Monday, April 18, 2011

Review: Con & Conjure by Lisa Shearin

Con & Conjure
Author:Lisa Shearin
Release Date: March 29, 2011
Publisher: ACE
Raine Benares Book #5
ISBN:  0441020186
ISBN13: 9780441020188
Genre: Urban Fantasy


My name is Raine Benares. I’m a seeker who finds lost things and missing people. My relatives, on the other hand, steal things. They’re the most notorious criminal family in the seven kingdoms. Sometimes I wonder if they have the right idea, especially since what I’ve found lately is likely to get me killed. And the Saghred, a soul-stealing stone that has given me unlimited power, is to blame for every last bit of it.

Ever since the Saghred bonded to me, the goblin king and the elven power brokers have wanted to possess its magic themselves. But to get it, they’ll have to get me, and their pockets are deep enough to make that happen. With the help of my highly qualified family, I’ve rigged the perfect con—one that will financially ruin the elves who are spoiling for war. My family’s run elaborate scams before, but none involving this much money, government officials this highly ranked, or a war this close to starting. In our way is a goblin thief who’s after the Saghred, and my ex-fiancĂ©—an elven assassin who may be after me. I broke up with him. Let’s just say it could have gone better.

If either the goblins or the elves get their hands on the Saghred, they have every intention of using it. Which means total annihilation will be inevitable…

CON & CONJURE Continues right where BEWITCHED & BETRAYED left off. These are books you definitely want to start with the beginning on as the events play off of previous books as well as having new things happening and you might get lost quick. If you like magic, swords and fantasy I would definitely give Lisa Shearin's Raine Benares series a shot.

Raine's adventures in CON & CONJURE starts off with action and ends with action. Lisa did a wonderful job of keeping me on the edge of my seat with her well plotted adventures. There are a few times that I thought for sure that the stakes were just to high and Raine or one of her friends and family just wasn't going to make it out this time. Raine really struggled a lot throughout the book and I think that made me like it even more as it wasn't easy for her to overcome everything. Raine and her relatives are the focus of book #5 and her friends take a back roll. The humor was right up there with the previous books even though the book was a bit darker.  The set up for the next book is fabulous and I cant wait to pick it up.

I gave it 4/5 stars