Customer Reviews

Heat Stroke (Weather Warden, Book 2)

5 star:		(21)
4 star:		(21)
3 star:		(6)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

Jo was once a weather warden, helping to protect humanity from the wrath of Mother Nature. But at the end of the first book Jo is killed. David, a powerful djinn, manages to resurrect her as a djinn. Jo now must leave all things human behind and learn how to be a djinn.

But it is not that simple. She is still linked to David and draining his power. She must learn to harness power on her own. Meanwhile something strange is going on in the ethereal plane and it has David scared.

Jo is then assigned to study with Patrick, the only successful human-to-djinn transformation. And then the action really begins.

Unlike the first book which starts with Jo on the run, this one starts more slowly and it is quite a few pages before the action begins. But once it begins it does not stop. As the story races along we learn about the origins of the djinn, ifrit, what is going on in the ethereal plane, the meaning of servitude, more of how djinn work, and some of the limitations of the wardens. In the end we are left with a satisfying conclusion but also a cliffhanger for the next volume (it can't be released soon enough).

More action like in the first book but with greater depth to the world of the wardens and djinn. A great follow-up to the first and definitely not the last.

I loved "Ill Wind", the first in this series, and immediately after finishing it bought the next 3 books in the series.

Heat Stroke, although a very good book (thus the 5 stars) didn't quite work as well for me - it felt rather like a linking book, with a far more `up in the air' ending. It was a relief to me to know that I had the third book already so could continue the story.

Caine's world is more interesting in this book as we start to learn what being a Djinn entails. Joanne is settling into her new life and existence as a Djinn and having to learn, very rapidly, how to control her new powers. We meet new characters, including the almost-deity Jonathan, as well as meeting again some of the previous characters like Paul and Lewis. Caine isn't afraid to kill off some of her characters (I'm not going to spoil it by saying who), although I keep being rather worried for David. We have so many hints at possible love-interest between Joanne and Lewis, Joanne and Paul, that you wonder when David's going to get the chop. Fortunately not in this book. You can spend a lot of time thinking about the interesting side issue as to whether Djinn have the same levels of morality as humans when they can be commanded to kill people, to rape people - perhaps this will be further explored in the next books.

The main `threat that involves Joanne saving the day' in this book I found a little confusing. Yes, the twinkly sparkly things were rather different than a dragon or evil despot, but I didn't really understand how it all worked. Perhaps reading the book again will help me to get it straight in my mind. Nevertheless, the middle section of the book dragged a little to me, as Joanne whizzes around the world and Djinn world finding things out and trying to solve problems with her huge power but very limited understanding of the situation. Once again, she comes across very much as a Stephanie Plum character (from Janet Evanovich's very funny crime novels) and I love her sassy nature. She's an excellent heroine.

The end of the book definitely improved, and we were left dangling on a precipice of an extremely serious situation that no doubt Joanne, David and Lewis will be doing their utmost to fix in the next book.

I did like this book, but I feel that it perhaps didn't have quite the immediacy of her first offering. The writing is great fun as always, well-paced and humorous in many places, and so it is worth a read.

I loved "Ill Wind," the first book in the Weather Wardens series, and "Heat Stroke" is still the better book by far. I'd read in an interview with the author that she originally had a plot device that ended "Ill Wind" differently and boy, am I glad it slipped her mind to do so. The consequences of David's act form the core plot of "Heat Stroke," and dealing with them makes for some of the best reading I've seen.

If you're not absolutely entranced by the relationship between Joanne and David, the first part may seem slow to you. (It wasn't a problem for me at all. :D) Your perserverance will be more than rewarded.

At the end of the book, I'm a little unclear on exactly how secret the Wardens are in this version of reality, but that seems a petty nit to pick in the overall scheme of things.

One last request...may I have Jonathan when the author is done with him? ;)

Ex-Weather Warden Joanna Baldwin has died and returned as a djinn. But being djinn is not a 'get out of dead free' card as she quickly finds out. David, the free-djinn who used his magic to rescue her, is sharing his power to keep them both alive. Joanne's got to learn--and learn quickly--how to live on her own, else both she and David may well die and for good. Book's decent enough to keep reading, but the first part of it wades through a lot of 'relationship material' between her and David that I could do without. The point off is for that and the cliffhanger ending.

I'm a big fan of fantasy series, but one of my pet peeves is a book that ends with a cliffhanger. It just seems greedy on the part of the author to force you to buy another book to get closure. That said, this was a fun read. I don't know that I'd compare it to the early Anita Blake books as some of the other reviewers did, but it sure beats the recent plotless porn from that series. Still some work to go for it to be up to the level of some of the other fantasy series like Jim Butcher's Dresden Files, but worth checking out.

