Review: Reckoning by S.J. Harper

Reckoning by S.J. Harper

Fallen Siren #2

Join Agents Emma Monroe and Zack Armstrong.
She’s sacrificed. He’s suffered. They’ve both been betrayed.
Now it’s time for a reckoning.

Special Agent Emma Monroe has a secret. She’s a Fallen Siren, cursed by the gods and banished to Earth for her failure to prevent the kidnapping of Persephone. As an FBI agent she saves the lives of others believing redemption could be one rescue away.

er partner Zack is a werewolf and former Black Ops sniper who once carried out a string of questionable assignments. Now he’s determined to atone for his past. Ironically, there’s a portion of his past Zack doesn’t remember—an affair with Emma. Giving into their attraction for one another almost led to their undoing. Now it’s back to business as usual.

While trying to unravel the mystery behind a series of kidnappings in Southern California, Emma and Zack become entangled with political tensions in the vampire and Were worlds. Not to mention the struggles they face in their relationship with one another. With so much uncertainty, they come to realize the only thing they can really count on is one another…or can they?

I had forgotten just how much I loved the first book in this series until I started reading this one, and then it all came back to me. I just love the mix of elements from the romance, to the greek mythology, and the FBI cases to solve. Then of course add in all the other supernatural types, and I'm one happy reader. I'm a big fan of variety in my books, especially when they are come together so well like in this book. The characters and the world are very vivid, and I had no trouble at all getting sucked right into the story.

Onto the romance. I have to admit that at first I was a bit leery as it seemed to be venturing into love triangle territory, but luckily that's not really the case. Sure, there are two "romantic" interests, Kallistos and Zach, but the former isn't really about love. Emma's a Siren, and therefore smexiness is just part of who she is, so Kallistos is the perfect fit for a companion to keep her safe from the dangers of acting on her love for Zach. I was really happy that she had him, even if there never would be love there. However, that really didn't make it any easier on my heartstrings when it came to things with her and Zach. They have the kind of connection that you just can't help rooting for, but that path seems to lead to nothing but heartache. Every time I thought they may have a chance, the rug got pulled out from under again. I'm really really hoping Emma finds a way to finally put Demeter in her place and out of messing with her life, but as it's already been thousands of years, it probably won't be any time soon. But hey a girl can hope, right?

RECKONING and the Fallen Siren series have earned a place on my must read shelf. I'll be eagerly anticipating the next book, and I highly recommend it to anyone who loves a great Urban Fantasy read with some romance thrown in. Trust me, you'll want to give this one a look. 

(Received a copy from the publisher)

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     a GREAT read
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Previous Books:
     0.5. Captured
     1. Cursed

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Early Review: Cursed by S.J. Harper

Cursed by S.J. Harper

Fallen Siren #1

Meet FBI Agents Emma Monroe and Zack Armstrong. She's cursed. He's damned. Together, they make one hell of a team.

Emma Monroe is a Siren, cursed by the gods and bound to earth to atone for an ancient failure. She’s had many names and many lives, but only one mission: redemption. Now that she works missing persons cases for the FBI, it could be just a rescue away. Unless her new partner leads her astray.

Special Agent Zack Armstrong just transferred into the San Diego Field Office. He’s a werewolf, doing his best to beat back the demons from his dark and dangerous past. As a former Black Ops sniper, he’s taken enough lives. Now he’s doing penance by saving them.

Emma and Zack’s very first case draws them deep into the realm of the paranormal, and forces them to use their own supernatural abilities. But that leaves each of them vulnerable, and there are lines partners should not cross. As secrets are revealed and more women go missing, one thing becomes clear: as they race to save the victims, Emma and Zack risk losing themselves.

Long ago Emma was cursed by the gods, stripped of her wings, and forced to roam the earth finding one missing person at a time in penance. She's a Siren able to lure men and woman alike to revealing all their secrets and lust after her, all while still having to keep her own heart locked up tight. As much as she hates her fate, she's largely resigned to it and a loveless life. But all that changes when Agent Zack Armstrong comes back into her life as her new partner in the FBI. Suddenly keeping her heart locked up tight isn't so easy anymore, not when thoughts of Zack seem to haunt her every waking moment. Between getting to the bottom of their latest case which has hit close to home and keeping her heart and Zack safe, Emma's life has gotten a whole lot more complicated.

I absolutely loved the dynamic Emma and Zack! There was such an incredible amount of sexual tension between them that just about drove me out of my mind. But it also went much deeper than just that tension as you could tell there was definitely something real between them. And therein lied the problem. While I'm a huge fan of greek mythology, in this case that mythology only really served to depress me as it prevented Emma from forming a lasting connection with any male, no matter how much she wanted to. Of course I'm going to hold out hope that things will get resolved somehow there in the next installment, but since her punishment has already lasted 1000s of years, it's not going to be easy. But of course that makes for the best and most engrossing reads, and I can honestly say that I'm fully invested in their plight.

The world behind CURSED was pretty incredible. Not only is there the Greek Mythology aspect like I mentioned, but there also was plenty of Vampire, Werewolf, and Witch goodness to keep me more than entertained. Considering each of those elements had their own back story and issue going on during the book, it really is amazing that they never got jumbled up. In fact the pacing was one of the most impressive things about this book aside from the fabulous characters of course. There never was a time where I felt things were dragging, and more importantly it never got too overwhelming or fast either. I'm really looking forward to seeing how all of the issues started in CURSED play a role in the next book, between the werewolf struggle, the ancient vamp, and of course Emma's curse, it should make for one heck of a read!

When I picked this book up, I had no idea that it was written by an author duo, one of which I'm already a huge fan of, Jeanne C. Stein. Since I really enjoyed this book, I'll definitely be checking out Samatha Sommerby's other books as well. But getting back to CURSED, I have to say that I was incredibly impressed with the way the book flowed. I imagine it had to be hard to make their writing blend so seamlessly together so that Emma's "voice" never once changed. Her personality held true throughout, and when you add that to all of the other fantastic elements of this book, it made for a very enjoyable read. CURSED is just one of those books that you can hunker down into for a great escape to lose yourself for a few hours, because trust me once you pick it up, you won't be able to put it down.

(Received a copy from the publisher)

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