(I received a free copy of this book in exchange for a review).
(This review may contain spoilers).
I found this book a particularly intriguing one. The blurb sounded really interesting and I found myself pulled into the storyline almost straight away.
Zhukov was a really well-written character and it was good to see the storyline written purely from his perspective. Although the book kind of went straight into the action, I still found it really easy to follow.
I would have liked to see a bit more of Zhukov’s past. There was enough to make him an interesting character, but I didn’t really see enough of why he became one of the dogs.
There were times in this book that I couldn’t help thinking Zhukov’s morality compass was incredibly skewed. It made sense with who he was and how he’d been brought up, but the loose ends thing in particular made me think I’m not sure Zhukov would be a person I’d like in reality.
I particularly liked Zhukov’s relationship with Val. It was interesting how Zhukov didn’t identify himself as being romantically interested in men, but it was more that Val was an exception.
I would have liked a bit of explanation about how Val (and Anya’s) build was so different to what others like them were normally like. The contrast between Val and Zhukov was fairly interesting, but I would have liked to know why Val’s body temperature was so cold in comparison to everyone else’s.
I did think Zhukov was a believable character. I was pulled into this storyline really easily and it was good to see other parts of the world. I would have liked to see more of the history of the world, but that lack of detail didn’t really detract from the story.
I would definitely be interested in reading a sequel to this book. It did have a proper ending, but there was a lot more of this story that I felt could have been told. I’d like to see more of the world and the characters.
Get a copy: Zhukov’s Dogs
Ink of Blood 