Rating: 4/5
Buy or Borrow: Buy
Source: NetGalley (Copy from publisher)
Zoey Daniels has
been tossed from foster home to foster home, where she grows up fast and tough.
When she is placed in her “last-chance” home, she finds a reason to stay and
turn her life around: her foster sister, Lexie, who is paralyzed and confined
to a wheelchair. Zoey will do anything to keep her safe. After high school,
Zoey is hired by a special government agency, the Department of Molecular
Genetics (DMG), where she meets the other reason to remain: Daniel, her
co-worker. The man she loves.
But there is something unique about Zoey. She can see fae. Because of this, the DMG hires her to work as a Collector: catching, researching, testing, and using the fae to save human lives. The work never registers on her sympathy radar. She was raised to think of fae as beasts that feed on humans and want to destroy them.
When devastation hits Seattle, Zoey's whole world is turned upside down. The electric storm connects her to a ruthless fae, a Wanderer named Ryker, whose dealings expose them to even more trouble and danger. They embark on a journey, running and hiding from both the government and fae, both of which threaten their lives and those they love.
But there is something unique about Zoey. She can see fae. Because of this, the DMG hires her to work as a Collector: catching, researching, testing, and using the fae to save human lives. The work never registers on her sympathy radar. She was raised to think of fae as beasts that feed on humans and want to destroy them.
When devastation hits Seattle, Zoey's whole world is turned upside down. The electric storm connects her to a ruthless fae, a Wanderer named Ryker, whose dealings expose them to even more trouble and danger. They embark on a journey, running and hiding from both the government and fae, both of which threaten their lives and those they love.
City in Embers is the first installment in the Collectors series and was
written by Stacey Marie Brown. I’ve not yet read the Darkness series but after
finishing this book, I am desperate to read more of her books.
City in Embers is set in a world where humans live alongside Faes, and
only a select few humans that are working alongside the government are aware of
the Fae’s existence. There is a degree of tension between humans and Fae, as
they both despise each other.
Zoey works for the government, alongside her partner Daniel, in catching
Fae and bringing them back to base to be experimented on. She is led to believe
the government are performing experiments to cure cancer and such.
We learn a lot about Zoey very fast. She is in love with her significantly
older fighting partner, Daniel. She lives in a dysfunctional home where her
foster mother is hardly hospitable and Zoey is the main carer for her foster
Lexie, who is paralysed and in a wheelchair. The reader feels this is the main
intention for Zoey working for the government; she is desperate for a cure for
her little sister.
After (what I felt was a little rushed) an electrical Fae storm hit,
Zoey’s life is left in chaos. She loses a devastating amount of her life and
gains two new companions. A magical sprite monkey, called Sprig (I personally
love Sprig, he gave humour to the book which I thought was much needed) and an
angry Fae wanderer named Ryker. During the storm, Zoey takes something which
belongs to Ryker and he will stop at nothing to get back what is his.
Zoey is a pretty bad-ass character, I have to admit. Sometimes I found
her a bit too ‘tough’ which sometimes made me feel I wasn’t empathising with
her as much as the author intended me too. I found myself warming to her the
more I read but I found her a difficult character to love.
Ryker; now he was a different story. I loved him instantly. He was
everything I’d wanted from a lead male character in this book. He was fierce
and fearless and driven to his desires. (You’ll find out more about them in the
book, don’t want too many spoilers in this review!)
This pairing were bound to be a disaster, so when they’re forced
together, things don’t run too smoothly. Arguments, disagreements and tension
start to fade out as the pair come to a mutual agreement. Although, as the duo
softens toward each other, tension starts to bubble; but not the kind that
either was prepared for…
This book is a cat-and-mouse scenario; Zoey and Ryker always being the
mice, running from a multitude of people who are out to get them. There is a
lot of chaos, death, injury and heartbreak in this book and it’s a constant
struggle for the pair to stay alive. Will they make it out alive by the end of
the book?
This book is fast-paced and un-put-down-able. It is action packed and
the ending is a complete cliff-hanger which leaves you desperate for more. I
would have liked to find out more about Lexie and Daniel but I’m hoping the
second book may reveal more. Personally, I can’t wait for the second book!
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