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You are here: Home / B Review / Review: Blood Kin by M.J. Scott

Review: Blood Kin by M.J. Scott

June 4, 2012 by Mandi 11 Comments

Blood Kin by M.J. Scott (The Half-Light City #2)
Paranormal/Steampunk-ish
June 5, 2012
Berkley

Reviewed by Mandi

Blood Kin has a paranormal and slight steampunk world  that brings together humans, Blood (vampires) and Beasts (shapeshifters).

Holly was born to a Fae father and a human prostitute mother, leaving her shunned by her fae relatives. Not having a lot of options, she could follow in her mother’s footsteps but instead she turned to a life spying and thieving. With just enough fae magic to allow spells to work on her, she can turn invisible, or change her appearance, things to make her line of work easier. Her father and her have no happy relationship, but that doesn’t stop him from using her to do his bidding. Her father wants her to spy on the sunmage and healer, Simon DuCaine (hero from book one). Her father knows he is keeping a secret and he wants her to discover it. Holly is against this, but when her father applies a geas (or a spell) to her, she has no choice but to obey his wishes. After he brutally has her beaten, hence needing a healer, she is dragged away to St Giles, a safe haven for those who need healing and shelter. Here, she will be in daily contact with Simon.

What Holly doesn’t count on is meeting Simon’s brother, Guy. A Templar Knight, Guy has devoted his life (made vows) to keep peace within the streets. Guy and his men have been ambushed by the Beasts almost every night. Now that the former Blood Lord (Simon’s mate has rumored killed) is not around, the Beast and the Blood are vying for power. But Guy thinks these attacks by the Beast are not random occurrences. Because of Holly’s geas, she can’t tell Guy why she is really at St. Giles. But when her father starts to pop up and gets the attention of Guy, they both start to have a common goal to work towards.

I really enjoyed MJ Scott’s debut last year, Shadow Kin and was very excited to get my hands on Guy’s book. Templar Knights fascinate me, as they swear oaths to God to protect, yet are really violent. They have this strict code to live by yet they are still allowed to drink, have women etc. Guy is all about honor and keeping his men safe. MJ Scott does a nice job developing her characters,  maybe because we take turns with each of their POV’s so we really get into their heads.

I enjoy heroines that are thieves. It gives them a great flaw, and paired with a Templar Knight, who are so strict, they make a fun pair. Guy really goes through some dark times in this book, and sacrifices a lot for the greater good. Since Holly is under a spell where she can’t really tell Guy her final goal, this creates a conflict between them. I think I liked the build-up to their romance more than the first book. It was a little sexier with more emphasis on it.

While I enjoy this world and that this book builds upon the first in this series, at times I was confused by all of the people in it. I found myself having to flip back to remember names which was a little frustrating. Guy, Simon and Holly have wonderful scenes in this book, and I love their interaction. But, I also felt in this one, we missed out on world building. I wanted to see the Blood and Beast in action more and to learn more about them and their motives in this game of politics.

I was also a little disappointed in what Simon’s big secret is. I’ll tell you why under a spoiler tag.

[spoiler]Simon’s big secret is the same conflict that arises out of the first book. Which is obvious if you’ve read book one. While we get to watch Holly go on this discovery, as the reader familiar with this world, you know what she is going to find. I did like that after she discovers the secret, the author continues the story with ramifications of it but was a little disappointed overall.[/spoiler]

I still think this is one of the better PNR worlds that has been released lately but I really want to experience the world more. This author writes well developed characters and the romance in this one is pretty solid. But I expected a little more. At the same time, this world excites me and I can’t wait to read more from it.

I recommend starting with book one, Shadow Kin as this book definitely builds on the previous one.

Rating: B-

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Filed Under: B Review, M.J. Scott, Paranormal Romance, Penguin, steampunk

Comments

  1. Allison says

    June 4, 2012 at 8:52 pm

    re: “I recommend starting with book one, Blood Shadow as this book definitely builds on the previous one.”

    Thanks for the great review. As always, your reviews do a great job of summarizing the main plot and highlighting the highs and lows. I found it very interesting, so I followed your advice to seek out book 1 “Blood Shadow.” I couldn’t find it until I searched by author and found that book one is titled “Shadow Kin.” You might want to fix your review to correct the title.

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    • Mandi says

      June 5, 2012 at 7:29 am

      Oops..got my titles confused. Thanks!

      Hope you enjoy

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      • Allison says

        June 5, 2012 at 3:18 pm

        It’s so easy to do with so many titles running amok in your head. And thanks again for the heads up about this series, I’ve downloaded book 1 last night and so far so good.

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        • Mandi says

          June 5, 2012 at 4:48 pm

          Oh good!

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  2. aurian says

    June 5, 2012 at 3:24 am

    This is a new series for me, thanks for the review. I will go on my wishlist!

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    • Mandi says

      June 5, 2012 at 7:30 am

      It’s a fun one :)

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  3. Patricia Eimer says

    June 5, 2012 at 8:08 am

    I loved Shadow Kin so I can’t wait to read this book. Definitely going on my library list

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    • Mandi says

      June 5, 2012 at 4:49 pm

      Yay!

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  4. blodeuedd says

    June 5, 2012 at 3:58 pm

    The fact that you want more of the world scares me a bit, that is one of the things that can make me annoyed by a book

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    • Mandi says

      June 5, 2012 at 4:49 pm

      I think this world is pretty cool :)

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  5. Pamela (@SpazP) says

    June 6, 2012 at 12:45 pm

    Well POOP!!! I’ve been waiting to hear your thoughts on this one! I loved the first one, which I picked up at your recommendation. I am hoping I won’t figure out Simon’s secret as quickly as you did (I think you mentioned elsewhere that you had it figured out!)

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