Unwrapping a Review of JUSTICE ASCENDING, a Scorpius Syndrome novel by Rebecca Zanetti

I am such a huge fan of the Scorpius Syndrome series by Rebecca Zanetti that as soon as I finish one book, I’m looking for the next. I couldn’t wait to read the third book, JUSTICE ASCENDING and it did not disappoint.

***purchased for my own personal reading but sharing an honest and unscripted review

Blurb for JUSTICE ASCENDING:

Before surviving the Scorpius bacterium, Tace Justice was a good ole Texas cowboy who served his country and loved his mama. After Scorpius, the world became dark, dangerous, and deadly—and so did he. The Vanguard medic is stronger, faster, and smarter than before, but he’s lost the line between right and wrong. His passion is absolute, and when he focuses it on one woman, there’s no turning back for either of them…

Sami Steel has been fighting to survive right alongside Tace, convincing the Vanguard soldiers she’s one of them. In truth, Sami is a former hacker turned government agent who worked at The Bunker, where scientists stored both contaminants and cures. Only she knows the location, and she’s not telling. Yet when sexual fire explodes between her and Tace, she’ll face even that hell again to save him.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Tace Justice is trying to survive. True everyone else at Vanguard is trying to survive as well, but Tace is facing something no one else has knowledge of among the survivors of Scorpius…unusual and dangerous symptoms. He fears telling his commander and friend, Jax Mercury, for fear Jax will order him killed. The same goes with talking to Lynne or Victoria, both doctors with the possibilities of answers, because he knows they’d tell their men and he’d be dead for sure. But there is one person he can’t hide from…Sami Steel. When scouting, they have to have each other’s backs and if his symptoms flair while doing his job and he fails to have her back, Sami could die. If that happened, Tace wouldn’t care if his fellow soldiers wanted him dead, he’d deserve it. If something happened to Sami, he wouldn’t want to live.

Sami has a very big secret…a secret that now has to be told in order to save Tace. The idea of losing Tace threatens to rip out her heart but not nearly as much as having to reveal what she knows, what she has lied about, and returning to the Bunker terrifies her, if she survives Jax Mercury's anger.

Now the Vanguard soldiers have to figure out a way to gain access to the Bunker, find the formula—if it exists—that might save Tace’s life. No choice but to team up with the Mercs, Sami risks everything to find a cure for Tace. It’s amazing what falling in love with a crazy cowboy will make a girl do.

Rebecca Zanetti has created such an amazing cast of characters in the Scorpius Syndrome series that we can’t help but want more, and more. I’m happy to say that she does plan at least three more books. I’m very excited to hear that because JUSTICE ASCENDING, filled with even more action and exciting discoveries, still manages to leave us with more unanswered questions, while moving just a tad closer to learning what other secrets and horrors still lay undiscovered in this post-apocalyptic society. Tace and Sami played important roles in the first two novels but this time, it’s their turn and their banter, battles with each other, and surrender to their desires makes this one so worth reading. We see sides of these two characters that endear them to us even more and keep us on the edge of our seats with worry that things will go south real fast, if things don’t go right.

I highly recommend JUSTICE ASCENDING, book three in the Scorpius Syndrome series by Rebecca Zanetti as well as the entire series starting with the novella, SCORPIUS RISING. Even if you’re not a fan of dystopian romance, the characters alone are worth reading this series and who knows, you might become a huge fan just like me.

Happy Reading Everyone!

JUSTICE ASCENDING, a Scorpius Syndrome novel by Rebecca Zanetti, Zebra-Kensington, available now in print and ebook formats at Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and Kobobooks.

Unwrapping a Review of THE BOOK OF IVY by Amy Engel

Sometimes we all need a change. I was in need of one, and since I normally don’t read Young Adult, I thought THE BOOK OF IVY by Amy Engel from Entangled Teen not only gave me something different in that it is a dystopian fantasy but it also inspired me to take a chance on a YA romance. I’m glad I did. It was different and it hooked me right in.

***purchased for my own personal reading but I’m sharing my honest and unscripted review

Blurb for THE BOOK OF IVY:

What would you kill for?

After a brutal nuclear war, the United States was left decimated. A small group of survivors eventually banded together, but only after more conflict over which family would govern the new nation. The Westfalls lost. Fifty years later, peace and control are maintained by marrying the daughters of the losing side to the sons of the winning group in a yearly ritual.

This year, it is my turn.

My name is Ivy Westfall, and my mission is simple: to kill the president's son—my soon-to-be husband—and return the Westfall family to power.

But Bishop Lattimer is either a very skilled actor or he's not the cruel, heartless boy my family warned me to expect. He might even be the one person in this world who truly understands me. But there is no escape from my fate. I am the only one who can restore the Westfall legacy.

Because Bishop must die. And I must be the one to kill him…

~*~             ~*~              ~*~             ~*~             ~*~

Life hasn’t been easy for anyone in Westfall…least of all, Ivy Westfall. Having lost her mother as a baby, she’s grown up hearing hateful things about the Lattimers and why they should not be governing in Westfall. Having trained all of her life for a mission in which she has complete faith, Ivy must marry the President of Westfall’s son, Bishop Lattimer. When her sister, Callie was passed over it was left to Ivy to take her place and set in motion the means for a revolution to return the power to her father, the man she believes will put everything right, as it should be. Her mission…to find where any weapons are stashed, discover any secrets the Lattimers may have, and kill her husband.

That last part becomes more difficult to think about doing once she gets to know Bishop Lattimer who allows her freedom she’d never experienced before with her father and sister. She begins to question her role, the justification for killing Bishop, and the reasons. She begins to fall in love with this young man who treats her with kindness, respect, and encourages her to think her own thoughts. Now she has a decision to make and no matter what she does, she knows it will end badly.

Amy Engel does a wonderful job of creating a post-apocalyptic world with a dystopian society that is easily related to and realistically conceivable in THE BOOK OF IVY.
Society has to be contained, rules followed, and the population rebuilt with the young being the most capable of providing children. It all makes sense, even arranged marriages in some respects but as in any dystopian society, there always seems to be a huge difference between those who have and those who have not. In this world, there is only once punishment for any kind of crime committed…banishment to the outside. Even a simple theft of a loaf of bread because you’re starving could mean you’re put out to the other side of the fence built to protect the citizens of Westfall from the dangers outside the fence but which might also be there, to keep those inside from thinking too far outside the box.

I was intrigued by premise of the story…intrigued enough to give in to my previous aversion to reading Young Adult. I suspect I might have to revisit that choice. Having become a fan of the film DIVERSION was possibly one of the reasons I was drawn to THE BOOK OF IVY by Amy Engel but I have to say that it was her writing too. I enjoyed it coming from the point of view of a young girl who having been manipulated and over-sheltered so much that when allowed to think freely, she began to see things about herself, her world, and her family that both intrigued and disappointed her. I do wish it had been longer perhaps pulling books one and two, the second being THE REVOLUTION OF IVY, together might have meant a much more satisfying read. But still, I do highly recommend THE BOOK OF IVY by Amy Engel to anyone who has a passion for coming of age stories in worlds beyond our understanding, but not beyond our imaginations.

Happy Reading Everyone!

THE BOOK OF IVY by Amy Engel, Entangled Teen, available in print and ebook formats at Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and Kobobooks.

***click on links above and cover below for purchasing information, remember even pennies per sales using my links help keep this blog alive. Thank You.