Spider's Bite

Elemental Assassin, Book 1

By: Jennifer Estep

Narrated by: Lauren Fortgang

Length: 11 hrs and 59 mins

Publisher's summary

They call me the Spider. I'm the most feared assassin in the South -- when I'm not busy at the Pork Pit cooking up the best barbecue in Ashland. As a Stone elemental, I can hear everything from the whispers of the gravel beneath my feet to the vibrations of the soaring Appalachian Mountains above me. My Ice magic also comes in handy for making the occasional knife. But I don't use my powers on the job unless I absolutely have to. Call it professional pride.

Now that a ruthless Air elemental has double-crossed me and killed my handler, I'm out for revenge. And I'll exterminate anyone who gets in my way -- good or bad. I may look hot, but I'm still one of the bad guys. Which is why I'm in trouble, since irresistibly rugged Detective Donovan Caine has agreed to help me. The last thing this coldhearted killer needs when I'm battling a magic more powerful than my own is a sexy distraction... especially when Donovan wants me dead just as much as the enemy.

©2010 Jennifer Estep (P)2010 Audible, Inc.

Critic reviews

"Fortgang’s captivating drawl sketches Finn’s flirty, genteel arrogance and Caine’s horrified disapproval of her. Fortgang portrays Gin’s well-hidden emotions as well as her habitual analysis of combat probabilities. The capable narration ensures that Gin comes across as an intriguing mix of battle-weary assassin, sorceress, and affectionate homebody. Fortgang also delivers the book’s wry humor with subtle elegance." ( AudioFile)

Just plain entertaining!

Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

Definitely! Estep has the knack for having a nice balance of seriousness, sarcasm, romance and reality reality that lets you just fall into her world and connect with the main character (even if your not an assassin yourself).

Definitely one for my

Who was your favorite character and why?

Gin/ Spider... Just love her

Which character – as performed by Lauren Fortgang – was your favorite?

It would be even between Gin (she soooo make it her own) and FINNEGAN LANE (he turns out so suave and perfect with his description)!

If you were to make a film of this book, what would be the tag line be?

Luck is a capricious bitch!

Any additional comments?

I've actually read the books... But Lauren Fortgang does such a great job with the voices... It was worth it!

Performance fell flat

If you could sum up Spider's Bite in three words, what would they be?

Needs new reader

Would you be willing to try another one of Lauren Fortgang’s performances?

Not without sampling the book. Maybe with better direction she would have been fine.

Any additional comments?

The shame of it is that I like these books. I've read them and thought I'd like to listen as well. Very glad that I bought it on sale. The reader was flat with no variations and if I were from the south I'd be insulted by how slow and stupid the dialogue read this way made them sound.

Not bad, good enough to get me to buy book 2

Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

I picked this up in a $4.95 sale. It is pretty basic but eventually grabbed me. I kept thinking "good thing this was only 5 bucks". But eventually I did get grabbed by it. At least enough to try book 2 and go from there. I will say, the narrator of this book has a voice that gets you standing up straight ;)

First book of elemental assassin

I like strong female characters and if they are assassins even more. This was a very good book for me and i defintive will listen to the second one. I like the side characters and i am very curious what will happen next. The voice was very good and likelably to listen. So i will advice others to listen to this one .

LilyElement Book Reviews - Spider's Bite

What made the experience of listening to Spider's Bite the most enjoyable?

Gin Blanco, aka the Spider is an assassin that has elemental magic. Having control over stone and ice, Gin is not a woman I'd like to be up against. She earns her title as the Spider by killing her marks without them even knowing something is amiss. When someone double crosses her, instead of running, Gin investigates and vows revenge.

Gin is joined by her handler's son and a sexy police officer in her search for the Air elemental that is out to get her. Talk about awkward situations though, the sexy police officer, Donovan Caine is pissed because Gin killed his partner. Add in all the sexual tension between the two and it just got that much more interesting. Gin is a strong female lead character that does not give up. The plot was enjoyable and the narrator on the audiobook was spot on. I can't believe it took me this long to start this series, but I really enjoyed it and will be reading the second book soon. I highly suggest Spider's Bite if you enjoy Urban Fantasy.

What about Lauren Fortgang’s performance did you like?

Brought the characters to life. By far my favorite narrator yet.

Tons of Fun

This book had been languishing in my library for years--description caught my notice early on, but with all of the free stuff on OverDrive, RBDigital, Hoopla, etc, that actually has expiration dates, the stuff I own and can listen to whenever tends to slip to the bottom of my list. This jumped to the top because of some other Estep titles I've recently read. But for anyone who enjoys Urban Fantasy, this is a must listen, particularly because of the wonderful performance by Lauren Fortgang. This was lots of fun--an assassin who is a gourmet cook? What's not to love! i'll definitely continue with this series

Great Story, annoying habit...

First, I'm a fan of this author. I've read quite a few of her books and will probably finish out this series. Gin Blanco is an assassin with a murky background. She suffered the loss of her family as a child, landed on the streets and was rescued by a soft-hearted restaurant owner who had a side job killing people for money. Thus, our heroine's future career is set.

I love Gin. She's tough, competent and has a moral code, though she's a killer for hire. The plot is tight, but the writing has two repetitive problems that make me crazy. Especially in audio. And this is 95% on her editor, though the author should be aware enough of her own writing not to do this.

First the use of "a" or "an" before a descriptive work. "The dress was a soft green." No, it was "soft green." It's an unnecessary crutch and a lot of writers do it. I just didn't realize how often till I started listening to audio books.

The second is the one that makes me crazy. "My grey eyes." I think she uses that phrase hundreds of times. (okay, maybe not.) But she does it in the second in the series too. "I narrowed my grey eyes." "He looked into my cold grey eyes."

We get it. She has grey eyes.

I'm sorry I shared this. If you read this review, you'll never, ever read or listen to a Jennifer Estep book again, without listening for the POV character's eye color.

But again, this is a fun series with a great anti-heroine. Gin really is one of the best.

Especially since she has grey eyes.

Gin Blanco and the gang

I came across this book by chance and I was mesmized within 5 minutes of the audiobook. I absolutely love Lauren Fortgang's narrating. Gin is a cold assassin in which I liked from the start. The story is rich, believeable, tense, and the supporting characters are just as fascinating as the main character. This, the first book lays the groundwork to an engrossing series and will have you on the seat of your pants.

Plus the intense Donovan Cain adds to the spice of the story

LOVED IT!!

I love books with strong women charachters and this one was one of the best i have listened to this year. The story is really engrossing but the narrator really makes it great! Cant wait to down load the second book. I wish all narrators were this good!

Enjoyable

This book was fast paced and fun. I found it in the Romantic Fantasy category, but I would caution that it is more urban fantasy adventure. The actual relationship that might be considered romantic, I would consider a sexual attraction, and at any rate, it wasn't at all the main focus of the book. There is surprisingly little sex in the book, however. Instead, there's the morally ambiguous Gin, an assassin you come to love, whose out to clean up a mess that has hit close to home. She has friends who aid her, villains of the worst sort, and lots and lots of action.