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A review by bookishblondegirl
The Recovery Agent by Janet Evanovich
3.0
Gabriela Rose is a recovery agent who retrieves stolen and/or rare artifacts. Gabriela decides to retrieve the Seal of Solomon, a priceless ring. She gets help along the way, including from Rafer, her ex-husband whom she still finds both infuriating and attractive. Drug operations, ancient cults, and ritualistic sacrifice abound as Gabriela tracks down the treasure.
Overall, this fell a little short for me. This was my first Janet Evanovich novel, but I've been seeing from other reviewers that the setup to this story is remarkably similar to that of her Stephanie Plum series. Even without having read any of that series, I feel like I could sense that this one felt a little 'uninspired', per se, which tracks with those who are saying that Gabriela is essentially a slightly tweaked Stephanie.
When it comes to the characters, I liked Gabriela and Rafer, and enjoyed their interactions with each other. I also especially enjoyed two of the side characters: Pepe and Caballo. There were many attempts at humor, but frankly they almost all fell flat for me. I thought the scenes where the characters were traversing jungle and exploring ruins were cool, but the action scenes, though plentiful, were not that exciting.
Ultimately, I'm going back and forth between 2.5 and 3 stars, because while I was underwhelmed, I didn't necessarily dislike this. I guess I was expecting more of a Lara Croft, Tomb Raider-esque thing, and was bummed when I didn't get it, so that could be on me! Thanks to NetGalley and Atria Books for this ARC in exchange for my unbiased review!
Overall, this fell a little short for me. This was my first Janet Evanovich novel, but I've been seeing from other reviewers that the setup to this story is remarkably similar to that of her Stephanie Plum series. Even without having read any of that series, I feel like I could sense that this one felt a little 'uninspired', per se, which tracks with those who are saying that Gabriela is essentially a slightly tweaked Stephanie.
When it comes to the characters, I liked Gabriela and Rafer, and enjoyed their interactions with each other. I also especially enjoyed two of the side characters: Pepe and Caballo. There were many attempts at humor, but frankly they almost all fell flat for me. I thought the scenes where the characters were traversing jungle and exploring ruins were cool, but the action scenes, though plentiful, were not that exciting.
Ultimately, I'm going back and forth between 2.5 and 3 stars, because while I was underwhelmed, I didn't necessarily dislike this. I guess I was expecting more of a Lara Croft, Tomb Raider-esque thing, and was bummed when I didn't get it, so that could be on me! Thanks to NetGalley and Atria Books for this ARC in exchange for my unbiased review!