Reviewed by Tori (Vicki)

TITLE: Cronin’s Key IV: Kennard’s Story

SERIES: Cronin’s Key #4

AUTHOR: N.R. Walker

PUBLISHER: Self Published

LENGTH: 1305kb

RELEASE DATE: January 26, 2019

BLURB:

Kennard and Stas have been enjoying being newly bonded mates, hidden away for the last six months in Stas’ cabin, deep in the forests of Northern Russia. When they get a visit from Alec, Cronin, Eiji, and Jodis, Kennard and Stas decide to return to London where they get news of a supernatural disturbance in India.

Excited for a new adventure, the band of friends embark on a journey like they’ve never seen before. Following a trail of snakes and serpents, they slip through gates into timeless dimensions all over the world, leaving them without their vampire powers. Even Alec is powerless as they follow a trail of gates and doorways to their final destination.

But the bad guy isn’t who they think it is, and Kennard will need to draw on his past to save their future. Because history is never what it seems…

REVIEW:

Wow! Sneaky… a fourth Cronin book when we all thought the series had ended!

I am going to write this review assuming you have read the first books in this series, instead of giving a full synopsis. As we know, All of the main characters of this series are some serious badass vampires, and we followed them through three adventures (tied together) as they saved the world. The series may star mated pair Cronin and Alec, but they are joined by Jodis and Eiji, and eventually Kennard and Stas as they pair up as well. This book is more focused on Kennard and Stas, although all six are together for the majority of the adventure.

The adventure part of the plot was quite exciting, but very similar to the other three books. Lots of running around, lots of cultural symbolism, lots of snarky banter among the Scooby gang, and lots of killing of mythical beings. I did enjoy it, but…. it wasn’t anything we haven’t seen before. I LOVED the first book because it was so unique, then it repeated and repeated. So this was a shorter version of the first three books. Which means that if you enjoyed the first ones, there’s a pretty good chance you’ll enjoy this one as well.

What really made the story enjoyable for me was the relationship between Kennard and Stas. They are a super different pair, Kennard is English, Stas Russian. Kennard is rich, spoiled, and fussy, Stas is none of those things! Kennard is borderline obnoxious, and very outgoing, again, Stas is NOT. Physically they are very different, but that just makes them even sexier together. I liked the sexual relationship between them, they are HOT, but also the emotional connection came through as well. They are ridiculously sweet to each other, and very flirty. Oh, we also find out Kennard’s history and lineage, and that was a surprise!

It was nice to see the other couples too, and check in with how they are doing. I still love Cronin and Alec, and I liked seeing them deeply bonded. The relationship between all six characters is fun, and they all work well together to solve this latest issue. But this is Kennard and Stas’s story, and they are lovely together.

For me the writing did feel a bit rushed at times, this is a shorter book and lots was squished in. I would have liked to have had a little less happen and a little more detail of scenes, and just a chance to “see” what was happening more, if that makes sense. There is lots of fast paced jumping around from site to site, with not much time to get a grasp of what was happening. But the times that focused on the relationship between Kennard and Stas specifically made up for any issues I had in the plot. And the relationship between all of the characters really, that’s my favorite part. As always, I love this author and appreciate anything she gives us. A chance to visit this world again was awesome!

RATING: 

BUY LINK:

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