Venom

The first thing that comes to my mind when thinking about this book is the lack of Donovan Caine. *does a happy dance* When I finished reading Venom I actually felt like singing Hallelujah for not having that idiot representative of the male species in the book. Yes, I was happy he was gone. (Can you tell I hated him??).

No Mr. Idiot means more Mr. Hottie a.k.a Owen Grayson. I like him a lot. He's very hot, very considerate, he helps Gin when she needs it, even if she doesn't ask for it. And he is mysterious. While reading this book I kept thinking there's something we still don't know about him. Something rather big. I'm waiting to discover what.

One of the best things in this book was Gin helping Roslyn. If you've read the books, you show more know that these two women aren't exactly on the best of terms. Even so, I always liked Roslyn and I hoped Gin would see her as the good friend she might become if only she'd allow it. I was right. This relationship and the way Gin helps Roslyn makes the situation with Mab a lot more dangerous than before.

I feel like a bad record here, but I have to say this: the repetitions killed me. We know Gin carries 5 daggers made of silverstone, we know Fletcher trained her to be an assassin, even though his son in older than Gin, we know a loooot of things. By heart. A friend of mine suggested that I should just skip over those parts. But that's even worse, because it would pull me away from the story even further. Anyway, I just hope these repetitions will stop as the story progresses.

I am still waiting for Gin to do something about Bria. She's putting off the inevitable and I believe this will make things even worse for her cop sister.

In the end, I enjoyed reading this book, even with those pesky repetitions. It was a good book. show less

At some point I'll get around to posting a round-up review post for all the short stories. Probably before Book 4: Tangled Threads comes out at least. Hopefully before the untitled Book 5 comes out. The good news is that unlike with some other books, where if you don't read the between stories you miss out on some pertinent info, not reading the side stories here just means missing out on some hijinks and information that is distributed in the book anyhow.

In my review for Web of Lies I complained (a little bitterly) that Donovan Caine, Gin's love interest and annoyingly goody-goody detective, ruined the book for me a bit because he kept preaching about morality. Or making Gin feel guilty for not being what he wanted. Or by just being in show more the same hemisphere as Gin and not appreciating that hey she was killing the really bad guys. And how much I loved Owen Grayson.

Estep gives me more Grayson, no Caine and lots of Spider action. I admit Gin's mopes about Caine turning out to be less than worthy of her and turning tail to escape her was...frustrating. But Owen did a really good job at distracting her. Which I approve of. He also had a rather touching backstory as to why he is persistently following Gin. It could have easily been sachrine sweet, but Estep made it just sweet enough to see the softer side of Owen without making it seem contrived to pull the heart strings. It also goes a long way to explaining some of Fletcher's apparently more altruistic tendencies (or his incredibly good foresight in regards to orphaned children).

Meanwhile the case that Finn brings to Gin to help with quickly becomes the case from hell. It goes from obsessive stalker case to obsessive stalker case linked to Mab Monroe to obsessive stalker case linked to Mab Monroe with Gin's long lost sister trying to solve it in under five minutes. And it only gets worse as time goes on and people don't trust Gin to do what she does best--kill annoyingly inconvenient people.

Along the way we learn some startling truths about what happened the night of Gin's family's butcher by Mab, some less than convenient truths about people putting their faith in you and how freaking sexy a man can be who knows his weapons (spoiler: very sexy). In short I adored this book and it was a quick enthralling read. As each complication rose I wanted to see how Gin overcame it and wanted to see how her relationship with her younger sister (Detective Bria Coolidge--she's like Donovan in her moral code however) evolved. Gin knows who she is, Bria...not so much. She knows Gin's alive, but she's looking for her older sister Genevieve Snow, not Gin Blanco aka the Spider.

I sincerely hope that the next book, Tangled Webs, has more of them bonding and the truth being outed. I think Bria is a more...forgiving person than Donovan and will understand what Gin's gone through and done in order to take down the woman who butchered their family. Oh and if you're going to declare war on a person--do it in style like Gin please. show less

Description: It's hard to be a badass assassin when a giant is beating the crap out of you. Luckily, I never let pride get in the way of my work. My current mission is personal: annihilate Mab Monroe, the Fire elemental who murdered my family. Which means protecting my identity, even if I have to conceal my powerful Stone and Ice magic when I need it most. To the public, I'm Gin Blanco, owner of Ashland's best barbecue joint. To my friends, I'm the Spider, retired assassin. I still do favors on the side. Like ridding a vampire friend of her oversized stalker—Mab's right-hand goon who almost got me dead with his massive fists. At least irresistible Owen Grayson is on my side. The man knows too much about me, but I'll take my chances. show more Then there's Detective Bria Coolidge, one of Ashland's finest. Until recently, I thought my baby sister was dead. She probably thinks the same about me. Little does she know, I'm a cold-blooded killer . . . who is about to save her life

