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kathydavie's review against another edition
5.0
First in the Corine Solomon urban fantasy series revolving around Corine, a handler of objects, and the new life she may be making in Laredo.
This was good! A completely different take on the paranormal emphasizing some unexpected Gifts: handling objects to learn their history and Luck. Aguirre creates a sense of everyone out for themselves at the start and as the story progresses, the truth of the main characters' intentions emerges creating the promise of a very interesting series. In this installment, Corine and Chance uncover a smuggling business that supplies la zona among others in Laredo.
Aguirre does a good job of creating a back story and incorporating it into the story without me feeling as though the information is being dumped on me like an encyclopedia while creating a pleasurable tension at the same time; we're simply continuing on with the characters' lives.
I also enjoyed Aguirre's ability to retain the suspense with Corine's reply to Chance's question about their relationship at the end… I'm anxious to read the next in the series, Hellfire, to discover if Chuch and Eva will continue to be a part of Corine and Chance's lives.
Poor Jesse. Aguirre has this guy bouncing back and forth, torn between his responsibilities as a cop and his knowledge of other. I'm curious as to how he will fit in as well.
Life is good here in Mexico where Corine has set herself up in her pawnshop business, Casa de Empeño. She's always worked retail. Part of her Gift enables her to convince anyone to buy something and she's making an okay living here. With luck, no one from her past will ever appear and she will have peace from the hurt.
Until Chance shows up. With a need for her help that she cannot withstand. Against her will, fighting against her desire for Chance, Corine goes with him. For she too loves Yi Min-chin. Min was kidnapped in Laredo and Jesse Saladan, the detective in charge of her case, has some unexpected revelations for Corine. He is other as well with a wellspring of information and contacts. Jesse is also interested in Corine for more personal reasons.
Corine can't resist the opportunity to pay back Chance for his coldness when they were together and to use Jesse as a way to prevent restarting her relationship with Chance. A very careful dance between Jesse's interest and Chance's jealousy. And an interest that gets tested with the increased activity that surrounds Corine: attacks, bombings, and executions all have Jesse torn between his duty and his knowledge.
For Corine and Chance uncover a major smuggling operation using a powerful sorcerer.
Corine Solomon is a handler. When she touches an object, it's history unveils itself in her mind but at a terrible physical cost. The cost is because her Gift is not one with which she was born. Instead, the Gift came to her when her mother, Cherie Solomon, performed a spell transferring her own magic to her daughter when a Kilmer, Georgia mob came to burn them to death. Her mother gave her life to save Corine.
Chance is luck itself. He focuses his Gift to the best possible outcome of whatever it is he desires, using it to help people although he is not averse to making money off it. This last is what finally pushes Corine to run from him. That last job. The luck favors Chance but not the people with him. His mother, Yi Min-chin, is a licensed homeopathic practitioner who loves Corine.
Señor Alvarez does the buying for Corine's shop and steps in to watch over things when she has to leave for a day or more.
Jesse Saldana is the detective in charge of Yi Min-chin's case in Laredo; Nathan Moon is his querulous partner. Jesse also has a Gift and he introduces her to the underground for people like them: Jeannie is the bartender at the Twilight in San Antonio and her husband, Bucky, has already warned Jesse away from her; Twila has a Gift of Sight and can see threads of fate, she always requires payment; and, Maris is the woman to see about discovering who can create powerful sendings. Butch is the orphaned chihuahua that Corine takes in. A good thing too since Butch is quite knowledgable about his owner's assassins and communicates well.
Jesus Maria "Chuch" Ortiz Obregón is a mechanic now; in a previous life, he ran guns. And he's totally aware of the magic side of life. A good man to have at your back. His wife is Eva with a gift for forgery and an unlicensed private investigator who thinks well on her feet.
Ian Booke is an Internet friend of Chuch's who lives in Stoke, England. His expertise is in hermetic magic and he takes this opportunity to try out astral projection; damned useful for scouting out locations ahead of time. There's a mystery attached to our Ian...
Clayton Mann believed no one should get to tell him no if he wanted to rape a woman and Kel Ferguson is a killer for Jesus, a.k.a., God's Hand; both are locked up through Corine and Chance's actions. Both are threats to the two of them should they ever escape.
It's a red-haired Corine leaning up against the bar in a white cotton blouse tied to bare her midriff wearing faded blue jeans and an elaborate belt and buckle with her favorite Blue Diablo drink.
My Take
This was good! A completely different take on the paranormal emphasizing some unexpected Gifts: handling objects to learn their history and Luck. Aguirre creates a sense of everyone out for themselves at the start and as the story progresses, the truth of the main characters' intentions emerges creating the promise of a very interesting series. In this installment, Corine and Chance uncover a smuggling business that supplies la zona among others in Laredo.
Aguirre does a good job of creating a back story and incorporating it into the story without me feeling as though the information is being dumped on me like an encyclopedia while creating a pleasurable tension at the same time; we're simply continuing on with the characters' lives.
I also enjoyed Aguirre's ability to retain the suspense with Corine's reply to Chance's question about their relationship at the end… I'm anxious to read the next in the series, Hellfire, to discover if Chuch and Eva will continue to be a part of Corine and Chance's lives.
