Spotlight: Mari Mancusi's SMOKED

Title: Smoked
Author: Mari Mancusi
Series: Scorched, #3
Pubdate: September 1st, 2015
ISBN: 9781402284649

Once upon a time the world burned.
Until a girl and her dragon smothered the flame.
But the spark that ignited the apocalypse never went out.
And the scorch is about to begin…

When Team Dragon rescues Emmy from the government lab, they think the future is finally safe. But they soon discover that Emmy has a secret—a secret so dangerous it could trigger the very apocalypse Connor and Caleb were sent back in time to prevent.

As a dragon hunter, Connor has committed his life to saving the world. There’s nothing he wouldn’t do to complete his mission…even if it meant betraying his brother and losing Trinity’s heart. Even if it meant doing the unthinkable.

But a desperate choice meant to prevent The Scorch, may be the spark that sets the world aflame once more.

The epic conclusion to the genre-bending Scorched series, which Melissa de la Cruz, New York Times bestselling author of the Blue Bloods series, called "A heart-pounding, twisty, time-travel fantasy.”

Mari Mancusi is a two-time Emmy award-winning television producer and author of novels for adults and teens. A graduate of Boston University, she now lives in Austin, Texas with her husband and young daughter. When not writing or producing she enjoys traveling, snowboarding, reading fantasy novels, and her favorite guilty pleasure: video games.

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An Excerpt

“Okay, Fire Kissed,” he said. “It’s showtime.”

Together they jumped out of the truck, slamming the doors behind them. Connor ran around the back, rolling up the door and pulling out a huge box. Trinity helped him heave it onto the loading dock.

“Are you okay in there?” she whispered to the box. “Perfect,” Nate assured her from inside. “You guys go on ahead. I should be close enough now to hack into their security cameras and get them offline.” He paused then added, “Good luck. Just don’t forget about me once you have your dragon.”

“Never,” Trinity assured him, patting the box. Then she rose to her feet and approached Connor. “Ready?”

“As I’ll ever be.”

With confident, casual steps, they strode up to the guard, who was propped in a chair by the elevator, his feet up, nose in a book, completely ignoring the chaos around him. Guess deliveries weren’t in his job description. Connor gave him a small smile. “We need the elevator,” he informed him.

“Yeah, well, I need my ex-wife to get off my back,” the guard said lazily, snapping his gum. “We’ve all got problems.” Connor’s eyes zeroed in on him. “I don’t think you under- stand,” he said. “We need the elevator. We need to get upstairs. You need to let us in.”

Trinity drew in a breath, watching him work. She had to admit, Connor looked particularly hot when he was working to manipulate people’s minds. It was like he got this look in his eyes—those blue, glowing eyes of his—like he was some kind of Jedi Master or something. Truth be told, it kind of made her want to jump his bones. Not that this was the time or the place.

Pushing the inappropriate thought down, she turned back to his victim. Sure enough, the man’s face had gone slack, and he was staring up at Connor with vacant eyes. “You need the elevator,” he droned. “You need to get upstairs. You need me to let you in.”

Then, to Trinity’s excitement, he slowly rose to his feet, walked over to the elevator in question, and inserted his key. Just like that. A moment later, the doors yawned open. The guard looked at them expectantly.

Trin flashed Connor an approving look. You didn’t even need my help for that one, she teased.

Yeah, well, it’s all you from here on out, he shot back, but he looked pleased by the compliment all the same.

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Review: Scorched by Mari Mancusi

Scorched by Mari Mancusi

Publisher- Sourcebooks Fire

Released- Sept 3rd 2013

Purchase- Amazon / B & N / Chapters

TrinityDon’t leave me here... It starts with a whisper. At first Trinity thinks she’s going crazy. It wouldn't be a big surprise—her grandpa firmly believes there’s a genuine dragon egg in their dusty little West Texas town. But this voice is real, and it’s begging for her protection. Even if no one else can hear it...ConnorHe’s come from a future scorched by dragonfire. His mission: Find the girl. Destroy the egg. Save the world.CalebHe’s everything his twin brother Connor hates: cocky, undisciplined, and obsessed with saving dragons.
Trinity has no idea which brother to believe. All she has to go by is the voice in her head—a dragon that won’t be tamed.

