Sci-fi action meets steamy paranormal romance in Gini Koch’s Alien novels, as Katherine “Kitty” Katt faces off against aliens, conspiracies, and deadly secrets. • “Futuristic high-jinks and gripping adventure.” —RT Reviews
Marketing manager Katherine "Kitty" Katt had just finished a day on jury duty. When she stepped out of the Pueblo Caliente courthouse, all she was thinking about was the work she had to get caught up on. Then her attention was caught by a fight between a couple that looked like it was about to turn ugly.
But ugly didn't even begin to cover it when the "man" suddenly transformed into a huge, winged monster right out of a grade Z science fiction movie and went on a deadly killing spree. In hindsight, Kitty realized she probably should have panicked and run screaming the way everyone around her was doing. Instead she sprinted into action to take down the alien.
In the middle of all the screeching and the ensuing chaos, a hunk in an Armani suit suddenly appeared beside her, introduced himself as Jeff Martini with "the agency," and then insisted on leading her to a nearby limo to talk to his "boss." And that was how Kitty's new life among the aliens began...
Touched by an Alien is the thrilling first installment of the Alien novels.
The beginning of the book was a whirlwind of events, and I had a hard time keeping up. It’s not every day you confront an alien and kill it with a pen, then get swept off your feet by a very charming and persist hunk named Martini. I probably got hung up on the fact that Martini is different from the male lead characters in the last couple books/series I’ve read. Martini is funny, open, and he knows what he wants: Kitty. For some reason, I had a hard time figuring out who was who of the people (or, should I say aliens?) that whisked Kitty off after she killed her first alien. I won’t lie, this is probably my own fault. But it took a while to sort it out.
There was so much that happened in this book in such a short amount of time, but it worked, and it never seemed to go too fast or too slow. It was just right, you might say. The amount of snark between the characters had me alternatively snorting and giggling out loud. Hopefully more of the latter than former. Kitty was surprisingly astute and smart – in some ways drawing on the lesson that often we see what we want to, until, or unless, someone with fresh eyes looks at it from a new and different angle. I wonder if perhaps there was some deeper meaning related to religion here, but frankly I was too entertained to really think much of it. Maybe I will later.
Since I read this on my Kindle, it’s still hard for me to judge, but I felt like the chapters were on the shorter side. I know that I have touched on this before – that short chapters usually drive me crazy – but Gini Koch made it work. Every time a chapter came to an end, an invisible force of action and snark propelled me forward. The only other issue I had was that, as much as I liked the ending, the last wrap-up chapter was unnecessary. Maybe necessary if it was the only book, but this is a series, and this book could have ended without the last chapter. I don’t even know why I’m making this an issue, but the ending was almost anti-climatic.
I am interested in what happens in the next books, though. I have a feeling Conspiracy Chuck will have to make an appearance…
See my review in its entirety here: http://onabookbender.com/2011/05/23/review-touched-by-an-alien-by-gini-koch/