The Good Stuff

* Brilliant Storytelling, couldn't put the book down (Damn you, Jennifer -- I have responsibilities, stop writing such fun books that I don't want to put down)
* Incredible secondary characters, I dare you not to love Finn!
* Kick ass heroine! I want to be Gin -- well without all the messy killing and stuff. Gin really is one of my favorite literary characters -- up there with Jeaniene Frost's Cat and Julie Kenner's Lily
* Those who haven't read the 1st 2 books, will still be able to get into the story -- and of course than will want to go buy the 1st two books
* Did I mention Finn
* Lots more of Owen Grayson who is way more interesting and hot than Donovan Caine
* Laugh out loud funny at times - probably best not to read this while out in public
* Again, must mention that I just LOVE Finn
* Thanks to Jennifer and an episode of Chuck, the term Po-Po doesn't irritate me anymore

The Not so Good Stuff

* I have to wait till when for the next book in the story - god this being patient stuff sucks!
* Fletcher is still dead -- hmm I say Jennifer should do a set of books on Fletcher

Favorite Quotes/Passages

"Finn did what he always did when confronted by an angry woman - he checked out her boobs."

"Three months ago, I was killing people for money. Lots of Money. Buckets of it. Now, tell me a good sob story instead and I'll take care of all your problems for free. Instead of stealing from the rich, I'm stabbing them to death for the poor."

"All this pro bono work I was dabbling in really was turning into public service. The mayor so needed to give me a medal."

"This giant was also naked, with an a** that was so fat, dimpled, and hairy that I would have happily killed him just for inflicting that sight on me."

What I Learned

* That I have a crush on Finn
* You can be moral and an assassin LOL

Who should/shouldn't read

* Those who don't have a sense of humor, might want to stay away -- but I'm guessing if you are reading my posts, you must have a great sense of humor -- and taste!
* Those who just like to read a fun and engrossing story
* Fans of Julie Kenner (J.K. Beck), Jeaniene Frost, Illona Andrews will Enjoy
* Those who enjoy Urban Fantasy

If you are interested Jake and I also did a Literary Tasty Treat Tuesday post for Venom

5 Dewey's: Why are you still reading GO BUY THE BOOK show less

"What are you thinking about?" he [Finn] asked. "Nothing much. I‘m just wondering how exactly I went from being the Spider to the Robin fucking Hood of the greater Ashland area. Three months ago, I was killing people for money. Lots of money. Buckets of it. Now, tell me a good sob story instead and I‘ll take care of all your problems for free. Instead of stealing from the rich, I‘m stabbing them to death for the poor."

LMAO! The best book so far. The plot progresses nicely with the arrival of Detective Bria Coolidge, Gin's long lost sister who replaces Donovan after he left in Web of Lies. With her arrival, Mab is alerted to her survival after her attack on their family all those years ago. Mab will do everything she can to get rid show more of Bria and so Gin takes drastic action to distract her enough to forget her and focus on the Spider. Goodbye retirement.

I was quite impressed with how good this third book was. I love Bria and Owen. They both surprised Gin in being tougher than she expected after her negative experiences with Donovan as an uncorrupted cop and as a lover. I'm looking forward to the new war on Mab and dealing with her hired assassins in [b:Tangled Threads|8318237|Tangled Threads (Elemental Assassin, #4)|Jennifer Estep|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1280371090s/8318237.jpg|13167517] but the thing I'm most looking forward to is the moment Gin reveals all to her baby sister and how she'll deal with it. show less

Venom
4 Stars

Fantastic world building, appealing characters and an engrossing storyline.

The ongoing story arc is developing slowly but surely toward the inevitable showdown between Gin and Mab Monroe, and the gripping revelations regarding Gin's family and the reasons for their deaths make this conflict all the more interesting. In terms of the book specific plot, Elliot Slater is a truly despicable yet formidable villain and the manner in which he is ultimately dispatched makes for exciting listening - it is both poetic and just that Roslyn gets to blow him away.

On the romance front, Donovan Caine has thankfully made an exit and one can only hope that it will be permanent. Now Gin can focus her attentions on a much more deserving, and show more seriously sexy, Owen Grayson.

The exceptional character development is a highlight of the book. Gin is growing as a person and coming to realize that she is not alone in the world - she not only has a makeshift family in the form of Finnegan Lane and the Deveraux sisters, whose loyalty and faith in Gin is inspiring, but has also found her long-lost sister, Bria, and it will be interesting to see where their relationship goes. Gin is also allowing herself to grow closer to Owen although there is still a long way to go before she trusts him completely.

The one aspect of Gin's characterization that does need work is the use of her elemental powers, which remain underdeveloped within the story line. She has both stone and ice magic but refrains from using them to their best effect, and this distracts from the action scenes as the reader is constantly waiting for her to finally put them to good use.