Poor Jesse. Aguirre has this guy bouncing back and forth, torn between his responsibilities as a cop and his knowledge of other. I'm curious as to how he will fit in as well.
The Story
Life is good here in Mexico where Corine has set herself up in her pawnshop business, Casa de Empeño. She's always worked retail. Part of her Gift enables her to convince anyone to buy something and she's making an okay living here. With luck, no one from her past will ever appear and she will have peace from the hurt.
Until Chance shows up. With a need for her help that she cannot withstand. Against her will, fighting against her desire for Chance, Corine goes with him. For she too loves Yi Min-chin. Min was kidnapped in Laredo and Jesse Saladan, the detective in charge of her case, has some unexpected revelations for Corine. He is other as well with a wellspring of information and contacts. Jesse is also interested in Corine for more personal reasons.
Corine can't resist the opportunity to pay back Chance for his coldness when they were together and to use Jesse as a way to prevent restarting her relationship with Chance. A very careful dance between Jesse's interest and Chance's jealousy. And an interest that gets tested with the increased activity that surrounds Corine: attacks, bombings, and executions all have Jesse torn between his duty and his knowledge.
For Corine and Chance uncover a major smuggling operation using a powerful sorcerer.
The Characters
Corine Solomon is a handler. When she touches an object, it's history unveils itself in her mind but at a terrible physical cost. The cost is because her Gift is not one with which she was born. Instead, the Gift came to her when her mother, Cherie Solomon, performed a spell transferring her own magic to her daughter when a Kilmer, Georgia mob came to burn them to death. Her mother gave her life to save Corine.
Chance is luck itself. He focuses his Gift to the best possible outcome of whatever it is he desires, using it to help people although he is not averse to making money off it. This last is what finally pushes Corine to run from him. That last job. The luck favors Chance but not the people with him. His mother, Yi Min-chin, is a licensed homeopathic practitioner who loves Corine.
Señor Alvarez does the buying for Corine's shop and steps in to watch over things when she has to leave for a day or more.
Jesse Saldana is the detective in charge of Yi Min-chin's case in Laredo; Nathan Moon is his querulous partner. Jesse also has a Gift and he introduces her to the underground for people like them: Jeannie is the bartender at the Twilight in San Antonio and her husband, Bucky, has already warned Jesse away from her; Twila has a Gift of Sight and can see threads of fate, she always requires payment; and, Maris is the woman to see about discovering who can create powerful sendings. Butch is the orphaned chihuahua that Corine takes in. A good thing too since Butch is quite knowledgable about his owner's assassins and communicates well.
Jesus Maria "Chuch" Ortiz Obregón is a mechanic now; in a previous life, he ran guns. And he's totally aware of the magic side of life. A good man to have at your back. His wife is Eva with a gift for forgery and an unlicensed private investigator who thinks well on her feet.
Ian Booke is an Internet friend of Chuch's who lives in Stoke, England. His expertise is in hermetic magic and he takes this opportunity to try out astral projection; damned useful for scouting out locations ahead of time. There's a mystery attached to our Ian...
Clayton Mann believed no one should get to tell him no if he wanted to rape a woman and Kel Ferguson is a killer for Jesus, a.k.a., God's Hand; both are locked up through Corine and Chance's actions. Both are threats to the two of them should they ever escape.
The Cover
It's a red-haired Corine leaning up against the bar in a white cotton blouse tied to bare her midriff wearing faded blue jeans and an elaborate belt and buckle with her favorite Blue Diablo drink.
katyanaish's review against another edition
3.0
Maybe a 3.5.
I never really got into it. I don't know why. I felt like I was waiting for something to happen for most of the book.
Firstly, the relationship stuff.
It felt off to me. We got a lot of reminiscing / ranting, from Corine's POV, about what a cold bastard Chance used to be, and how she poured her heart and soul into their relationship the first time around. But the Chance that we, the readers, meet... is TOTALLY different. For the first 95% of the book, he's Mr. Sensitive: all puppy-dog eyes, heart on his sleeve, behaving like a kicked puppy when she treats him badly. And through that same segment, she is the cold, detatched bitch that she accuses him of being - despite the fact that the dude's ***mom has been kidnapped*** she never misses a chance to put him down, make him feel like crap, or just generally kick him in the teeth.
Two things happened towards the end of the book, and honestly, they both felt pretty ham-handled to me.
1 - Chance reveals that he was in love with a "gifted" woman before Corine, and she died. The implication is that he held himself back from Corine when they were together out of some kind of screwed up self-defense. This received all of one page of discussion, and frankly is something that he should have brought up waaaaaaaaaaaaay back when he first showed up and expressed that he wanted her back. Sort of along the lines of "I fucked up, here's why..." The way it was handled, it felt... odd. Tossed off. A minor point. When in fact, it is a MAJOR point. THE point, even.
