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Book Review of The Emperor’s Edge Collection, by Lindsay Buroker

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The Emperor's Edge CollectionI grabbed book one of Lindsay Burkoer’s The Emperor’s Edge series off of the KDP free list. Because I enjoyed it, I then purchased the compilation for books two and three. (Though, honestly, at $7.69 I would usually call it too expensive and move on.)

A side note: You know, I wish that when book one of a series is perma-free the compilations could come books 2-4, instead of 1-3. That way I wouldn’t always end up with two copies of the first. Wouldn’t that be great?

The Emperor’s Edge:
Imperial law enforcer Amaranthe Lokdon is good at her job: she can deter thieves and pacify thugs, if not with a blade, then by toppling an eight-foot pile of coffee canisters onto their heads. But when ravaged bodies show up on the waterfront, an arson covers up human sacrifices, and a powerful business coalition plots to kill the emperor, she feels a tad overwhelmed.

Worse, Sicarius, the empire’s most notorious assassin, is in town. He’s tied in with the chaos somehow, but Amaranthe would be a fool to cross his path. Unfortunately, her superiors order her to hunt him down. Either they have an unprecedented belief in her skills… or someone wants her dead.

I really enjoyed this book. It’s not flawless. The incident that sets the whole thing in motion is ridiculously small and therefore the consequences unbelievable and I found some things really quite predictable. However, even with these gripes I just plain had fun with it. The writing is sharp, the dialogue witty, the characters amusing and the world interesting.

I especially liked Amaranthe and Sicarius. I’ll admit that the clean-freak, OCD organised woman and the silent killer of a man are pretty cliché character traits, but they are so often used because they’re amusing. So I’m going to call them classic instead. I love a strong-willed woman and I have to admit the emotionally distant warrior is one of my favourite character archetypes. Regardless, their repartee worked, as did their tenuous partnership. The rest of the group also contributed to the fun. The way they sniped at one another, but still got the job done was a laugh a minute.

Some books you just love, warts and all. This is one of those books for me. I’ll definitely be on the book out for more of Buroker’s works and I’m definitely reading book two…now.

Dark Currents:
It’s been three months since former enforcer Amaranthe Lokdon and the notorious assassin Sicarius thwarted kidnappers and saved the emperor’s life. The problem? Nobody knows they were responsible for this good deed. Worse, they’re being blamed for the entire scheme. With enforcers and bounty hunters stalking them, and the emperor nursing a personal hatred for Sicarius, it’s going to be hard to earn exoneration. When Amaranthe’s team discovers mutilated bodies in the city aqueducts and a mysterious illness incapacitates thousands of citizens, she and Sicarius see an opportunity to solve the mystery and prove their loyalty. But they’ll have to defeat vengeful shamans, man-eating predators, and deadly mechanical constructs, all while dodging imperial soldiers who would rather kill them than accept their help. Nobody said exoneration would be easy.

Oh, I’m still just loving this series! I’m not generally a raver, but I’m afraid the crew of the Emperor’s Edge makes me squeal a bit like an excited fangirl. I love the writing, the characters, the snark, the world, the slowly budding romance, etc.

It did feel a bit like a 2nd book, in that all the characters and their roles are pre-established so there’s little need for a lead in. But the book does have a beginning, middle and END—no cliffhangers here.

I know I usually have more to say about a book, but ‘I like it. I like it a lot’ is about all I’ve got for this one. I look forward to the rest of the series and I’m beginning to think I’ll be forced to invest in it all.

Deadly Games:
When you’ve been accused of kidnapping an emperor, and every enforcer in the city wants your head, it’s hard to prove yourself an honorable person and even harder to earn an imperial pardon.

That doesn’t keep Amaranthe Lokdon and her team of outlaws from trying. When athletes start disappearing from the Imperial Games, they may finally have an opportunity to show the emperor that they’re on his side. If she and her comrades can get to the bottom of such a public mystery, they’re sure to get the credit.

But plans go awry when Amaranthe’s own men start plotting against each other, the new ally she’d hoped to acquire tries to turn her in, and her best fighter—and closest friend—disappears. 

Maybe getting involved wasn’t such a good idea after all…

Book three, and I’m still on a high with this series. I’m enjoying all of the characters, especially Sicarius. He’s finally starting to open up a little bit. But it’s nice how the books are told partially from the POV of a side character—this book being dedicated to Basilard. I didn’t feel he got as much attention as Books did in the last book (the last book being dedicated to Books’ inner monologue), but it was still nice to hear his inner voice for a while. It’s a great way to get to know the cast of The Emperor’s Edge.

I do have to admit that, as much as I love the repartee between all the characters it started to feel a little forced here. Like everyone had to be witty all the time, instead of just naturally being that way. But I still laughed at their antics. The book isn’t a cliffhanger, but there is a pretty strong lead-in to book four in the epilogue. And I’m off to buy it now…so much for my monthly book budget.

