This has been a week of 4.0 books for me. It’s actually kind of scary.
Cut Throat is the second book (first is Nine Lives) in the series which follows the life of Bounty Hunter Cat Dupree. To say that she’s scarred inside and out is an understatement. A big one. Cat is on seriously effed up woman…with good reason. When she was a little girl, a man broke into her house and killed her father in front of her. He then slit Cat’s throat, leaving her for dead. Miraculously she survived. Since then, her mission in life has been to hunt her father’s killer down and kill him. She thought she did that in Nine Lives. She soon realizes that she was wrong.
Deciding to go after Solomon Tutuloa was a no-brainer for Cat. The revenge she has waited her whole life for is within her reach and there is nothing that will stop her from taking it. If it means pushing away her lover, Wilson MacKay, so be it.
Sharon Sala is one of those authors whose books I love for a reason I can’t name. Sala has never written a heroine like Cat Dupree. She’s an extreme hardass that has gone through life forming few attachments. She doesn’t want a happily ever after. She doesn’t want friends, she doesn’t want to want a lover. She pushes people away and is just generally unlikeable. So I was really curious how Sala was going to pull off a book with a heroine that I didn’t even like. Somehow she did it, though when I finished Nine Lives, I had no idea where she would go with Cat.
In Cut Throat, there were a series of things that happened to Cat that made her question her decisions in regard to Wilson. When she finally takes her revenge, it’s like she’s seeing the world through a different set of eyes. Suddenly she’s trying to be a person that she’s never wanted to be. That’s a rough adjustment, not only for her, but for Wilson as well. I was as incredulous as Wilson when Cat apologized for unnecessary comments. Seriously, I was like “huh?”. It would have ruined it for me if Wilson would have taken it in stride and just accepted Cat for the new and improved person she was.
So even though her values made a 180, the core of Cat was still the same. It was just the intensity in which she tried to avoid an attachment with Wilson now when the other way. She was determined to make an attachment. I think it would have made me like the book a lot less if Cat didn’t remain as fierce of a person as she was in the prior book and for the 1st half of this book.
All in all, I really recommend this series. I’m curious to see where Sala takes it next.
4 out of 5.
Oh MAN! I saw this on the shelf and passed it over to wait for it at the used store – I completely didn’t catch that it’s the second Cat Dupree book. Now I want to run out and grab it.
As to loving Sala’s but being unable to pinpoint why – I’m the same way. I’m totally drawn to her books despite the fact that often (especially in older books) they’re very he-man taking care of the abused, tortured little-woman. They’re highly emotional and I don’t normally like that either but I just can’t stay away from her books!! I even have most of her serial romance books from harlequin. It’s a sickness. LOL!
I have this book, but I suppose I should read Nine Lives first. Something else to add to my wishlist…
I really enjoyed this book 😀 I was actually wondering if it was going to be a series, after reading Nine Lives 😀 Happy it is 😀 I’m curious too to see where Sharon Sala takes this series next, now that Cat’s enemy is dead.
I’m totally with you and Ange on this one. I love Sharon Sala/Dinah McCall books, but I wouldn’t be able to tell you exactly why.
Nath – Have you read OUT OF THE DARK? That is my favorite but it’s SO heartwrenching and I always bawl.
Ange, that was my first Sharon Sala book… I cried sooo much while reading it. Others that I also like are Reunion and Sweet Baby… both of them are also heartwrenching… *sniff, sniff*
Hmmm, between you and Holly I’m going to stay very poor with all the books you guys recommend, seriously…cause now I wanna read this book because you liked it. You can’t go wrong when Casse recommends a book. =)
Great review Case.