2 - In the aftermath of Big Battle #1, and through Big Battle #2, Chance inexplicably becomes a douchebag. Okay, not exactly. But as I said, through 95% of the book he was so attentive to her, caring, affectionate, everything anyone could want. Recovering from the battle, despite her injury, he gives her not one iota of attention. And he takes off on his own during Big Battle #2. The impression we are left with is "hey, here's that douchebag we have been hearing about all book long." But WHY? It felt... utterly out of the blue, and horribly out of character for Chance. It was baffling to me.
Then we have the plot.
It wasn't bad, but it wasn't... well, it wasn't there. I mean, for 313 of the 316 pages in this book, I had no fucking idea what was going on. I am not even kidding. There was this necro warlock dude. And he kept attacking them. For the life of me, I have no idea what brought them to his attention, anyway. And also, given that in the last 3 pages of the book, when Chance's mom stands in the middle of the living room and explains the plot to us in a monologue, she says she put a spell on the bad guys so that they could never harm Chance, I don't entirely get why they were being attacked at all. But that aside. The plot went like this:
Chance's mom (Min) was kidnapped. --> While investigating, Chance and Corine are attacked by Necro Warlock Big Bad. They don't know why. --> As they continue to investigate, they keep getting attacked by the Necro Warlock Big Bad, who apparently isn't very good at his job. --> They start to wonder if Necro Warlock Big Bad may be connected to Min's kidnapping. Reader wonders WTF is going on in this book, but is fortunately too distracted by relationship drama to spare it too much attention. --> Random huge dude shows up, claiming to be God's Hand, here to smite evil. Says God sent him to help in their quest. --> The team (Corine, Chance, Hand of God) troop off to attack Necro Warlock Big Bad compound (Big Battle #1). --> They win. (Hand of God prolly made this a forgone conclusion.) --> Still no mom, however. Dead warlock appears to be involved with human trafficking. --> Because Corine fell and hit her head on a Montoya tombstone, they look into this Montoya guy. (there is a lot of mysterious, is-it-God coincidence in this book, FYI) --> the team (Hand of God in tow) hit the Montoya compound (Big Battle #2). Rescue mom. Never see Montoya. --> At home, in the last 3 pages of the book, mom tells us WTF happened.
Now, maybe I am spoiled, but... I like my story unfolding, as opposed to spoon-fed. I like to guess at who the bad guy is, or what the plan is. Midway through Big Battle #2, about ... 20 pages, maybe, from the end of the book, I realized that I had no freaking idea what was going on. Like, our characters are shooting Uzis at dudes in this Latin American compound, and I didn't really understand how we had gotten there.
And also, there was a ... psychic? Magic? Super-dog. Is it God? Dunno. And a dude I suspect may be Stephen Hawking, astral projecting in on occasion to help them out.
Seriously, WTF?
And I am more sad because I picked up the second book along with the first, at the bookstore. Now it is sitting on my shelf, giving me eyes. But I don't wanna be baffled by another book! Do. Not. Want! :(
(And for people who wonder at the 3 star rating... my scale is a little weird. I think I have to adjust it down a little. 1 star = didn't even finish it. 2 stars = why, God, did I finish this? 3 stars = Eh. I finished it, it didn't hurt too much, parts were mildly entertaining. 4 stars = woo fun! 5 stars = holy crap, everyone must read this.)
I never really got into it. I don't know why. I felt like I was waiting for something to happen for most of the book.
Firstly, the relationship stuff.
It felt off to me. We got a lot of reminiscing / ranting, from Corine's POV, about what a cold bastard Chance used to be, and how she poured her heart and soul into their relationship the first time around. But the Chance that we, the readers, meet... is TOTALLY different. For the first 95% of the book, he's Mr. Sensitive: all puppy-dog eyes, heart on his sleeve, behaving like a kicked puppy when she treats him badly. And through that same segment, she is the cold, detatched bitch that she accuses him of being - despite the fact that the dude's ***mom has been kidnapped*** she never misses a chance to put him down, make him feel like crap, or just generally kick him in the teeth.
Two things happened towards the end of the book, and honestly, they both felt pretty ham-handled to me.
1 - Chance reveals that he was in love with a "gifted" woman before Corine, and she died. The implication is that he held himself back from Corine when they were together out of some kind of screwed up self-defense. This received all of one page of discussion, and frankly is something that he should have brought up waaaaaaaaaaaaay back when he first showed up and expressed that he wanted her back. Sort of along the lines of "I fucked up, here's why..." The way it was handled, it felt... odd. Tossed off. A minor point. When in fact, it is a MAJOR point. THE point, even.
2 - In the aftermath of Big Battle #1, and through Big Battle #2, Chance inexplicably becomes a douchebag. Okay, not exactly. But as I said, through 95% of the book he was so attentive to her, caring, affectionate, everything anyone could want. Recovering from the battle, despite her injury, he gives her not one iota of attention. And he takes off on his own during Big Battle #2. The impression we are left with is "hey, here's that douchebag we have been hearing about all book long." But WHY? It felt... utterly out of the blue, and horribly out of character for Chance. It was baffling to me.
Then we have the plot.
