Guest Review: Spider’s Bite by Jennifer Estep

Posted December 24, 2010 by Book Binge Guest Blogger in Reviews | 1 Comment

Genres: Paranormal Romance, Urban Fantasy


Judith‘s review of Spider’s Bite by Jennifer Estep

My name is Gin and I kill people.

The call me Spider and I am the most feared assassin in the South–when I’m not 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 under my feet to the vibrations of the soaring Appalachians Mountains above me. My Ice Magic also comes in handy for making the occasional knife. But I don’t use my powers on the joy 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 kill 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 irrisisitably rugged Detective Donovan Caine has agreed to help me. The last thing this cold-hearted killer needs when I’m battling a magic more powerful than my own is a sexy distraction–especially when Donovan wants me dead as much as the enemy.
OK, so I like those espionage novels and the Cold War stuff like Ice Station Zebra and 007 and so on. This has that same strung-out, edgy feel to it with a heroine who you want to like and for whom you want to root, yet she’s a cold-blooded killer. A killer of bad guys, to be sure, and in the face of a police force where it is almost impossible to find a good guy, that’s probably the only kind of justice the citizens of Ashland, Tennessee can expect–the vigilante kind. But Gin Blanco, otherwise known as The Spider, is good at what she does, better than almost everyone, and a woman who has been trained to do this since she was 13 years old. She was orphaned 17 years ago when a Fire Elemental decided to destroy her family and for some reason has chosen to keep on murdering and seeking the last member of her family, her baby sister. But Gin is an assassin for hire, and she makes top dollar because of her success rate. Now she is hired to kill one of the top executives in a huge company only she is being pushed and shoved into a vulnerable position that could cause her death. And Gin doesn’t take kindly to such manipulation.
This story may have all the action and suspense any reader could want, but most of us want that romantic core that exposes the hearts of the characters. Estep hasn’t forgotten that. But she tells the story of a hurting a vulnerable woman who has learned the hard way that people disappoint and abandon the ones they love. She has built a wall around her emotions–well all except hate–and she doesn’t trust very many people. Underneath that tough exterior beats the heart of a wounded warrior, longing for companionship and love from someone who has the guts to look beyond her profession and see her. Having lost her family so many years ago she has constructed a family of sorts around her, a group of very odd and strange individuals to whom she is completely loyal and for whom she would not hesitate to lay down her life. So she is a woman of deep commitment and feeling, unswerving loyalty and love. So there is lots to like here and Estep has done a magnificent job of writing. She has found a way to put the reader into the world of her characters so that the personalities and their quirks literally seem to leap off the page. I really like that kind of book.
So I recommend this novel to lovers of action and suspense, paranormal and romance fiction. It is one of those books that are literally impossible to put down. And in spite of how strange some of these characters are, their participation in the story make this tale even more enjoyable. It has the feel of reality even though we know it is not real. So make room in your book-buying budget for this gem. I think you will glad you did.

I give this book a rating of 4.5 out of 5.

The series:
Spider's Bite (Elemental Assassin, Book 1)Web of Lies (Elemental Assassin, Book 2)Venom (Elemental Assassin, Book 3)

You can read more from Judith at Dr. J’s Book Place.

This book is available from Pocket. You can buy it here or here in e-format.


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One response to “Guest Review: Spider’s Bite by Jennifer Estep

  1. I’m getting tattooed Spider Bite 3 years.I have a lot of work, Bill. He is an amazing artist.I’ve also been tattooed by Alex, also very talented. I’ve also been tattooed by Jason did a great job on the memorial tattoo of my grandmother.

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