Review: Scorched

Scorched
Rating: 4/5
Buy or Borrow: Buy
Source: Copy courtesy of the publisher!

Love is a fire. But who will get burned?
Ember Lord is facing charges for the murder of her father. She was found at the scene of the crime, holding the murder weapon, and refuses to explain herself.

Joe Masters is tasked with getting under Ember's skin, and breaking through her stony facade; to gain her trust and find out what her plans are now her father's legally-questionable business is under her control.
But as the two get closer, Joe begins to break down the wall that Ember has built around herself, and gets a glimpse of the truth behind. Is he really falling for a cold-hearted killer? Or is there more to the murder than meets the eye?

The incredible final instalment of Joss Stirling's Young Detective Agency series, a companion novel to Stung, Shaken, and the award-winning Struck. Romantic thrillers that will make your heart skip a beat.

As you all know, I'm a huge fan of Joss Stirling's books. They pick me up when I'm feeling down, and they give me the warm and fuzzies when I need it, with a nice dose of originality! Her Savants series is my complete favourite and I so wish there where more books in that series, but this series comes in a close second, and I'm so sad to see it finish with this book! 

There's intrigue from the start as usual, as Stirling combines mystery, action and romance for one last time....or maybe not. I can hope. Everyone's undercover, so we get to see a lot of Nathan, Kate, Raven and Kieran. Damien and Rose make an appearance but not as much as the others which made me a little sad as this is supposed to be the last book. (I'm so hoping she'll do a series with the branch that Joe's opening in the US. PLEASE JOSS PLEASE!). 

I've loved Joe in every single one of the other books and I've been waiting to finally get his story, and the fact he's still dealing with the after effects of something from the first book made this book even better. No detail is unmissed and it made Joe an even more believable character, you could understand his motivations and how he ticked. Ember is the perfect match for Joe, and I really liked seeing the two different sides to Ember. The real her we see from her POV and the fake her that Joe see's in the beginning. I really love how Stirling gives us both POV's, so we see Embers side of things and then Joe's side. We start off with Ember and get to know her, but she still makes you question if she did it...but you could understand why she would. Then we see Joe and you see how Ember appears to the outside world and that makes you wonder too, so you're constantly trying to guess for the first part of the book did she or didn't she? And then you discover what kind of person she really is, and the plot thickens. I love it. Such a brilliant approach. 

Ember herself may be prickly on the outside, but you can see throughout the book why she made up her facade, to protect herself and her brother. She's intelligent, she's funny, and she loves her brother so much it was so heartwarming to see, and I loved her brother too! 

There are so many brilliant characters in this, like Max, Ember's brother! And Henry, the theatre director. And speaking of, I really loved the way the play, Midsummer Night's Dream, was used in the book and adapted. But I have to say....Raymond may be a tiny character in the grand scheme of the book, but he has one of the best lines and Henry's response to it cracked me up a ridiculous amount. I could picture the scene in my head so clearly, and the way they spoke and the difference so clearly! 

Scorched kept me guessing right up until the end, and the surprise reveal that became so obvious in the moment it was revealed! The killer wasn't at all who I thought it was! This is a brilliant final book, wrapping everything up for each of the characters along with Joe and Ember's story. We find out what the others are planning to do and so on. It made me quite sad actually because I'm going to miss the group! 

The characters are relatable, and believable and you end up rooting for them in spades, as well as fully understanding them and their actions. It was brilliant to see Joe get his happy ending, he and Ember where so well matched, and get a glimpse of how the story ends for the other couples, although Damien and Rose will forever be my favourite! I'm so, so sad to see this series end, especially as Savants came to an end recently as well, and there was a nice little connection between the two series in this book too! 

Scorched is the perfect ending to this series, and is full of everything I loved in the other books. A perfect blend of humour, action, mystery, tension and romance that keeps you guessing throughout! 

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