I read this for the circus setting. I liked some aspects of the book but didn't like others. ( )

This book was problematic in ways I didn't expect for a romance this old. The animal cruelty stuff bothered me, but knowing that animal handling practices have changed in circuses made it a little easier to take. But this book would not be good for people who are very sensitive to animal cruelty. Odd thing to write in a review of a romance novel.

The main character wasn't nearly as flighty as the cover blurb said, which was odd. It was also odd that she talked like an 18th century nun. I had to look up the meaning of "circumstanced" and I'm still not convinced that it's commonly used the way SEP used it. And some of the descriptions of clothing items were strange.

Mostly, I didn't enjoy this book. The ending was good, which saved this a little for me. ( )

This review may contain spoilers, so fair warning, upon reading the review.

Book Evaluation:
Plot: 🎞️🎞️🎞️🎞️🎞️
World Building:🌎🌎🌎🌎🌎
Cover:📔📔📔📔
Hero: 🦸🏻🦸🏻🦸🏻🦸🏻🦸🏻
Heroine:🦸🏻‍♀️🦸🏻‍♀️🦸🏻‍♀️🦸🏻‍♀️🦸🏻‍♀️
Intimacy Level: 🔥🔥🔥
Relationship Building: 💒💒💒💒💒
Heart & Feels:💞💞💞💞💞
Witty/Banter/Reaction of Laughter: 😂😂😂😂😂
Page Turner Level:📖📖📖📖📖
Narration:🎧🎧🎧🎧
Ending:🧧🧧🧧🧧🧧
Overall View: ✨✨✨✨.5

First Impressions
Kiss An Angel is a standalone romantic comedy by Susan Elizabeth Phillips. This is a classic style of a romantic comedy and I had such a blast with this one. I am falling in love with this style of Phillips and how she crafts a romance. Kiss An Angel was recommended to me as I am such a strong fan of the arranged marriage trope so I went into this one with so much excitement. And It was worth it for sure. This book held my heart very early on. It does have some elements in the content of the story that may prove to be challenging for some readers, but I fell so hard for this book and especially the romance that is built within this one here. I really was hooked into Kiss An Angel and was completely different than I expected it to be but it delivered fully and had me laughing so hard all the way through it.

First Line
Daisy Devreauyx had forgotten her bridegroom's name...

Summary
Kiss an Angel begins with the start of a marriage. Alex Markov is a broody man who doesn’t believe he can ever love. But he makes a deal with Daisy’s father and will be married to Daisy for six months. Daisy finds herself in trouble with the law, her father gets her out of it, but in exchange she will have to marry this dark stranger who doesn’t know how to smile or laugh and is strict in standards of behavior. Daisy knows that she has little choice in this marriage, but wants to make the best of the circumstances that have been dealt to her. For Daisy marriage and sex is sacred and she wants to do her best in this marriage….but marriage to Alex won’t be as easy as she would have imagined. Alex manages a circus and Daisy being his wife, she will now have to work alongside him in the workings of the circus. Daisy is shocked that her marriage will start off this way, she and animals do not get along, and she is cursed when it comes to relating to animals but Daisy starts to find her own strength and connections to these animals who win her heart alongside with their master…Alex Markov. But will the ice around Alex’s heart be able to be melted or will Daisy be in this marriage alone….

What I Loved
So many things I adored about this book here. Kiss An Angel is a riot of angst and chemistry and delicious humor that just pulls you more and more into the story. I absolutely adored both of these characters. They are the true epitome of grumpy sunshine. And the circus setting was so fascinating. Especially in the viewpoint from the mid 90’s, this was definitely a different time and it had so many nostalgic vibes and this is why I don’t mind reading older contemporaries because it has a view of a time that is so different and refreshing from today. I really enjoyed the way in which these two banter with each other. They have such different expectations and outlooks on life so seeing them find ways to become compatible was entertaining. We also have the conflicts that rise within this story. It was so heartwrenching to see what this heroine has to go through at times. But we see her journey in finding herself and seeing what she is capable of accomplishing. On the surface, she seems flighty, but she has this will of iron, and seeing that be tested was perfection. I loved what we saw her overcome. What I also admired was how she took her vows so seriously and how she views sex was so refreshing from what we see in so many contemporaries these days. And the way in which she is willing to fight for her marriage is inspiring. Then we have our delectable hero, who is hard as stone. He has suffered abuse as a kid, which has shaped him in the hard-hearted man that he is. He cares for others, but it doesn’t always show. We see how slowly Daisy’s personality and courage wins him over and how he has to face up to the demons of his past and find his own will to open himself up to love.

