Widow's Web
3.5 Stars

Despite her retirement from the assassins business, Gin Blanco is still forced to deal with the numerous lowlife thugs gunning for her. But they pale in comparison to the newest threat, Salina DuBois, a powerful water elemental who has her sights set, not only on taking out her underworld competition, but on Gin's lover, Owen Grayson, with whom she shares an intimate past. Can Gin untangle the wicked web woven by this deadly widow?

***Warning***: Minor spoilers ahead!

To sum up in one sentence: Not as terrible as I had expected, lol!

After a long hiatus (mainly due to the knowledge that Owen's character was about to turn into a dickhead), I have returned to the captivating world of Estep's Elemental Assassin series.

While not unexpected, Owen's blind devotion and inability to see past Salina sweet southern belle routine even when confronted with the truth of her machinations and manipulations is exceedingly disappointing and not a little annoying. Where is the man whose unequivocal love and acceptance of Gin made him such an awesome character? At least there is no cheating, which would have been a total deal breaker!

That said, by the end of the book, Estep manages, if not to completely redeem Owen, at least to present his side of events in a more favorable light and his decision to distance himself from Gin until he can come to terms with his feelings is understandable given the circumstances. It will be interesting to see how long it takes for him to come to his senses and there should be some absolutely fantastic groveling in his and Gin's future.

With regard to Salina, she is a dangerous and despicable villain yet the contradictions in her characterization are problematic. On the one hand, she is obviously a sociopath with narcissistic tendencies, but there are also indications that the traumas she suffered have turned her into a monster. This creates unnecessary moral ambiguity that undermines Gin's perspective.

The rest of the plot takes a back seat to the personal angst, but is, nevertheless, action packed and exciting. Estep's imaginative world of elemental powers and underworld conflicts is exceptional, and the introduction of several new characters adds new directions for the books to go in. One character in particular, Philip Kincaid is very appealing and it will be fun seeing what happens next.

Estep's writing has also improved and there is far less repetition of phrases and recapping of previous events.

In sum, while not the best book in the series, Widow's Web is a strong installment for its detailed world building, ongoing character development and improved writing. Looking forward to continuing and no more long breaks for me! ( )

I don't think I'll be reading this.

I read some reviews and got the spoilers about Owen's behavior in this book. I am not interested in reading this. A HUGE part of my love for Gin was her emotional vulnerability and the only reason I liked Owen was because he helped her heal from Donovan breaking her heart. Now Owen does something a million times worse than Donovan? And yet remains her love interest? Nope. No thanks. Not reading. Which sucks, because I was really enjoying listening to these audiobooks at the gym... :(

I don't think I'll be reading this.

I read some reviews and got the spoilers about Owen's behavior in this book. I am not interested in reading this. A HUGE part of my love for Gin was her emotional vulnerability and the only reason I liked Owen was because he helped her heal from Donovan breaking her heart. Now Owen does something a million times worse than Donovan? And yet remains her love interest? Nope. No thanks. Not reading. Which sucks, because I was really enjoying listening to these audiobooks at the gym... :(

Widow's Web
3.5 Stars

Despite her retirement from the assassins business, Gin Blanco is still forced to deal with the numerous lowlife thugs gunning for her. But they pale in comparison to the newest threat, Salina DuBois, a powerful water elemental who has her sights set, not only on taking out her underworld competition, but on Gin's lover, Owen Grayson, with whom she shares an intimate past. Can Gin untangle the wicked web woven by this deadly widow?

***Warning***: Minor spoilers ahead!

To sum up in one sentence: Not as terrible as I had expected, lol!

After a long hiatus (mainly due to the knowledge that Owen's character was about to turn into a dickhead), I have returned to the captivating world of Estep's Elemental Assassin series.

While not unexpected, Owen's blind devotion and inability to see past Salina sweet southern belle routine even when confronted with the truth of her machinations and manipulations is exceedingly disappointing and not a little annoying. Where is the man whose unequivocal love and acceptance of Gin made him such an awesome character? At least there is no cheating, which would have been a total deal breaker!

That said, by the end of the book, Estep manages, if not to completely redeem Owen, at least to present his side of events in a more favorable light and his decision to distance himself from Gin until he can come to terms with his feelings is understandable given the circumstances. It will be interesting to see how long it takes for him to come to his senses and there should be some absolutely fantastic groveling in his and Gin's future.

With regard to Salina, she is a dangerous and despicable villain yet the contradictions in her characterization are problematic. On the one hand, she is obviously a sociopath with narcissistic tendencies, but there are also indications that the traumas she suffered have turned her into a monster. This creates unnecessary moral ambiguity that undermines Gin's perspective.

The rest of the plot takes a back seat to the personal angst, but is, nevertheless, action packed and exciting. Estep's imaginative world of elemental powers and underworld conflicts is exceptional, and the introduction of several new characters adds new directions for the books to go in. One character in particular, Philip Kincaid is very appealing and it will be fun seeing what happens next.

Estep's writing has also improved and there is far less repetition of phrases and recapping of previous events.

In sum, while not the best book in the series, Widow's Web is a strong installment for its detailed world building, ongoing character development and improved writing. Looking forward to continuing and no more long breaks for me! ( )

A bit repetitive at times


Gin has memories come to light about assignments she went on with Fletcher
Gin definitely has some insecurities she has to deal with after she meets Salina
Salina is pretty damn awful
I wanted to knock Owen upside his head and tell him to open his freaking eyes
We get to meet Cooper, the man who trained Owen in metal work
We also get more information on Philip Kincaid
There are ties between Philip, Owen and Eva
Tons of mind games, and little ass-kicking

( )