Bloodstone
Stacy Justice Mysteries, Book #2
By Barbra Annino
ISBN# 9781612186139
Author’s Website: http://www.barbraannino.com/
Brought to you by OBS reviewer Heidi
*Beware of possible Spoilers*
Stacy Justice is back in the sequel to Opal Fire by Barbra Annino. Bloodstone picks up right where Opal Fire drops off and Stacy is confronted by young Ivy who claims to be her sister and has the devastating news that their mother is in trouble and needs their help. Stacy doesn’t know if Ivy truly is her sister or not, her mom has been gone long enough to have had another child, but Ivy could be anybody. But she does have the same red hair as Stacy….
Stacy eventually decides that Birdie is the only one that can help her determine what to do, but when she goes to her with Ivy in tow, one of the guests of the Bed & Breakfast her family runs is found dead, and stranger yet the body goes missing from the morgue in a most unusual fashion.
Now Stacy must embrace her role as the Seeker of Justice and find the Warrior and Guardian so they can work together to figure out exactly what is going on, and to help save her mom in the process.
When I read the first book in this series, Opal Fire, I was thrilled to have found the unexpected gem that the novel turned out to be. I loved it from start to finish. So when I discovered there was a sequel I HAD to get my hands on it!
Bloodstone has all the things I loved in Opal Fire; an interesting storyline with a quirky family of witches, sexy hunks in the form of Leo and Chance, and Stacy’s wisecracks that had me laughing out loud at several points in the book.
“My fault? How the hell is this”–I waved my arm across the table– my fault?”
“You know we don’t believe in hell, so stop using that word in our presence,” Bridie said.
“Fine. How in fucked-up fairyland is this my fault?”
But even with all the things I enjoyed in this story, something was missing for me, and I just can’t seem to put my finger on what exactly it is. I truly wanted to love this book, but came away a bit frustrated as I just didn’t.
Leo vs. Chance. Hunky police Chief Leo or sexy ex-boyfriend Chance? Decisions, decisions. Don’t you feel sorry for our heroine on this one? I totally forgot that Stacy ended things with Leo in the first book and honestly don’t remember why. I might have to go back and read that part again. But I was always team Chance anyway and this book just solidifies that for me, although it does get pretty funny when Stacey’s jealousy rears its ugly head!
“Leo turned to me, his upper lip curved in that way it does when he’s confused. “What exactly is your problem? You broke it off with me, remember?”
The bitch wasn’t backing down. Now she had control of my hands. She wagged a finger at Leo. “And you just couldn’t wait to climb aboard that silicone-stuffed herpes ride, could you?”
I hope the next book in the series has a little bit more about Stacy’s love life and more Cinnamon as well!
Ivy was a rambunctious and funny character in her own right. And, when she got cranked up, especially around Monique you could see a little Stacy in her!
“Chance stifled a grin, and all I could think was that this girl had to be related to me. Only women who were related to me annoyed me this much.”
But sadly, I never really could connect with the teen. If she does appear in future installments of the series, which I can only imagine she will, I hope that she matures a bit.
The humor was off the charts in this installment of the series, and I think it was even funnier than Opal Fire, which is one of the reasons I’m so frustrated that I didn’t like Bloodstone more. It just seemed that something was missing with the plot. But have no fear; I’m not giving up on this series that easily! I loved the first one and I’m going into the third installment, Tiger’s Eye, in hope of rekindling that spark! The series is a lot of fun, even if this installment didn’t live up to my expectations, and it was a quick and fun read.
I love how the author includes a bit of herself in Stacy’s fictional world by including Thor, the Great Dane, a breed she no doubt has boundless knowledge on considering she has three of her own.
“After I slid down the wall for the third time, breaking every single fingernail in the process, I finally figured out that Thor was hollering at me. I turned to see him standing in the bed of the truck. Which, of course, made much more sense, than pretending to be Spiderman.
It’s a humbling moment when you realize your dog is smarter than you.”
I also liked that Annino included some of the things she learned during her research at the end of the novel. I’m always wondering if certain things in books are real or based on something real and she saved me the time of having to search online to try and figure it out!
Now on to the next book in the series, Tiger’s Eye!
