Tuesday, November 26, 2013

Long Time Gone (Hell or High Water) by S.E. Jakes

I received this book as an ARC through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. All opinions contained therein are my own and influenced by nothing, and no one, but me.

I was so excited when I saw this book on Net Galley. I really enjoyed the first one, and I was excited to read the sequel. I am very happy to report that this book did not disappoint. I love the paranormal touches throughout this story. Nothing too much just enough to add some interest, and a little creepy factor to the story. The swampy setting during and after the storm really played a large part in the story, and I loved the atmosphere it evoked. It almost felt like the swamp was another character in the story in parts, and I enjoyed that. It felt grounded in the location, and it brought the story to life for me.

The character continue to be some of my favorites. I enjoyed seeing them continue to grow, and learn about each other, and themselves. I liked the part sex played in the story. It wasn’t a story about how sex cured their problems, but more how sex can be used to help release tension, and aggression, and boy did they use it effectively. This book especially was scorching hot. I did, however, like that sex didn’t completely overtake the plot. It was smutty, but the smut wasn’t the sole focus of the story either.

The secondary characters were really well done in this story. I really liked Etienne, and the bond he and Tommy shared was nice to see. Tommy’s aunt was another interesting character, and I loved her strength, and spirit. Her friends were a fun couple as well. It’s nice seeing such a strong, committed, older gay couple who are still so clearly in love. The less savory characters were well drawn with a mixed bag of motivations, and personalities. They helped the story from feeling too flat or predictable.

The plot was fast moving, and nicely edge of your seat. More than once I found myself biting my nails wondering what was going to happen next. Once again I loved how it wasn’t the story of how Prophet and Tommy solved all of the problems by themselves. It was nice to see characters from this, and another related series coming back to play a large role in the resolution. Blue is one of my personal favorites. The resolution was well done, and, while I might have shed a tear or two, I appreciate that the author did not pull her punches to craft a sparkly happy ending that wouldn’t have felt honest to the series. No matter how much part of me wanted it to end better, I don’t think it would have worked. I was thrilled to see that Mal and Cillian are going to be getting what might be their own series. I really like Cillian, and found myself intrigued by Mal, and wanting to know more about him.

Overall I really liked this addition to the series, and the universe. It’s nice when a series only continues to get better, and I look forward to seeing where things go from here.

Em

No comments:

Post a Comment