Review: Widow's Web (Elemental Assassin #7) by Jennifer Estep

Title: Widow's Web

Series: Elemental Assassin #7

Previous books in this series: Spider's Bite (#1) | Web of Lies (#2) | Venom (#3) | Tangled Threads (#4) | Spider's Revenge (#5) | By A Thread (#6)

Short stories in this series: Poison (#0.1) | Web of Deceit (#0.2) | Spider's Bargain (#0.5) | Web of Death (#1.5) | Wasted (#2.7) | Tangled Dreams (#3.5) | Tangled Schemes (#3.7) | Spider’s Nemesis (#4.5) | Thread of Death (#5.5)

Author: Jennifer Estep

Genre: Adult, urban fantasy

Publication date: August 2012

Published by: Pocket Books

Source: Own paperback

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Synopsis:

I used to murder people for money, but lately it’s become more of a survival technique.

Once an assassin, always an assassin. So much for being plain old Gin Blanco. With every lowlife in Ashland gunning for me, I don’t need another problem, but a new one has come to town anyway. Salina might seem like a sweet Southern belle, but she’s really a dangerous enemy whose water elemental magic can go head-to-head with my own Ice and Stone power. Salina also has an intimate history with my lover, Owen Grayson, and now that she’s back, she thinks he’s hers for the taking. Salina’s playing a mysterious game that involves a shady local casino owner with a surprising connection to Owen. But they call me the Spider for a reason. I’m going to untangle her deadly scheme, even if it leaves my love affair hanging by a thread.

My rating: ★★★★★
Owen’s old flame, Salina, is back to not only wreak havoc in town, but also in Gin and Owen’s relationship. I loved this book, but it seriously broke my heart.

Salina was the absolute worst! I hated her as soon as she walked into the goddamn room. She didn’t even have to utter a single word before I knew I hated her. Seriously, this girl is messed up. It made me sad how Gin kept comparing herself to her. I mean, sure, bad things happened to Salina when she was growing up. But really awful things happened to Gin too. And yeah, she’s an assassin, but at least she lives by a code and has a moral compass. Salina is selfish and ruthless and enjoys torturing people just for funsies. The worst part is that Owen doesn’t realize how awful she is.

I love Owen, I really do. But god, he was just being really dumb in this book. He was so blinded by the love he felt for Salina, he didn’t realize the monster that actually lurked underneath.

“I’m not defending her,” Owen replied. “But Salina obviously needs help.”
“Oh yeah,” Finn sniped. “She needs help in the form of a bullet to the head—nothing else.”

(I adore Finn! Lol.) I just could not believe his blindness toward Salina—it was frustrating! The whole time I was so worried about what all this meant for Gin and Owen’s relationship. I just love them together! They are perfect for one another and Gin finally found someone who accepts all of her, even her murderous side.

But in the end, Gin does what needs to be done, the right thing, and kills Salina. And Owen’s reaction broke my heart to pieces. Even though he had chosen Gin over Salina when Salina had cornered him, after Gin kills Salina he just... he is shocked and confused and I guess not entirely over that demon of a woman. Goddamnit Owen. But Gin is so selfless—she’s too good—and agrees to give him space while he sorts through his feelings. And this is about the part I started crying...

I’ll give Salina this though, her water magic was pretty cool. It’s too bad she used it to torture people. But these water kills were insane... and very creative. The descriptions were just amazing!

But Gin is better, obviously. She is as badass as ever, but more importantly, she is a good person and that’s why I love her! Her ability to kick serious ass is just an amazing plus! Lol. Seven books into this series and I thought I already knew how badass she was. Turns out she’s more badass than I thought! Gin just keeps surprising me. Especially when she gets sassy—I love that! Lol.

As for Phillip Kincaid, he was a very interesting character.

Underworld figure. Casino boss. Geek.

We only got glimpses of him in previous books, but in this book we find out what connections he has with Owen, because there are some! It was insane and I was not expecting that! It was very interesting stuff. And I actually liked him from the start.

Anyway, I really loved this book, even though it shattered my heart. It had great character development, amazing action, really cool magic, and a very interesting story. I expect nothing less from a series that became a fast favorite of mine.

Have you read this book? If so, what did you think about it? If not, what do you think? Does it sound like something you might want to read? Leave me a link to your review or comment below! :)