Flicker and Burn by T. M. Goeglein
Guest Review by Kari
copy sent for review, but all opinions are our own
Official Summary: Sara Jane Rispoli is still searching for her missing family, but instead of fighting off a turncoat uncle and crooked cops, this time she finds herself on the run from creepy beings with red, pulsing eyes and pale white skin chasing her through the streets in ice cream trucks; they can only be described as Ice Cream Creatures. They’re terrifying and hell bent on killing her, but they’re also a link to her family, a clue to where they might be and who has them. While she battles these new pursuers, she’s also discovering more about her own cold fury and more about the Chicago Outfit, how the past misdeeds–old murders and vendettas–might just be connected to her present and the disappearance of her family. But connecting the dots is tough and time-consuming and may finally be the undoing of her relationship with the handsome Max–who’s now her boyfriend. But for his own safety, Sara Jane may have to end this relationship before it even really starts. Her pursuers who’ve shown her her mother’s amputated finger and the head of the Chicago Outfit who’s just whistled her in for a sit-down make a romance unthinkable. The only thing that matters is finding her family and keeping everyone she loves alive.
Review:
Flicker
and Burn, the
second novel of the Cold Fury series,
starts off a few months after we last saw Sara Jane Rispoli. Sara Jane knows
her family is still alive, but it’s been four months since she has last seen
them. She still has the notebook and now that her friend, Doug, knows about
what happened, she feels like she has a better chance at finding her family.
Sara Jane may have someone to help her with clues, but she is still
substituting for her father as Counselor-at-Large for the Chicago Outfit
(Chicago’s mob) and things get more complicated when the leader of the Outfit
wants to speak to her. She now has to get information for the boss and still
deal with everything else in her life.
To make matters
worse, she’s being chased by ice cream trucks driven by creatures with red eyes
and white skin. They want to capture her and gather blood from her brain (the
source of her cold fury power). Sara Jane knows they may have something to do
with her family missing and is trying to find out what she can about them. So
now, she has to keep her family missing a secret, make sure the Outfit doesn’t
know her father isn’t sick, and try to stay away from the ice cream creatures.
M. Goeglein doesn’t disappoint in the second novel. It is filled with action
throughout the entire book. He introduces more obstacles for Sara Jane to face when
her cold fury starts to develop. When she is fighting for her life against the
ice cream creatures, she starts to have the urge to kill. It doesn’t help that
she seems to give off an electric shock when she gets angry. The stakes seem to
be higher in this book because Sara Jane’s personality starts to change. She
starts to make sacrifices that she might otherwise not have taken a few months
ago. One of which is Doug’s own safety.
also start to learn more about Sara Jane’s family. She starts to realize that
her family did not just help the Outfit solve disputes, but they may have been
a part of some horrible murders. Another surprise that she learns about her
family is that she has a great uncle, aunt, and cousin that live in California.
Things get tricky for Sara Jane when they show up in Chicago. She now has to
try to keep them unaware of her situation too. After she meets her cousin,
Heather, she discovers that she is not the only girl in the family to have cold
fury, but Heather’s version is very different, which causes some very
interesting events to happen.
This novel is filled with secrets,
action, fights, murder, and a very interesting ice cream club. Readers of Cold
Fury will not be disappointed. They will fly through this book and enjoy every
minute of it. More background is revealed in this novel and once you get to the
end you’ll be wanting more.
fury and the powers associated with it?
Chicago organized crime named Johnny Roselli whose job was, as the Godfather
once said, to make offers that people couldn’t refuse. To do this, he developed
something he called ‘the look.’ He’d intimidate his victims by staring at them
with his cold, unblinking blue eyes and threaten them in a way that made them
obey. The fact that he was carrying a gun and backed up by huge thugs ready to
break someone’s knees probably didn’t hurt.
about the Chicago mob?
called the Outfit. It’s ingrained in everything – the city’s history, government,
businesses, you name it. Everyone seems to someone who knows someone in the
Outfit.
character?
always been, male-centric. No women allowed. And I thought it would be cool to
see what happened when a super strong, kick-ass young woman infiltrated the
ranks and started telling them what to do.
realized there seemed to be a supernatural element to the story?
The truth is revealed in FLICKER & BURN. But to answer the question, nope,
not really. Readers went with it in the same way, I think, that they go with a
Stephen King novel when he incorporates all kind of elements into one fast
moving, creepy tale.
crime elements involved. Very secretive. That’s all I can say.
right now, there’s a book about the history of Venice, Every Day by David Levithan, something about the Spanish
Inquisition called God’s Jury, Joe
Torre’s autobiography, and a workbook, halfway filled in, called the Easy Italian Reader. I’m exhausted just
listing all of that stuff.
Being chased by creatures driving ice cream trucks? That's one way to get me to slow down! Glad you enjoyed this!
I always love a good creepy story that incorporates a surprise supernatural element. I guess that is because I grew up with SK the master! This sounds like fun!
Something tells me I would really enjoy this series! 🙂
That's a great reason for a female character. ^_^
This looks like an awesome, action-packed paranormal.
Even the cover somehow looks action packed. Great review and insightful author interview (why do I keep spelling author as arthur today?), thanks .
This series sounds so interesting! Although I think I would have nightmares about the critters driving the ice cream trucks. Haha!
Molli | Once Upon a Prologue
Okay I won this book and it's still on my shelf, I need to read it!