Off the Grid by Cassandra Carr

Off the Grid by Cassandra Carr

My rating: 3 of 5 stars



Off the Grid is the first installment in a 10-part serial novel. While I did enjoy reading the novelette it didn’t quite capture my attention as much as I hoped. On the contrary, until Ethan actually goes to the Underground facility and meets some of the other operatives, my attention kept waning. Admittedly I felt bad for the guy when he learned that his parents ripped him off and endangered his life. And yes, the hockey stick as a weapon scene was pretty freaking cool. But his initial meeting with Maline and Andre had me rolling my eyes a couple of times. Maline’s “We fight crime” statement annoyed me considering she’s working for a black ops organization, but I gave her the benefit of the doubt that she knew she was dealing with a man who was likely in shock. As her character’s conversational skills were more advanced once they got to the facility, I was more accepting of it. But the exchange that really, really caused my eyes to roll was when Maline tells Ethan about people being able to fake polygraphs and Ethan’s response was “Seriously?” Even if I’m willing to accept that the MAN has made it to thirty without having watched any criminal justice themed show or movie EVER, Ethan majored in Criminal Justice in college. I minored in Criminal Justice and that’s basic information covered in intro classes (plural). So yeah, that was a problem for me. In the grand scheme of things, it’s a minor sticking point but it undermines the character for me.

The ultimate question regarding any serial novel, especially that of the first installment, is: Did it hook the reader enough so that they will read the next installment. For me, the answer is not really. I will be reading parts two and three of the series simply because I have them already and agreed to review them. Because of this, I’m hoping that as the next two installments are larger and because the series’ foundation has been laid, that more will occur to get me invested in the series. But if I had bought this installment just to read, I doubt I would continue on. And I do not say this because it’s a bad book, but rather it just didn’t do it for me. My recommendation is to download a sample and check it out yourself

I received a complimentary copy of the book in exchange for an honest review.
Reviewed by Angela at Crystal's Many Reviewers!

Check out the Underground Tour Stop! blog post on Crystal's Many Reviewers.


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