Bombshell Book Blog Tour, Review, and Giveaway #LoneStarLit

Bombshell is a fast-paced mystery that I don’t want to spoil for you, but I do want to tell you about it! There are multiple mysteries throughout the novel that converge in some major scenes at the end. These are some of my favorite scenes throughout the book. I really like how Ms. Fagen Hutchins pulled all the plot strings together into one fancy knot. I didn’t see some of the twists coming at all, which always the sign of a great mystery!

Ava, the main sleuth in Bombshell, really owns who she is, and I can completely accept that facet of her personality. When I started reading the novel, I didn’t really care for her. Ava’s actions really grated on my nerves. However by the end, Ava shows real growth. She has spent most of her life fighting against the odds, trying to put some painful experiences behind her. Once she succeeds, I grew to accept her. I especially enjoyed Ava’s attitude towards religion:

“Every religion has its drawbacks, even atrocities for many. That’s why I rotate”

She calls upon various gods from Roman, voodoo, and Catholic pantheon throughout the novel. I find this aspect of Ava’s personality fascinating and humorous. I relished when Ava calls upon Minerva to help her out of a tight spot. We need more female deities in books!

Although realistic, I didn’t really appreciate how the men in her life treated Ava.

“he victimized me and took, took, took, just like all the other bad men in my life, and some of the not-bad-but-less-than-good ones, too”

The actions of the men make any romance in this book negligible to me. Throughout the book, I didn’t know which men Ava should trust, or not trust for that matter. I’m wondering if the other books in the series show more romance, and not just blatant sex?

Bombshell is set on the island of St. Marcos and the dialog between the characters easily switch between island patois and “yank speech”. And honestly, I found this really distracting and difficult to read. I’m one of those people who writes texts messages in full sentences, with proper grammar. The patois took me out of the moment while I as reading.

Overall, I enjoyed Bombshell. It is the ninth book in the series, but stands well enough by itself. The writing and the mysteries piqued my interest enough to check out some of the other novels in the series.

I’d like to thank Lone Star Book Blog tours and the author for providing me a copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.