Web of Lies - by Jennifer Estep
Genre: Urban Fantasy
Series: Book five in the Elemental Assassin series
Publication Date: May 2010
ISBN: 978-1439147993
Page Count: 432
My Rating: ★★★★★

Summary

Curiosity is definitely going to get me dead one of these days. Probably real soon.

I’m Gin Blanco. You might know me as the Spider, the most feared assassin in the South. I’m retired now, but trouble still has a way of finding me. Like the other day when two punks tried to rob my barbecue joint, the Pork Pit. Then there was the barrage of gunfire on the restaurant. Only, for once, those kill shots weren’t aimed at me. They were meant for Violet Fox. Ever since I agreed to help Violet and her grandfather protect their property from an evil coal-mining tycoon, I’m beginning to wonder if I’m really retired.

So is Detective Donovan Caine. The only honest cop in ashland is having a real hard time reconciling his attraction to me with his Boy Scount mentality. And I can barely keep my hands off his sexy body. What can I say? I’m a Stone elemental—with a little Ice magic thrown in—but my heart isn’t made of solid rock. Luckily, Gin Blanco always gets her man … dead or alive.

REVIEW

This is the second book in the Elemental Assassin series. The first book got better even as I read it, after a slightly unsure start. Now it seems the series is only going to continue in the same vein, getting better and better with each novel.

Detective Donovan Caine is still on the scene, although perhaps trying to distance himself slightly, as he still clearly doesn't approve of Gin's job. It is, after all, against everything he stands for as a cop, to let someone go around killing people for money. Even if they are bad guys. I'm not sure this is something he will ever be able to get over. There are some things you just can't accept no matter how attracted to a person you may be. Everyone has their own moral code and they cannot, or will not, be tempted to deviate from it. Still, it makes for entertaining reading.

There is a new guy on the scene, however,  who seems to be more than a little interested in Gin, too. I'm curious to know where this might lead to...

The story moved along at a better pace than the first book, I think. We get plenty more of Gin being her awesome, kick-ass self against various bad guys. And also taking on a new role after her "retirement" (yeah, right) as a sort of vigilante, Robin Hood-type figure. Only instead of robbing the rich to feed the poor, she's killing the bad guys to protect the good guys. I know, how sweet!

I love how tough Gin is. I love the fact that she doesn't wait around for anyone to come and rescue her. If they did, it would be a bonus, but she doesn't rely on that, or sit around waiting to be rescued. That would no doubt be a really quick way to get dead in her job.

I'm already on to book three - Venom. Loving this series now!