Book Review: Praesidium

So.. you know that weird flu/illness thing going around where you feel like you've been hit by a bus, you've got the weird headache and you get nausea/vomiting and/or diarrhea? Yeah... I've got all of it. It's super fun and exciting. I feel like death has warmed over and when I look back in Facebook memories, it seems I get sick EVERY YEAR the week of Thanksgiving. Just another reason why Thanksgiving is the worst. 

Praesidium - McKinley Aspen

Kathryn Bek gets the chance of a lifetime: a job offer right out of college, and in New York City, where adventure lies around every corner. Believing she is recruited for her marketing prowess, she is excited by the prospect of her new job in the intelligence sector; but all is not what it seems. Before long, Kathryn and her new team are thrown into a world of mystery, murder, and magic. As the team rushes around the world, untangling the web of lies, she finds that her past may be the key to protecting her, and the world's, future.

Will she be able to confront her fuzzy past to unlock the secrets within herself? Can her team rise to the challenge and stop the Paolucci Crime Family before they unleash havoc upon the globe?

Who will endure, the Kathryn of the past, or that of the future?

Praesidium can simply be described as "Good people with mad skills working to bring hope to a dark world."

I haven't read a good fantasy book in a hot minute, so I jumped at the chance at this one. It's only 240ish pages, so it's a fairly quick read and I've seen good reviews on it. The story definitely has some holes in it and some flaws, but part of me wonders if that's on purpose since this is book one of a series, so while we don't get all of the questions answered in this installment, it has me hooked in for book two already. 

The story centers around Kathryn, fresh out of college and looking for a job. She is inexplicably recruited/hired in the same by a mysterious man, on behalf of an incredibly vague organization, with an even vague/broad mission statement/goal. The whole thing is screaming sketchy, but Kathryn doesn't have a lot of options or prospects, a job with room and board, and the promise of grand experiences? What college grad is turning that down? 

Of course, nothing is as it seems and Kathryn soom realizes she's part of a team who are thrown into a world of murder and lies, which isn't quite the marketing gig Kathryn thought she would be doing. The author does a good job unrolling the story and doesn't overwhelm you with information all at once, instead tossing little pieces as we go and leaves you to work it out in your head as you read on. I was worried Kathryn was going to be the annoying characters who knows nothing and is kind of useless in an adult world, but she is quite the opposite, she can handle herself (almost to a fault) and she's the right kind of heroine for the story. I do hope book two comes sooner rather than later because I don't want to forget key bits of information in the wait. I will probably re-read this before starting book two anyways, but this was unexpectedly entertaining for me. 

Thank you to Red Clover Digital and author McKinley Aspen for having me on this tour and providing a copy for review. 

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