I received this book for free from the library in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.
Source: the library
Spider's Revenge
by
Jennifer Estep
It is part of the Elemental Assassin #5 series and is a urban fantasy in eBook edition that was published by Pocket Books on September 27, 2011 and has 404 pages.
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Other books in this series include [books_series]
Other books by this author which I have reviewed include Spider’s Bite, Web of Lies, Jennifer Estep, Venom, Karma Girl, Tangled Threads, Touch of Frost, Kiss of Frost, Hot Mama, By a Thread, Dark Frost, Widow's Web, Crimson Frost, Deadly Sting, Midnight Frost, Heart of Venom, The Spider, Killer Frost, Tangled Dreams, Tangled Schemes, Spider's Bargain, "Poison", Spider’s Nemesis, "Wasted", "Web of Death", "Web of Deceit", Black Widow, Poison Promise, Cold Burn of Magic, The Spider's Trap, Dark Heart of Magic, Bitter Bite, Unraveled, "Nice Guys Bite", Bright Blaze of Magic, Snared, Kill the Queen, "Winter's Web", Last Strand, Sharpest Sting, "Unwanted", Dirty Deeds 2, "Heart Stings"
Fifth in the Elemental Assassin urban fantasy series set in Ashland in the Appalachian Mountains.
In 2011, Spider’s Revenge won the Romantic Times Reviewers’ Choice Award for Best Urban Fantasy Novel.
My Take
Damn it, I really did try to read slowly but Estep just kept the action going and I kept racing in desperate need to find out what happened next! I hate it when I do that! I was rather worried that this would see the end of the series, but, Estep did a lovely job of providing reasons for Gin to continue along her path of the Robin Hood of Assassins. Too funny how she brought in a character from one of her other books!
A couple of quibbles: Gin’s ineptness at taking out Mab and the ball’s color scheme. I have a hard time believing that even though Gin must be absolutely dancing on the head of a pin, that she doesn’t take the patience to do a proper job of it. I have to wonder if Estep couldn’t figure out how to make it a full-length book without having Gin screw up.
I must confess I still feel a bit jolted at the color scheme for the huge ball that Mab throws at the Five Oaks Country Club. It has a theme of Fire and Ice but the color scheme is red and black. Maybe the black is supposed to represent necrotic tissue…
The Story
Gin is determined to take Mab down and, despite her reputation for patience, Gin has obviously set that pesky characteristic aside as she flubs one killing attempt after another. On the plus side, Gin does learn just why it is that the city is experiencing so much more violence than usual as Mab has brought in an army of bounty hunters. All with but one aim — bringing the Spider down. And, it seems that Mab might just know about the family connection between Bria and Gin…
The Characters
Gin Blanco, a.k.a., Genevieve Snow, a.k.a., the Spider, a renowned assassin and Stone and Ice elemental, owns a barbecue restaurant, the Pork Pit, in town which she inherited from Fletcher after he himself was murdered six months ago. It was Mab who set Gin on her killing path when Mab murdered her parents and sisters all those years ago. Bria Coolidge is Gin’s long-lost sister. Well, not so lost anymore, but since Bria is a detective, their reunion is still somewhat fraught. Owen Grayson is a Metal elemental who is in love with Gin. Part of Gin’s attraction to Owen is that he understands her inner assassin.
Finnegan “Finn” Lane is an honorary brother. Fletcher’s son. He and Gin grew up together and have been solid friends forever. JoJo and Sophia Devereaux are sisters and dwarves as well as Air elementals. As payback for a service by Fletcher years ago, the sisters provide backup for him and now Gin. Xavier and Roslyn are a couple; Xavier is a cop and Bria’s partner by day and a bouncer at Roslyn’s club, Northern Agression, by night. Together, they’re a couple and friends of Gin’s.
Mab Monroe is a Fire elemental who kills anyone who gets in the way of her ambition to rule the underworld in Ashland. Her second-in-command and attorney, Jonah McAllister, is another of Gin’s enemies. Ruth Gentry is one of the bounty hunters along with her assistant, Sydney.
The Cover and Title
Well, somebody didn’t tell the cover artist the whole story. The backdrop is perfect with Gin’s childhood home in ruins and a fire blazing as snow falls. It’s Gin standing with one foot up on a stump dressed in a skimpy tank top with her leather pants and stiletto-heeled boots that I just don’t buy. But then I suppose it’s not as sexy as Gin in a warm jacket…
moto olja
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