Excellent opener to an Urban Fantasy series.

I read this previously when I got the paper copy, but I didn't yet have a blog, so I never reviewed it on here. With the recent release of the Audiobook, I thought a listen and review was in order.

Sidney Shaw, an up and comer in the FBI, has just been handed her dream assignment. Known as a troubleshooter, she usually gets cases that are outside the norm from the average agents experience. IN this case, she has been given a case on the Black Slate, the secret most wanted list for criminals who don't officially exist. No one has ever been able to run Sidney's new target to ground. In fact, several agent have disappeared or died trying. To help her, Sidney's superiors have given her a wild card: John Smoke. Ex Navy SEAL, ex cop, bounty hunter and now convicted felon after he maimed one of his bounties, Smoke is looking at his sentence being commuted if they can run this bounty down.

The strong willed Shaw immediately butts heads with the irreverent Smoke, especially since Smoke has no regard for her authority. Running afoul of both internal FBI politics and the corrupt powers of DC, Shaw and Smoke run down their target, only to discover that he is like nothing they have ever encountered before, and that there is so much more below the surface of society than they ever imagined, with repercussions that could rock society if they were ever known.

While there is strong world building and plotting, The characters are where this story really shines. Sidney and Smoke are polar opposites in temperament. She is controlled and calculating, he is brash and reckless. They are both strong, intelligent characters, and that tension between them really moves the story. The secondary characters are well written as well, and the villain, while being fairly typical of the genre, fits into the story well. All in all, there's something in the story for any fan of urban fantasy.

The audio narration is handled by the talented Holly Adams, who I consider to be one of the top five narrators working today. She is excellent creating unique voices for the characters, both male and female, and has an amazing range of tones an pitches to differentiate them. She can also handle any accent, which makes the characterizations even more diverse. Her narrative pacing is fantastic, and you just get right into the flow of her narration. This is definitely one of my favorites of her work. Definitely in my top 10 audiobooks of 2018.

4 people found this helpful

Loved the premise, disliked portrayal of Shaw

Let's say this is more like a 3.5-star book.

There are some great things about Smoke Rising: the premise of teaming up an FBI agent and a criminal to hunt down an even worse criminal, the addition of supernatural elements, and, most importantly, Smoke himself.

I was so down with a series titled the Supernatural Bounty Hunter Files. That was right in my wheelhouse and I actually loved how this book started with Agent Shaw meeting with Smoke in prison to convince him to help her hunt down a really bad guy. In fact, Smoke was my favorite thing about this book. His irreverence, his cockiness, his willingness to do whatever it takes to get the bad guy.

And that's where things started to fall apart for me. The book is titled Smoke Rising - Smoke should be the protagonist, right? But ... everything is told from Agent Sidney Shaw's standpoint ... Okay, weird. But whatever, the author wanted to go an unusual route. Easy enough to make an adjustment of my expectations. Smoke is still a main character, and an entertaining one at that.

Now, about Agent Shaw. I couldn't figure out if she was supposed to be an X-Files, Agent Scully-type or The Heat, Agent Ashburn/Sandra Bullock-type. Either way, both excellent role models to imitate. Instead, it feels as if the author may have gone overboard with Agent Shaw. She was insufferable (the narrator didn't help with this, but more on that in a bit). If it wasn't for Smoke's moments of levity, I don't know how I would have made it through the audiobook. Honestly, I don't know why the author made her so over-the-top antagonistic. Dialing it back just a little bit would have done loads of good for Shaw's character. It just became so exhausting and exasperating to listen to Agent Shaw be so antagonistic towards Smoke ALL. THE. TIME. I would get so fed up with Shaw, her attitude, and how she treated Smoke.

The narrator, Holly Adams, didn't help the matter. Though she was excellent with the audiobook overall (I especially liked her voice for Smoke), how she portrayed Agent Shaw just made everything worse. The tone, the harshness, it was just so aggravating to listen to.

