Friday 7 January 2022

REVIEW - SINNER - JOEY SANTANA SERIES BY KARINA ESPINOSA

  

Title: Sinner
Series: Joey Santana
Author: Karina Espinosa
Genre: Urban Fantasy, Paranormal, Shifter, Vampire, Seelie
Release Date: 10/12/2021

BLURB from Goodreads
What if I were in two places at once?

That’s the question I have to ask myself after the death of my father. Plagued with night terrors and lack of sleep, I keep blacking out and finding myself in strange places. Reed has memories of me that I don’t have, and the question remains, am I going crazy?

Accused of murder, I make a deal with the shadiest supernatural in all of the supe district. And while this deal might keep me from behind bars, it has me chained to an open debt that one day he’ll come to collect.

After another human murder, the humans are pushing for the Registration Act even more with the support of Humans United and it’s looking bleak for supernaturals. The Senate is going to vote and it’s now just a countdown for when they’ll be coming for us.

Can we keep our freedom from the humans? Am I really going crazy? Or will our house of cards finally come crashing down?

Goodreads Link

PURCHASE LINKS
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REVIEW
I love the cover as of course it features the main character of Joey Santana, the flame haired, kick-butt female, still in her human form as well as a wolf on the cover which is now her other half. This cover would definitely make me want to pick it up and learn more in a book store.

Joey is rapidly learning she is no longer human, but at the same time she isn’t truly 100% supe either. Ending up with her feeling an outcast from both worlds. Joey is having serious trouble sleeping and she keeps having these blackouts and loss of memory episodes. Reed is extremely worried about Joey as she keeps acting really out of character. One minute she is full of banter and telling him there is no way on earth she will ever accept his claim on her. The next minute she is getting all up close and personal, passionately kissing him! At one point Reed actual wonders if there is something wrong with him. Though when it is revealed how poorly Joey is sleeping, despite the hospital giving her medication to help. Reed takes her to see head of the witches Cordelia, who gives her something that finally enables her to get some restful sleep.

Reed and Joey do become even closer in this second book and its clear to see the chemistry between them, especially when any other male is giving Joey any attention. One minute they are like squabbling siblings, the next they are circling around each other with smouldering glances, and romance in the air all around them. However, Reed is not the only “love interest” in Joey’s life and she soon finds her relationship with her best friend becoming more and more complicated.

Joey spends a lot of time in this book trying to please everyone, so much so, she is warned to take care of herself first on several occasions. Joey cannot stand the idea of people being hurt because they are close to her.

There is so much going on in this book, it picks up right where the first book ended. Poor Joey is being held by the human police and as she is not a supe she basically has very few rights. No one knows where she is so she is desperately wondering how she is ever going to get out of the cell she has been thrown in with another supe who turns out to be a vampire. When Cassius arrives to negotiate his vampires release, Joey leaps at the opportunity and asks for his help, which he provides but there a catch, she now owes the head of the vampires a favour . . . oh and yes he has a phone containing some rather incriminating evidence on it, which would back the police theory that she killed her own father! Can she hatch a plan and enlist the right supes to help her carry it out?

Though a few supes have automatically accepted Joey and become friends with her, from fae Eugenie, vampire Atticus, and some of the werewolves, including Reed and Emilio. To be quite honest those are the supes that I love the most in the book, with the addiction of Elliott. Joey ends up sort of living in the grey area of being neither 100% accepted supe. Nor 100% accepted by the humans and those members of Humans United who view her as an “abomination.” Joey ends up having to do deals with some rather unsavoury people to help those she cares about and loves. It seems like everyone wants something from Joey.

Once again there is so much going on in this book, there’s the “life changes” Joey has to deal with including changing on the full moon with the pack, she is also attacked again! Then she has the family curse to sort out and time is rapidly running out for her to find the elusive Magdalena. For the wider supernatural community there is also the issue of the registration act for all Supernatural races! Which means lots of discussions between the different races.

Of course, my favourite characters that I still totally love are Joey & Reed, whom I am hoping get some sort of happy ending at some point. I adore Eugenie and like how Kit seems to be building a good friendship with her, helping her out in the bar. Poor Kit has become something of a liability for Joey as he is the perfect easy target to be used to control her. I am still enjoying hating Darius, and am still undecided about the Seelie Queen and her representative Fiona. I think Levi and his dad will slowly change and end up accepting Joey when they realise how loyal she is to those she cares about including her new supernatural family. Surely the way she is willing to put herself in danger for the sake of her pack has to appeal to those wolves that still doubt her. It’s even hinted at the possibility that she may have to sacrifice herself for the greater good. We also meet the immortal Magdalena who apparently holds the answer to the curse, but will she help Joey or just wreak havoc instead?

This is the second amazing book in a so far fantastic series that I feel like I could talk forever about! All those interesting characters with their own pasts. In this book it is hinted that there is violence in Elliott’s past, maybe we will find out in the next book. I love the whole idea and the feelings of reading about the pack and how they all look out for each other. I have to admit that wolves are my favourite shifter to read about, though I am also partial to a vampire too. I would usually wrinkle my nose at Fae but the way they are written in this book I am finding them interesting to learn about too, and hey who doesn’t love witches?! This book has so many layers and there are so many possibilities of how things could work out. I also really enjoy the chapters being from the differing points of view of Joey and Reed. I have so many theories of what might happen next, and what might break the curse.

My immediate thoughts upon finishing this book were, Oh wow! How could it end right there?! What a cliffhanger!!

Summing up I love the characters, love the world it is set in. The pace is perfect, as is the writing style. . . What more can I say I love it all and cannot wait to read more!!


 


 

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