Review – Blacklisted (Teen Alien Huntress, Book 2) by Gena Showalter (3/5 stars)

This was the second book in the Teen Alien Huntress series by Gena Showalter. As far as I could find there are not anymore young adult books planned in the Alien Huntress series at this time. I didn’t like this book nearly as much as the first one, Redhanded, but it was okay.

Camille Robins and her girlfriend go to a nightclub chasing after some boys from high school. Camille is interested in Erik (who was in Redhanded) and is ecstatic when he passes her a note in the club. When she finds out the note is only a blank napkin it pisses her off, so she follows him into a back section of the club. There she is attacked and drawn into Erik’s illegal activities. Erik and Camille end up fleeing for their lives trying to outrun AIR agents.

I didn’t like this book nearly as much as “Redhanded”. My biggest problem was Camille. She is cowardly (which she admits to herself), somewhat whiny, and I found her to be annoying. Erik is, in general, kind of a jerk. Like with many other of Showalter’s books Erik ends up being better in the end, but I still didn’t like him much. The relationship between him and Camille felt forced and unrealistic.

I also didn’t like that the main premise of this book was that Camille wanted Erik. At least in “Redhanded” Pheonix was trying to beat her addiction and make it through A.I.R. training; in “Redhanded” her relationship with Ryan was part of the story not the whole story. Don’t get me wrong there is some plot outside of Camille and Erik, but it is pretty thin.

Additionally I thought the book was wrapped up really quick and a little too conveniently. It was unreal how all these strange coincidences happened all at once so that the story could be end quickly, almost as if Showalter had to hurry and get this book done. In general it made for an unsatisfying story.

The positive points were that Showalter has created an interesting world here, the actions scenes were well done (although much fewer than in “Redhanded”), and the book was a quick, easy read. In the end it was an okay read, definitely nothing to write home about, but a quick diversion. I would definitely read “Redhanded” first since that is, by far, the better of the two books.