It wasn't bad, but it wasn't... well, it wasn't there. I mean, for 313 of the 316 pages in this book, I had no fucking idea what was going on. I am not even kidding. There was this necro warlock dude. And he kept attacking them. For the life of me, I have no idea what brought them to his attention, anyway. And also, given that in the last 3 pages of the book, when Chance's mom stands in the middle of the living room and explains the plot to us in a monologue, she says she put a spell on the bad guys so that they could never harm Chance, I don't entirely get why they were being attacked at all. But that aside. The plot went like this:
Chance's mom (Min) was kidnapped. --> While investigating, Chance and Corine are attacked by Necro Warlock Big Bad. They don't know why. --> As they continue to investigate, they keep getting attacked by the Necro Warlock Big Bad, who apparently isn't very good at his job. --> They start to wonder if Necro Warlock Big Bad may be connected to Min's kidnapping. Reader wonders WTF is going on in this book, but is fortunately too distracted by relationship drama to spare it too much attention. --> Random huge dude shows up, claiming to be God's Hand, here to smite evil. Says God sent him to help in their quest. --> The team (Corine, Chance, Hand of God) troop off to attack Necro Warlock Big Bad compound (Big Battle #1). --> They win. (Hand of God prolly made this a forgone conclusion.) --> Still no mom, however. Dead warlock appears to be involved with human trafficking. --> Because Corine fell and hit her head on a Montoya tombstone, they look into this Montoya guy. (there is a lot of mysterious, is-it-God coincidence in this book, FYI) --> the team (Hand of God in tow) hit the Montoya compound (Big Battle #2). Rescue mom. Never see Montoya. --> At home, in the last 3 pages of the book, mom tells us WTF happened.
Now, maybe I am spoiled, but... I like my story unfolding, as opposed to spoon-fed. I like to guess at who the bad guy is, or what the plan is. Midway through Big Battle #2, about ... 20 pages, maybe, from the end of the book, I realized that I had no freaking idea what was going on. Like, our characters are shooting Uzis at dudes in this Latin American compound, and I didn't really understand how we had gotten there.
And also, there was a ... psychic? Magic? Super-dog. Is it God? Dunno. And a dude I suspect may be Stephen Hawking, astral projecting in on occasion to help them out.
Seriously, WTF?
And I am more sad because I picked up the second book along with the first, at the bookstore. Now it is sitting on my shelf, giving me eyes. But I don't wanna be baffled by another book! Do. Not. Want! :(
(And for people who wonder at the 3 star rating... my scale is a little weird. I think I have to adjust it down a little. 1 star = didn't even finish it. 2 stars = why, God, did I finish this? 3 stars = Eh. I finished it, it didn't hurt too much, parts were mildly entertaining. 4 stars = woo fun! 5 stars = holy crap, everyone must read this.)
mellhay's review against another edition
4.0
Corine lives above the pawnshop she owns in Mexico city. She doesn't stay places long, having to stay on the move and knowing she should be on the move again. But she likes living here and her ability with the nicknack's helps in this business. She finds it's peaceful here for her and she likes the shop. Then one day Chance, her ex-boyfriend she left to come to Mexico City, walks in her door. Chance has tracked her down using his Luck. Chance needs Corine's help, and asks her to help him find his mother, also close to Corine, who was taken and is hopefully still alive. Chance is hoping Corine's power of touch and sight mixed with his luck will work together to find his mother.
I found the beginning a little slower for me, but in no time the book picked up and I really enjoyed this book. I think in the beginning I didn't understand what Corine was holding back from, but as the book unfolded I warmed up to Corine and stated to understand her more and more. I did love her calm and humor or quick comebacks. She did make me smile. And the brief torture moments along with comments to Chance on them not being a couple any more. Although, I loved Chance from the beginning. The two characters fight through many rough moments in the investigation and through the history they had together and make it through. I enjoyed the relationships between all the characters.
The book has a mix of magic and dark magic with witches and warlords, zombies, and some warfare as well. There is lots of excitement in this book with the action and information. Once I got done I immediately thought this book would make a great action movie full with some sexual tension, love and attitude to go with it, with great fight scenes and complete with blown up cars.
I found the beginning a little slower for me, but in no time the book picked up and I really enjoyed this book. I think in the beginning I didn't understand what Corine was holding back from, but as the book unfolded I warmed up to Corine and stated to understand her more and more. I did love her calm and humor or quick comebacks. She did make me smile. And the brief torture moments along with comments to Chance on them not being a couple any more. Although, I loved Chance from the beginning. The two characters fight through many rough moments in the investigation and through the history they had together and make it through. I enjoyed the relationships between all the characters.
The book has a mix of magic and dark magic with witches and warlords, zombies, and some warfare as well. There is lots of excitement in this book with the action and information. Once I got done I immediately thought this book would make a great action movie full with some sexual tension, love and attitude to go with it, with great fight scenes and complete with blown up cars.
vikingwolf's review against another edition
The writing itself was fine and I really wanted to like this book because I liked the sound of the plot but again I just couldn't get into it. It just didn't 'grab' me the way other books in this genre have. It doesn't help when you don't really like the male lead character either! Maybe this author just isn't to my taste after all. Ah well, bring on my next read!
blodeuedd's review against another edition
3.0
Blue Diablo by Ann Aguirre
A Corine Solomon Novel
18 months ago Corine Solomon left her lover and crossed the border to Mexico. She was fleeing her past and her gift, as a "handler". Which means that when she touch something she can know its past, and sometimes its future. She used it to find missing people - and that is now why people want to find her.