My Thoughts:

To save the Fantastical Fossil museum from the overwhelming bills, Trinity Foxx's grandfather hopes that his latest discovery is just the ticket that will bring in an audience from around the world. Found trapped in a glacier in Antarctica, a golden egg was found. The last Dragon egg. Trinity, being a 16 year old teenager and the responsible one of the two, is skeptical of this new discover but when a voice inside Trinity's head seems to be linked to the egg, Trinity is intrigued but frightened that she could be losing her mind, just like her mother did. Connor and Caleb are estranged twin brothers who are from 200 years into the future. One brother is sent to ensure the safety of both Trinity and the Dragon egg and the other was sent to destroy them.

Wow, what a fun read! I really loved the concept to this one. I wasn't sure what to expect when I started Scorched, all I knew is that it combines some of my favorite genre's, dragon-fantasy and sci-fi, so it was an even greater surprise that I ended up really loving this one. Mancusi's writing is exceptionally strong, I've only read a couple of her other books before, and while I thought they were decent,  I didn't quite connect with them like I did this one. The pace and flow is beautifully developed. At first it can be a little confusing since everything seems to be happening at once, but when the story gets going and we learn the facts with Trinity it becomes a steady stream of intrigue and wonder. It was like unwrapping a layered gift, with each new rip my anticipation and curiosity grew and I couldn't turn the pages fast enough. 

There is only so much I want to say about this plot-wise since I think readers will have a greater time discovering all the wonderful revelations for themselves. So, with that said, the story line does have a Terminator-feel to it, but I still found this to be a unique and fun spin on dragon lore and time travel. I loved the idea of the two brothers who were brought into the past to ensure or stop future events from taking place, with a girl who has no idea of the catastrophic events that are about to enfold. It's exciting to learn the brothers true intentions, what the Dracken organization is and get a glimpse of what Trinity and her dragon, Emberlyn  (Emmy) means to the future, both the good and the bad. It's a solid concept and completely entertaining from start to finish.

I really enjoyed all the characters. They are all wonderfully developed and easy to connect with.

~Trinity is a responsible head strong girl who is determined, brave and caring. Her life suddenly became something out of her favorite video game, Fields of Fantasy, the minute her grandfather showed her the golden egg uncased in glass. I loved how she processed everything from disbelieve to awe-struck. It's a lot to take in knowing that your the Fire Kissed and that your responsible for both destroying the entire world and saving the race of a mythical creature in the same heart beat.

~I don't want to say to much about Connor and Caleb. They mystery around them was one of the funnest part of the book to discover. They each have their own stories so it's hard to tell which of the brothers we can really trust. They have a lingering cloud of doubt that surrounds them till we know for sure what their true purpose is. But, I will say that I loved both brothers equally. Connor is a hunter hero in his time, dedicated to avenge his father death. He's kind and patient and a natural leader. Caleb is more harsh, cool, collected and confident. They do however share a passion and obsession when it comes to their missions and what it will ultimately mean for the entire world.

The dragon, Emmy, was surprisingly amazing to see. Dragons have always been such a fascinating creature with so much potential to create. I really loved the way Mancusi portrayed them as both dazzling and deadly. 

At this point the romance is very light, but well on it's way into shaping into a love triangle between Trinity and the brothers. Since I like them both I don't have a team-flag to wave just yet, but I am curious to see how things develop in future books.

All in all, I kinda loved this one. The concept is smart and fresh, the story is action packed and exciting, the writing has an all consuming flavor and these characters will have you invested at minute one till it's heart-pounding conclusion. For fans who want some heat and heart with their fantasy escape, this one goes out to you. I can't wait to see where Mancusi takes this next! A great read!

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