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8 of 9 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Riveting and Suspenseful Romance, October 27, 2009
This review is from: Sins of the Flesh (Sin Hunters) (Mass Market Paperback)
World famous cellist "Caterina `Cat' Shaw" consents to undergo risky experimental gene therapy at "Wardwell Biotech", to treat an inoperable brain tumor. She is considered a terminal case. Caterina is under the care of physicians "Dr. Raymond Edwards" and "Dr. Rudy Wells", co-founders of the Wardwell program. When Dr. Wells is found brutally murdered in the Wardwell laboratory, and Caterina is nowhere to be found she becomes the number one suspect and is hunted by authorities.
Dr. Edwards hires mercenary "Miguel `Mick'Carrera", well known for his success in solving client's `problems' by completing assignments discretely through whatever means necessary. Mick has developed a thick skin, the eldest son of a close Hispanic family who endured tough times; he honed his special skills through years of military training and experience providing private security. Despite the nature of his current work, as a reader I knew early on that Mick possesses an inner sense of integrity and honor. When something doesn't quite ring true for Mick with respect to Edwards' story about Caterina Shaw, a seeming delicate, demure cellist being a cold-blooded murderer, the red flags begin to fall.
Caterina Shaw is terrified, weak, and desperate. She has escaped confinement and her tormentors but her thoughts are muddled, she is experiencing difficulty focusing, remembering. Lost in a forest, naked and alone, one memory does surface, a place where her music brought her peace of mind. With what little reserve she has left she strikes out for this destination.
Through careful investigative work Mick tracks Caterina to the Academy of Music and what he finds completely unnerves him. Another mercenary hired by Edwards has found Caterina first and wounds her. Mick discovers bright droplets of yellow-green phosphoresced liquid along a corridor in his search for her. Further inspection reveals the liquid is blood, and when he does find Caterina, all that is visible is the clothing she is wearing, and her eyes when she opens them. Caterina, you see, is like a chameleon, in times of stress, her skin turns the same color and texture as whatever she is next to.
Mick takes the wounded, obviously abused and malnourished woman to his `safe house' and enlists the help of his physician sister "Liliana" to treat her. Liliana is an orthopedic resident at the local hospital and through connections is able to have Caterina's unusual blood secretly analyzed.
Along with the obvious signs of abuse on her body it is also discovered that Cat has a significant genetic DNA abnormality, and she has been pumped full of medication that induces disassociative behavior, hallucinations etc. At this point the alarm bells are screaming in Mick's mind with respect to the good Dr. Edwards and Wardwell Biotech.
Mick is a strong, handsome man with an air of danger that attracts the kind of woman who enjoys a quick affair and moves on. He has never been involved in a long-term relationship and given his line of work, he compensates by telling himself it's probably a good thing. Mick convinces himself that `Cat' is his `mission', `captive', `target', even to point of subconsciously referring to her as "Shaw".
However, as the days go on and the drugs wear off enabling Caterina's true personality to emerge, Mick cannot deny his developing feelings for her. Caterina Shaw is a beautiful, sensitive, delicate, refined musician who has been used in a medical experiment which has given her unusual "powers", at a huge cost. She also possesses a determination and strength that belie her other qualities.
In the setting of danger and suspense Caterina and Mick's unusual relationship develops into a deep love. The love scenes in this story are special and sensuous but not erotically graphic.
"Sins of the Flesh", is a fast paced page-turner, the narrative packed full of action and suspense with number of surprising plot twists. Ms. Piñeiro also developed strong supporting characters including some pretty nasty antagonists.
The one thing that niggled me is Liliana, Mick's sister. There is a sub-plot written into the story concerning her abusive relationship with staff physician "Harrison Edgar Williams". While it showed Liliana's strength of character in her management of Harrison's abuse, and reinforced Mick's love of his sister I didn't quite understand its necessity. I also felt Liliana being a physician was a little too convenient. However, the story was riveting and I was therefore able to overlook these small issues.
"Sins of the Flesh", is the first of a series Ms. Piñeiro is writing and I will look forward to reading her next book "Stone Cold Sins".
My Rating: 4.5 stars
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5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
., October 27, 2009
This review is from: Sins of the Flesh (Sin Hunters) (Mass Market Paperback)
Caterina "Cat" Shaw was a fighter to the tips of her toes and nothing was going to knock that out of her. She had overcome a painful childhood to become a concert cellist and was determined to recover from the brain tumor that had left her blind and unable to play. The fight would be a tough one but she trusted the doctors who offered the cure but when the treatment turned into a drug induced, experimental nightmare it was the fighter in her that saved her from doom.
