Thursday, August 20, 2015

Black Ice by Becca Fitzpatrick



SUMMARY FROM PUBLISHER: (Simon and Schuster) Danger is hard to resist in this sexy thriller from Becca Fitzpatrick, the New York Times bestselling author of the Hush, Hush saga.

Britt Pheiffer has trained to backpack the Teton Range, but she isn't  prepared when her ex-boyfriend, who still haunts her every thought, wants to join her. Before Britt can explore her feelings for Calvin, an unexpected blizzard forces her to seek shelter in a remote cabin, accepting the hospitality of its two very handsome occupants €”but these men are fugitives, and they take her hostage.

Britt is forced to guide the men off the mountain, and knows she must stay alive long enough for Calvin to find her. The task is made even more complicated when Britt finds chilling evidence of a series of murders that have taken place there ¦and in uncovering this, she may become the killer's next target.

But nothing is as it seems, and everyone is keeping secrets, including Mason, one of her kidnappers. His kindness is confusing Britt. Is he an enemy? Or an ally?

Black Ice is New York Times bestselling author Becca Fitzpatrick'€™s riveting romantic thriller set against the treacherous backdrop of the mountains of Wyoming. Falling in love should never be this dangerous



REVIEW: First I must say that I enjoyed Becca Fitzpatrick's Hush Hush series. I recommend it to many of the teens coming into the library looking for a paranormal romance. When I saw she had written a realistic fiction thriller steeped in mystery and intrigue I knew I just had to read it.....  

I loved the first chapter! The story begins with the drugging, abduction and murder of a young woman, Lauren Huntsman, by a mysterious man she meets at a bar. Okay so this is a great set-up to a mystery. We know we will need to look at characters in the story for clues to who is the murder. 

Unfortunately after that first chapter, the rest of the story falls apart. The characters were shallow and two dimensional and many of the situations that occur in the story are implausible. 







SPOILER ALERT***






For example, 
1. Britt and Korbie decide to go to Korbie's family chateau on the Teton mountains for Spring Break when they are caught in an unexpected snowstorm leaving them stranded on the mountainside road. This snowstorm is still raging throughout the book. Britt mentions that she had checked the weather before the trip. But a storm that large doesn't "just appear". 
2. The two girls decide, in the middle of the snowstorm to abandon the jeep and all their hiking equipment to look for a safe place to go during the storm. What person with an ounce of brains does that?! 
3. They find a cabin with two men inside who we quickly find out are running from the law. Britt convinces them that she has been hiking the Teton's for year and can get them off the mountain and away from police. They decide to take her in the snowstorm instead of Korbie. Yet later one of the wanted men, Mason, also known as Ace also known as Jude proves to be a trained wilderness survivalist (then why did they need Britt in the first place) but insists they run when confronted with an aggressive bear. Britt keeps telling him she sure she saw that they aren't supposed to run when she was searching the internet.... wow! really!!! 



I also had an issue with the characters themselves. Britt Pheiffer's (the main character) friendship with her "best friend" Korbie is toxic. For example, Korbie actually keeps a tally of the ways she is better than Britt in her journal (yes, Britt looked) Britt also had a secret relationship with Korbie's brother.So secret he didn't even tell anyone and didn't allow Britt to tell anyone either. That's certainly not a healthy relationship.  Britt changes her mind over who she's in love with, Korbie's brother Calvin or the mysterious Mason/Ace/Jude, so often I thought I was going to have whiplash. The women are airheads and men are deviants. None of characters had likable personalities.; I found myself not caring what happens to any of them.

There are many who loved this story and gave it rave reviews. Those who love the catty relationships and LOTS of drama will love "Black Ice". Those who enjoy series like the Pretty Little Liars or Clique Series will probably enjoy this story. Honestly, this one was just not for me!  


FULL DISCLOSURE: Audio-CD from the West Springfield Public Library. 

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