime as well as the attacks of a far deeper evil, all while trying to understand the whole new world that is opening before her. Stanton makes two major missteps. First, Brianna takes forever to start asking basic questions. Second, the pacing is uneven; so long is spent on setting up this new universe that a major plot point is airily resolved in the last couple of pages – offscreen. However, the underlying mystery is sound, her characters interesting, and her world so singular that DEFENDING ANGELS is a fascinating read. I can't wait to see what Brianna's next case will be.
Reviewed by Linnea Dodson, January 2009
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Contact: Yvonne Klein (ymk@reviewingtheevidence.com)
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