James is skilled, efficient, and deadly, a hired blade navigating the shifting alliances of a deteriorating Assassin’s Guild. Then he meets Thalia, an alluring but troubled dancing girl who offers him a way out—if he’ll help her kill a powerful nobleman. With the Guild falling apart, it just might be worth the risk. But when you live, breathe, and love in a world that’s forever flirting with death, the slightest misstep can be poison.
I decided to read the prequel novella to Livia Blackburne's Midnight Thief, Poison Dance. It was a freebie download, so I thought why not? And sometimes the case may be that these prequels are really good to read before the novel because you'll be in the know on things only briefly mentioned in the book itself!
Although, since this novella deals with characters other than the main ones from Midnight Thief, I have yet to know how imperative this prequel is prior to the novel, but I'm reading that one next, so the answer if forthcoming!
Anyway...Poison Dance is the prequel to the upcoming Midnight Thief, here we meet James an assassin and a member of an assassin's guild, which recently got a new leader when the first one was murdered. James isn't too thrilled with the new leader, but that seems besides the point. It's not long before he meets Thalia, a dancing girl who has a great deal of info to share. She also wants James' help. A simple matter really, just killing a man.
Thalia wants to learn how to assassinate a man and she comes to James for help. The man in question is someone from her past who hurt her (in a way) and she wants revenge.
It was a bit of a slow-going read at times. Only because I had previously read what Midnight Thief would be about and couldn't figure out how this novella would tie into that story when we have a different cast of main characters. But again, time and all that! As I said, the pacing was a tad slow, only because it involved a lot of training on Thalia's part until the big day came.
In the meantime, the relationship between James and Thalia grows. I never really got an overly-romantic vibe from them. There simply wasn't enough time in the story for things to progress to a certain point.
And the ending here, Oh wow! Definitely wasn't expecting that. If this is how Livia ends a novella, I can't wait to see what she does with the novel! Although, if it's like this one, I might have a different kind of reaction at the end!
Overall Rating 3.5/5 stars
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