Secrets and Ruin

Jacky Leon, Book 9

By: K.N. Banet

Narrated by: Savannah Gilmore

Dirk, my werewolf nephew, is going home.

Sending Dirk back to his father is complicated, but I have to do it. Even if it’s for a short time, I know that father and son need to talk about what’s changed between them. They need to talk about what the future holds for both of them. One year. That was how long we wanted to keep his new status as a werewolf as secret as possible, before we involved the family. That one year is up, and now, it’s time to face the music. Niko is only the start.

However, secrets are insidious things. They can stay hidden for decades, even centuries. Dirk and I kept have been keeping several, but we’re not the only ones. When too many secrets finally come to light, we’ll be left standing in the ruins of more than one family.

It’s too late to stop this, but I’m Jacky Leon, and I’ll be damned if the secrets of generations past ruin the family I’m building in the present.

©2023 K.N. Banet (P)2023 K.N. Banet

Absolutely fantastic

I have loved this series since the beginning. This is the fantastic continuation of the series. This one really got in the feels as they say. There was so much heart mixed in with the action. So beautiful done. I’m looking forward to seeing how it progresses. Happy reading everyone.

Great as usual

This was another terrific story and I can’t wait until the next in the series!

Not as satisfying

There’s a lot going on in this one. A lot of big events and a lot of secrets so far only hinted at being uncovered. More than usual I would say. There’s few things I love so much as learning plot secrets!And yet I came out of it feeling a bit unsatisfied. And it took me a while and a couple of reads to figure out why, because it wasn’t obvious.
Usually Jacky resolves the inciting incident and in doing so something is revealed that advances the bigger picture of the entire series in some small but impactful way. There’s the potential for that here, and the overall story does advance, but it is past revelations that do the advancing, not the new ones many of which get only a small mention and no exploration at all. Perhaps as a result a lot of important moments feel less impactful than I would expect from past experiences with this series. And since this book has a lot of important moments I became a bit frustrated. Another common thing that I love in these books is how Jacky always deepens her relationship with the people around her. Not to get spoilery, but Jacky spends a lot of time with Landon in this book, and learning about the mysterious Nikolaus, and yet it didn’t feel as if their dynamics changed in any significant ways by end (which I would expect based on previous books) a lot of conversations they have with the potential to do that end up interrupted and remain mostly superficial. Even the final confrontation ends up interrupted at its climax. I understand why, but the way it was done took away it’s impact and shifted it to something else… I’m still not sure if it was a good thing. There was also missed opportunities to see Dirk interact with his father which I feel I’d been waiting for since first meeting Dirk. I expect we’ll see more of the results of this in future books, but I missed seeing it here. Jacky also reminds us of past book events on multiple occasions and they aren’t always useful ones. Her mansion in Dallas is mentioned several times along with why she owns it even though she spends no time there at all and there isn’t much relevance in explaining it. Another problem is that there’s a lot happening off screen that then requires an explanation. I’m fine with telling instead of showing when it makes sense, but rushed tellings end up lacking any satisfying details which is disappointing. A bit like hearing someone speak in a different language and being able to understand the emotions involved based on context, but not getting the content (which incidentally is something that happens several times as well). It’s also sometimes unnecessary. There’s some Heath pov in the book, and later Jacky gets a summary of what happened with Heath… all of which the reader/listener knows already. I won’t describe events, but Jacky didn’t actually need to know the details only the results and the readers know the details so it felt redundant. There’s a few other things.
None of these would be a problem on their own, but the accumulation makes for a sometimes frustrating and often superficial read, especially since the previous two books were brilliant and in my opinion the best in the series (Rogue Alpha has become my go to every time I want to read but have nothing new and I don’t want to spend time looking for something, I’ve probably listened to it at least 6 times, which feels a little much). The fact that some events end up being deeply pivotal makes it even more frustrating. It also makes it hard to rate. In terms of execution it is the worst of the series (let me be clear that the bar is high, each book in this series has impressed me with how well events lead into one another and how well they influence and change the characters, but that’s exactly why I’m inclined to be harsh). The story and plot are very good and I’m only disappointed because I think they didn’t reach their full potential and I expected very great things. I understand that this is most likely a result of the difficulties the author had been experiencing and I’m grateful that she pushed through to finish this book anyway. I hope she takes all the time she needs to recover. Despite being a bit disappointed in this book it has opened up some very interesting potential for the next one, and I’m incredibly eager for the next book, and that’s why I will wait as long as the author needs. I will keep an eye out for this series even if it takes a few more years.

Wow! Loaded and heartfelt

Well Miss Kristen, you did it. You made me cry ☺️
Seriously, you did, but, its because you write so well I was immersed in the story. Buggar me but, this is a great series. I can't wait for next book.
Concerning you and family; I'm saddened to hear you've had such go of it this past year. May 2024 be filled with positive steps and renewal for you both and your fur babies. You have my support and may hope and love fill your hearts and lives.

Conflict in family and love’s resolve

Enjoyed this book immensely! Jackie partners not with Heath but his son to solve disappearances with pack member and her family. More background information about werecat Nico fills out his reclusive character. And a big surprise at the end in the fracture of Jackie’s werecat family and it’s resolution. Looking forward to the next Jackie Leon book.

The best, but an odd change.

Probably the best Banet has ever done, but the change of Hasan from Hu-san to Has-sin is jarring, and it makes little sense for a name said over nearly (if not) two dozen books to suddenly change pronunciation.

Minor storyline spoilers, while I appreciate red herrings, making a major plot point have several of them leading to nothing just feels... off. Almost akin to how people with a character/word limit add useless things to the story to extend it to meet.

The namesss

Love this!! I waited so long and am definitely not disappointed. However -- Why is Jackie's father's name suddenly being pronounced "Hassen" vs "Hu-son" ?? I'm unsure now which one is right vs wrong for her father's name.

The emotional connection with the reader

I am enjoying watching Jackie and her entire family grow to become better, stronger, and more entwined in her life. It has been a wonderful ride of emotions and experiences throughout this series. I am looking forward to the next story that K.N. Banett adds.

Twist

I greatly enjoyed this book. I did not see that coming. This book was tremendous!

family

i didn't like the mispronounced character name of Hasan. that's all I have to say