Monday, February 8, 2016

Revenge and the Wild by Michelle Modesto

Standalone
384 p.
Publisher: Balzer + Bray
Published: 2/2/16
Source: Edelweiss and Publisher for review
The two-bit town of Rogue City is a lawless place, full of dark magic and saloon brawls, monsters and six-shooters. But it’s perfect for seventeen-year-old Westie, the notorious adopted daughter of local inventor Nigel Butler. 
Westie was only a child when she lost her arm and her family to cannibals on the wagon trail. Nine years later, Westie may seem fearsome with her foul-mouthed tough exterior and the powerful mechanical arm built for her by Nigel, but the memory of her past still haunts her. She’s determined to make the killers pay for their crimes—and there’s nothing to stop her except her own reckless ways. 
But Westie’s search ceases when a wealthy family comes to town looking to invest in Nigel’s latest invention, a machine that can harvest magic from gold—which Rogue City desperately needs as the magic wards that surround the city start to fail. There’s only one problem: the investors look exactly like the family who murdered Westie’s kin. With the help of Nigel’s handsome but scarred young assistant, Alistair, Westie sets out to prove their guilt. But if she’s not careful, her desire for revenge could cost her the family she has now.
My thoughts:

I had fun with this mash up of western, magic, paranormal, and steampunk. It seems like a lot to thrown in together but here it works. In this one we follow Westie who is a wild girl that lost her family to cannibals. She has a new home now with wildly different kind of people and a mechanical arm. She also has a mouth on her so you know I liked this character. She does cause a lot of problems because she is impulsive, but at least she does try to take responsibility for what damage she wrought.

The mystery was interesting but I didn't like how her new family reacted to some revelations on her part. I don't want to go into what they were because it would be too spoilerish but it just didn't quite jive with me in how otherwise supportive her family was about everything else. I did like the romance between Westie and Alistair. I loved Alley and how he helped Westie and how he loved her. There was a aw moment for them in there for romance lovers. ;) The ending was not as surprising as I think it meant to be but was still enjoyable. I didn't love how it ended but I didn't hate it either. There were also small things that I thought were important which were left out. Like who was spying on Westie and Alistair? I only mention this one specifically since it really doesn't give anything away. This was mentioned as if it was important but yet just didn't give us any clues or answers to what was going on. There was also another incident which I cannot go into but had the same problems. Nothing big but it bothered me a bit. I'm guessing it was the same person, but no answers for those small niggles.

I give this book 3 1/2 stars. I did enjoy it and I liked Westie. I think this could have been developed into a series and I think it would have been even better as such. I think then not having small questions go unanswered (not the ones I mentioned, but a few others... small but possibly important) wouldn't have bothered me as much. I do recommend it to those that love mash ups of genres with a good dose of fun.

36 comments:

  1. The mix is intriguing but it's too bad about the end or the questions you had

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    1. It wasn't a bad ending, but just needed more. I could so see this as a series.

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  2. I enjoyed this one too. I hope she writes more in this genre, I don't usually like Westerns but Modesto made it work as far as I'm concerned.

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  3. I'm so glad you enjoyed this one overall Melissa! I agree that there's a lot of different thing happening in this one, but I loved how they all worked together. I would definitely have liked more books in this series, Westie was a winner for me:)

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    1. I loved how it all worked together here. I think she did some excellent worldbuilding.

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  4. Glad the genre blended worked. I personally love genre blending, it can be a lot of fun!

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  5. Intrigued by the books combination of genres that on the face of it you wouldn't necessarily put together. Great review, thanks.

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  6. I keep seeing this one and I liked the setting and the mesh up like you said, but I don't think I would like the cannibalism at all.

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    1. It plays an important part, but does not take over the story. You might like it. It felt more zombie like in nature... but with more working brain... :)

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  7. I think you'd have fun with this one. You would think it doesn't work, but it does.

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  8. I'm not always a fan of genre blending--it really has to be very, very precise for me--so I'm not sure this is going to be one I fall in love with. Still, this seems to have a lot of other great elements so thanks for writing such a thorough review of it, Melissa! :)

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    1. It still might be something to consider as the genres really seem to fit well.

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  9. Westie's a cute name! I think I'd be frustrated by the lack of support, especially since that's what a family is for.

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    1. That was the only part that really bothered me, especially how the family was set up.

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  10. There are certainly a lot of genres mashed up in this read Melissa! A shame you were left with some unanswered questions. Awesome review!

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  11. Whoa that's quite the mash up! I do love a mouthy heroine too and while the impulsiveness can annoy me I can appreciate a heroine (or hero) who owns up to it when they make a flub so it sounds pretty good to me!

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  12. I am quite curious and all reviews have been basically positive. I love the mash up Melissa!

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  13. Still on the fence with this one. I don't think I could get over the cannibal stuff. *Shudders*

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    1. It was more a reason for Westie and part of the mystery rather than a detailed gross out. :)

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  14. I don't like westerns or steampunk so this one is not for me, I don't think. Not to mention cannibals! Glad you at least partially enjoyed it though :)

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  15. I didn't like this one much at all but I'm glad to see that some are finding things they like more.

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    1. Aw, sorry you didn't enjoy it. I think the worldbuilding was good here.

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  16. I'm liking the blend of genre in this book. It's new to me but I'm liking what I'm hearing. :)

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  17. Wow, that IS quite the mash up. Hopefully the author will put out more. I love the top half of the book cover, but for some reason, the bottom bugs me. I still want to read it though!

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    1. It's too patterned and it feels as if it should be looser... so a forest rather than a hallway (made of trees), I think... :)

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  18. Despite the bad parts, I still want to try this one out. Sounds decent.

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