Blades of Winter: A Novel of the Shadowstorm (Shadowstorm, #1)

by G. T. Almasi

In one of the most exciting debuts in years, G. T. Almasi has fused the intricate cat-and-mouse games of a John le Carré novel with the brash style of comic book superheroes to create a kick-ass alternate history that reimagines the Cold War as a clash of spies with biological, chemical, and technological enhancements.
 
Nineteen-year-old Alix Nico, a self-described “million-dollar murder machine,” is a rising star in ExOps, a covert-action agency that aggressively shields the United States from its three great enemies: the Soviet Union, Greater Germany, and the Nationalist Republic of China. Rather than risk another all-out war, the four superpowers have poured their resources into creating superspies known as Levels.
 
Alix is one of the hottest young American Levels. That’s no surprise: Her dad was America’s top Level before he was captured and killed eight years ago. But when an impulsive decision explodes—literally—in her face, Alix uncovers a conspiracy that pushes her to her limits and could upset the global balance of power forever.

“Smart, sassy, and seriously appealing: a stunning debut.”—Jeff Long, New York Times bestselling author of The Descent

Look for all of G. T. Almasi’s riveting Shadowstorm novels:
BLADES OF WINTER | HAMMER OF ANGELS | TALON OF SCORPIO

• ISBN10: 0440423554
• ISBN13: 9780440423553
• Publish Date: 10 May 2014 (first published 28 August 2012)
• Publish Status: Active
• Publish Country: US
• Imprint: Del Rey Books
• Format: eBook
• Pages: 236
• Language: English

Reviews

[Beth C.]

Alix is a Level - an enhanced human killing machine created by the government to fight in the shadow wars. These are battles that take place between the four main governments in an alternate history where Germany took over Europe during World War II and there are now 4 world powers that dominate. She is the youngest, and is incredibly talented - no surprise, since her father was a Level as well. When Alix decides to worm her way into an operation that she never should have been involved in, all hell breaks loose and she suddenly finds those she loves compromised from a past she never could have seen coming.

Honestly, I'm a bit torn about the book. If I could offer 3.5 stars, I would. I had a really hard time getting into the story initially, and the necessary suspension of disbelief failed me at times. Alix was continually assigned missions that, in any sort of reality, she would have been considered too close to the target to be given. In addition, her impulse issues continually caused problems, and yet she was sent right back out in the field. To complicate things further, the reader is quickly thrust into this alternate version of history with little but occasional bits of information to take up the historical back story. In fact, had pages 120-126 been introduced as the second chapter, then that would have clarified things tremendously. I highly recommend that everyone read those pages either first, or after the first chapter - it does not affect the story in any way, and gives substantial information regarding the history that comes up during the first half of the book.

Having said that - I did find myself drawn more into the story after the historical explanation, and as the plot really began to wind up. It didn't make things more plausible necessarily, but I was less concerned about it. I finished the book actually interested in the fact that this seems to be the first in a series involving Alix, and curious enough about the next book to read the short excerpt in the back. I would probably be interested in reading it, particularly now that I feel more of the history makes sense - and now that Alix seems to be less the immature girl and more the woman she is capable of being.

Overall, it's a pretty good story, particularly as a debut novel. I think that the author will continue to develop Alix as a person, and that the biggest issue with this first book was more the timing of the release of historical information than most anything else. I would be interested in reading the next book to see how things progress. It's definitely worth checking out.