Rebel Angels

By: Libba Bray

Narrated by: Josephine Bailey

Length: 14 hrs and 4 mins

Publisher's Summary

Ah, Christmas! Gemma Doyle is looking forward to a holiday from Spence Academy, spending time with her friends in the city, attending ritzy balls, and on a somber note, tending to her ailing father. As she prepares to ring in the New Year, 1896, a handsome young man, Lord Denby, has set his sights on Gemma, or so it seems. Yet amidst the distractions of London, Gemma's visions intensify, visions of three girls dressed in white, to whom something horrific has happened, something only the realms can explain.

The lure is strong, and before long, Gemma, Felicity, and Ann are turning flowers into butterflies in the enchanted world of the realms that Gemma alone can bring them to. To the girls' great joy, their beloved Pippa is there as well, eager to complete their circle of friendship.

But all is not well in the realms, or out. The mysterious Kartik has reappeared, telling Gemma she must find the Temple and bind the magic, else great disaster will befall her. Gemma's willing to do his intrusive bidding, despite the dangers it brings, for it means she will meet up with her mother's greatest friend, and now her foe, Circe. Until Circe is destroyed, Gemma cannot live out her destiny. But finding Circe proves a most perilous task.

©2005 Libba Bray (P)2005 Listening Library

Critic Reviews

"Readers will sink into her compelling, well-paced story." (Booklist)

wonderful

Rebel Angels is better than A Great and Terrible Beauty, the first book in the series. It helps the characters grow as individuals and explores more of the societal conditions that remain as true today as they were then. The burgening romance is sweet, and Jemma's feelings are both identifyable and exciting. The plot is a good mixture of the pranks, pettiness, and dramas of teenage girls with the dangerous and unearthly world of the realms. Overall, a book a girl can lose herself in.

4 of 4 people found this review helpful

Sound error

Around 43:35 the sound interrupts to the narrator making a verbal revision to how she wants to read a character's line. Not a big deal, but would love for this to be edited out!! :)

3 of 3 people found this review helpful

Rebel Angels: Curiouser and Curiouser

Is there anything you would change about this book?

I would have the main character reflect, at least ONCE, on the wisdom of bringing her selfish friends into a magical kingdom where they (of course) behave selfishly and never, ever abide by the promises they make. This pattern repeats so many times and Gemma never questions it. To avoid spoilers, I'll describe it this way: you have the only key to this magical wonderful place. You have a REALLY IMPORTANT TASK to accomplish. Your friends beg you to take them to the place. You agree, as long as they help you to accomplish your task. When you get there, they hinder you and treat you horribly if you even mention your task. Would you take them back next time? Are these really your friends? Other than this repeated pattern of silliness, which - okay, I admit - is pretty realistic considering the main characters are all teen girls - this book is great. Just great. I'm WAY past my teenaged years and I still loved it.

Would you recommend Rebel Angels to your friends? Why or why not?

Yes, absolutely. It was fun and insightful and compelling.

Have you listened to any of Josephine Bailey’s other performances before? How does this one compare?

She did a great job with all the characters. She has the marvelous gift of making you feel like the whole story is unfurling in your mind - she gets the voices and accents exactly right, and she's brilliant, but because of that you forget that these characters aren't acting the whole thing out somehow in your iPod.

Do you think Rebel Angels needs a follow-up book? Why or why not?

YEAH, obviously. There is a 3rd book and nothing is resolved at the end of this book.

2 of 2 people found this review helpful

Loved it

The only thing is there was one missed revision in the performance but overall i enjoyed this series very much.

1 of 1 people found this review helpful

I

I love this series, I own them in hard copy but it's so nice to be able to listen to someone read it to me on my two hour commutes.

Almost better than the first book!

I really like the first book but the second book had way more adventure in the realms and I felt like I was on a constant adventure! The author uses beautiful descriptive words and the new characters were solid. I cannot wait to read the third book!

Wonderful story, but the editing...

I love this book and the narrator but it’s edited poorly. The chapters aren’t where the chapters are in the book and there’s a place where you can hear the narrator decide to read the line differently that should have been

Unedited part chapter 10.

In chapter 10 when Gemma visits Nell you hear the narrator make a comment about a previous line and then repeats the line with her correction. Overall I think the narrator is perfect for this series, though I felt that that small error was worth mentioning.

Perfection!

Josephine Bailey captured each character's voice perfectly. I loved reading these novels, and love Libba Bray, but Audible and Josephine bring each character to life for me! Thank you!

Fantastic!

I've read this book (whole series) before, but it was a whole new experience listening to the many different voices in the telling of this magical tale. Josephine Bailey has remarkable skill in story telling and I can't wait to listen to the final book in the series.