That is how her ex, Chance shows up in her store. He has an ability that gives him luck. Someone they both care about has gone missing and he needs her to find that someone, not to mention that he needs her too. Their search leads them into a world of dark magic, demons, zombies, witches and people that show her that she is not as alone as she first thought.
I really did enjoy this book, and I knew it from the start. It is that kind of book that makes you want to continue reading, you feel the urge to know what is going to happen. It's an easy book to read, and it was just what I needed. It sure lifted my spirits after reading some not so good books. i felt that good books are still being written and this is one of them.
First of all I liked Corine, she is colourful (and then I am not talking about her clothes). I didn't know what to think about Chance at first, just as she struggled with her own emotions for him. But then I did want to see them together. Though I do confess that sexy cop Jesse Saldana sure stirred the blood when he showed up. He was a lovely surprise in the book.
This book sure had a bit of everything thrown in and perhaps that is why I liked it. It did feel different, and a good book needs that to stand out. What is better than dark magic, and then zombies too. Yes even those fitted in.
I do like a book that makes me giggle, and smile. Oh it has some really good bits in it, one that involved a conversation about some cakes and ice-cream after dinner sure made me giggle while I read it.
So if you are on a lookout for a book invloving paranormal, romance, danger, and some fun times then this is the book for you.
How I am supposed to say something bad now..... ok, the cover, when Corine was described in the book I sure thought about her a certain way and that cover doesn't seem like her. The jeans, yes, but not the blouse. Lol, yes this really seems to be the only negative thing I can think of.
I will give this book 4/5 because I enjoyed it a lot, and I would recommend it to others.
It also made me want to read more of Aguirre's books since I haven't read her sci-fi books yet.
Blue Diablo comes out on April 7th
A Corine Solomon Novel
18 months ago Corine Solomon left her lover and crossed the border to Mexico. She was fleeing her past and her gift, as a "handler". Which means that when she touch something she can know its past, and sometimes its future. She used it to find missing people - and that is now why people want to find her.
That is how her ex, Chance shows up in her store. He has an ability that gives him luck. Someone they both care about has gone missing and he needs her to find that someone, not to mention that he needs her too. Their search leads them into a world of dark magic, demons, zombies, witches and people that show her that she is not as alone as she first thought.
I really did enjoy this book, and I knew it from the start. It is that kind of book that makes you want to continue reading, you feel the urge to know what is going to happen. It's an easy book to read, and it was just what I needed. It sure lifted my spirits after reading some not so good books. i felt that good books are still being written and this is one of them.
First of all I liked Corine, she is colourful (and then I am not talking about her clothes). I didn't know what to think about Chance at first, just as she struggled with her own emotions for him. But then I did want to see them together. Though I do confess that sexy cop Jesse Saldana sure stirred the blood when he showed up. He was a lovely surprise in the book.
This book sure had a bit of everything thrown in and perhaps that is why I liked it. It did feel different, and a good book needs that to stand out. What is better than dark magic, and then zombies too. Yes even those fitted in.
I do like a book that makes me giggle, and smile. Oh it has some really good bits in it, one that involved a conversation about some cakes and ice-cream after dinner sure made me giggle while I read it.
So if you are on a lookout for a book invloving paranormal, romance, danger, and some fun times then this is the book for you.
How I am supposed to say something bad now..... ok, the cover, when Corine was described in the book I sure thought about her a certain way and that cover doesn't seem like her. The jeans, yes, but not the blouse. Lol, yes this really seems to be the only negative thing I can think of.
I will give this book 4/5 because I enjoyed it a lot, and I would recommend it to others.
It also made me want to read more of Aguirre's books since I haven't read her sci-fi books yet.
Blue Diablo comes out on April 7th
miraphora's review against another edition
3.0
Sono perplessa. Non completamente delusa ma nemmeno sufficientemente soddisfatta. Il mio voto, alto considerando la situazione, è comunque molto incerto e l'ho dato per pura fiducia nel futuro della serie.
Io stimo moltissimo la Delos, è stata una delle prime editrici a buttarsi a capofitto nel nuovo genere paranormale/urban fantasy pubblicando serie che sono diventate di riferimento. Eppure, come può capitare a tutti, questa volta ha - in un certo senso - toppato.
Blue Diablo è il primo romanzo della serie Corine (con UNA n, signori Delos) Solomon in cui la protagonista ha una dote particolare. La madre, infatti, le ha passato un dono che le rende possibile conoscere il passato degli oggetti solo toccandoli. Essendo, però, un dono acquisito e non innato, ha delle conseguenze che nel suo caso è provare un fortissimo dolore alle mani. Il risultato è che Corine, con i palmi ricoperti di cicatrici, si autoinfligge questa tortura perché con il suo dono ci vive. Non avendo punti di riferimento familiari e non conoscendo nessuno con il suo stesso dono, Corine si ritrova ad essere un soggetto molto ricercato per la sua capacità e sulla quale in molti vogliono speculare. Corine vive sul suo dolore, e ogni 'missione' che inizia la porta sempre di più vicino al baratro della disperazione.
