When otherworlder Solomon Judah wakes up as a main attraction in an evil circus, his first thought is to escape and kill everyone involved in running the place. That is, until he meets Vika, the owner’s daughter. She should be his enemy, but somehow every instinct tells him she’s his soul mate—and salvation.
An attack on a secret Black Ops unit renders agent Solo Judah incarcerated in a dark menagerie run by Jecis, an adherent to the black arts. Jecis has no regard for human or otherworldly life, and he rules his circus with a ruthless iron fist. As the primary caretaker for the interplanetary captives, Jecis’ daughter Vika wants nothing more than to release her charges safely and disappear herself, but the reach and savagery of her father’s power is insurmountable. When she tried once before, her father killed the escapees and beat her until she was deaf. She’s not sure why she’s drawn to newcomer Solo, but the more she watches and interacts with him, the tighter their bond becomes—until Jecis decides to use it against them. For once, his brutishness misfires. He’s underestimated Solo’s strength and Vika’s fierceness and the overarching spiritual principle that good always conquers evil in the end. The launch of Otherworld Assassins, a new paranormal romance series from author Showalter, this book is a roller-coaster ride of a story, with plot twists aplenty and character arcs that draw you in with visceral force. The fervency of the romance is a little sudden, and the brutality can be hard to traverse, but Showalter is a strong storyteller and a convincing writer who uses conflict to great effect. A slightly overhanded “good vs. evil” spiritual message—complete with biblical phrases introducing each chapter—might be a little off-putting to some, but ultimately, it doesn’t negatively impact the overall success of the book, and for readers with a similar mindset, it is an interesting fusion of paranormal concepts and metaphysical tenets.
A fast-paced, intense paranormal romance that offers original, dynamic characters, vivid, compelling worldbuilding and a powerful “love prevails” narrative.
