Falling from Grace

The Gift of Grace #3

by Frog Jones, Esther Jones

Robert Lorents has done it all. He beat back the demonic Cythymau's invasion of our world. He's rescued Andrea, the damsel who'd haunted his thoughts for a year. And, while doing all of that, he'd still managed to graduate high school and get himself into college.

But everything has its price, and for Robert that cost has been heavy. The aftermath of the battle left law enforcement on high alert, just as eager to kill as to capture summoners. New laws are being put into place to hunt down summoners everywhere. And sure, the Spokane Grove's ranks have been bolstered by a couple of additions, like Grace's best-bud Amy-but it also includes Robert's new boss/attempted assassin. Add to that a summoner who can barely move a piece of paper around and a hyper-enthusiastic thirty-foot hedgehog/raccoon spirit with tremendous power and even greater boundary issues.

And Andrea.

Andrea Rothstein might have escaped Cythymau's world-but after centuries of being chained up as the demon's magical battery, not even home feels like home. She's not about to trust anyone or anything that might run a chance of putting her back in someone's debt again.

The Grove is fractured, and when that begins to expose its members to law enforcement, all of them must rely on each other-whether they want to or not. Because when the world calls you a "reality terrorist," it's time to find out who you can rely on... and who already had a knife at your back.

266 pages, Paperback

First published January 31, 2016

About the author

Frog met his wife Esther as they attended Eastern Washington University. After a decade, they finally managed to combine their writing talents. Criminal defense attorney by day and fantasy author by night, Frog Jones brings his knowledge of the criminal justice and child protection systems to life in the Grace Under Fire series

Reviews

[Rachel Barnard · Rating 5 out of 5]

“We’d been re-branded from “summoners” to “reality terrorists” overnight in order to give the politicians a bigger gavel.” (Page 8).

Robert and Grace freed Andrea from her centuries’ long slavery to Cythumau in Book 2, Coup de Grace, but is she really free? Though it has only been several decades in this weave, she has been away so long and in captivity so long that being human is now something foreign. But when someone takes a bullet for her, she will have to step up to protect him, right? Meanwhile, Robert is trying to live a normal college life, but summoning keeps getting in the way of his plans. At least, that’s what he tells himself. Robert is still the cause of his own undoing, but with Grace gone, he will have to lead the Spokane Grove out of trouble all by himself. Unless, that is, Andrea is willing to help.

The main focus of this book was on Andrea. The way she processed and thought about everything going on around her was fascinating. Her thoughts were thorough and interesting and quite logical. She is a character with quite the background story to overcome, but she doesn’t always make the sympathetic choice, sometimes her past overwhelms her. Andrea’s perspective was super cool and though I miss Grace, I fell in love with Andrea quickly.

Robert continues to get himself and others into trouble and then has to get them out of trouble. This time, however, the trouble has built up beyond what he’s capable of handling. Or has it? Calling on all resources, Robert will stop at nothing to keep those he loves safe.

Rick the Cornuprocyon continues to amuse in this book and has a decent role to play. The mind link between him and Robert is explored a bit more and is fascinating as an aspect of world building. Summoners and their abilities are also so very, very interesting as world building goes. The rules! The possibilities! Such a cool concept to watch unfold in a world where not everyone is a Summoner and not everyone wants to be.