Which is stronger: blood ties or a battle-tested friendship? That’s the question Gin Blanco asks when a friend’s long-lost relative strolls into town. The suspicious reunion is a surprise for everyone–and a big problem for Gin. Book fourteen in the New York Times bestselling urban fantasy series RT Book Reviews calls “unbeatable entertainment ” It’s not easy being queen bee of an underworld … of an underworld abuzz with crooks and killers. Wielding my potent Ice and Stone elemental magic will only get me so far–my real secret is my tight-knit makeshift family, a motley crew of cops and criminals, dwarves and playboys. My foster brother Finnegan Lane is my right-hand man, but when his suddenly not-dead relative comes back into the picture, I’m the one on the outside looking in.
It’s funny how life works: one minute your best friend is rock-steady, and the next he’s doe-eyed and buying into this whole loving-relative routine to the point of ignoring you. I’d like to be happy for Finn, I really would. But all of my instincts are telling me that beneath the syrupy sweet demeanor and old-fashioned charm, this sudden interloper is planning something. The whole shtick leaves a bitter taste in my mouth. This person might have avoided the grave once, but I’ll put anyone who hurts Finn in the ground–for good.
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Holy moly! This fourteenth book took this series in such a crazy turn. Throughout the series, Gin has been hellbent on protecting her family and friends. And as the series as gone along, she’s created so many enemies that it’s not surprising when her family becomes a target. The enemies have become stronger and more cunning.
As the blurb tells the reader, in this installment, Finn’s mother is back in town. She was presumed dead when Finn was a baby, so he had no relationship with her and he grew up with no real mother figure. So, when she shows up and Finn finds out who she is, he jumps that the chance to get to know is mother… and in doing so alienates his friends and family. And all along, Gin has this gut feeling that something is wrong but just can’t pin-point it.
One of the things I’ve enjoyed about this series is waiting to see powerful Gin’s next adversary is and what insane situation they’re going to get into. In Bitter Bite, Deirdre (Finn’s mother) is a powerful ice elemental with an unknown agenda. Throughout most of the story, Gin is just trying t figure out what’s going on with little success. So there’s a lot of reminiscing of her childhood after she had joined Finn’s family and just emotion wrestling going on in this story.
The last half of the book is where the action really picks up. There’s the big confrontation between Gin and Deirdre, which was interesting as I believe this was her first encounter with such a strong ice elemental. And just when I thought the story was wrapping up, I realized there was still 15% of the book to go. And that’s when I was thrown a huge curve ball. It came completely out of left field and yet I was so drawn in and can’t wait to see how this new development is explored in future books. It was the breath of fresh air that I think this series needed.
This series is one of my favorites when I need a paranormal fix. It’s fourteen books in and still going strong. This new twist in the series I think will keep things interesting and I can’t wait to return to Ashland to see what happens next.
My review originally posted at Romancing the Book.
Fun and deadly. I want the whole series. =)
For a full review, please visit https://kittylishareviews.blogspot.com.
An intricate story of betrayal, the past coming back to effect the present, and insecurities!
In some instances our protagonist, the assassin “The Spider” is not able to cut down her bad guy of the moment when it would seem this person should be easily dispatched with her prowess, then she turns around and cuts down the subsequent baddies with ease in a situation that seems insurmountable! Estep needs to make up her mind about the character.
That said I’m still addicted and cannot stop reading this series! And regardless of said situations, I love the writing and the characters, excitement, etc. and so forth! I continue on to the next story…