Having been betrayed by his first mate, archangel Nathaniel has vowed never to risk his heart by taking another mate.  Even his attraction to the empath Jules can’t tempt Nathaniel from his growing isolation.  But close quarters threaten to melt even the ice around Nathaniel’s heart when he and Jules are assigned to a team to take out a never-before-seen kind of demon that threatens to destroy Washington D.C.

Jules knows better than anyone what it means to be lonely.  By choosing to honor her angel warrior vows, she was separated from her justice angel family when Heaven’s civil war broke out.  And while she’s been happy to see her friends find love, Jules isn’t sure the same fate is in the cards for her.  Then she’s partnered with Nathaniel on a mission.  Many angel warriors outside those in his family fear Nathaniel, but Jules knows there’s kindness in him.

The pull of desire soon becomes too much for either Jules or Nathaniel to resist.  But with only Jules, Nathaniel, and a green healer to protect humanity from a new breed of evil, will the lovers survive long enough to find out love can heal the trauma of their pasts?

Stephani Hecht continues to up the stakes as humans are threatened in what has so far been a purely otherworldly battle.  Angelic Rapture is an engaging addition to Ms. Hecht’s incredible Archangel Series, mixing romance with danger to produce fantastic results.

I’ve been waiting for the day Ms. Hecht would write a story for Jules.  Out of her friends, whom I’ve watched fall in love over the course of this series, she has been the one who has seemed most in need of someone to appreciate and love her.  Only a Lehor male could be up to the task, and Nathaniel is her perfect match.  The shock of his first mate’s betrayal and the continuing strikes against his family have taken their toll on him.  He has walled himself off more and more from those that love him, and it takes Jules’s love and no-nonsense attitude to make him fully live once more.  I admit I’m not surprised Ms. Hecht paired these two, but reading their love story made me glad my suspicions were correct.

Angelic Rapture is the tenth story in Ms. Hecht’s Archangel Series, but newcomers to this series will be able to follow the romance with ease.  There is enough information provided to follow along as well with Nathaniel and Jules’s mission, but I feel I should warn that Angelic Rapture does contain references to other continuing storylines.  Fans of the series will no doubt delight in revisiting some of their favorite characters and seeing two of them fall in love.  However, since Nathaniel and Jules are away from the angel warrior compound for most of the book, do not expect to see a lot of page time for their family and friends.  All in all, I thoroughly enjoyed Angelic Rapture.  It’s a solid, entertaining addition to one of my favorite series.