I’m working my way through Anne Stuart’s Ice series out of order (5, 3, 1, 2) and this definitely my least favorite entry in the series to date. It’s thrilling and there are exotic locations coupled with the mundane tedium that is the “hurry up and wait” lifestyle, but this book definitely suffers from the infamous sophomore slump.

My greatest grievance with the book is the character of Genevieve. She’s entirely uneven throughout and at some points almost too stupid to live. I almost got the impression that Stuart was afraid to make her too strong, and while she saddled Genny with a number of vulnerabilities (rough childhood, brutal assault, reliance on tranquilizers), the character continued to brush them aide and stride to the fore as a confident, collected woman. It was as though Stuart was trying to write a character in the midst of coming to terms with her past, while the character herself was far beyond it. This resulted in a few unfortunate circumstances when Genny held the Idiot Ball but the ever exasperated Peter called her out on them each time. (view spoiler)[The ending in the converted school in particular makes me want to bang my head against my desk. (hide spoiler)]

Peter is a quintessential Ice hero, with his dedication to the mission, lack of a life outside the job, and complete willingness to kill his romantic interest. I found him to be slightly less charming than the other heroes in the series, and he too was a bit uneven.

But for the problems I had with the characters, the book was still a more than satisfying read. It sets up the third book, Ice Blue and it’s hero, Taka, quite nicely. I don’t plan to re-read this one quite as often as the others in the series, but it will remain a part of my permanent collection