Heart of Venom Book Review

January 16, 2014 / 0 comments

Heart of Venom Book ReviewHeart Of Venom by Jennifer Estep
Series: Elemental Assassin #9
Published by Gallery Books on August 27th 2013
Genres: Urban Fantasy
Format: eARC
Source: ARC, Edelweiss
Purchase @ AMAZON  or  BN
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Rating 

The hotly anticipated ninth novel in the hugely popular Elemental Assassin series finds Gin Blanco on a dangerous mission to rescue a friend. 

When a terror from the past threatens Gin’s friend and body-disposer, Sophia, Gin will stop at nothing to protect her, even if it means walking straight into a killer’s trap. Meanwhile, the rocky romance between Gin and Owen reaches a turning point—can they reunite and rekindle their love? Or will the things Gin has been forced to do in her line of work as the deadly assassin the Spider keep them apart forever? Assuming, that is, she survives long enough to find out…

Liezel’s Thoughts:

You would think that after “The Spider” finally ends Mab Monroe in Spider’s Revenge ( Book 5) that this series would lose its steam but Jennifer Estep is still able to hold my attention.

Now a retired assassin, Gin just wants her life to settle down and run her business the Pork Pit but this is just not happening for her. She is still constantly being hounded by the lowlifes of Ashland. Every one of these thugs wants a shot at the one that ended the most notorious crime boss’ life. Funny how just before attempting to take down the assassin known as “The Spider” that they grab a meal at her very own restaurantbefore they meet their end. Not only is it good for her business but it keeps her body disposer, Sophia, busy too.

“You think I’m scared of you? Please. You couldn’t possibly be The Spider. That ruthless bitch would have killed me the second she saw me. Not dragged me halfway up the mountain instead.”
“You’re right, ” I replied. “So maybe I should get on with things. Wouldn’t want to disappoint my fans.”

 

I’ve always wondered how Sophia Deveraux got into this line of work and my curiosity is more than satisfied in this book. This is what I loved most about this book. It isn’t totally focused on Gin but also goes deep down into Sophia’s history. It describes the humiliation and torment that Grimes and his sister Hazel committed years ago when Sophia was kidnapped that first time. We also finally discover the connection between the Deveraux sisters and how they become a part of Fletcher’s team.

Normally I find back stories tedious but when the author goes into Fletcher’s life (Gin’s fallen mentor), I find myself reading and rereading the passages repeatedly. I love that even if he is gone, he still manages to influence Gin’s decisions. He is such an interesting character and I am surprised that the author hasn’t written his own story yet. While I was left annoyed with Gin’s ex-lover in Deadly Sting, Owen was somewhat able to redeem himself in this book. It wasn’t as detailed as I would have wanted, which I did find more than frustrating, but a novella told in his point of view was just released. Hopefully that will tide me over until the next book.

The Verdict:

rating-4

About Jennifer Estep

Jennifer Estep is a New York Times and USA Today bestselling author, prowling the streets of her imagination in search of her next fantasy idea.

Jennifer writes the Elemental Assassin adult urban fantasy series for Pocket. Books in the series are SPIDER’S BITE, WEB OF LIES, VENOM, TANGLED THREADS, SPIDER’S REVENGE, BY A THREAD, and WIDOW’S WEB. THREAD OF DEATH, an e-novella, is also available.



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