Angels of Mercy - Diary of a Quarterback - Part I: King of Imperfections
MM Romance
Akwekon Media
March 24, 2017
590
Born in America but reared in their father’s home of Torino, Italy, Marco Sforza has led a fairly idyllic life. The Sforzas are an ancient and powerful family with a strong ducal past. They run a vast global empire that allows Marco to enter halls of power that most men only dream of. Yet, Marco is a boy who lives in a bubble of his family’s making.
When Marco returns to America to attend high school he grooms himself to become a rising star quarterback of the Mercy High Avenging Angels. He thinks his focus is his burgeoning football career. He is all to aware he is a boy made of pure light that is meant to be seen and noticed. He is comfortable there. Until he meets a boy who shines brighter than him. Elliot Donahey is that boy. But Elliot is a boy who craves shadow and darkness to keep himself safe through another hellish day of high school.
Before he realizes it, Marco’s world becomes undone by this boy. Trapped in a script all jocks are meant to follow, Marco does his best to fit in and play along so he can play the game he loves, but this boy who hides in the shadows begins to consume his every thought and emotion.
Despite the script he’s been given to date girls, have sex, and hang with his teammates and follow along, Marco finds himself on an emotional pendulum where following that jock script only brings him further away from that world to circle the boy hiding in the shadows. Can Marco find it within himself to push against what others expect of him to find his way into Elliot’s arms? Even with all the fame, money and prestige his family brings to the table, will it be enough to gain the interest of a boy who only wants to hide from everyone?
Reviewed by: Melissa Brus
Member of the Paranormal Romance Guild Review Team
This book is part one of a two-part prequel to the Angels of Mercy series. It is told from the perspective of Marco Sforza, an Italian-American teenager. Marco was born in the US, but was sent to live in Torino, Italy with his grandparents, along with his brother. This book is written as a diary as the title suggests. It is not a daily journal, but hops to significant moments in the life of a pretty self-aware teen boy. Marco introduces us to his life at a pivotal moment. It is the circumstance that leads to he, his brother, and cousin leaving their lives in Italy and making the move to Mercy, California. There the Sforza boys are now living full-time with parents who previously were very limited in their involvement in the boys’ lives.
Marco takes the reader through the culture shock of attending American schools for the first time. Luckily for Marco, he has athletic abilities and looks to help him in the transition. Marco also sees Elliot. Elliot fascinates Marco to the point that he becomes the focus of Marco’s thoughts. Elliot does not know what to think of this exotic beautiful boy who seems intent on inserting himself into his life. It does end on almost a cliff-hanger. This shouldn’t come as a surprise as it is part 1, but if you are like me you are thankful that part 2 is already published and there is no wait to find out what happens next!
While this book was written as a prequel, I feel like I got more out of the book having already read the other Angels of Mercy books in the series. It was easier to be invested in the story having already “met” the characters. This is not a traditional romance series. The author describes them as character studies and they are that. The reader truly gets in depth information about the thoughts and feelings of the characters involved. This is a great addition to the series, continuing in Collins’ unique voice in the MM Romance genre.