Review of "Children of Angels" by Faith MacGregor

​Score: 94/100 (9.4 out of 10)

Imagine living in a peaceful, secluded island utopia for over 500 years. You have your family, your traditions, and a sense of enduring safety, only to discover, almost out of nowhere, that your very existence is considered an apocalyptic threat by the rest of the world, and that a secret war of extermination is already at your doorstep.

That is the staggering premise at the heart of Children of Angels by Faith MacGregor.

A lot has been said and written for centuries about the biblical flood and the events surrounding it, but what if things didn't exactly happen and end the way we originally thought? What if certain flood survivors carved out their own unique paths, unwritten and unchronicled, largely lost to history? And what about the Nephilim, the legendary, infamous giants of old—the alleged children of rebellious angels?

These are the kinds of massive, loaded, and fascinating questions at the heart of Children of Angels, a bold fantasy novel that reaches into contrarian biblical lore and dares to imagine what might have happened in the long shadow of Genesis.

This is not a book content to play small. It deals in kingdoms, bloodlines, war, memory, survival, legacy, and the lingering consequences of an ancient world-shaping catastrophe. MacGregor takes ideas that have fascinated theologians, historians, storytellers, and curious readers for generations, then uses them as the foundation for a sprawling fantasy saga centered on family, identity, and conflict.

To set the scene, the geography is crucial. In the north, we have the Island Kingdom, centered on places like Epion and Selenea, ruled by King Tiras and Queen Luna. This is a post-cataclysmic setting, one shaped by a world-destroying flood and a surviving people who worship the Allfather. That distant antediluvian (post-flood) history is not just background lore. It shapes the politics, fears, and identity of the world of this book.

That caution leads others to act. Artemis, one of the highlights of the book, is sent south to investigate the trade station, accompanied by Kalanthe, Captain Ariston (another highlight), and a small scouting party. They sail on the Odyssey and the Thalassa Diablos, expecting answers and instead finding horror. The station has been destroyed. Samuel, a traumatized survivor from the opening prologue, is found alive. The enemy presence is not random piracy. It is organized, deliberate, and deadly. When enemy ships close in, Artemis and her people are forced into a desperate retreat and hasty pickup. Captain Ariston makes a harrowing decision that really makes you think: do the people who are often labeled as the "abominations" or the "bad guys" sometimes do things that some would consider Christ-like, like self-sacrifice.

In this book, many of the figures and characters who are traditionally vilified (in The Bible in particular) like Nephilim and Nimrod (who is said to have built the Tower of Babel) are fleshed out and given reasons and back stories.

Captain Ariston, King Tiras, and, to an extent, even Nimrod are not portrayed as bad, evil, mustache-twirling figures without noble motives or purpose. In fact, many of their actions and decisions feel understandable within the world the novel has built. Nimrod, for instance, is not simply chasing power for power’s sake. He believes he is protecting civilization from an apocalyptic future, preventing the return of a bloodline and force that his culture has been taught to fear as an existential threat. In Nimrod's mind (and in the minds of our modern understanding), the Nephilim with the seed of demons—something to fear and something to get rid of.

On the other end of the spectrum, Tiras just wants to protect his family and their future, which almost everyone can relate to.

It's interesting that neither Nimrod or the Nephilim are painted in a positive light in Abrahamic texts, yet here they are.

This is a book that deals with issues like inherited guilt, prejudice, exile, war, legacy, and the burden of being feared for what you are before you have even had the chance to decide who you want to be. It also wrestles with questions of kinship and belonging, especially as characters are forced to confront old grudges, accusations of tainted blood, and the terrifying possibility that the past is not really past at all.

It is dense, for better or for worse. And we found ourselves a bit tangled up in knots at times thanks to this density. Another thing we couldn't shake is this angle that seems to contradict or outright go against our Abrahamic belief systems, and that's perhaps the point.

We mentioned Captain Ariston and Artemis being highlights of this book, and that's indeed true. Right from the beginning, Captain Ariston gripped us. He's such a likable and charismatic figure. You're even told this back story that his voice is raspy, sea-weather voice because he saved the king from a kraken attack back in the day, injuring him. So, we know he's loyal, tough, wise, and trustworthy, the kind of guy all of us would love to have around.

Artemis is cool in a tough, no-nonsense, strong-and-capable sort of way. She carries herself like someone who can handle danger, make hard decisions, and keep moving when others would freeze. We also noticed how clever she is. When she and the others approach the southern trade station, she immediately recognizes the tactical value of Kalanthe’s suggested landing spot because it gives their approach camouflage and secrecy, then she organizes the search party into two teams and sets a rendezvous point rather than just charging in blindly. Later, during the naval escape, she keeps her head under pressure, orders the rowers into sync, and tells the captain to follow the coastline through a narrow channel so they can try to lose the pursuing ships among the smaller islands.

And when the enemy is landing, she shows that same quick-thinking instinct on land. She assesses the beach fast, splits her limited force by sending thirty archers to the ridge, and orders the rest to attack one boat at a time so the enemy cannot gather in strength all at once. Even in the middle of that chaos, she is still adjusting tactics on the fly, redirecting guards toward boats on the beach and then pushing with Kalanthe toward the docks. That helps make her feel like more than just a tough fantasy heroine. She is a tactician.

By the way, there's a lot of seafaring in this book. A lot of marine-action, which is fitting considering this comes after the flood in which most of the survivors were traveling between islands, essentially.

Another highlight of this book are the action scenes. The southern trade station sequence is a great example. Artemis and the others arrive expecting answers and instead find devastation, then almost immediately have to pivot into a frantic escape as enemy ships close in. The whole “hasty pickup” sequence works because it is not clean or glamorous. People are scrambling, jumping onto moving ships, rowing for their lives, and trying to stay calm while everything is falling apart around them.

The beach defense is another standout. Artemis does not just rush in wildly. She scans the battlefield, places thirty archers on the ridge, orders her smaller force to hit one boat at a time so the enemy cannot fully assemble, and then leads the charge herself, driving straight into the landing force with spear in hand. That scene has motion, tactics, and impact. It helps that Kalanthe is right there with her, firing arrows and adjusting on the fly.

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