Cold Fury (A Cold Fury Novel) [Hardcover]

T.M. Goeglein (Author)

Book Description

Release date: July 24, 2012 | Series: A Cold Fury Novel

Jason Bourne meets The Sopranos in this breathtaking adventure

Sara Jane Rispoli is a normal sixteen-year-old coping with school and a budding romance--until her parents and brother are kidnapped and she discovers her family is deeply embedded in the Chicago Outfit (aka the mob).

Now on the run from a masked assassin, rogue cops and her turncoat uncle, Sara Jane is chased and attacked at every turn, fighting back with cold fury as she searches for her family. It's a quest that takes her through concealed doors and forgotten speakeasies--a city hiding in plain sight. Though armed with a .45 and 96K in cash, an old tattered notebook might be her best defense--hidden in its pages the secret to "ultimate power." It's why she's being pursued, why her family was taken, and could be the key to saving all of their lives.

Action packed, with fresh, cinematic writing, Cold Fury is a riveting and imaginative adventure readers will devour.

Editorial Reviews

From School Library Journal

Gr 8-10-Sara Jane Rispoli is no ordinary teen. While she's worried about the regular stuff-boys, friends, and the upcoming school dance-she also has to contend with situations nobody her age should. Coming home after school one day, she finds her front door ajar and the house ransacked. While investigating, she is attacked by a large man in a black ski mask. Her instincts take over, and she begins an epic run for her life that, she hopes, will uncover the truth about why her family vanished and whether or not they are still alive. While some passages of this story are engaging, including action sequences that are forthright and expeditious, they can't mask the weaker elements, including unrealistic dialogue and poor characterization. While Sara Jane's uncle and his mysterious wife serve their intended purpose as the novel's chief antagonists, their motivations are never clear enough to justify why they are willing to kill Sara for her mysterious silver briefcase. Crooked Detective Smelt and her seemingly endless army of evil police officers are more like campy caricatures than believable villains. Sara Jane herself is never really a protagonist readers will get behind, as she seems more interested in cracking corny jokes about those chasing her than actually saving the family she claims to care so much about.-Ryan Donovan, New York Public Libraryα(c) Copyright 2011. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.

Review

"Readers will no doubt enjoy the action-packed scenes and quick getaways . . . an engaging thriller."--VOYA

"Engaging, including action sequences that are forthright and expeditious."--SLJ

"For readers who have had to look to adult suspense like James Bond for a rush, this one has a heroine worth cheering."--Booklist

“...several fun hooks...”--Publishers Weekly
 
"Goeglein’s book has a lot going for it—Sara Jane's school friendships, her warm relationship with her family, cool Mob stuff, boxing action, some humor . . . " --Kirkus Reviews

--This text refers to the Paperback edition.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Age Range: 12 and up
  
• Hardcover: 288 pages
• Publisher: Putnam Juvenile (July 24, 2012)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0399257209
• ISBN-13: 978-0399257209
• Product Dimensions: 5.8 x 1.1 x 8.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 15.5 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (33 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #797,572 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Originally posted at Girls *Heart* Books November 12, 2012

By Lana

Format:Hardcover

[...]

I learned about Cold Fury from this blog tour, because the author offered a hard copy to read, and since, at the time, I was that girl who didn't own a Kindle, so a hard-copy reminded Miss Tammy of me. And ooooohh, I cannot thank you enough, girlie!

Cold Fury has got to be the best book I've read all year, if not the best book I've read in the past three years (mind you, three years ago is when I started to love reading). Sara Jane is a badass who didn't ONCE whine about how she could never talk to her friends again and poor-me-poor-me and lemme tell ya, with what happened to the poor girl, she had every right to break out sobbing at least once. But no! No self-loathing or moping, Sara Jane means business, and I can't tell you guys how much I LOVE that! She even manages to add a little comic relief to the story every once in a while with a witty remark or quirky thought; which is good, because I was close to having a heart attack a lot of the time...

Every character has an actual purpose and is brought back into the story at exactly the right time, leaving no loose ends or forgotten story lines. From the villains to chatty best friends, to an Italian Greyhound and rats, no one is left out, and I think that is just wonderful. The world kept on spinning at Fep Prep even when Sara Jane was somewhere else (i.e., running for her life) and Goeglein didn't fail to bring it up, nor did he fail to put suspense into that section, as well. I have stubs for nails and I have torn the first layer of skin off my lips when my nails started to bleed because of this book.

