Full disclosure: This author is a very dear friend of mine. I copy edit for her. We've attended an author event and Disney World together. We text back and forth. I think she's a bad-ass. You should know this. But I didn't edit this book, and I feel I can review it objectively. So I have. Up until the last ten pages of this book, Shooting Scars was a five star book for me. You know how rarely I give out that rating, and I almost did it here. So before I get critical, I LOVED this book. It's unusual because it's romance and I don't normally read romance, but I know and love Karina's writing so I make an exception for her. So why only four stars? Because the ending kind of annoyed me. Strangely enough, I was not all that frustrated by the end of Sins and Needles but this one really bothered me. There is absolutely no closure and you get no answers. I wouldn't exactly say it's a cliffhanger, and yet it is. It's also incredibly abrupt. This book has a breakneck pace and it continues up until the last page where it just ends. The ending came up really quickly and my brain did not have enough time to come to terms with that. Now, I know that I will probably one of the few that has an issue with that, but I have come to the conclusion that I hate endings like this. A book can leave me hanging, but I want a few answers. Leave me some loose threads, but don't leave me hanging in the worst way. That being said, this is pretty much my only complaint. I think if you prepare yourself for the ending, it might be a perfect book for you.My favorite thing about Karina Halle's writing are her characters. They jump off the page and come to life. They are all flawed, human, and feel very, very real. You might hate Javier (and I do) but there are so many dimensions to him that you are left feeling conflicted more often than not. Same thing about Ellie. There are moments in Shooting Scars when she is very hard to like. But if you think about her past, her insecurities, most of it makes sense. Shooting Scars is an intense book and it's also a thinking one because it makes you very aware of the human condition and the morality that goes in to decision making. People mess up. Good people, bad people, and all the people in between. None of the characters in this book are black or white. They are very, very grey. And that's why I love them, and also why this book is incredibly intense and angsty in the best way.Reading Shooting Scars was a very unique experience for me in that I was raving about the writing in my head for much of the book. The tone of the novel is conveyed in the writing all throughout and there is a feeling of foreboding and bad things to come from the very first word. I knew it was leading up to some seriously crazy stuff and a really scary finish. I cannot rave enough about the technical prowess of this author and that's why I continue to be a huge fan and try to push her books on everyone I know. No one else writes like Karina Halle and her books are a unique experience that I cannot find with any other author. They have a strong romantic element, and yet the plot always ends up being so much more than that.A story that is completely unrealistic becomes true to life in the hands of a skilled author like Karina Halle. Do I recommend this book? You bet I do.