A minor problem with this particular book is that I was expecting a lot more supernatural events and didn't really get that until like the last 25% of the book. I hope that the rest of the series features supernatural elements a lot more.

What was so weird about this audiobook for me is that when I was listening to it I would feel exhausted by Shaw's attitude. But when I wasn't listening to it, I immediately wanted to get back to it. Yes, I had some serious issues with parts of the book, but I really liked other parts. I don't know if I will continue on with this series because I was so conflicted about it. If I do, I may give reading it a chance to see if my opinion of Shaw changes.

I received a free copy of this audiobook from Audiobook Boom and am voluntarily leaving a review.

2 people found this helpful

Craig Halloran, Rising

Craig Halloran continues to explore different genres, elevating his game.

The Smoke series is definitely an edge of your seat no bars thrill ride. The series is a bit more adult than the rest of his other work. But if you are in to intrigue, mystery, and crime dramas, the Smoke series is for you.

The Smoke series follows a female FBI agent by the name of Sidney Shaw, who is young, beautiful, charming, and a little naive. She is thrown into a world of gritty crime when her boss decides she needs to start interrogating criminal John Smoke for information on a group of bad people, that the bureau has, as of yet, been unable to apprehend.

Holly Adams is not a narrator that I was familiar with, before listening to this. I am particularly pleased with her voice, and the speed at which she reads. She makes the books a pleasant experience, and reminds me, a bit, of the actress Kate Mulgrew, in talent.

All and all, I recommend this book to fans of television crime dramas, and people who are just looking for a good listen.

2 people found this helpful

Too many secrets... spoil the book...?

I'm a bit on the fence with this book. On the one hand, I know it's the first in a longer series so probably most of the secrets/mysteries/doubts will be explained in later installments; on the other, there are so many of those gaps that sometimes it's difficult for me to believe in the logic and the psychology of the story...

My doubts? One, why is Smoke so important and what special abilities does he have to be instrumental in pursuing the case with Agent Shaw? Two, why is it Agent Shaw in particular that gets chosen to do the job? Three, with so much action and with all the paranormal thrown into the mix, there isn't enough room for the character development. And no, I don't need complex psychological descriptions, I just need some kind of mental backbone for each of the main characters to understand their motifs and the reasons behind the way they build relationships with others...

But, that said, I also admit I liked a lot in the book. The pace is fast, the plot not so obvious, and characters diversified, even though not fully developed yet. The action scenes are very well done: dynamic, fast, with unexpected twists. There's also a bit of sarcastic humour and so many mysteries to be solved that you want to continue with the series.

As for the narration, I think it's quite OK. Ms Adams manages well both female and male voices, some better than others:) but I'd like her to read a bit faster. She reads action scenes very well, though, with all the "special sound effects" perfectly done:) Overall it's a decent interpretation of the book.

DISCLAIMER: I was given this free review copy audiobook at my request and have voluntarily left this review.

1 person found this helpful

Smoke Rising.

Now here is a great book. The banter between the 2 main characters will keep you interested through the whole book. Strong character development and it builds as the story progresses.

I received this book for free. I am voluntarily posting this review and all opinions expressed herein are my own.

1 person found this helpful

Great Book

This is a great book with an outstanding performance by the narrator. I thoroughly enjoyed the experience. I look forward to hearing the rest of the stories through audible.

1 person found this helpful

Smoke Rising

Smoke Rising is a very captivating story that builds to a great conclusion .Can't wait for book 2.

1 person found this helpful

Interesting start to series

Seems to be 10 book series will be reading the next and see how it progresses.

Fun Story

This was a fun listen. I liked the well done character interaction. can't wait to listen to the next one!

Must Listen for Urban Fantasy Fans

This is definitely a must listen for Urban Fantasy fans. Engaging storyline with relatable characters that you quickly become invested in. The narrator is great at bringing the story to life. There is lots of action & suspense - I look forward to the next book