Review: Tracking Shadows by Regan Black

Hey!

Tracking Shadows by Regan Black

e-book, pub. May 3rd 2011

Goodreads blurb:  

In 2096, the American government has gone above and beyond to 'protect its citizens', even regulating sugar and coffee. Every new legislative measure opens up a black market for an enterprising person willing to seize the opportunity.

In Chicago, Slick Micky is the king of smuggling. Known to deliver anything, anytime, anywhere, he specializes in caffeine and sugar and works in the anonymity of shadows. But recently an old enemy is tired of waiting for Micky's empire to crumble and has called in the best assassin in the business to take him out.

Trina Durham is an assassin with a sterling reputation, thanks to her unique ability to induce deadly hallucinations. When Slick Micky killed her best friend, she left Chicago - forever. She's back now, unable to resist the perfect opportunity for vengeance. But no one warned her Slick Micky might as well be a shadow. Or that shedding light on the man and his secrets would put both her heart and reputation at risk.

My thoughts:
*spoiler free 

This book was a very nice surprise for me. I read it on a rainy night, when I wasn't in the best of moods. But it was a quick, fun, read and because Regan's writing is really awesome and flows so smoothly, I didn't even feel like I was reading a book, but like I was watching one of my favorite TV shows on a lazy evening. All the crime, mystery elements, the high tech cool things featured in the book and the tension and the bickering between the main characters helped a lot in that matter. ;)

Tracking Shadows is told from Micky and Tania's POVs. When they were very young, they were best friends but a terrible accident separated them forever (or so it seemed at the time), before they got any chance to explore their growing relationship. The hard times America was going through made them take hard decisions and go on different, dangerous paths: Micky became Slick Miky and Trina became a very feared assassin. And years later, another murder and the tension that stirred Chicago brought them face to face again.

As the king of the smugglers of Chicago, of course Miky has enemies. Well, one of them killed his friend, his partner, his 'sister' and will do anything to get rid of him and take the reins of his kingdom. And Micky will do anything to find this murderer and to protect the people he cares about. Trina is a kick butt assassin with psychic abilities (she can use scary hallucinations to kill her enemies). She could never get over her best friend's death years ago and she promised to avenge him, which led her to this solitary and dangerous life. But when things begin to stir in Chicago's mobsters' world and her principal suspect seems closer than ever, she comes to investigate. The two crimes seem to be connected, and their both investigations bring Micky and Trina unexpectedly close to each other. And this is when the things get interesting, but anything I would say in the matter would be a major spoiler, so... You'll have to read and find out for yourself what happens next. ;) (but it involved a lot of "OMG you've got to be kidding me" moments).

I loved the main characters, they were easy to relate to and their chemistry was perfect. In fact, they are everything we need the main characters from an Urban Fantasy or Paranormal Romance book to be and then some: kind of arrogant, snarky, hot main male character, witty, kick butt heroine, hilarious bickering between them and delicious tension. And there is no insta-love, which, obviously, is a plus. They may have not seen each other in years and they may rediscover their relationship and who they really are, but their feelings for each other go way back and the last events only made them stronger and more impossible to ignore. Micky wasn't "half as heartless as the world believed", considering his reputation as a smuggler and all, and Trina did what she had to do in order to survive those hard times and to avenge the death of the only person she ever really cared about. They are caring, smart, assertive, capable of taking hard decisions when necessary... They are simply awesome!:))

I need to mention that the first chapter was a bit confusing and sometimes things seemed to be happening too fast. I also had the urge to roll my eyes at the characters' internal monologues a few times, but in the end, everything kind of made sense for the story development.

So Tracking Shadows is definitely a page-turner, full of action and twists and turns that will keep the readers on the edge of their seat. The suspense, mystery-crime, conspiracy and futuristic elements, the film-noir atmosphere combined with a touch of humor and the perfect dose of romance make this book a very interesting and entertaining read, a perfect getaway from the everyday routine. As I mentioned before, reading it feels more like watching a great TV show!

I really liked this book! Read it ASAP!

*Disclosure: Review based on the e-copy of the book I received for free from the author to review as a tour host of the Tracking Shadows Blog Tour. I expressed my honest opinion about the book and I wasn't influenced or compensated in any way for posting it. 

Buy the book

Amazon/ Barnes &Noble /  Smashwords.com

About the author:

Regan Black writes action packed paranormal and urban fantasy novels so readers can savor a fantastic escape from the daily grind. Raised in the Midwest and California, she now lives with her family in the South Carolina Lowcountry where the abundance of history and legend fuels her imagination. Experience a Regan Black adventure at Amazon, Barnes & Noble, or Smashwords. You can keep up with Regan at ReganBlack.com, Twitter and Facebook.

Speaking of the Tracking Shadows Blog Tour, you can still enter the giveaway to win a copy of this book HERE! Due to time zone differences, I will keep the giveaway open until tomorrow morning. (June 25th).

xoxo