When it comes to my experience reading Consuming Fire: An Alexa Silven Novel by C.B. Hoffmann, I should probably start at the very beginning. The first sentence of this enticing novel reads, “She was accustomed to coming here; she was an assassin embroiled in a sultry web of blackmail and deceit.” Well, that did it for me. For one thing, it isn’t often you see a female assassin before you on paper; usually when there is a woman and an assassin involved in anything, it is the former trying to evade the latter.
That alone was enough to make me want to continue. In the age of female empowerment, this seemed like the perfect book to have in my hands. (Not to mention, the use of words like “sultry web” added the bonus element of sexiness, and in the very next sentence, the character questions whether or not she has a soul, adding the ever-relatable theme of personal moral doubt.) I knew that the main character was going to be a woman just from the title and the very attractive redhead on the cover, but I was not prepared for the main character to be a woman and an assassin. I was excited to see where this book was going to take me.
If I am going to give you the synopsis without spoiling anything, I should probably keep it as succinct as possible. Alexa, the story’s protagonist, grew up an experienced sharpshooter, but because she longs to escape her past or anything associated with it, she enters the world of fashion, hoping this will keep her safely veiled and allow her to live a somewhat normal life. She should have known better than that, though; hardly anyone hiding from their past remains hidden forever. She soon finds herself the subject of a blackmailer, someone who threatens to expose this past she so tirelessly works to cover up, and is soon forced into the “assassin” position, on behalf of the blackmailer’s demands.
I’m sure I’m not the only one who was instantly intrigued by the fact that Alexa would allow herself to be used as a human killing device, just to ensure that none of the skeletons in her closet would ever see the light of day. You need to be a specific type of desperate in order to make some of the decisions she makes, and it was that desperation that made the character of Alexa so enigmatically fascinating.
Since I’m on the subject of her character, I can’t leave out her deeply-rooted familial issues. She had had a tumultuous relationship with her dad and, at the pinnacle of their father-daughter unrest, she endures something extremely traumatic that completely changes the course of her life, just as she is turning the corner into adulthood. That was seemingly the most pivotal point for Alexa; from then on forward she roamed the world alone; carrying with her the weight of the unspeakable scenes she witnessed. Although her situation is severe, the walls she puts in place from that moment on can be relatable to almost anyone. Ostensibly, her character is tough as nails, but the reader knows about all of the emotional safeguards she has installed within her mind, just to keep the psychological pain at bay.
Knowing all of this about Alexa makes it easier for the reader to empathize and understand the propelling force behind her cooperation with the blackmailer. Hoffmann did an excellent job of creating a woman who is, very simply put, likable. Don’t get me wrong—Alexa doesn’t enjoy being sucked into this web, and she wants to put an end to it, but at the same time, it’s important to note that she would rather deal with it herself, than risk any element of her true identity being discovered.
“Deal with it” is exactly what she does; her journey is one that is saturated with suspense and twists, enough to make me lose track of time while I was reading. Hoffman made sure to throw in a little romance and flirting here and there, as well as a religious element, which, surprisingly, complemented the storyline and theme well, though I would have never initially guessed that.
Hoffman seamlessly leads the reader through each discovery and secret, without ever becoming confusing or longwinded. The dialogue is natural, and each character that is introduced serves a purpose. This isn’t your run-of-the-mill suspense thriller, where relationships are superficial, contrived, and take the back burner to the action—and for that, I was grateful. The characters are very human, particularly the title one, and the relationships have substance. That’s what sets Alexa apart from all your other secret assassin sharpshooters out there: she’s human. Consuming Fire is the first book in C.B. Hoffmann’s three-part Alexa Silven series, and it left me excited to see what comes next.
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