Aggiungendo anche che per anni si è affiancata a Chance, l'uomo baciato dalla fortuna - il suo dono - che in parte l'ha usata per fare soldi, in parte l'ha amata, abbiamo un casino totale.
Il romanzo inizia con Corine che vive e lavora in incognito a Città del Messico, dove è scappata mesi prima perché non ne poteva più della sua vecchia vita, dei dubbi che Chance non la amasse e della sofferenza che l'ha portata quasi alla morte. Per molti mesi Corine è stata tranquilla, conducendo una vita normale, sopprimendo il suo dono per non farsi scoprire, ma un bel giorno Chance entra nel suo negozio e tutto va a rotoli. Appena lo vede, Corine capisce che il passato è tornato a tormentarla, ed è terrorizzata più che mai perché non è mai riuscita a dire no a Chance. Lui, che è un manipolatore molto abile, la convince ad aiutarlo a cercare sua madre, rapita da degli sconosciuti. Da questo punto in poi la storia si basa sulla ricerca, sulle indagini e sulle scoperte che i due fanno.
Dal punto di vista del genere, siamo perfettamente dentro i canoni dello urban fantasy. In un certo senso questa serie strizza l'occhio a quella di Kim Harrison, Jeaniene Frost e compari, con la grande differenza che l'autrice non ha saputo creare un base solida, articolata e coerente del contesto nel quale si svolge l'episodio.
Il problema più grosso di tutto il romanzo è la mancanza di spiegazioni e di chiarimenti, anche brevi, che aiutino a rendere più chiari i meccanismi della realtà di Corine Solomon. Per esempio, la magia è presente come elemento portante della trama e anche del contesto generale, eppure nemmeno una volta viene chiarito come funziona l'interazione con la società. Vengono fatti riferimenti a zombie, maghi e stregoni, pozioni e amuleti, eppure l'autrice non si addentra mai sotto la superficie, come se non volesse infangarsi e perdersi nella sua stessa opera. Il contesto, in questo genere letterario, è importantissimo. Senza contestualizzazione si leggono solo episodi inspiegabili che si susseguono fino alla fine. Non mi è piaciuto, perché se devo leggere di maghi, handler e chissà che altro, gradirei poter riconoscere il loro ruolo mentre leggo, e non a storia conclusa.
Il secondo grosso problema è la profondità dei personaggi. L'autrice scrive in prima persona, per cui Corine è la voce narrante, ciò che lei conosce o non conosce è esattamente quello che ci è dato sapere. Il suo punto di vista, però, è completamente privo di introspezione: sappiamo che ha dei motivi che l'hanno spinta a scappare, principalmente legati alla morte della madre, eppure l'episodio non viene chiarito, come se l'autrice volesse stuzzicare il lettore ma tenersi buono l'episodio per un futuro romanzo. Quindi Corine manca della struttura portante del suo passato, vive nel presente. Non solo, anche il suo rapporto con Chance, che è al 90% nel passato, non viene spiegato del tutto. Sappiamo che lui era freddo e che lei pensava che non la amasse, sappiamo che sono stati assieme come coppia e come colleghi, sappiamo che lei è scappata e non sappiamo altro. Il loro rapporto nel romanzo è tutto sul tira e molla sfocato: lei è ancora - vagamente - attratta da lui, continua a pensare che lui l'ha usata ma non si addentra nello specifico. Chance, invece, tentenna nel dimostrare di essere più reale ed emotivo di come Corine lo dipinge di essere, eppure anche lui non si scomoda più di tanto e si adagia completamente dalla prima all'ultima pagina. Il loro è un rapporto indefinito e, quindi, per come la vedo io inesistente. L'elemento romantico è troppo sfocato, impreciso e generalizzato per poter stuzzicare l'interesse del lettore e sa vagamente di indecisione da parte dell'autrice: più o meno amore? Faccio diventare questa serie più eroina-centrica o più coppia-centrica? Di sicuro la Aguirre non è arrivata ad una decisione in questo primo episodio, tenendosi l'elemento sorpresa per i prossimi. Mi da un po' fastidio che l'autrice abbia dato così poco dei personaggi, scrivendo una storia con molte scene d'azione e pochi personaggi secondari. Aveva tutto lo spazio per poter rendere davvero coinvolgente l'aspetto emotivo dei personaggi.
Per quanto riguarda lo stile, invece, - a parte i soliti refusi tipici della Delos - non ci sono grandi difetti da segnalare. L'autrice cerca di essere vivace nella narrazione, riuscendo anche a risultare divertente in alcuni punti, e più in generale ha saputo azzeccare il tono adatto alla storia. Non si dilunga in dialoghi inutili - forse avrebbe dovuto lasciarsi andare a maggiori scambi di battute dirette - e in generale il lessico e semplice senza cadere nell'elementare. La lettura, quindi, è abbastanza piacevole da portarti fino alla fine però il senso di incompletezza non va via nemmeno sotto sforzo.