I was pleasantly surprised by the first book in this series - 'Ill Wind' - and was somewhat looking forward to reading the follow up. It didn't take me long to lose some of that enthusiasm as I started to get the impression that Heat Stroke was going to go much more into the romance novel direction than the first book. But I persevered, because there is nothing worse than a reviewer that say, "It was so bad I didn't finish it". I do not care what you have to say about a book if you did not read it (now I will climb down off my soapbox).
Heat stroke did not turn into a romance novel, but continued the style and flair of the first book. There are elements of romance, and I would go so far as to say that it is the core theme of the book, but the story itself is about 'real' people living in a very unreal world. Most of the characters feel like they are alive. There are some exceptions. I did think the villains in Heat Stroke could have been given a little more depth. That and the cliffhanger ending are the main reasons I went with 4 stars, but I will read the next book in the series.
People who like the Charlene Harris `Southern Vampire Mysteries', Jim Butcher's `The Dresden Files' and/or Carrie Vaughn's "Kitty" books will probably like this `Weather Warden' series - and vice versa.

In the first book, Joanne dies, but then wakes up a Djinn, thanks to hunky David. She thinks at first that everything will be alright, but when the head honcho, Jonathan, of the Djinn insist on seeing her and David, she realizes her mistake. David had to give up a piece of himself to save her and now according to Jonathan, David will die unless Joanne learns to become a Djinn in her own right, or dies. But that's not all! Strange blue lights are coming into the world. Only the Djinn sees it and apparently it is lethal to them. It's up to Joanne and David to figure out what and stop it. But that's not all! Now that Joanne is a Djinn she runs the risk of being claimed. And is, by a pimply face, hormonal teenage boy with a psycho step mother.

What a great series. You will have the hardest time putting this down. I've read the first book and second in only one day each. I'll have to go out to buy the third, which could not happen soon enough since this one leaves you with a cliff hanger.

Happy reading!

Being dead is so much more than you were ever told. That's what you find out, only after the fact. And only when a Djinn has whisked you away and made you his. Which, as a matter of fact, makes him half of what he was and the two of you so much more. Unfortunately, that's not quite enough to save the world. You get turned into a 16 year old's living dream. His wicked stepmother messes with your lover. The Uber-Storm kicks in and many Free Djinn die. The adrenaline rush of this book only settles as you turn the last page. Damn! You'll have to wait again to see what's next. Heat Stroke? Hot stuff!

I have read both this book and the the first installment in Caine's Weather Warden series. I have to say I enjoyed both, although I think I prefer the Ill Wind a little more.

This book takes off where the last one ended, exploring the main character's life from her new Djinn status. No sooner does she start learning about new powers and the difficulties controlling them, then a new nemesis appears and it's time to do battle again.

Most of what I enjoyed in this book were elements that were present from the first novel; Tough,independent woman fiction with a little steamy fanservice. I still enjoy the fact that there is some cleverly placed humor and constantly keeps your attention.

My problem with this novel is that it really could have been written with a little more respect for the genre. The dangerous "sparklies" are placed with no explanation of what they are or where they come from. We learn towards the end of the book that there was a previous occurance of these sparklies; however, nothing more than that. Description and events are vague at best, and sometimes I reread to make sure I hadn't missed something-which it turns out I hadn't. The book is really rushed through, as though to just hit the page mark and publishing deadline. The characters could have been much more dynamic, characters could have explored much more personal struggle, and it could have turned into what I like to consider a REAL sci-fi fantasy novel.....with some real meat in it.

On the plus side though I can almost picture it as a comic cartoon or movie. If that's what she was going for then it's great, but it seems to almost be slipping in the Meredith Gentry series, where each successive novel becomes more and more erratic, giving in to shock value and soft porn to keep people interested.

I'm on the fence with this one. It's fun reading, but not memorable.

I read the first book in the Weather Warden series, Ill Wind and really enjoyed it. Heat Stroke was an excellent follow-up to the first book.

Heat Stroke pretty much takes up from where book one left off. From beginning to end it is action packed and keeps you hooked. While the first book introduces you into the world of the Weather Wardens, this book focuses more on the world of the Djinn and the underlying tensions between them and the Wardens. This book also goes more into depth about Joanne and David's growing relationship and the repurcussions of the actions taken to protect that relationship in book one. As well as these two main characters, the secondary characters really stood out in this book and helped flesh out the story. I hope the author gives more focus on Louis in the next book, he shows great potential and I feel his character deserves some more examination.

The book ended in a big surprise change for Joanne and a cliffhanger as a whole for the series and while frustrating will definitely have you looking forward to book three in the series, Chill Factor.

Great job Ms. Caine!