By Emily Kimelman

I have read a number of the Jet Kindle World series, and Emily Kimelman’s It Takes Two, which combines her Sydney Rye series with Russell Blake’s Jet series, is one of the best.

Kindle Worlds is an Amazon initiative that allows writers to publish new stories within another author’s established, best-selling series, similar to fan fiction, except that there are some minimum standards when it comes to quality, and the original series author also gets royalties on the sales of all the related books in the Kindle World.

The program gives readers more books to read about the characters and situations they love, and it helps new authors get discovered, as well.

Not that Emily Kimelman is an undiscovered author. She’s a bestseller in her own right. Her Sydney Rye series now contains eight books, plus this entry in the Jet series.

It took two

With two protagonists, the plot of It Takes Two takes some surprising turns. Kimelman sets the two up in opposition: Sydney Rye and her dog, Blue are assigned to protect a rich man and his family on an adventure/wilderness vacation. Jet, meanwhile, has been assigned to kill him. Sydney manages to save the target, at least temporarily. In the encounter, both Jet and Sydney have each other in their gunsights, but for some reason they cannot define, decline to pull the trigger.

Back in civilization, they recognize each other as kindred spirits and team up to take down a particularly noxious villain, an American businessman and politician.

What’s good

I like Kimelman’s writing style. It’s clear, simple, straightforward and just descriptive enough to bring me right into the story. And she knows how to write a page-turner.

Fitting the genre, there’s lots of action. Of course, this being a Jet story, it requires a certain suspension of disbelief. Jet is a woman who never makes a mistake, and Sydney Rye, with the help of her gigantic dog, is unstoppable. It’s essentially an unbelievable concept — two unbeatable women assassins who take on groups of opponents without breaking a sweat. But we readers suspend our disbelief because Kimelman knows how to write a story that pulls you along.

Kimelman has created a fascinating and believable cast of characters in Sydney Rye and her boss, Mulberry. What’s more, she has not only captured and accurately portrayed Russel Blake’s Jet character, but added more depth to her in a way that is completely consistent with Blake’s series.

It’s well-named: It Takes Two features two strong, yet vulnerable women (plus an awesome dog) who know how to defeat anyone who makes the fatal mistake of threatening them.

5*

Find it on Amazon (available in the US only)

Visit Emily Kimelman’s website and blog, and follow her on Twitter @EJKimelman.