And once you get to the climax, it's easy to see how much thought was put into this. Cold Fury makes such a hard left turn to the who-done-it, and I had NO idea that was coming, yet, it was mentioned near the beginning, and I literally started banging my head against the page that I didn't even consider that outcome. This means; it is written VERY well!

Cold Fury made me laugh, cry, and hyperventilate multiple times, without a dull moment throughout all 320 pages! I highly recommend this to anyone who loves a good thriller, (hell, to anyone who loves a good book) and I am anxiously awaiting the next novel in the trilogy!

3 of 4 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Intense, fast paced, and tantalizing first book-- with a kick butt protagonist! July 24, 2012

By Christina (Ensconced in YA) TOP 500 REVIEWER

Format:Hardcover

I won this book from goodreads first reads giveaways in exchange for an honest review.

Cold Fury by T.M. Goeglein is about a wonderful protagonist, Sara Jane, and her realization her family is missing. She has been trained as a boxer, and as she investigates her family's disappearance, she realizes that her parents have been keeping secrets upon secrets. Now she is the only one that can figure out the truth and save them.

I love the fact that I have so many books coming in that I can approach each book with fresh eyes since I can't remember what they are about. Cold Fury was a really pleasant surprise. It's a totally different take on the YA genre. We are introduced into a dark world of lies and suspense. Sara Jane really makes this story work-- she's tough, intelligent, resilient, and fierce. I loved reading about her, learning about her history through her eyes, and wanted to continue with her on her journey. The supporting characters are terrific as well. The one character that I felt really stood out was Doug, one of Sara Jane's best friends. One reviewer was disappointed by the stereotypical characters that were in this book, but I felt that while on the outside they could be described as such, Goeglein develops them in a way that turns the stereotype on its head.

The next book will really define if this trilogy is going to work, but the first book is a breathless, intense ride that develops a world that is intriguing and chilling. I was very impressed with this novel and cannot wait to see the next installment.

2.0 out of 5 stars Disappointment March 12, 2013

By Sameer

Format:Hardcover|Amazon Verified Purchase

Book Review: Cold Fury
Vaibhav Vagal

Sara Jane Rispoli is no ordinary teenager. While she is worried about the regular stuff-boys, friends, and the upcoming school dance, she also has to contend with situations nobody her age should. Coming home after school one day, she finds her front door ajar and the house ransacked. While investigating, she is ambushed by a large man in a black ski mask. Now on the run from a masked assassin, rogue cops, and her uncle, Sara Jane is chased and attacked at every turn, fighting back with cold fury as she searches for her family. Cold Fury, by T.M. Goeglein is an action-packed thriller with many twists and turns. This is the first book of Goeglein's breath-taking trilogy.
However, this book had quite a few aspects, which was disappointing. One of them was the depth and portrayal of the characters, While Sara Jane's uncle and his suspicious wife serve their intended purpose as the novel's main antagonist, and their motivations are not clear for the reader. Why do they desperately want to kill Sara Jane? Sara Jane herself is never really a protagonist readers will fully support, as she seems more interested in cracking corny jokes, than trying to save her family. Throughout the novel there are sad moments that would have devastated anybody in real life, but not in the book. Sara Jane's emotions feel fake, as Goeglein did not put enough time and effort into making Sara Jane's emotions more realistic. For a 13+ book, which the author himself rated, the book's language seems extremely childish, and below any normal eight grader's reading level. "I have good hair and acceptable skin, but my nose is Roman, as in it's roamin' all over my face, and I plan to do something about it." (2) Another reason, why I did not enjoy the book was the mass information given to the reader. There is quite a few information given about the history of the mob. The author obviously is very knowledgeable in this area, and lets the reader know it. However, at times, this book felt like a history lesson, instead of a thriller. Some of the relationships in this book did not feel genuine such as the relationship between Sara and Max. They only watched a few movies together, and talked on the phone, but yet, Sara said she loved Max, and would go anywhere in the world with him. This was too much "love" for so little time spent together.

In conclusion, I did not enjoy this book at all. At times, this book was suspenseful, and put me on the edge of my seat, but at other times, this novel had me skipping pages. The author putting more thought and effort into this book could improve this book. For me, the writing style was a major factor in my discontent of this book. I would not recommend this book to anybody in middle school, however this book would be good for someone looking for a quick and easy read.