Review of Zenka by Alison Brodie. @alisonbrodie2

Today I have a review of Zenka from Alison Brodie who kindly sent me a copy of the book for review.

Blurb:  Ruthless, capricious, and loyal.

Zenka is a Hungarian pole-dancer with a dark past.

When cranky London mob boss, Jack Murray, saves her life she vows to become his guardian angel – whether he likes it or not.  Happily, she now has easy access to pistols and shotguns.

Jack learns he has a son, Nicholas, a male nurse with a heart of gold.  Problem is, Nicholas is a wimp.

Zenka takes charges.  Using her feminine wiles and gangland contacts, she aims to turn Nicholas into a son any self-respecting crime boss would be proud of.  And she succeeds!

Nicholas transforms from pussycat to mad dog, falls in love with Zenka, and finds out where the bodies are buried – because he buries them.  He’s learning fast that sometimes you have to kill, or be killed.

As his life becomes more terrifying, questions have to be asked:

How do you tell a crime boss you don’t want to be his son?

And is Zenka really who she says she is?

Praise for Zenka:

“A riveting read.  Powerful.  Spicy” –D. Donovan, Senior Reviewer, Midwest Book Review

5*  “To say I loved this story would be a massive understatement” –Bloggers from Down Under

5*  “Top of my list for best fiction this year” – Lauren Sapala, WriteCity

5*  “You won’t be able to put this book down” –Laura Reading

5*   “Brodie nails it again. Intelligent wit and outstanding writing” –Charlie Elliott, author of Life Unbothered.

My Rating: 5/5

Review: Having previously read Brake Failure and really enjoyed it, you can find my review here, I was excited when Alison contacted me asking if I was interested in reading and reviewing her newest book Zenka. Obviously I said yes, given this is a review of that book, and I am really pleased I did.

This book was a joy to read. Zenka is an unstoppable force and I doubt many people would be able to say no to her. She’s fun and bright and brings the story alive, it leaps off the page because of her. The other characters are good, well-written and fit well with the story but this is Zenka’s story and it works because of her.  The letters she writes home to a friend are brilliantly fun snippets that show another side to her and give more depth to her character. The mix of crime and romance is handled well and works (something that can’t be said for all authors) and the element of humour that runs through brings it all together like a perfectly baked cake.

Alison Brodie is fast becoming a favourite author of mine. Simply because her books are always so well-written that you are guaranteed a good read. If you want a book that is a joyride of a read with characters that are a bit larger than life personality wise then this, and Brake Failure, are definitely books you should check out.

Author bio:

Alison Brodie is a Scot, with French Huguenot ancestors on her mother’s side.

Brodie is an international, best-selling author.  Her books have been published by Hodder & Stoughton (UK), Heyne (Germany) and Unieboek (Holland).  Reviews for her debut, FACE TO FACE:  “Fun to snuggle up with” –GOOD HOUSEKEEPING Pick of the Paperbacks.  “Vane but wildly funny leading lady” -Scottish Daily Mail.

Brodie has now gone “indie”.  Here are some editorial reviews for her recent books.

BRAKE FAILURE:  “Masterpiece of humor” -Midwest Book Review

THE DOUBLE:   “Proof of her genius in writing fiction” -San Francisco Book Review.

ZENKA:  “ZENKA is top of my list for best fiction this year.  If Tina Fey and Simon Pegg got together to write a dark and hilarious mobster story with a happy ending, ZENKA would be the result.”  -Lauren Sapala, WriteCity

AUTHOR LINKS:

Twitter:  https://twitter.com/alisonbrodie2

Website:  http://www.alisonbrodiebooks.com/untitled

Goodreads:  https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/35845259-zenka

Facebook:   https://www.facebook.com/AlisonBrodieAuthor/