On the outskirts of San Diego, the bodies of two young women are discovered. They have no names, no IDs, and no family looking for them. Fearing the possibility of a human trafficking ring, the police and FBI reach out to Alice Vega, a private investigator known for finding the missing, for help in finding out who the Janes were--and finding the others who are missing.
Vega is called in when the bodies of two young Latina women are found with no identification and who have not been reported missing. When Vega is called in to help, she brings in Cap, her partner in the first book.
Maybe because women are so frequently victims of abuse, we enjoy having a kick-ass female protagonist in a take charge and take-em-down role. Are these women (Liz Salander, Jane Hawk, Livia Lone, Alice Vega) realistic? Not really. They have many stereotypical qualities, but they also have personality and the gumption, determination, intelligence, and a sense of justice that I have fun identifying with in the most ridiculous way.
Who are some of your favorite awesome, bad-ass female protagonists?
Read in July? Blog review scheduled for Jan. 6, 2020.
NetGalley/Doubleday
Mystery/Thriller. Jan. 21, 2020. Print length: 368 pages.
There should be more kick-ass heroines in books, not only in superheroes books but also in other genres as well. It always delight me to find books which feature a female cop or a role in any other male dominated field. :)
ReplyDeleteMe, too, Melody--I'm always pleased to see a woman in roles with power instead of as secretaries, assistants, or victims!
DeleteIt is fun to see women hit back hard or in power positions or nontraditional roles. I find myself drawn to characters like that. I know it isn't very realistic in most cases, but I like to live vicariously through them just the same.
ReplyDeleteIt is fun to live vicariously through characters who try do the right thing and refuse to an underling. :)
DeleteYears ago I was featured in a newspaper article because I sought out mysteries written by females with female protagonists. Back then I loved V.I. Warshawski, Kinsey Millone, Sharon McCone. I still have the article somewhere showing a photo of me reading one of my mysteries.
ReplyDelete:) Women mystery writers and their female protagonists have a great history that proves how much we love reading about women who take charge. They don't have to be superwomen, just confident and capable women! I want to see that pic, Teresa. :)
DeleteI've always liked Lisbeth Salander. And there's a valkyrie named Sig in a series by Elliot James who can do some serious damage, as can Shotgun Susie from Simon Green's Nightside series. :D
ReplyDeleteOh, I'd forgotten about Charming. I always meant to continue that series, but somehow that intention didn't carry through. Thanks for the reminder about Sig. :)
DeleteNeed to check out the Nightside series, too.
I also found Lisbeth Salander to be a very kick-ass heroine, although there were a few points in the first trilogy that were rather disturbing and probably would have been handled differently had the author been female.
ReplyDeleteV.I. Warshawski was a cool character as well. More realistic that Lisbeth but still, pretty tough.
Interesting about the differences between the way men and women approach a female character. Sometimes I don't notice, but sometimes I do. The more kick-ass, super-hero protagonists are often by men. Fortunately, there are great women protagonists who succeed by other means. I mean, Miss Marple doesn't need to rely on physical methods to provide answers!
DeleteP.S. also BUFFY! Loved Buffy the vampire slayer. Not quite a literary heroine, though there have been many comics of the show/character following its leaving the airwaves.
ReplyDeleteLoved Buffy! She definitely belongs in the group of strong women fighting evil!
DeleteI just heard about this on a podcast a few hours ago! Do I need the other one first? This sounds so good!
ReplyDeleteSince there are only two so far in the series, I'd start with Two Girls Down which I really liked and gives the background. Two Girls Down was a book that when I started I thought I knew where it was going, and I was so glad to realize I was wrong.
DeleteThanks for the advice. I placed a request for it at my library!
DeleteI hope you like it, Les!
DeleteI'm anxious to read this! I read and enjoyed this first Vega story last year. She's a tough and wise character. Hmm, drawing a blank on a specific kick-ass women protagonist at the moment. Oh, the MC from Meg Gardiner's new FBI series, forget her name. Actually Gardiner always writes these type of good but bad female leads, even in her stand-alones.
ReplyDeleteI've only read one by Meg Gardiner, The Shadow Tracer, but the protagonist was another confident and capable character. And you've reminded me of Flora Dane in Lisa Gardner's D.D. Warren series. :)
DeleteOkay...Two Girls Down is now on my wishlist. Thanks for that. :-) As for kick-ass heroines, how's about Michael Connelly's Renée Ballard, Nevada Barr's Anna Pigeon, and Barbara Nickless' Sydney Rose Parnell? I find it interesting that there are some male authors who are starting (or have started) new series featuring strong female main characters. Methinks they've taken the hint!
ReplyDeleteYes, on Renee Ballard and Ann Pigeon! I think I need to meet Sydney Rose Parnell--love that name. The number of female protagonists seems to have grown tremendously in this genre, and male authors do seem to have taken the hint. :)
DeleteOh I need to read this. Vega sounds fantastic -- and you're right, their personality and determination just elevates them. I just finished reading The Ninja Daughter and Lily Wong is fantastic. I also liked Ellery Hathaway from the Ellery Hathaway series, and honestly -- Harper Connelly from Charlaine Harris' Grave Sight series. Not strictly mystery heroine, but still solves paranormal mysteries, sort of.
ReplyDeleteThe Ninja Daughter sounds great--don't we all love the idea of a female ninja taking on the protection of abused women? She sounds a lot like Livia Lone. Ellery is an example of making a life after horrific abuse, and I love Harper Connelly! I've never been a fan of Charlaine Harris' other series, but I eager awaited each new book in the Grave Sight series.
DeleteAs all these comments have popped up in my inbox, I suddenly thought of two kick-ass female protagonists that I'd long forgotten. Sunny Randall is Robert Parker's star in a 6-part series and Grace MacBride is P.J. Tracy's ("founder of Monkeewrench Software, comprised of four best friends with genius minds who donate their skills and time to help cops across the country solve their unsolvable crimes"). Now I want to reread these two series!
ReplyDeleteOh, yes, Grace MacBride! I love that series, and guess I should try Parker's series with Sunny Randall, too. :)
DeleteLisbeth Salander from the Girl with the Dragon Tattoo series is definitely a fierce character that comes to mind. I am also really starting to enjoy Kate Burkholder from Linda Castillo's series. Love a great female character and this is a series I want to check out for sure!
ReplyDelete