A terrible accident at the lab she was being held at resulted in Cat being accused of murder so she started running. She ran for her life with only a minimum of herself functioning and found herself being chased by the police and the doctors' hired mercenaries. The police want to find out what happened that night and the other doctors want her back to eliminate her as evidence but evidence of what even Cat is not sure. The cure turned into an experiment which resulted by making her a person that can blend into her surroundings literally by her skin color taking on that which situation she finds herself. While this helps her stay alive the doctors' mercenary, Mick Carrera is very, very good at his job and only a few steps behind her. Before long Mick has located Cat but within a heartbeat he decides something is not right with the story he was told about her and before he turns her in he will find out what that something is. Cat is physically damaged and mentally not logical so Mick brings her to his safe house and calls upon his sister, Liliana, a physician herself to help him get to the bottom of all this mystery and help Cat recover, if they can. Mick tries to remain impersonal but there is something about this beautiful woman is calling him deep inside and the only answer seems to be to let himself believe that she is not the killer and could be so much more if he let her. But there are a number of distractions including Mick's nemesis who has nothing but revenge in his plans for Mick and Cat.
Cat soon discovers so much pleasure can be derived from such pain and Mick is providing all the pleasure she can handle. What a wonderful surprise to discover that he may be tough on the outside and all muscle and firm talk but inside he has the soft heart of poet that is warming her up with a fever from love not infection. They share an Hispanic heritage and come to discover that there is so much more to life than just the few pieces of happiness that can be had - what an amazing eye opener for two people so different yet so much alike when it comes to trying to find the other half of their soul.
What a wonderful story and a great book for not only the paranormal genre but also a touch of mystery as well as suspense. You may think you know what is going on and who the bad guys are but turn the page and discover that nothing is as it seems and the people that you were convinced were the evil doers may just not be after all.
Mary Gramlich ("The Reading Reviewer") [...]
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3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Sinfully Delicious, October 27, 2009
This review is from: Sins of the Flesh (Sin Hunters) (Mass Market Paperback)
Caterina Shaw is fighting for her life.
A talented cellist, she is quickly going blind. With no options left to her, she agrees to undergo a highly experimental gene treatment. The treatment restores her sight and turns her into someone she barely recognizes.
The experiment also turns her into a supposed murderer. Accused of a viscious murder she knows she didn't commit, Caterina takes her life into her own hands.
On the run for her life, Caterina tries to piece together what happened to her and come to grips with her new life. She knows that she will have to prove her innocence, that she will have to fight for her life, if she has any way of figuring out who the murderer really is.
She doesn't know that someone has been hired to find her.
Mick Carrera is a mercenary and has been hired to find and capture Caterina Shaw. He's been told that she is a vicious killer and that she must be stopped at all costs. But when Mick does track Caterina down, the description of her he has been given does not match what he sees.
Caterina is wounded and vulnerable and an incredible mystery. She heals quickly, more quickly than a normal human should. And her skin can take on any hue to camouflage herself. Mick knows that something horrible has been done to Caterina and before he can decide if she is a murderer, he must first find out what was done to her.
Normally he stays emotionally distant from captives in order to finish his mission, but there is something about Caterina that pulls at him and at his heart. Soon, the two are giving into the passion that consumes them even as a dangerous group is plotting their next move, with Caterina as the pawn...
Sins of the Flesh is a flat out incredible read. I was pulled into the story from the first page and kept enthralled until the last page was turned. My meagre plot summary can't even come close to the emotion, thrills and passion that Sins of the Flesh contains. It only scratches the surface.
Sins of the Flesh has something for everyone: passion, lust, romance, science fiction plot lines that tangle the reader up in its spell. It has engaging characters with depth and emotion and more thrills than a novel three times its size.
It takes a very talented writer to find the perfect balance of all these elements and Caridad Pineiro manages this with aplomb and flair. She has created the beginning of a series that can only get better. And that's saying something as Sins of the Flesh is the best romantic suspense novel I've read in years. It truly is her best book yet.
What I love most about Sins of the Flesh is that nothing is what you think its going to be. Caridad keeps the reader constantly on the edge of their seat with more twists and turns, thrills and chills than a roller coaster. Sins of the Flesh is a wild ride from start to finish that leaves you wanting more.
Caridad's strength lies not only in her writing, but in the incredibly real characters she creates. You become emotionally involved with Mick and Caterina and the secondary characters of the novel. These are people you care for, people you root for.
It's sometimes difficult in the romantic suspense genre for writers to create believable characters with depth, but Caridad has created a whole cast of characters that seem to live and breathe off the page. By the end of Sins of the Flesh, you know these people. She has created a world and its people that you would swear really exist.
Thankfully, Sins of the Flesh is the first in a series. The book had a satisfying ending but it did leave a few strings dangling to tempt me with more. I can't wait to find out what happens and what sinfully delicious story Caridad will give us next.
This is the best romance I have read in years. If you read one good book this fall, make it Sins of the Flesh by Caridad Pineiro. After the first sinful bite, I can guarantee you'll want more.
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