Author: Jennifer Rardin
Version: Mass Market (Pocket sized) Paperback
Published: July 1st, 2009Publisher: Orbit
ISBN: 9780316043540
Genre: Paranormal Ficiton
Voice: First Person
Number of Pages: 335
DISCLAIMER: I know that I have mentioned this series once or twice before. But I have never reviewed the books one by one or in full and I love this series and seem unable to go long without reading it again. So here is the first in a series of reviews where I plan to review each book in the series in order from the first to the last. They will not be one right after the other but I will get to all eight.
SYNOPSIS: Meet Jaz Parks a wise cracking, tough talking, bad ass assassain who happens to work for a vampire. Vayl, her vampire boss, is one of the most skilled assassins the CIA has. Together the two of them, along with the many voices in Jaz's head, make up the most elite paranormal team the CIA employs. And although their styles clash a lot of the time, he's a proper gentleman born, raised, and born again in the 1700's, and she's more of a loose cannon type enjoying to kill all the bad guys and ask questions and do paper work never, they always get the job done.
In the first adventure they are after a very wealthy plastic surgeon who has ties to terrorism. They think that it's going to be an open and shut assassination, go in kill and be done with it. When they discover that his ties are a little less human and much more deadly they find themselves in rather murky waters. They discover that not only are their enemies more of the supernatural, mainly of the vampire variety, but they also have a much more deadly plan then just kill off a few innocent bystanders. What they discover can very easily turn into the end of the world if Vayl and Jaz (and her many personalities) don't stop it in time.
Along the way to saving the world in a timely manner Jaz and Vayl meet some new friends. Cassandra, a very old, beautiful, and amazingly right on psychic. As well as the childlike super sleuth Cole who has a fondness for high tops and bubble gum and unfortunately for him a strange fondness for Jaz. Together the four of them embark on one of the most intricate and interesting adventures that Jaz and Vayl have been on yet. The only question is can they survive it?
REVIEW: I found this book by accident to tell the truth. I was in this amazing used bookstore in Northern California called The Almost Perfect Bookstore with a friend and we were searching around rather aimlessly. I found this book stuffed between a couple others and I was intrigued by the description on the back cover and so for about $2 or so I decided to pick it up. I read it and all I could think was "I want more!" This entered me into a world of trying to find every Jaz Parks book I could. But this was the beginning of the obsession.
The writing was slick and quick, funny, and utterly engaging. Jennifer Rardin's style is a wonderful blend of humor and simplicity. In fact it's the perfect blend of the two a blend that I found I couldn't get enough of. I found that her way of telling a story is one that engaged me so much I would find myself unable to do really anything other than read. And that really is the mark of a truly fantastic book.
The story is sharp and full of mystery and a whole new take on the vampire genre. Really a whole new take on the paranormal genre and that really is something that is hard to find. So my hat goes off to Jennifer Rardin for finding a new way to tell a tale. The fact that it is told through Jaz's perspective makes it even more enjoyable. Watching the way Jaz thinks and processes information makes it so tangible and almost delectable in it's telling. Jaz has a wonderful mind, even if she has more then one inhabitant in it, and spending time there is utterly delightful.
I didn't go into that much detail in the synopsis because the book is so rich and full of surprises and tastey tidbits that I really didn't want to give too much away. It's just one of those books that you have to read to really find out about. I highly recommend this book to everyone just because it's that fun, witty, and great. It's a truly fantastic read, the whole series is, and I can't see anyone not enjoying it as a fun, quick read!
No comments:
Post a Comment