Specimen (PRISM Agents)

This was an impulse pre-order, and I was pleasantly surprised! This book is a high action book with sci-fi and paranormal elements. The romantic subplot was good, but it definitely didn't overtake the story. I really really enjoyed this and am looking forward to the next one.

I went into this book without any expectations, so I ended up feeling neither disappointed nor particularly charmed by it. It’s a nice story — I didn’t get bored until around the third part of the book, and even after that I still enjoyed reading it all the way to the end. There was essentially no romance, but I was prepared for that thanks to other reviews. Still, I was a little disappointed that there wasn’t more sexual tension, flirting, or something beyond the whole “alien connection.” Yes, they clicked well, had some nice banter, and clearly seemed to appreciate each other’s looks and personalities, but most of that felt more told through their inner monologues than actually shown on the page. Honestly, David seemed to flirt more with other people than with Sonnie, if I remember correctly. Their first sex scene took up about one paragraph. I’m not asking for detailed smut, and I understand that the scene wasn’t really meant to be romantic — it felt more like a mutual favor, or maybe friends-with-benefits energy — but it still landed a bit flat for me. Even with the second intimate scene later in the book, the emotional connection still felt more described than genuinely earned. Give me some emotions, bruv! (Respectfully.) The beginning of the story was intriguing and fast-paced, but later the pace slowed down a little, and the stakes never felt particularly high, even during their assignments. By the end, the story did add a bit more intrigue, though it still didn’t…

*4.5* What an incredible debut! C. Quince has managed to create a book that's not only unique, action-packed, sweet, snarky, incredibly well-researched, and thrilling, but one that's also BRIMMING with diversity. That last one is a feature that's so needed yet so impressively done here that I just want to talk about it for a minute. SPECIMEN is a beautiful book for its wealth of representation alone. Besides the variety of identities, from the main characters being bisexual and gay respectively (and a non-binary side character), there are also a cast of men and women of a multitude of skin colors and sizes, and a wildly eclectic mix of nationalities, from Mexican and American to Iranian, Arabic, Korean, Indian, Scottish, a mix of East Asian, English, and more, and they all fit; there's plenty of space for them here, all living their own lives but sharing their culture with these characters. They're each introduced with a level of ease, respect, and authenticity that I've just never seen done even SIMILARLY well to such a degree before. It's a gratifying experience that I WISH I saw more of in literature. Other writers need to take note! What's great about SPECIMEN, though, is that while when I say "authenticity" I mean every single nationality is treated with the utmost diligence, that's not the only thing AUTHENTICALLY represented. From tools and weapons used by the main characters and the practices of the government agencies they come in contact with, to geography,…