Early Review of Black Widow (Elemental Assassin, #12) by Jennifer Estep

Title: Black Widow (Elemental Assassin)
Classification: Adult Fiction

Genre: Urban Fantasy
Series: Elemental Assassin (Book 12)
Format: Paperback; 384 pages
Publisher: Pocket Books (November 25, 2014)
ISBN-10: 1476774544
ISBN-13: 978-1476774541

Author's Website: http://www.jenniferestep.com/
Notes: I recieved and eARC loan from the publisher.

Gin Blanco's arch-nemesis, Mab Monroe, has finally been taken down, Her daughter, M M Monroe, is looking to take her mother's place as Ashland's Queen of the criminal underworld. Without her mother's street cred, however, she's going to have to do something big and Gin's just sitting back, waiting, and watching to see what she'll do. Gin's convinced that like mother like daughter, Madeline will be gunning for her, and when she does, Gin intends to be ready.

This is the 12th book in the Elemental Assassin series, and I'd advise anyone who hasn't already done so to read at least the first several books in this series before attempting this one. There's a lot of history that makes what happens in this book so much more enjoyable. That said, I really enjoyed this one. Gin is in her element and at her finest. I loved how she manages to get the best of Mab's daughter, Madeline, in such a spectacular way. Gin wove an intricate trap that took her victim by surprise. She was cool, she was patient, and as lethal as ever. It reminded me why I fell in love with this series.

I found Madeline quite surprising and devious with a very different style from that of her mother. She's a woman of many talents and she starts things off by slowly driving Gin crazy with the anticipation of waiting for her to make her first move. Given time, I have no doubt Madeline could be just as powerful as her mother. While I applaud her for her efforts and give her points for thinking outside the box, she really had no idea who she was dealing with or she wouldn't have gone about doing things the way she did. You should always know your enemy to anticipate how they will react to your every move, and Madeline had no clue.

Why is the book titled Black Widow? Well, it comes from this statement by Finn early on in the book as he describes Madeline. “She’s like a black widow spider. I can admire the beauty of such a creature, even if I know exactly how deadly it is.”

I couldn't help but give this one 5 out of 5 roses. It had a fast pace, some nice twists, plenty of action and best of all it's a game changer. You're definitely going to want to read this one if your a fan of the series. I look forward to seeing what Ms. Estep will do in the next book.

Listen to a sample of the audible.com audio book: 

Order of the series:

Tangled Threads (Elemental Assassin, #4) by Jennifer Estep

Title: Tangled Threads
Classification: Adult Fiction
Genre: Urban Fantasy
Series: Elemental Assassin
Format: Paperback, 384 pages
Publisher: Pocket (April 26, 2011)
ISBN-10: 1439192634
ISBN-13: 978-1439192634
Author's Website: http://www.jenniferestep.com/
Notes: Contains sex and language some might take offense to.



"Elementals were people who could create, control, and manipulate one of the four elements -Air, Fire, Ice, and Stone. Those were the areas that most folks were gifted in, the ones you had to be able to tap into to be considered a true elemental. But magic had many forms, many quirks, and some people could use other areas, offshoots of one of the four elements. Metal was an offshoot of Stone, and electricity was one of Air."

Gin Blanco is a retired assassin who can wield both Stone and Ice elemental magic. Her assassin code name is Spider. Years ago her family was murdered by Mab Monroe, a powerful Fire elemental who also happens to rule the city of Ashland. Before the murders, Mab had been told that her demise would be at the hands of one of the Snow children who could wield the elemental magic of both Ice and Stone. Gin, formerly Genevieve Snow, watched the murders of her older sister (Annabella) and mother (Eira). Gin was then tortured by Mab who wanted to know Bria's (Gin's baby sister) location. Ironically, she thought it was Bria who could wield both types of magic. Just recently, Gin found out Bria was still alive, and is now a detective with the Ashland Police Department. She hasn't revealed to Bria who she is because she's afraid she'd reject her if she knew of Gin's assassin background. Gin's goal has always been to one day take down Mab and assure no one else, especially her sister, is ever hurt by Mab again.

In the last book Gin, as the Spider, declared war on Mab, and threatened to take her down one man at a time. She has slowly been whittling down Mab's minions one by one. In this book Mab has hired an elemental assassin named LaFleur to kill the Spider. LaFleur wields electricity and is one of the highest paid assassin's in the business. She's strong, smart, and powerful. Taking her down will not be easy. While she is battling the bad guys, Gin will also start to feel emotions she hasn't dared felt for another individual in a long time. Tangled threads will slowly start weaving a web around her heart. The question is will they be strong enough to hold her?

I am a huge fan of Jennifer's books. I just love the character Gin. She's tough on the outside yet soft on the inside. She is a contradiction and I think that is what I love about this character. She's loyal to those she loves, and strong enough to not need anyone. She does what she needs to do and makes no excuses. You need to accept her as is or not at all.

In Tangled Threads, we get to learn more about Fletcher, her Foster Father and former handler. Fletcher Lane taught Gin all she knows about being an assassin. I was sad he got killed off so early in the series, but I do enjoy how Estep slowly reveals all the parts that made up the intricate individual that meant so much to Gin. We get to find out how he knew Bria was alive, and what his connection was to the Snow family. We also learn what exactly happened to Bria, and how she came to live with her adopted family. If you are already hooked to the series this is a can't miss read. Ms. Estep has outdone herself with the fight scenes and the story is addictive. Once I pick up a book in this series, I truly don't wish to set it down until I'm done. The world that Estep created with ice bars, giants, elementals, vampires, and more is unique and fun.

I gave this one 5 out of 5 roses.

Order of the series:















1. Spider's Bite
2. Web of Lies
3. Venom
4. Tangled Threads