The Alias
Author: Mandi Tucker Slack
Publisher: Bonneville (Cedar Fort)
Published Date: May 2011
Softcover; 204 pages
Genre: Mystery-Suspense
Reviewed by: Shanda
FTC FYI: free review copy in exchange for an honest review
Summary (from Goodreads):
After a long and difficult divorce, Jacey thinks the worst is over. Little does she know she’ll soon be forced to go undercover to protect her family, and in the process, she’ll risk losing her identity, her future, and her heart. With a lightning pace, a good dose of humor, and a plot that’s full of suspense, this thrilling novel is an edge-of-your-seat read.
I really like they way the cityscape and landscape from the two main locations are blended together on the front cover. It caught my eye. The story caught my attention as well, and I had no problem turning pages because I wanted to see what would happen. I believe this is the author’s debut novel, and if so, she did a great job on her first published novel.
I liked the main characters and the relationship between Jacey and her son, Blaze. I despised John, her ex-husband, though at times his character felt a tad bit cliche. The writing is good with a nice flow and the suspense was effective. The climax near the end in the woods was very well done. I found it gripping and was swept up in the emotion between mother and son. I also enjoyed the relationship between Grant and Blaze.
Those who like a little romance with their suspense won’t be disappointed. I wasn’t sure how to take Kale at first, but soon caught on as to why he was acting the way he was toward Jacey.
At about 200 pages, The Alias is a fairly quick read and held my attention until the end.
There were only a few things that came up that I might have changed. Using the name Blaze for the boy was distracting to me. It is different enough from the other characters’ names that it stuck out to me and pulled me from the story a bit. The next thing could be considered a ***SPOILER*** so if you have read the book or don’t care about spoilers, click and drag to highlight the text below to read it. If you hate spoilers, then don’t. :)
There was good romantic tension throughout the first part of Jacey and Kale’s developing relationship, but I was disappointed in the lack of kisses. There was one small kiss at the field office, but that was all. When they said those three wonderful words and became engaged at the end, there wasn’t even a hug. I know this is a mainly a suspense novel but considering the amount of focus on Kale and Jacey’s budding romance in the last half of the novel, it would have been nice to have a bit more lip-locking (clean, of course). That’s just my preference, though.
I found The Alias to be an enjoyable read and give it 3.5 stars out of 5. I look forward to reading more of Mandi’s novels in the future.
The Alias can be purchased at Amazon. The Kindle edition is nicely priced at $3.99.
