Deadly Sting

Elemental Assassin, Book 8

By: Jennifer Estep

Narrated by: Lauren Fortgang

Length: 11 hrs and 8 mins

Publisher's summary

The eighth hotly anticipated book in the Elemental Assassin series by New York Times best-selling author Jennifer Estep.

It’s Gin Blanco's party - and you’ll cry if she wants you to. Against her better judgment, Gin is coerced into attending a high-society gala with the rest of Ashland's elite underworld. On display: the priceless art collection of her deceased nemesis, Mab Monroe, and an excess of crime-boss swagger.

While not comfortable in her fancy attire, Gin gets vastly more interested in the evening’s events when a group of thieves bursts in and tries to seize the valuable, dangerous gems. Facing a Die Hard-esque scenario in which she must free hostage partygoers while herself trapped in the museum, things get a little bit messy when the bloodshed begins. Let's just say that Gin should have chosen the red gown....

©2013 Jennifer Estep (P)2013 Audible, Inc.

Another Solid Installment

If you have not read Widow’s Web there will a SPOILERS in this review.

Red is definitely Gin’s color! In each book of the series we see how deadly Gin can be but since she took out Mab in Spider’s Revenge she gone a little soft IMO. But she is in full assassin mode in Deadly Sting!

Deadly Sting is different from all the other books in the Elemental Assassin series. The main plot takes place in one night at one location. I’ve talked the book over with some of my reading buddies and some have said they didn’t like this change but I for one enjoyed it.

True we didn’t get to see as much of the secondary characters that I’ve come to love just as but I feel like DS was more about Gin and getting some of her mojo back after the events that have happened to her personal life. And reminding the “crime bosses” in Ashland that the Spider is not someone to mess with.

Gin reluctantly goes to a fancy art showing with Finn. But it’s not just any art show but it’s a showing Mab Monroe’s personal art collection and her will is going to be read at this shindig. All of the big names in Ashland is going to be there, including…..Owen Wilson. But Gin doesn’t know it until she is blind sided by seeing him…..with a date.

Oh Owen, Owen, Owen. You cut us, cut us deep.

Just when the party is looking like a boring run of the mill art showing the wait staff start waving guns around and in true Gin fashion she can’t go anywhere without having to put on her assassin knives, luckily she has a place or two to hide them under her new red party dress that Finn made her buy.

Gin moves throughout the museum like the deadly, bad ass assassin that she is taking out the bad guys and trying to save her family and friends at are in attendance. For the most part of the action Gin is alone but she’s the Spider after all and she can handle it.

One thing I’ve enjoyed throughout the series is getting flashbacks from Gin’s past with her mentor, Fletcher. And we get another one in Deadly Sting. Gin always pulls from the memories to help her when she is in a hard place.

The Clementine, head bad guy, has plans for using Owen in her scheme. Gin works fast to free him before they kill him once he’s done. The 1/2 half of the book has Owen and Gin working together to help the others.

“No, we didn’t really get a chance to talk about anything. There was just blood, dead giants, and a lot of awkward pauses.”

Not the best in this series

Would you listen to Deadly Sting again? Why?

Maybe

Would you recommend Deadly Sting to your friends? Why or why not?

Sure but, I would tell them that I felt the book was lacking alittle.. But I love Gin and her family...

What does Lauren Fortgang bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

She always brings the story to life... If they change the reader I would not listen to another book in this series.

Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?

It was lacking in moments for me.

Any additional comments?

I have seen where others have left the names of authors they enjoy and I have found this helpful. So here are some of my favorites...Charlaine Harris, Jennifer Estep, Faith Hunter, Stacia Kane, Kelly Meding, Tanya Huff, Patricia Briggs, Carrie Vaughn, Cat Adams, Kelly Armstrong, Laurel Hamiton and Kim Harrison.

good but getting to be same old same old

good but getting to be same old same old. love the characters and the world she has created. I'd like more out of the box plot lines.

A nice change

Though this isn't my favorite book in the series, it was nice to come across a change. Sometimes when there are a multitude of books in a series, they can all start to run together and follow the same patterns. This book had a completely different approach to the plot and foes. I thought I might get bored with the whole story happening at one event in the course of an evening, but it managed to keep my attention and interest. I'm glad the "bad guy" wasn't just another elemental trying to move in and take over the city or get revenge on Gin. I'm also glad there was a little bit of a break in the plot between Gin and her sister. I agree with the other reviewers in that I dislike Owen greatly and hope she moves on in books to come.

Something Different than the usual Jobs

So i'm not giving anything away, but before the book started i have assumed that its going to be the same thing as usual... She finds someone who is hurting someone, she plans to kill that bad guy, she fales the first time, she heals, then she tries again and kills the bad guy... But noooo ... not in this one.. you have a different place, different plot than usual..

You don't get the usual, and you keep on thinking you know what will happen, but no there are few twists in this book.. some of these twists are predictable and some are not... There are few funny moments here and there, specially in the first few chapters.

Narrator is doing a good job as usual.

I don''t want to give anything away, but lets just say, i would rank this in the top from this series, specially with the change we got from the usual thing... its not completely different than the usual but its new and reminds me of few movies i watched before

Great job here.

Action Packed!

4.5 stars. Definitely the best in the series in my opinion.
This book was 90% plot and action, low romance. While I love the romance, this story was well done. Riveting and just entertaining.

Finnegan Lane was invited to an Art Exhibit of the items owned by the infamous Mab Monroe and of course Finn invited Gin to be his date.
First, he wanted to get Gin out the house since she has been moping about her separation with Owen and he was also curious about the items that the dead fire elemental had amassed.

We learned from the prior 2 book that everyone should be weary of any invitation by Ashland's underworld, so I was not surprised at all when a fun gala event turned into a "stick up". A group of Giants had decided that they were through being bodyguards and wanted to run Ashland's underworld now that Mab's death left a vaccum for leadership.

Obviously they made a grave miscalculation by holding the crowd hostage, the crowd including Gin Blanco's loved ones. Nobody messes with Gin's family and gets away with. Watch Gin Blanco get to the bottom of the robbery and also the mystery of who set up the heist and why.

I was just hooked from the beginning to the very end! What a ride. This book was written like an action movie and it was the return to the beginning of the series where love as a side action and Gin Blanco as the Spider reigned as the main plot. Yes, Gin and Owen did talk and lay some things on the table. I also see a future with these two as I love them as a couple. But most of this book was all Gin solving a mystery and while there was just a little of Finn, Owen, Jojo D, Eva, Philip, Rosaline, Xavier & even Bria were just supporting her.
I can't wait for the next installment of what has become one of my favorite series.

Fun!!

This isn't my favorite of the series but I think it does a good job of rapping up some things and setting up the next story line.

The red dress

Another good entry in the Elemental Assassin series. This one was a bit unusual in that it is mostly Gin describing what's going on during a heist at a museum. A heist where some of her family is being held hostage. Gin is believed to have been killed but is actually hiding undiscovered trying to figure out what's going on and how to rescue her family and other hostages. A young woman who came to the event with Owen and his sister Eva, unfortunately is wearing the exact same dress as Gin. She is mistaken for Gin and her face is blown off leaving everyone but Fin believing The Spider is dead. Not the best story in this series but not a bad one either. Gin's rescue of the hostages is worth the read.

Estep deliver again!

I really love this series and can't wait for them to come out. ****SPOILERALERT***** I was really disappointed about the "Spider's/Gin's' love life!

well worth the time

Listened to 2 of her books this weekend, even though i had many other options.