Review: 3.5 stars. An enjoyable read
Rating: 4 out of 5
Date: 02 1, 2013
From Reading and Writing Urban Fantasy and Paranormal RomanceAt A GlanceI loved the concept and it was a good read but some of the characters needed to be fleshed out.The GoodBreed of Innocence caught my interest right away. The concept of rounding up people with special DNA to hunt demons is pretty refreshing. I am a sucker for training books, where people teach other how to fight, use weapons, and so on. I love the idea of empowering people to take care of themselves, especially women. And that's exactly what happened to Jade. After her family was murdered by a demon, all she wanted to do was find it and kill it. And now she will get that chance as a future demon hunter.The first thing that caught my attention was Jade's strong, snarky personality. Loved it. I felt so bad for her, having been moved around from one foster and group home to another and pretty much having a crappy life. I relaxed a little when Jade was offered to live and train at the CGE, a demon hunting school. The way it all happened, with this creepy Mr. Green coming out of nowhere, saying demons are real and this is her only chance at getting revenge for her family was odd, but it worked.Jade makes quick friends with Linc who helps her assimilate into the school. I loved how nice and supportive he was. He is like the perfect guy friend who you wish was more. Then we had the horrible Felecia who hated Jade right away for being "more special" than her. Felecia is not just an enemy, she is straight up psycho. If she could, she would leave Jade to die. That's a scary person to be around, someone who literally wants you dead. Eek!Jordan did a great job of world-building and providing enough demon history to keep it interesting but not annoying. The action was awesome. My muscles tensed as Jade was put in dangerous situations time after time (often her own doing). I loved the air of foreboding Jordan often injected into scenes. And when we found out some pretty big secrets, I was genuinely shocked. I just love being surprised.The BadI wish the secondary characters were more developed. Most were one dimensional with little backstory.I also felt the connections Jade made with some characters were a little convenient with no real reasoning behind it.The SnugglyThis is a very clean YA book. Just some kissing and I don't think there was even a cuss word.  The romance between Linc and Jade is very slow because they are just friends throughout most of the book.Final ThoughtsThough it wasn't perfect, I am still interested in reading book two of this series. I want to see Jade fly through the rest of her training and really get into the meat of demon hunting. Breed of Innocence was definitely a suspenseful and fun read. Recommend.QuotesMy eyes narrowed. "Then what do you want?""We want you to come work for us, for lack of an easier explanation."The snort escaped before I could stop it. "I'm a sixteen-year-old living in a group home because no one wanted me. I've got 'authority issues'--" I used air quotes, "--a bad temper, and an awesome attitude that no one else seems to think is all that awesome." Turning in my seat, I crossed my arms again and raised an eyebrow. "What possible work could you have for me that wouldn't require me going to jail for beating the--"