Scan barcode
zanybibliophile's review
4.0
There is a new threat in New Hopeland and P.I. Cassie Tam is not just the investigator on the case. She is a victim.
Read my full review on my blog.
Complex and captivating. Cannot wait to read what is next for Cassie Tam.
Read my full review on my blog.
Complex and captivating. Cannot wait to read what is next for Cassie Tam.
rebl's review
4.0
“Set in the near future, Addict combines the engrossing, tenebrous elements of 1930s noir crime fiction with the spectacle and possibility of science fiction.” – Extract from my review of Book 1 in this series.
I wanted to read LV48 as soon as its release was announced. Not only was it written by Matt Doyle, a highly active and positive member of the online LGBTQIA+ community, but the title was clearly a nod to Aliens – which happens to be on of my favourite movies.
This is the third book in the Cassie Tam series, a collection of futuristic crime noir stories set in the ever-fascinating city of New Hopeland. Manipulated and controlled by a complex criminal network, Doyle continues to work wonders as he explores New Hopeland’s shadowy underworld. It would be difficult to understand the intricacies of the plot without having read the first two, and so I hope readers pick up ‘Addict’ and ‘The Fox, the Dog, and the King’ before delving into LV48. That said, the author has done well to guide readers back into the city’s inner-circle.
This story is—much to my delight—a little lighter on Cassie’s internal monologue and heavier on dialogue and action. The scenes in set in the hospital were particularly exciting; a well-written climax indeed. There are some vague hints about Cassie’s past but, on the whole, characterisation stagnates a little in this instalment. This was fine though, because the focus was more to do with Fuerza’s tightening (or, perhaps, loosening) grip of the city. Cassie’s romance with Lori bookends the mystery plot, as it did with Book 2, acting as a soft form of cushioning for the reader. Given Hanson is a favourite of mine, I was excited to see her appear in more scenes (though, of course, I wanted to see her get a girlfriend). Doyle continues to provide imaginative and intricate detail regarding the operation of technology in his fictional world. In this case, he has concocted a rather magnificent exoskeleton used by the antagonist/s to attack their victims.
This series is palatable and well-executed on the whole. If you like old-school crime fiction (think Bogart or Ford) but with lesbians, mechanical vampires, and psychedelic light shows, then this is the book for you.
I wanted to read LV48 as soon as its release was announced. Not only was it written by Matt Doyle, a highly active and positive member of the online LGBTQIA+ community, but the title was clearly a nod to Aliens – which happens to be on of my favourite movies.
This is the third book in the Cassie Tam series, a collection of futuristic crime noir stories set in the ever-fascinating city of New Hopeland. Manipulated and controlled by a complex criminal network, Doyle continues to work wonders as he explores New Hopeland’s shadowy underworld. It would be difficult to understand the intricacies of the plot without having read the first two, and so I hope readers pick up ‘Addict’ and ‘The Fox, the Dog, and the King’ before delving into LV48. That said, the author has done well to guide readers back into the city’s inner-circle.
This story is—much to my delight—a little lighter on Cassie’s internal monologue and heavier on dialogue and action. The scenes in set in the hospital were particularly exciting; a well-written climax indeed. There are some vague hints about Cassie’s past but, on the whole, characterisation stagnates a little in this instalment. This was fine though, because the focus was more to do with Fuerza’s tightening (or, perhaps, loosening) grip of the city. Cassie’s romance with Lori bookends the mystery plot, as it did with Book 2, acting as a soft form of cushioning for the reader. Given Hanson is a favourite of mine, I was excited to see her appear in more scenes (though, of course, I wanted to see her get a girlfriend). Doyle continues to provide imaginative and intricate detail regarding the operation of technology in his fictional world. In this case, he has concocted a rather magnificent exoskeleton used by the antagonist/s to attack their victims.
This series is palatable and well-executed on the whole. If you like old-school crime fiction (think Bogart or Ford) but with lesbians, mechanical vampires, and psychedelic light shows, then this is the book for you.
emhamill's review
5.0
Matt Doyle's Cassie Tam Files just keep getting better and better. This outing has Cassie recruited to help the local police department try to track down a tech-augmented "vampire". The criminal has already left their mark on Cassie, and the cops need to use her as bait to lure the blood-stealing vamp back to finish the job.
Bert, my favorite familiar gargoyle/bodyguard is back (CAW!) and we get to know some of the members of the police force a lot better, with some great banter and camaraderie. I have a couple of secondary characters I'm starting to like a lot.
Doyle does a great job balancing the action and the story. I'll take more Cassie Tam anytime I can get her!
Bert, my favorite familiar gargoyle/bodyguard is back (CAW!) and we get to know some of the members of the police force a lot better, with some great banter and camaraderie. I have a couple of secondary characters I'm starting to like a lot.
