Monday, July 15, 2013

Jennifer Harlow's "Justice"...my favorite summer read



Today, I have the extreme pleasure of writing a review of Jennifer Harlow's "Justice". The book is an Urban Fantasy with a superhero theme and I devoured this 320-page book in about three nights. I just couldn't put it down and when I was forced to call it a night, it was because I couldn't keep my eyes open any longer into the wee hours of the morning.

"Justice" is Book One of the Galilee Falls Trilogy. It stars a female cop, Joanna Fallon. If you like your heroine's strong, gritty with a dark sense of humor and a heart beneath the tough exterior, then Joanna is your girl. The book is told through first person, through "Jo's" eyes and has everything that a reader is looking for: strong characters, great description, sexy super heroes, dark secrets, romance, heart break and betrayal.

World building: The world is set in our world, where super heroes (good and bad) live as part of the world. The good "supers" help out the police department and government officials to keep the streets of Galilee Falls safe against bad "supers". The setting of Galilee Falls is vivid and I could imagine myself walking through the streets or visiting the precinct. The world is creative as I have not read a story on super heroes.

Characters: As I mentioned before, the heroine, Joanna Fallon is a strong-willed cop that is in love with her best friend, Justin Pentergast that is weeks away from getting married. Despite the unrequited love, Joanna is not whinny in the least. I loved reading from Joanna's point of view and connected with her from Page One. I felt every heart break and bump in the road that Joanna experiences, and left me pulling for her. The supporting cast is wonderful from BFF Justin that saved her life when she was a teenager, the super Justice, her partners, the police force and her Harry O'Hara, her boss that she is secretly having a relationship. Every character was well-crafted and well-developed from Justin's fiancee and his aunt Lucy to the very evil bad "super" Alkaline.

Pros & Cons: I ramble on and on about the pro's of this book, but I am just going to recommend that you go and buy it. It is worth the read and will leave you anxiously waiting for Book Two to come out. There are so many pro's; strong lead character, an intelligent villain that creates chaos, fast-paced plot that leaves you guessing, romance and dark secrets that you never figured out! There was not one single con that I found after reading, other than I was very sleepy during the days since opening the book.

Fresh Factor: The concept is "super" fresh and is such a cool concept that I wished that I had thought of it! I grew up watching the X-men and reading the Marvel comic books, so this book was right up my alley. I loved reading about "supers" and seeing how a super heroes life is not as perfect as one would think.

Overall: This is my favorite summer read and has found its way into my Top Five books ever read. Everything was great and enjoyable from characters to the writing. Not only did I love the characters, but the writing was skilled with a perfect balance of description. On a scale of five, I would give this five stars ***** and I can't wait for the next book to come out.

There is a great rafflecopter giveway of 10 ebook copies of "Justice".

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Book Description:

It’s hard being a regular police officer in Galilee Falls, a city with the highest concentration of superheroes and villains in the country. It’s even harder watching your best friend, the man you’re secretly in love with your whole life, planning to marry another woman. Detective Joanna Fallon has to contend with both. When the vilest supervillain in the city’s history, Alkaline, the former crime boss who can shoot acid from his wrists, escapes from the maximum security prison, the whole city is gripped by panic.

Leading the pursuit is Captain Harry O’Hara, Joanna’s boss and secret lover, and the city’s champion superhero Justice, who caught the villain last time, much to Joanna’s chagrin. Before her father was murdered in a mugging twenty years earlier, Joanna worshiped the hero, but when he disappeared and failed to save her father, that adoration turned to contempt for all supers.

After Alkaline attacks too close to home and targets Joanna as his next victim, tough-as-nail Joanna has to contend with her increasing fear while struggling to choose between her life-long crush and her new-found love.

At turns vulnerable and fierce, equally mordant and winsome, Joanna is an earnest yet emotionally damaged heroine, who despite the tough breaks of her childhood sees the good in people and vow to protect her beloved city at all costs. An ass-kicking petite firecracker with no superpowers of her own, she charges after supervillains unflinchingly, never losing her wit even when facing her toughest fight. With a coy blend of whimsy and vivid imagination, she delivers both humor and thrills in an action-packed and edgy blend of comic book cool, fantasy-noir, and bitter-sweet romance.

 About the Author:

Jennifer Harlow spent her restless childhood fighting with her three brothers and scaring the heck out of herself with horror movies and books. She grew up to earn a degree at the University of Virginia which she put to use as a radio DJ, crisis hotline volunteer, bookseller, lab assistant, wedding coordinator, and government investigator.

Currently she calls Northern Virginia home but that restless itch is ever present. In her free time, she continues to scare the beejepers out of herself watching scary movies and opening her credit card bills.

She is the author of the Amazon Best-Selling  F.R.E.A.K.S. Squad and Midnight Magic Series. For the soundtracks to her books visit www.jenniferharlowbooks.com.

http://www.jenniferharlowbooks.com

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Goodreads: http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/4708453.Jennifer_Harlow

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3 comments:

Rosi said...

Thanks for the review. I hadn't heard of it, but I will surely check it out.

Timitra said...

I love the sound of Justice...thanks for the chance to win a copy!

Jennifer Harlow said...

Happy reading Rosin and Timitra.

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