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A review by katyanaish
Deal with the Devil by Kit Rocha
5.0
This book has been chilling on my TBR for a long time. Every time I glanced at it, was was like ... mmm, maybe next time. Probably because I just don't generally do dystopian / post-apocalyptic stuff, and wasn't sure I had the emotional bandwidth for it right now.
Well, I needn't have worried. There's stress - from the blurb, you know we're looking at a betrayal plot - but it isn't overwrought and the teams bond so fast that you quickly can't imagine them going through with it. So then it's just a matter of enjoying the ride as it all plays out.
I liked it a lot. I liked the interaction between the teams. I liked that the women were just as badass as the guys (Dina is a hoot, she's such a psycho). It was a bit of a grumpy/sunshine trope, in that Nina infects Knox with her optimism. Nina has been through some horrible shit, but she has not let it turn her into a bitter shell of herself - she's determined to do right, be a protector. And she's found a ride-or-die team that gets shit done. They're seriously inspiring, but not in a Pollyanna way. And Knox's team as well ... they HAVE been beaten down by what they've been through, and they're just looking for a way out. Until Nina and her team reminds them of the guys they were when they joined the military because they wanted to help, before they realized what corrupt horseshit it all was.
It's PNR-style, in that we're dealing with enhanced people - either cybernetic enhancements, or genetic ones - that have super-abilities. And each book is featuring a different couple coming together. That's not my favorite, either, because I prefer the detailed arc and more natural unfolding of a relationship. There's a part of me that always scoffs a bit about 1-book romance plots where the couples are in undying love with each other 4 days after meeting. But that's what I signed up for with this series, and I'm not going to hold it against the book. It was a good story, a fun ride, and fabulous characters. I'll be reading book 2 right away.
Well, I needn't have worried. There's stress - from the blurb, you know we're looking at a betrayal plot - but it isn't overwrought and the teams bond so fast that you quickly can't imagine them going through with it. So then it's just a matter of enjoying the ride as it all plays out.
I liked it a lot. I liked the interaction between the teams. I liked that the women were just as badass as the guys (Dina is a hoot, she's such a psycho). It was a bit of a grumpy/sunshine trope, in that Nina infects Knox with her optimism. Nina has been through some horrible shit, but she has not let it turn her into a bitter shell of herself - she's determined to do right, be a protector. And she's found a ride-or-die team that gets shit done. They're seriously inspiring, but not in a Pollyanna way. And Knox's team as well ... they HAVE been beaten down by what they've been through, and they're just looking for a way out. Until Nina and her team reminds them of the guys they were when they joined the military because they wanted to help, before they realized what corrupt horseshit it all was.
It's PNR-style, in that we're dealing with enhanced people - either cybernetic enhancements, or genetic ones - that have super-abilities. And each book is featuring a different couple coming together. That's not my favorite, either, because I prefer the detailed arc and more natural unfolding of a relationship. There's a part of me that always scoffs a bit about 1-book romance plots where the couples are in undying love with each other 4 days after meeting. But that's what I signed up for with this series, and I'm not going to hold it against the book. It was a good story, a fun ride, and fabulous characters. I'll be reading book 2 right away.