Rating: 5 stars out of 5
Cordelia Kingsbridge rocketed to the top of my “must buy” author list when she released Kill Game and hooked me on the lives of Detective Levi Abrams and PI Dominic Russo. Adding in the serial killer, the Seven of Spades, just made my addiction to this series that much stronger.
That being said, this finale was outstanding, but it was not my favorite of the series. Why? Because in this book, the MCs are not only still trying to find and stop the Seven of Spades, they’re tied up in trying to stop Utopia, a Neo-Nazi militia group—terrorists who plan to knock “Sin City” to the ground. Rather than the conflict between the couple, and the conflict within the department and Levi’s coworkers, and the search for the killer, this installment focused more on the terrorist acts and the MCs efforts to stop them from destroying Las Vegas. And I didn’t realize how much I missed the heartbreak of seeing Dominic and Levi break up, or the horror of the deaths caused by the Seven of Spades, or even the rollercoaster ride of emotions as more and more kills stacked up and the killer taunted Levi, until Dominic and Levi worked together as a solid couple and the focus wasn’t all on the serial killer.
The conflict with the Seven of Spades was not as sharp in this one. And though we don’t learn who it is until the latter part of the story, we finally get the big reveal—and then we get the serial killer helping Levi and Dominic in their race against time to stop a supreme act of terrorism. It’s nail-biting, heartbreaking, frightening, and amazing! The author is truly gifted in plot macramé as each of the clues and threads in the previous books come together. And, of course, once the killer is revealed, it all makes sense. [head-desk slam] Why didn’t I think of that? Honestly, I was so far off base I was in a different ball park with my guesses.
If you love action, adventure, suspense, intrigue, and a very cleverly told tale, by all means, read this series. As I noted in one of my previous reviews, if I could give this series ten stars, I would. I very highly recommend this book and this series to anyone looking for an action-packed, law enforcement adventure in combination with MM romance.
The cover by Garrett Leigh features a straight back chair in an apparently deserted room, while blood drips from the words of the title onto the chair. It keeps to the theme of the previous stories and is perfect for this finale.
Sales Links: Riptide Publishing | Amazon
Book Details:
ebook, 382 pages
Published March 11th 2019 by Riptide Publishing
Original Title A Chip and a Chair
ISBN 139781626496415
Edition Language English
Series Seven of Spades :
A Chip and a Chair series finale
Scattered Thoughts and Rogue Words 