Charlie Fox, female body-guard. Fun action stuff.

I have to say I was underwhelmed by this book (I listened to the audio version). Reviews have been mainly in favor of the series, and now I'm wondering if I started with one of the weaker volumes.Let's get the criticism out of the way, shall we?
The plot. I tried, but I didn't really feel suspense, except maybe for the final action sequence. While at first I was curious to find out why Trey was being hunted, and who was eventually behind it, halfway through the book I was so distracted and partially bored by the Spring Breakers, sulking teens, franchise resort golf cart drivers etc. that I stopped really caring. The plot felt like something from an 80s P.I. show - entertaining, but not gripping.
The action scenes are well written, I have to give Sharp that. Crisp, well-paced, no fuss and believable. Made me listen up and lose my disinterest whenever a shootout/close combat scene arrived. Spice of the book.
When I noticed my own disregard for the plot, I decided to focus on the characters instead and care about them. Which is what saved my opinion about the book and lifted it to three stars instead of two. To be precise, Charlie and Sean did.
I never really warmed up with Trey, and neither did Charlie. Not really. The teenagers in the story were something to grin at at first, but they quickly became as much of a nuissance and source for anger as they are in RL (I'm raising two of that species, I know what I'm talking about). I was, in general, missing adult in the book. Only Walt with his warm Southern accent and paternal instincts was a likeable supporting character. The rest - most of them bad guys - were indistinct and even blurred a little in my head.
But thank God there's Charlie. Tough, yet thoughtful Charlie, ghosts of the past haunting her, and battling with feelings of guilt. She's a likeable heroine, the right mixture of hard and soft, and those features are best completed when she interacts with or thinks about Sean. Sean, her partner, whom she's obviously in love with, but on difficult terms. In the few scenes these two have with each other in 'First Drop', there is a lot of chemistry crackling between these characters, a lot of history defining their cautious but clearly smitten ways with each other. And it's because of them that I might go back and read the first book of the series, even if 'First Drop' really didn't meet my expectations. Luckily enough, stories, for me, are about characters more than about plot (for the most part anyway). Which is why, with qualms, I'm giving 'First Drop' three of five stars (would be 2 1/2 if that was a option).

One more word about the narrator:
I listened to the audio version narrated by Clare Corbett, and she couldn't always convince me either. Her voice suited Charlie's character, and her British English is clean and easy to understand. Also, Corbett's interpretation of Sean was done very well - she gives him nuances of cold-blooded, yet evocative sexiness. Unfortunately, Sean only played a small part in the book, and we don't get to hear him often enough.
As for the teenager's voices, Corbett made them sound appropriately obnoxious - which got on my nerves after a while. Possibly intentional.
I had my biggest issues with Corbett mimicking a deeper, male voice and an American accent. Both seemed exaggerated and really took some getting used to. I would've preferred more subtlety here.

For my reviews in German go to www.buchstapelwleise.wordpress.com

Got this Charlie Fox thriller from a book bundle by StoryBundle. Zoe Sharp will not be my new fav author, but for the price this was an entertaining read. There's not a lot of character development or even much differentiation, but it is a series and thus perhaps not meant to stand on its own.

A terrific thriller that moves right along at a rapid pace, told from the point of view of Charlie Fox, a veteran of the British Army who is now an operative for a security firm. Her charge is a fifteen year old boy whose father, a computer software designer, has vanished and his son is now a target. Charlie and the boy soon are being hunted through Florida not only by the bad guys but also by the police when she is set up for kidnapping and murder. The action is hot and heavy and Charlie is more than capable, even though she is distracted by the disappearance of her fellow operative, Sean, whom she has an on again, off again relationship. I absolutely loved the character, especially her attitude, and they say she handled being a Brit thrown into the totally different world of Florida during Spring Break. I am absolutely looking forward to the next Charlie Fox book!!!!!

FIRST DROP (Bodyguard-Florida-Cont) – VG
Sharp, Zoe – 4th in series
Piatkus, 2004 – UK Hardcover – ISBN: 0479906618
*** Charlie Fox and her ex-lover, Sean, have been hired to protect a wealthy computer programmer and his 14-year-old son, Trey. While at an amusement park, someone tries to shoot Trey. Charlie get them safely back to the house, only to find everyone, including the father and Sean. Everything has been removed, except Sean’s gun. Charlie and Trey go on the run, not knowing who to trust, believing Sean is dead and knowing some of the bad guys are cops.
*** This is a book that is exciting from page one all the way through to the end. Charlie is a great character; she’s smart and tough but definitely has her demons. Trey is a very believable 14-year-old boy with all the insolence and naiveté teens can have. The action is fast, the emotions are true, the sense of place very well done—you definitely know they are in Florida—and the dialogue is true to the ear. This was a terrific book in a really good series.

Ft. Lauderdale
Daytona Beach

A female Jack Reacher (for those of you who read Lee Child). Finally a woman who kicks ass and takes names!! Looking forward to reading next one.

I liked the first three Charlie Fox novels, thought I felt I was still slow at getting to know her and figure out what makes her tick ... and then I read this one. Charlie Fox is fully realized in this one, and it seems to be somewhat of a watershed for author Sharp: this book really takes off and doesn't let go. This one went to (dare I use the cliche) the next level in a big way. I found myself really, really liking and rooting for Charlie, whereas before she merely intrigued me just enough to keep me reading to see if she'd ever fully develop. She has, and how. Kudos to Sharp!

Start with a strong female character, ex-British soldier, Charlie Fox. Add non-stop action, and a plot that confuses the good guys and the bad guys. Charlie Fox is resourceful, tough, funny and believable. She doesn’t know whom to trust and her 15-year-old charge is annoying, but Charlie is going to do her job. I couldn’t put this thriller down.

--Recommended by Connie

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Charlie gets her first taste of America. And she's so not impressed. I laughed a lot through this one. She has modern teenage attitude down to a T and the action is from the first chapter to the last. If Charlie were a real person I'd definitely want her as a mate. She cracks me up. When you read a Charlie Fox novel,you strap in tight before the first page and only undo the seat belt when you get to the end. In the middle you just hang on tight for a hell of a ride. Action and intrigue in equal measure with witty humour thrown in for damn good measure.

Meh.

This book was billed as "the female Jack Reacher." Sharp could try for years to be the next "female Jack Reacher," and until she gets an editor that understands that Americans don't speak in British slang, she's doomed to fail.

I fell asleep three times in an attempt to finish the last 20 pages of this book.

Sad.