Considerando che il secondo titolo della serie è già in programmazione d'uscita probabilmente lo proverò e poi deciderò se questa serie fa o meno al caso mio. Per ora mantengo una mentalità aperta e cercherò di non lasciarmi influenzare dal tiepido parere sul primo romanzo. So' fiduciosa, che vi devo dire!
Io stimo moltissimo la Delos, è stata una delle prime editrici a buttarsi a capofitto nel nuovo genere paranormale/urban fantasy pubblicando serie che sono diventate di riferimento. Eppure, come può capitare a tutti, questa volta ha - in un certo senso - toppato.
Blue Diablo è il primo romanzo della serie Corine (con UNA n, signori Delos) Solomon in cui la protagonista ha una dote particolare. La madre, infatti, le ha passato un dono che le rende possibile conoscere il passato degli oggetti solo toccandoli. Essendo, però, un dono acquisito e non innato, ha delle conseguenze che nel suo caso è provare un fortissimo dolore alle mani. Il risultato è che Corine, con i palmi ricoperti di cicatrici, si autoinfligge questa tortura perché con il suo dono ci vive. Non avendo punti di riferimento familiari e non conoscendo nessuno con il suo stesso dono, Corine si ritrova ad essere un soggetto molto ricercato per la sua capacità e sulla quale in molti vogliono speculare. Corine vive sul suo dolore, e ogni 'missione' che inizia la porta sempre di più vicino al baratro della disperazione.
Aggiungendo anche che per anni si è affiancata a Chance, l'uomo baciato dalla fortuna - il suo dono - che in parte l'ha usata per fare soldi, in parte l'ha amata, abbiamo un casino totale.
Il romanzo inizia con Corine che vive e lavora in incognito a Città del Messico, dove è scappata mesi prima perché non ne poteva più della sua vecchia vita, dei dubbi che Chance non la amasse e della sofferenza che l'ha portata quasi alla morte. Per molti mesi Corine è stata tranquilla, conducendo una vita normale, sopprimendo il suo dono per non farsi scoprire, ma un bel giorno Chance entra nel suo negozio e tutto va a rotoli. Appena lo vede, Corine capisce che il passato è tornato a tormentarla, ed è terrorizzata più che mai perché non è mai riuscita a dire no a Chance. Lui, che è un manipolatore molto abile, la convince ad aiutarlo a cercare sua madre, rapita da degli sconosciuti. Da questo punto in poi la storia si basa sulla ricerca, sulle indagini e sulle scoperte che i due fanno.
Dal punto di vista del genere, siamo perfettamente dentro i canoni dello urban fantasy. In un certo senso questa serie strizza l'occhio a quella di Kim Harrison, Jeaniene Frost e compari, con la grande differenza che l'autrice non ha saputo creare un base solida, articolata e coerente del contesto nel quale si svolge l'episodio.
Il problema più grosso di tutto il romanzo è la mancanza di spiegazioni e di chiarimenti, anche brevi, che aiutino a rendere più chiari i meccanismi della realtà di Corine Solomon. Per esempio, la magia è presente come elemento portante della trama e anche del contesto generale, eppure nemmeno una volta viene chiarito come funziona l'interazione con la società. Vengono fatti riferimenti a zombie, maghi e stregoni, pozioni e amuleti, eppure l'autrice non si addentra mai sotto la superficie, come se non volesse infangarsi e perdersi nella sua stessa opera. Il contesto, in questo genere letterario, è importantissimo. Senza contestualizzazione si leggono solo episodi inspiegabili che si susseguono fino alla fine. Non mi è piaciuto, perché se devo leggere di maghi, handler e chissà che altro, gradirei poter riconoscere il loro ruolo mentre leggo, e non a storia conclusa.
Il secondo grosso problema è la profondità dei personaggi. L'autrice scrive in prima persona, per cui Corine è la voce narrante, ciò che lei conosce o non conosce è esattamente quello che ci è dato sapere. Il suo punto di vista, però, è completamente privo di introspezione: sappiamo che ha dei motivi che l'hanno spinta a scappare, principalmente legati alla morte della madre, eppure l'episodio non viene chiarito, come se l'autrice volesse stuzzicare il lettore ma tenersi buono l'episodio per un futuro romanzo. Quindi Corine manca della struttura portante del suo passato, vive nel presente. Non solo, anche il suo rapporto con Chance, che è al 90% nel passato, non viene spiegato del tutto. Sappiamo che lui era freddo e che lei pensava che non la amasse, sappiamo che sono stati assieme come coppia e come colleghi, sappiamo che lei è scappata e non sappiamo altro. Il loro rapporto nel romanzo è tutto sul tira e molla sfocato: lei è ancora - vagamente - attratta da lui, continua a pensare che lui l'ha usata ma non si addentra nello specifico. Chance, invece, tentenna nel dimostrare di essere più reale ed emotivo di come Corine lo dipinge di essere, eppure anche lui non si scomoda più di tanto e si adagia completamente dalla prima all'ultima pagina. Il loro è un rapporto indefinito e, quindi, per come la vedo io inesistente. L'elemento romantico è troppo sfocato, impreciso e generalizzato per poter stuzzicare l'interesse del lettore e sa vagamente di indecisione da parte dell'autrice: più o meno amore? Faccio diventare questa serie più eroina-centrica o più coppia-centrica? Di sicuro la Aguirre non è arrivata ad una decisione in questo primo episodio, tenendosi l'elemento sorpresa per i prossimi. Mi da un po' fastidio che l'autrice abbia dato così poco dei personaggi, scrivendo una storia con molte scene d'azione e pochi personaggi secondari. Aveva tutto lo spazio per poter rendere davvero coinvolgente l'aspetto emotivo dei personaggi.
