Review of Blood Vengeance
Posted: 09 Oct 2021, 03:10
[Following is an official OnlineBookClub.org review of "Blood Vengeance" by Charles Alexander.]
Blood Vengeance by Charles Alexander is the second book of a series of thrillers with some bits of science fiction. LAPD motorcycle officer Annie Steele goes to London to find her friend Bobby Whittaker, who disappeared in the British capital city. What started as a private investigation quickly escalates after an attempt to her life. Contacts with the British police turn into a collaboration, albeit with some complications. Alexander Axeman is an Irish billionaire known for his philanthropic activities who hates the English and wants to destroy England. Annie Steele ends up involved in an investigation that becomes increasingly riskier, even for a woman with superpowers.
I had the chance to read Untouchable, the first book in the Annie Steele series. I liked it, so I was happy when I found its sequel available for review. This is a new story, independent from the first one. There are explanations about Annie Steele's past, in particular about the origin of her superpowers, so you don't need to read the first novel. However, a full appreciation of the protagonist requires reading both novels.
Bobby Whittaker is a character from the first Annie Steele book who disappears after going to London for a job. This is the start of a thriller that quickly becomes much bigger than a missing person case. There's a lot I appreciated of this novel, as Charles Alexander confirmed the skills I already saw. He's terrific in creating plots full of twists that are used to create a big picture. It might seem like the plot is formed by unrelated parts but ends up being consistent. Revealing the diabolical mastermind's identity from the beginning didn't spoil my fun because that was cleverly used to dig into his personality and motives.
The only thing I didn't appreciate in this novel is that, in its last chapters, Annie Steele moves quite abruptly from one place to another. I have to be a bit vague about my complaint to avoid spoilers. I'll just say that there's a climax reached through events that happen in different places and the protagonist is in one place at the end of a chapter and in another place at the beginning of the next chapter with very few explanations about what happened in-between. That makes it a bit difficult to understand the timeline of those events. A few more details to start some of those chapters would have helped in following the timeline of the final events without slowing down the pace.
My complaint is minor compared to my enjoyment of a fast-paced thriller. Unfortunately, the novel contains more than 10 errors. For this reason, I rate it only 3 out of 4 stars. This is a novel for adults because of its sexual content. Charles Alexander doesn't go into details but there's a lot of eroticism in the story going from innuendos to actual sexual activity. Like the first novel, it has a self-contained plot, with a proper end. If you like thrillers with big and complex plots full of twists, I recommend both Untouchable and Blood Vengeance.
******
Blood Vengeance
View: on Bookshelves | on Amazon
Blood Vengeance by Charles Alexander is the second book of a series of thrillers with some bits of science fiction. LAPD motorcycle officer Annie Steele goes to London to find her friend Bobby Whittaker, who disappeared in the British capital city. What started as a private investigation quickly escalates after an attempt to her life. Contacts with the British police turn into a collaboration, albeit with some complications. Alexander Axeman is an Irish billionaire known for his philanthropic activities who hates the English and wants to destroy England. Annie Steele ends up involved in an investigation that becomes increasingly riskier, even for a woman with superpowers.
I had the chance to read Untouchable, the first book in the Annie Steele series. I liked it, so I was happy when I found its sequel available for review. This is a new story, independent from the first one. There are explanations about Annie Steele's past, in particular about the origin of her superpowers, so you don't need to read the first novel. However, a full appreciation of the protagonist requires reading both novels.
Bobby Whittaker is a character from the first Annie Steele book who disappears after going to London for a job. This is the start of a thriller that quickly becomes much bigger than a missing person case. There's a lot I appreciated of this novel, as Charles Alexander confirmed the skills I already saw. He's terrific in creating plots full of twists that are used to create a big picture. It might seem like the plot is formed by unrelated parts but ends up being consistent. Revealing the diabolical mastermind's identity from the beginning didn't spoil my fun because that was cleverly used to dig into his personality and motives.
The only thing I didn't appreciate in this novel is that, in its last chapters, Annie Steele moves quite abruptly from one place to another. I have to be a bit vague about my complaint to avoid spoilers. I'll just say that there's a climax reached through events that happen in different places and the protagonist is in one place at the end of a chapter and in another place at the beginning of the next chapter with very few explanations about what happened in-between. That makes it a bit difficult to understand the timeline of those events. A few more details to start some of those chapters would have helped in following the timeline of the final events without slowing down the pace.
My complaint is minor compared to my enjoyment of a fast-paced thriller. Unfortunately, the novel contains more than 10 errors. For this reason, I rate it only 3 out of 4 stars. This is a novel for adults because of its sexual content. Charles Alexander doesn't go into details but there's a lot of eroticism in the story going from innuendos to actual sexual activity. Like the first novel, it has a self-contained plot, with a proper end. If you like thrillers with big and complex plots full of twists, I recommend both Untouchable and Blood Vengeance.
******
Blood Vengeance
View: on Bookshelves | on Amazon
Thank you for your appreciation!
Thank you for your appreciation!