Heart Strings
Author: Jennifer Estep
Reviewer: Jen
Rating: B
What I’m Talking About:
Note: for those keeping track: the book ends at the 75% mark on my ebook. The remaining 25% is an excerpt from Last Strand.
Fans of the Elemental Assassin series will enjoy Heart Strings, an exciting adventure and sexy romance all from the POV of Lorelei Parker, one of Gin’s inner circle. The story is everything I’ve come to love about the series, including the main characters being sneaky, fighting for their lives, and using elemental magic to kick butt, all tied together with romance, humor, and amazing food.
Heart Strings is like a beautiful bow placed on top of a much-desired gift. With the Elemental Assassin series over (for now), Lorelei’s story completes the story arc and takes care of some unfinished business between Lorelei and the dark vampire Hugh Tucker. We learn a bit more about both, most especially Hugh, who has straddled the fence between “good” and “bad” for the last few books. I enjoyed watching him in action and appreciated Lorelei’s tumultuous feelings.
As always, Ms. Estep fills her stories with action and adventure, using incredible detail and description to paint the scene. She creates realistic settings that fill my mind with wonder and make me hungry for some home-cooked barbecue. Although this is a novella, there is plenty of story filling the pages. I highly recommend Heart Strings to all fans of Gin Blanco.
My Rating: B Liked It — Recommend
Jen
About the Book:
Heart stings can be the most dangerous wounds of all . . .
Lorelei Parker has had plenty of “heart stings” in her life—moments that are both happy and sad. With her grandmother’s recent marriage, Lorelei has had far more good times than bad lately.
That all changes when a ruthless Ashland underworld boss starts threatening her, but Lorelei is determined to figure out why the other crime boss is so interested in her thriving business. She vows to use her elemental Ice and metal magic to do whatever it takes to defend herself and her family.
Also in the mix is the mercurial Hugh Tucker. Lorelei doesn’t know what the vampire is up to, or if he’s a friend or an enemy. Tucker might even be something else, something more—if Lorelei can stay alive long enough to figure out whose side he’s really on . . .
Note: Heart Stings is a 38,000-word novella from the point of view of Lorelei Parker. It takes place after the events of Last Strand, book 19 in the Elemental Assassin urban fantasy series. Heart Stings first appeared in the Dirty Deeds 2 anthology in 2022.
Release Date: May 9, 2023
Publisher: Self-Published
Series: Elemental Assassin #19.5
Genre: Urban Fantasy, Romance
Format(s): paperback (238 pages), e-book
Book Source: Author
Purchase Info:
Amazon
Reviews in the Series:
Spider’s Bite by Jennifer Estep (Elemental Assassin #1) – Audiobook Review
Web of Lies by Jennifer Estep (Elemental Assassin #2) – Audiobook Review
Venom by Jennifer Estep (Elemental Assassin #3) – Audiobook Review
Tangled Threads by Jennifer Estep (Elemental Assassin #4) – Audiobook Review
Spider’s Revenge by Jennifer Estep (Elemental Assassin #5)
Thread of Death by Jennifer Estep (Elemental Assassin #5.5)
By a Thread by Jennifer Estep (Elemental Assassin #6)
Widow’s Web by Jennifer Estep (Elemental Assassin #7)
Deadly Sting by Jennifer Estep (Elemental Assassin #8)
Kiss of Venom by Jennifer Estep (Elemental Assassin #8.5)
Heart of Venom by Jennifer Estep (Elemental Assassin #9)
The Spider by Jennifer Estep (Elemental Assassin #10)
Poison Promise by Jennifer Estep (Elemental Assassin #11)
Black Widow by Jennifer Estep (Elemental Assassin #12)
Spider’s Trap by Jennifer Estep (Elemental Assassin #13)
Bitter Bite by Jennifer Estep (Elemental Assassin #14)
Unwanted by Jennifer Estep (Elemental Assassin #14.5)
Unraveled by Jennifer Estep (Elemental Assassin #15)
Nice Guys Bite by Jennifer Estep (Elemental Assassin #15.5)
Snared by Jennifer Estep (Elemental Assassin #16)
Venom in the Veins by Jennifer Estep (Elemental Assassin #17)
“Winter’s Web” by Jennifer Estep (The Season of Sorcery Anthology) (Elemental Assassin #17.5)
Sharpest Sting by Jennifer Estep (Elemental Assassin #18)
Last Strand by Jennifer Estep (Elemental Assassin #19)