Review: 3.5 stars - Hoping for a better book #3!
Rating: 4 out of 5
Date: 10 4, 2013
WARNING: This review will contain spoilers for BOOK #1Hmmm... I've given this 3.5 stars because of the ending. But, I have to say, the rest of the book would have gotten 3 stars, if I'm honest.I really really struggled with this. Some times I felt like I was wading through treacle. I'm huuuugely Team Camden. I feel like anyone who is Team Javier needs their head tested. I do not get him, at all!!! He absolutely repulses me. Makes my skin crawl. He's a dirty, slimy, sleezy, murdering, lying, heartless monster. I hate him.This book picks up right from where Sins & Needles drops us. Ellie is now in Javier's evil clutches and she has left Camden standing outside of his tattoo parlour, with his ex-wife and son. She's about to find out Javier's grande plan for her. And it all comes back to that one word that took over her life so many years ago, but that she learnt to let go of, to an extent; revenge! Javier has changed. He's meaner, darker and even more ruthless.Ellie is trapped. Javier threatens the things she loves the most, forcing her to do his dirty work. As he forces her back into a criminal life she was so desperate to flee from, with Camden, can she resist the charms of her sensual, manipulative ex-lover, or will he seduce her all over again? And will Camden be able to get to her before the inevitable happens? And does she even want to be saved??Considering that for most of this book, Ellie and Camden were worlds apart, I really had trouble with it. This book was much less a romance and much more an action/thriller novel. Obviously, the romantic element was there, but nowhere near enough for my tastes.The chapters in this book alternate between Ellie and Camden's POVs. I really like that. I liked seeing things from Camden's perspective. I enjoyed his chapters more than I enjoyed Ellies.Ellie disappointed me hugely in this book. I found it a little unrealistic at times. I mean, seriously, some things are just unforgivable!For me, it didn't really hot up until about 70%. From then on, I enjoyed myself. Before that, I could take it or leave it. Usually, I can't stand putting my Kindle down to work/eat/shower/sleep/do normal things... with this book, I really wasn't bothered about picking it up. The only reason I did was because I wanted to get to the end and move on.It is fast paced and full of action, so if you like that kind of thing, go for it, but for me, I need to love my characters. And I just didn't in this book. Well, I loved Camden. My love for Camden is still standing strong. He has proved his worth, and some, in my opinion. If Ellie picks the wrong guy in book #3 I will go ballistic!I will definitely read the third book, because after the ending of the Shooting Scars, I think the next instalment will be a lot more compelling. And, despite finding this tough going, I do definitely want to know how this mad, crazy story ends for these three dysfunctional characters.I just can't imagine how this is book #3 is possibly going to end swimmingly. The ending of this book was totally insane and unexpected. I'm really looking forward to seeing where Karine Halle takes this next, now that all the characters' paths have collided again like this.What worries me is that opinions are so totally split down the middle. I've read as many `Team Javier' comments as I have `Team Camden'... so Karine Halle can not possibly keep all of her readers happy... which means this could go either way. I'm scared. But so very curious!Shooting Scars StatisticsSteam Rating (out of 5): ♥♥♥♥Ending: CliffhangerSeries: ✓Reading Order:Book #0.25 - Untitled (The Artists Trilogy, #0.25)Book #0.5 - On Every Street (The Artists Trilogy, #0.5)Book #1 - Sins & Needles (The Artists Trilogy, #1)Book #2 - Shooting Scars (The Artists Trilogy, #2)Book #3 - Bold Tricks (The Artists Trilogy, #3) Release date: October 15th 2013Can this be read as a standalone? NoThemes:CrimeDrugsLove TriangleWarning. This book includes...Sexual content. Lies. Murder. Drugs.Writing: GreatReview by Smitten's Book Blog