Doyle does a great job balancing the action and the story. I'll take more Cassie Tam anytime I can get her!
nietzschesghost's review
4.0
LV48, the third novel in the Cassie Tam Files series featuring intrepid private investigator (PI) Ms Tam, is another enjoyable addition to this queer sci-fi mystery series. Although it is the third book it works perfectly as a standalone, but if you wish to see Cassie evolve and grow it is worth picking up the previous two. Doyle's writing is easy to follow and he does a good job of immersing the reader in the story from the very beginning. There's a sense of foreboding and menace that runs throughout that comes as a result of not knowing exactly who you are hunting or what they could be capable of once you do collar them.
A quick, easy read and a post-apocalyptic/dystopian landscape that is developed well. I look forward to the next instalment in this futuristic saga.
Many thanks to Ninestar Press for an ARC.
A quick, easy read and a post-apocalyptic/dystopian landscape that is developed well. I look forward to the next instalment in this futuristic saga.
Many thanks to Ninestar Press for an ARC.
stephbookshine's review
4.0
*I received a free copy of this book, with thanks to the author. The decision to review and my opinions are my own.*
LV48 is the third in the Cassie Tam series and further develops the wider storyline of Cassie vs the Four Kings and New Hopeland’s culture of corruption.
Here are the familiar faces alongside Cassie – Bert, Lori and Ink – but we get to see a different aspect to Cassie’s work as she partners with the police to form a crack team to take down the latest threat to the city. I particularly liked the team dynamics between Cassie, Hanson, Dev, Hoove, Donal et al, and felt that the developing roles of these side characters really enriched the story.
We’ve already seen the Tech Shifter equivalent of werewolves and now Matt Doyle gives us some high tech vampires as antagonists, with some very nasty tricks under their wings! I love the blend of old mythology with new technology that the author has created and continues to explore and expand as the series progresses.
An interesting quirk which I will be looking out for in future instalments is how, whilst half of Cassie’s job involves routine police e-paperwork and legwork, the other half seems to be increasingly solved in Cassie’s subconscious mind. I really enjoy when the author indicates that Cassie has picked up something ‘off’ but isn’t consciously able to pinpoint what, because it allows me to pay along and try to figure it out before her!
Fans of urban sci-fi PI adventures will love this series, and this is definitely another great addition to the Cassie canon.
“Help…me…”
I freeze. “Hello?”
“Help…me. Please…” the voice comes again, rising weakly from a darkened alley a few steps ahead.
I narrow my eyes, my internal paranoia engine on full alert. Mysterious voices crying for help from darkened alleys are not always what they seem. My moral-compass is pointing due innocent-in-trouble though, so I opt for the balanced approach and walk towards the alley. Slowly.
– Matt Doyle, LV48
Review by Steph Warren of Bookshine and Readbows blog
https://bookshineandreadbows.wordpress.com/2019/06/02/lv48-the-cassie-tam-files-3-matt-doyle/
LV48 is the third in the Cassie Tam series and further develops the wider storyline of Cassie vs the Four Kings and New Hopeland’s culture of corruption.
Here are the familiar faces alongside Cassie – Bert, Lori and Ink – but we get to see a different aspect to Cassie’s work as she partners with the police to form a crack team to take down the latest threat to the city. I particularly liked the team dynamics between Cassie, Hanson, Dev, Hoove, Donal et al, and felt that the developing roles of these side characters really enriched the story.
We’ve already seen the Tech Shifter equivalent of werewolves and now Matt Doyle gives us some high tech vampires as antagonists, with some very nasty tricks under their wings! I love the blend of old mythology with new technology that the author has created and continues to explore and expand as the series progresses.
An interesting quirk which I will be looking out for in future instalments is how, whilst half of Cassie’s job involves routine police e-paperwork and legwork, the other half seems to be increasingly solved in Cassie’s subconscious mind. I really enjoy when the author indicates that Cassie has picked up something ‘off’ but isn’t consciously able to pinpoint what, because it allows me to pay along and try to figure it out before her!
Fans of urban sci-fi PI adventures will love this series, and this is definitely another great addition to the Cassie canon.
“Help…me…”
I freeze. “Hello?”
“Help…me. Please…” the voice comes again, rising weakly from a darkened alley a few steps ahead.
I narrow my eyes, my internal paranoia engine on full alert. Mysterious voices crying for help from darkened alleys are not always what they seem. My moral-compass is pointing due innocent-in-trouble though, so I opt for the balanced approach and walk towards the alley. Slowly.
– Matt Doyle, LV48
Review by Steph Warren of Bookshine and Readbows blog
https://bookshineandreadbows.wordpress.com/2019/06/02/lv48-the-cassie-tam-files-3-matt-doyle/
More...