Assassins: Discord by Erica Cameron

Publication Date: September 5, 2016.

Publisher: Triton Books (Riptide Publishing).

Genres: Young Adult, Contemporary, and LGBT.

Rating: 

Selling points: Badass and dangerous girls, girls kissing and explosions.

Purchase here: Amazon | The Book Depository 

Synopsis: Kindra’s moral compass has never pointed north, but that’s what happens when you’re raised as an assassin and a thief. At sixteen, she’s fantastic with a blade, an expert at slipping through the world unnoticed, and trapped in a life she didn’t chose. But nothing in her training prepares her for what happens when her father misses a target.

In the week-long aftermath, Kindra breaks rank for the first time in her life. She steals documents, starts questioning who their client is and why the target needs to die, botches a second hit on her father’s target, and is nearly killed. And that’s before she’s kidnapped by a green-eyed stranger connected to a part of her childhood she’d almost forgotten.

Kindra has to decide who to trust and which side of the battle to fight for. She has to do it fast and she has to be right, because the wrong choice will kill her just when she’s finally found something worth living for.

Thank you Erica Cameron for my e-arc of Assassins: Discord. I received this ARC in exchange for an honest review; this does not affect my opinion. Any quotes mentioned below are taken from the ARC and are subject to change upon publication.

Assassins: Discord is like those action movies you watch on TV where there are guns, explosions, and car chases. Only in this book, there are more girls than guys. The girls are complex, the girls are kissing and they’re more badass than anyone else. In other words, this book is like those action movies you watch on TV, only a thousand times better. I love Assassins: Discord not only because it’s refreshing and features a storyline that isn’t that often explored in YA but because these teenage girls are flawed, they’re lethal and yet they are just that, teenagers with raw and complex emotions. I also love how inclusive this book is. There are bisexual, asexual, intersex and gay characters and some of them are also of color. Erica Cameron really nailed this book in every aspect there is, it’s sassy, it’s filled with action and once you finish it you’ll literally be begging for more (very much like I am, please when’s the next one coming out *grabby hands*).

“When her eyes focused, a familiar face hovered above hers. One that shouldn’t have been anywhere near here. “Baby, we’ve really got to stop meeting like this,” said a girl with dyed-black hair – her brown roots peeking through – and teasing moss-green eyes. A familiar endearment on the wrong tongue, and familiar eyes in the wrong face.”

Assassins: Discord had me laughing multiple times through the story and the wit, sarcasm, and humor throughout this book is the greatest thing about it. It’s just so damn good. I love how there are turns and twists from start to finish and the biggest one had me literally screaming. I suspected it for quite some time throughout the book but I was still shocked when it happened. Another thing that made Assassins: Discord so great is the character development. There’s a lot of it. We have complex characters, difficult relationships and a lot history that needs to be sorted out. All of the characters start at one point and end at another, with both relationships and dynamics shifting. Even though there’s a lot of action going on there’s also a lot that makes the characters drive the story forward. It’s the best of both worlds.

“They made it behind a huge tree. Kindra pushed Dru face-first to the forest floor, falling on top of her and covering her own ears with her hands, mouth open slightly to equalize the pressure she knew was coming. Less than two seconds later, the grenade exploded.”

I love the ship in this book and how their relationship develops. In the world they live, one filled with danger, death and uncertainty relationships are hard, especially for someone like Kindra. Her family has never been much of a family, they have always been more about the job and less about trust, warmth, and security. To see how Kindra handles this, how she evolves and becomes better, but also stays true to herself is amazing. I love that Assassins: Discord‘s main character is a bisexual who is not afraid to be who she is. I love that this book explores a relationship between two girls that are different in a lot of ways but are still drawn to each other and find something in each other they haven’t before.

“That seductive drawl was back, and Kindra shivered. She planned to die before ever admitting she found that sleepy accent ridiculously sexy.”

Assassins: Discord shows us that action-filled books centered around girls – girls that are funny, girls that are sassy, girls that are dangerous and girls that kiss other girls – are the best kind of books. This book literally slays every male-dominated book and movie ever created. I want more. I want more lethal girls, I want more girls that take risks and I want girls that evolve. Give me the sequel to Assassins: Discord and give it to me now!