What I Struggled With
The third act in this book was really tough to swallow. I had a rough time with how the grovel scene was handled. I felt like there should have been more forgiveness portrayed and not stretching out the grovel, as it didn’t need to be stretched out like it was and turned me off a bit. As long as there is change and sincerity in the grovel, it never needs to be stretched out to these proportions.

Narration
Anna Fields portrays this author’s books perfectly! She really brings out the humor just right and also just handles the vibe and tone of the story just right and delivers the classic feel of the story.

Overall View
Kiss An Angel is a stimulating, heart and humor delivered just right, and a story that is packed with relatable characters, charm and class and delivers a captivating arranged marriage romance to delight in! A DELECTABLE GEM!

Favorite Quote(s)
Don’t dare a person who has nothing else left to lose.”

There was a sweetness about her that was as unexpected as it was disturbing because it made her so much more vulnerable than he wanted her to be.

We can do this easy, or we can do it rough. Either way, I’m going to win. You decide how it’ll be.

But I don’t love you, Daisy, and you can’t begin to know how sorry I am about that because if I could chose anyone in this world to love, it’d be you.

“I don’t love you anymore,Alex.”
“It’s alright sweetheart.I love you enough for the both of us.”

“I love you, Daisy. I love you so much I hurt.”

Book Details (also in my shelves)
Sub Genre: Contemporary Romance, Romantic Comedy
Character Types: Russian Hero, Favorite Heroines
Themes: Love of Animals, Lots of Laughs, Heart/Emotional
Tropes: Arranged Marriage, Grumpy Sunshine, Opposites Attract

Book Perspective
3rd POV

Relationship Conflict vs Plot Conflict
Relationship Conflict

Song This Book Inspires
Wildest Dreams by Taylor Swift

Steam/Spice Explanations

Warmin' by the fire- a medium level of sexual tension, a balance of sexual and emotional intimacy, lighter on the details in the sexual moments.

Narrators:
Anna Fields ( )

Kiss an angel è un romance tenero e divertente, perfetto per qualche momento di svago se avete voglia di un po' di tenero e divertente ammore senza rischiare una crisi di nervi.

Anche se, a essere sincera, l'inizio mi aveva fatto preoccupare parecchio. I due protagonisti, Daisy e Alex, infatti, si devono sposare per forza a causa di una macchinazione del padre di lei. Sappiate che tutta questa faccenda è assolutamente assurda, ma, se saprete passarci sopra con savoir-faire, vi garantisco che Kiss an angel è un ottimo passatempo.

La storia tra i due coniugi involontari si sviluppa nell'ambiente circense, dove Alex lavora. Inizialmente, Daisy sta al circo come con brillantino sta allo sterco di elefante. È così beneducata e benintenzionata che nessuno la prende sul serio: tutti la vedono soltanto come una farfallina frivola e leggera. Cavoli loro: la farfallina finirà per far veder loro i sorci verdi.

Alex, invece, è un completo idiota – o perlomeno fa di tutto per sembrarlo. Tutto fissato con la faccenda dell'io-sono-il-maschio-alfa-e-si-fa-come-dico-io, ci metterà un bel po' a capire che Daisy non è la sciroccata che tutti pensano sia.

Ho apprezzato moltissimo la figura di Sheba, la proprietaria del circo. Dovrebbe essere la donna cattiva che vuole impedire il coronamento dell'amore dei protagonisti, ma in realtà è un personaggio più complesso e sfaccettato. Non è la solita stronza tout court, ma è una donna rigida che, come Alex, ha fatto del proprio orgoglio la sua caratteristica saliente.

L'unica nota di demerito che mi sento di segnalare, a parte il matrimonio forzoso, è la reazione di Daisy sul finale: mi è parsa piuttosto forzata e troppo repentina per essere in linea con il personaggio.

PS: nel frattempo è stato tradotto in italiano da Leggereditore, con l'improbabile titolo Volare fino alle stelle. ( )

Sooo I really loved this one. I mean it started out funny but then the female lead's character development was so strong, I went from giggling to ooohs and then ohs and yes some rage because boy do men suck in these stories and to that final heartache when you realize a woman has just given up. I mean you just know, and if you happen to be a female reader, that's something we will always share as women. Nevertheless, 10 points to this brilliant story, superior aich-o-tea scenes and our unflinching (hah) heroine. ( )