Traitor Angels

Gr 8 Up—The mid-1600s is the setting for this Da Vinci Code-esque romantic historical fiction; a metaphysical revelation at the end, however, sours the story's magic. Elizabeth Milton, daughter of poet John Milton, has been raised uniquely for the time; she speaks multiple languages and handles a sword with flair. When the king's men come to arrest her father, Elizabeth is thrust into an adventure with a recent house guest, Antonio Viviani, a mysterious Italian envoy. The two travel to Oxford and London, deciphering cryptic clues from Paradise Lost and trying to uncover a dark secret kept by Milton and Galileo—a secret that could topple the English court and more. An unsought romance between Elizabeth and Antonio blooms amid the sword fights and court intrigue. But who can be trusted, and how far will the repercussions go once the riddle is solved? The book moves at a swift pace, even if set in a less than familiar time period. The romance between Elizabeth and Antonio is an obvious plot choice but enticing nonetheless. The secret of the poem, however, is quite far-fetched, which doesn't fit the rest of the novel. The characters and readers are required to make a fantastical deductive leap that feels out of place in an otherwise realistic book. While Milton's work might not be a hook for teenagers, the intrigue could sell this story, if not for the problematic end.