Per quanto riguarda lo stile, invece, - a parte i soliti refusi tipici della Delos - non ci sono grandi difetti da segnalare. L'autrice cerca di essere vivace nella narrazione, riuscendo anche a risultare divertente in alcuni punti, e più in generale ha saputo azzeccare il tono adatto alla storia. Non si dilunga in dialoghi inutili - forse avrebbe dovuto lasciarsi andare a maggiori scambi di battute dirette - e in generale il lessico e semplice senza cadere nell'elementare. La lettura, quindi, è abbastanza piacevole da portarti fino alla fine però il senso di incompletezza non va via nemmeno sotto sforzo.
Considerando che il secondo titolo della serie è già in programmazione d'uscita probabilmente lo proverò e poi deciderò se questa serie fa o meno al caso mio. Per ora mantengo una mentalità aperta e cercherò di non lasciarmi influenzare dal tiepido parere sul primo romanzo. So' fiduciosa, che vi devo dire!
mjwerts's review against another edition
3.0
What would you do if you could touch objects and see moments in the lives of those who had touched them before? What if this ability was accompanied by searing pain? These are the questions with which Corine Solomon grapples. For a awhile, she used her power to the advantage of herself and her business associate/boyfriend Chance. She fled that life, but it funds her again when Chance appears at her thrift shop, needing her help to find his abducted mother. Setting off with him, Corine realizes that her supernatural world is quite bigger than she ever realized.
Corinne is well-drawn and surrounded by equally compelling individuals—from the enigmatic Chance and the sexy empath cop Jesse to the bickering, adorable couple Chuch and Eva who assist Corine and Chance in their investigation. The plot is a little murky, but the mythology is intriguing. It is not as instantly gripping as Aguirre's Sirantha Jax sci-fi series, but it's an enjoyable opening.
Corinne is well-drawn and surrounded by equally compelling individuals—from the enigmatic Chance and the sexy empath cop Jesse to the bickering, adorable couple Chuch and Eva who assist Corine and Chance in their investigation. The plot is a little murky, but the mythology is intriguing. It is not as instantly gripping as Aguirre's Sirantha Jax sci-fi series, but it's an enjoyable opening.
laden_bookshelf's review against another edition
5.0
This was a free read on my Kindle and I've got to say I was impressed. A solid story, interesting cast of characters and plenty of backstory to mine. If you're a fan of urban fantasy, this is a great start for a series.
git_r_read's review against another edition
5.0
I love reading urban fantasy, especially gritty well-written UF. BLUE DIABLO fit the bill to the proverbial T!
Corine Solomon, the reluctant champion, is diggin' her quiet life as a pawn shop owner in Mexico City. She can feel the provenance of an item, know where it's going after it leaves her shop. It's definitely better than the life she ran from. That life was harsh, filled with people who only wanted her for her gift of finding missing persons.
Her ex walked into her shop one day and Corine knew her quiet life as she knew it was over, possibly forever.
Chance had luck wherever he went, good and bad both. The bad kind being when Corine walked out of his life, searching for quiet. Now he's found her again and he wants her to help find his missing mother, Yi Min-chin.
Corine is thrust back into the world of magick, ghosts, warlocks, astral projection, gun-runners, drug dealers...just pure-dee bad all around.
There is some good in there. My favorite characters are Chuch and Eva and Butch. They are unlikely warriors ready to fight the good fight.
I could identify with Corine's wounded heart nature. I like when the characters feel 'real' and all of these do. Good is shaded and reluctant, bad is uber bad and not always easily recognizable.
Corine Solomon, the reluctant champion, is diggin' her quiet life as a pawn shop owner in Mexico City. She can feel the provenance of an item, know where it's going after it leaves her shop. It's definitely better than the life she ran from. That life was harsh, filled with people who only wanted her for her gift of finding missing persons.
Her ex walked into her shop one day and Corine knew her quiet life as she knew it was over, possibly forever.
Chance had luck wherever he went, good and bad both. The bad kind being when Corine walked out of his life, searching for quiet. Now he's found her again and he wants her to help find his missing mother, Yi Min-chin.
Corine is thrust back into the world of magick, ghosts, warlocks, astral projection, gun-runners, drug dealers...just pure-dee bad all around.
There is some good in there. My favorite characters are Chuch and Eva and Butch. They are unlikely warriors ready to fight the good fight.
I could identify with Corine's wounded heart nature. I like when the characters feel 'real' and all of these do. Good is shaded and reluctant, bad is uber bad and not always easily recognizable.