All in all, the Elemental Assassin series is thoroughly enjoyable and I look forward to Gin and company's next adventure in Tangled Threads. show less

Reviewed by: Rabid Reads

Jennifer Estep has done it again! Venom is even better than the first two installments which is pretty unbelievable considering how outstanding they both were. No word of a lie, the Elemental Assassin series literally gets better with every book. That's pretty freaking remarkable if you ask me! It felt like that crazy drop in the Tower of Terror except that it lasted for twelve hours! The story is thrilling, the character development is exceptional and Owen Grayson is just plain smokin' hot.

In this installment we get an even better look inside Gin's assassin persona; it's a scary and fascinating place. In the opening chapter she endures one heck of a beating in order to maintain her cover. I kept waiting for her show more to unleash a can of whoopass on the giants but hiding her skills was indeed the best long-term game plan for her and that's exactly what she does. You can't help but admire Blanco for willingly getting pummeled when she could have easily come out the winner of the encounter. This is just the first of many instances where she demonstrates her knack for thinking on her feet. As an ex-assassin, Gin finds herself in some pretty hairy situations yet she always manages to keep her cool, even when bullets are zooming past her head! There's more to her than just a cold blooded killer though and that's what makes her story so incredible. Her feelings and doubts go a long way into humanizing her in this book. I think that Estep does an exceptional job developing her characters in this series. They're memorable, life-like and unique; I for one can't get enough of them!

Elliot Slater is the kind of guy you love to hate and the first bad guy of this series that I really wanted to see suffer a slow and painful death at the hands of Gin. I like that it took the entire book for Roslyn's revenge to come full circle; it made the end result extremely meaningful and personal. All of the characters play a role in the main plot which is yet another noteworthy element in this book. As a result, the side stories became an added bonus instead of an essential ingredient in order to tie everything together.

Finn is finally coming into his own and I like that he actually kicked some butt in this installment. I've been on the fence about him for the past two books but now I'm glad he's a part of this series and I look forward to seeing what Estep has in store for him. I love, love LOVE Owen Grayson and how this book ended. I'm kinda hoping that he and Gin team up and go after Mab Monroe together. Wouldn't that be a romantic outing? Yeah... Natural Born Killers style! Sophia's story still remains a mystery but at least we learned something about her this time. I just hope her tale will be as awesome as I expect it to be!

Venom is one giant action scene packed with unforgettable characters, startling truths and the ending is fan-freaking-tastic. show less

So far Venom is my favorite book of the Elemental Assassin series. The character growth, again, is amazing. The plot is ridiculously suspenseful, the romance is steamy, and the pacing is perfect. This book blew me away. I'm completely in love with this series. I love it as much as I love the Women of the Otherworld series by Kelley Armstrong, and that is my favorite series of all time. Estep is a fantastic writer, and this installment does not disappoint.

Gin keeps evolving, and I really like who she's turning into. She's still a bad ass, but she's also showing more heart. Yes, she's still cold, logical, and brutal, but she also has a soul. She's definitely a heroine I can get behind. I love reading things from her perspective, too, and show more I really admire the lengths she's willing to go to in order to keep her friends and family safe. She's selfless in many ways, but she's still a fighter. She's one of the best female characters I've ever read.

The secondary characters are all amazing, and I am enjoying getting to know more about all of them. I still adore Finn, but Owen has really grown on me too. He's pretty much perfect for Gin, and I hope he sticks around for a few books (if not the rest of the series). He's a ton better than Donovan, that's for sure. Violent is another pleasant surprise. She's a tough girl, even though she didn't seem like it when she was first introduced. Also, Roslyn is an impressive character, and so is Bria. This series just has an amazing cast. Even the bad guys are complex and intriguing. Each character is an individual with his or her own voice, and none of them are stereotypes. Each character is fleshed out and interesting in his or her own way.

The plot is action-packed and full of suspense. There isn't a ton of mystery, but I was kept on the edge of my seat the entire time. The pacing is perfect, and I didn't get bored at all. I'm not completely clear about how Gin gets the knives to stay in her sleeves, and I keep trying to figure out the schematics of it. I think I'm going with she has them strapped up in there, though nothing like that has been mentioned... Random, I know. Anyway, I couldn't put this book down, and it was a super quick read for me. I really like where this series is going.

Overall, I'd recommend this book and series to everyone who enjoys kick ass female leads and urban fantasy/supernatural novels. I'm not a huge fan of a lot of supernatural series. I only read Patricia Briggs, Jeaniene Frost, Chloe Neill, and Kelley Armstrong. That being said, I am completely in love with this series. If you like any of these authors, then I'd definitely recommend giving this series a try. show less