Summary
Once the Angel of Small Miracles, Gadriel is now the Fallen Angel of Petty Temptation and routinely seduces people with chocolate. That’s until Holly Harker crosses her path. All Gadriel needs to do is make Holly sin a little, but it turns out more difficult than expected when Holly doesn’t even like chocolate, and every time Gadriel thinks she’s making progress, Holly Harker gets more virtuous.
Title: Small Miracles
Author: Olivia Atwater
Series: N/A
Pages: 286
Publication date: May 6, 2022
“You,” Gadriel addressed Holly’s back. “Yes, you, bane of my existence. I’m going to have to figure out what makes you tick.”
Review
This divine cozy fantasy just won SPFBO 8, which has been called the year of cozy fantasy with three cozy finalists.
Small Miracles is a fun novel that includes many informative and relevant footnotes. I’ve seen a trend of these lately and it wasn’t overdone here.
The premise is that of an angel trying to tempt a woman into small pleasures but for a while, it focused too much on some middle-grade girls’ drama that lost my interest.
There’s an evident Good Omens influence and a “Cumulative Sin Metric” reminiscent of the system from The Good Place. What I haven’t seen mentioned anywhere is the less-known opus Nobody’s Looking, in which we follow the shenanigans of a newly appointed guardian angel, with Gadriel being a former one who still cares. If you haven’t watched that one I definitely recommend it.
I absolutely loved Gadriel. She/he is genderfluid (as all celestial beings are), and I loved the representation and how casual it was for everyone. I’m now craving some prequel stories of Gadriel’s adventures.
“I think we all ought to wear more comfortable clothing, no matter what anyone else thinks. It just makes your whole day more pleasant.”
(Thanks, Gadriel)
I’d love a TV adaptation of this book; I’d watch the Hell out of it!
CW: death, grief, alcoholism, death of a parent, bullying, depression.
Tiny Elf Arcanist 
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