Chaos Born

Book Review of Chaos Born, by Rebekah Turner

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Chaos BornChaos Born, by Rebekah Turner is one of those books I grabbed from the KDP free list based almost exclusively on its cover. Come on, it’s awesome, right?

Description from Goodreads:
Lora Blackgoat, smuggler and mercenary, has been lying low after a job gone bad made her a laughing stock in the industry. When a childhood friend turns to her for help, Lora leaps to restore her reputation and starts hunting a killer who is stalking the gas-lit streets.

She never expects that her path will lead her to the Order of Guides, a sadistic militant religious organisation – or to Roman, a deadly and dangerously attractive half-angel warrior who also hunts the killer.

When Lora discovers that the killer has broken fundamental laws of magic to enter the city, she also uncovers a conspiracy that leads back into her own dark past.

Review:
Awesome, just awesome! I really liked almost everything about this book. Lora was a snarky, determined, tough badass who I enjoyed immensely. She managed to rush into danger without feeling suicidal, have adult relationships without coming across as easy, dispute with her friends and family without going overboard, and retain a sense of humour without it feeling forced. *Sigh* If only I could find more characters like her. 

My only real complaints are that the book could do with a little more editing to address the missing words and I never could get a firm handle on the world. The city names were real-world and there were cars, guns, etc., but there was also some magical, steampunk-like realm where modern technology wouldn’t work and mystical creatures lived among humans. This could have been a dystopian future, an alternative reality, alternate history, etc. It doesn’t define itself in any way and this left me perpetually confused on the matter. 

Despite that, I laughed a lot, rooted for Lora and her cohort, snickered at the mild romance, and generally just had a good time. At about 50%, I went ahead and bought the sequel, knowing I would want it as soon as I finished this one and I’ll be starting any minute now. 

Agent I1 Tristan

Book Review: Agent I1: Tristan (The D.I.R.E. Agency #1), by Joni Hahn

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Agent I1

I downloaded Joni Hahn‘s Agent I1: Tristan (The D.I.R.E. Agency #1) from the Amazon free list. At the time of posting, it is still free.

Description from Goodreads:
Credentials:
• Second generation Former Navy SEAL
• DIRE’s top agent
Enhancements:
• Teleportation
• Invisibility

Raised in the art of warfare, Former Navy SEAL, Tristan Jacobs, has always been a force to reckon with. Now that D.I.R.E. has successfully implemented his scientific enhancements, he’s a walking weapon. Unstoppable, as long as he stays focused. No relationships.

When ex-BUD/S teammate, Aidan Monroe, interrupts his long-awaited sabbatical to call in a favor, Tristan reluctantly fills the simple request: take out his sister’s fiancé.

One problem: Rachel Monroe – smokin’ hot, kind-hearted, and in desperate need of a protector. After the best sex of his life, Tristan’s afraid unstoppable is just a memory. Knowing Aidan’s temper, Tristan could be, too.

Rachel Monroe had a plan to help her mother. Her brother ruined everything when his gorgeous, super-agent friend teleported her to some forsaken island – and his bed. She’s drawn to him despite the fact he’s a professional agent, much like the people suspected of killing her father. 

Now, his enemies have come to her small town, looking for vengeance. 

Have they found more than they bargained for? Or, does the past have its own retribution in mind?

Review:
Here’s the perfect way to describe the forgetableness of this book. Last night I finished a book and went to bed, with the intention of reviewing it this morning. This morning, I took my Kindle to the gym and started this book while on the stationary bike. When I got home, I reviewed the book I finished last-night and then sat down to look at my Kindle Collections to pick out what to read next, completely forgetting that I had started and read 30% of this book already. It made that little of an impression. When I finally remembered having already started it, I sat down to finish it up.

Now, don’t misunderstand me. I’m not necessarily saying it was a bad book. I’m sure we’ve all read those books that we don’t love, but we don’t hate either. They’re like cotton candy—a shot of sweetness that you can only savour for a moment and then leaves very little memory of itself. Yep, that’s what this book was like. 

Seeing the emotionless Tristan become attached to someone was nice. The fact that Rachel wasn’t a complete pushover was appreciable. Her ultra-protective brother was fun. There were plenty of ‘aww’ moments and the sex was pretty mild. 

However, quite a lot of the plot was just skimmed over or just plain unbelievable. For example, I’m still unsure why Aidan called Tristan to guard Rachel in the first place, other than that he disliked her fiancé. That seems a little extreme. As far as I can tell there was no actual risk to Rachel that Aidan would have been trying to protect her against. 

There is also a lot of history between the older generation of characters that isn’t explored. The science isn’t well explained. And the romance is lightning fast. It isn’t insta-love, but within a matter of a day or so Tristan and Rachel fall madly in love and are willing to essentially throw their established lives away to be together. It too seems a bit extreme. 

For a quick, fluffy read, this is worth picking up. If you’re looking for great literature….um, it probably won’t fit the bill. It does actually end, though. Yes, that’s right, no cliffhanger!