Phantom Game

I've been wanting to read something by Christine Feehan for years. Her Dark Carpathian series always came highly recommended in the paranormal romance genre, even by some of my favorite authors, I just never quite got to them. When the opportunity to read 'Phantom Game' came up, I jumped at it. As another long-lived paranormal series, I figured the Ghostwalker novel would be a good chance to finally see what her writing was all about. The premise is interesting enough. Genetically enhanced soldier, Jonas 'Smoke' Harper, has such a heavy mix of predatorial dna that he struggles to keep it under control.. even with his team. Though he's seen many of those similar to himself meet their perfect mates and start relatively happy lives, it's not something he thinks is in the cards for himself. Along comes Camellia. Part of the same brutal program, she's one of the original females that were designed to pair with a specific soldier. She's got plenty of her own deadly skills, but the two are overwhelmingly drawn to one another. They know why and that only makes her resist harder, while he just wants to give her every reason to give in. Structurally, the story is fine. The concepts are interesting and the characters have lots of potential. I think the writing style just wasn't for me. I feel like a large portion of the past/present is just being told through conversation and I didn't feel invested. All that aside, there's plenty of tense scenes here and there, a creative ability system, and I definitely felt like I could have liked it with just a different approach. But.. obviously this author has a ton of fans and they can't all be wrong. So, I still intend to check out that other series. Maybe I'll feel differently about it. It's still a solid read though. If you're looking for something quick and light with military romance themes and a couple that's a bit resistant to the pull of one another, this might be the book for you.

Despite being the eighteenth book in the series, it's actually the first one that I've read! This is a paranormal series, where men and women have been experimented on by an evil doctor so that they have abilities and talents that make them extra and above, the purpose of which was originally for use in war. There was a lot of time spent in the first part of the book with the world building and giving the extensive history. For someone who hasn't read any of the previous books, this is incredibly useful, but it was also extensive so I did do some skimming of this. I'm a reader that can be dropped into new worlds and I tend to figure it out as I move through a story. Jonas and Camellia are both survivors from this evil doctor but are only meeting for the first time now. They have a predetermined bond- arranged via the experiments that were done to them. Jonas is in awe upon meeting Camellia, learning all about her and her talents. Camellia has spent the last several years completely alone and is not one to trust easily. Their story is intense, action-packed and I found myself turning pages just to see what would happen next, and how everything would come together. There was a lot going on in this book with an array of secondary characters that most likely had their own books earlier in the series, and I became invested in those storylines, so want to now go back and read those.

4.25 stars--PHANTOM GAME is the eighteenth instalment in Christine Feehan’s contemporary, adult GHOSTWALKERS paranormal, (often erotic) romance series focusing on an elite group (4 teams) of enhanced men and women known as the GhostWalkers (GW). These ‘super soldiers’ were once part of an unauthorized government experiment performed by Dr. Peter Whitney but several soldiers have since, opted into the program on their own. The original GhostWalkers struggled without a female anchor, a female whose genetic and enhanced powers were often in tandem with the men involved. This is Team One member Jonas ‘Smoke’ Harper, and Camellia Mist’s story line. PHANTOM GAME can be read as a stand alone without any difficulty but I recommend reading the series in order for back story and cohesion, or at the very least book one SHADOW GAME where Team One was first introduced. Told from dual third person perspectives (Camillia and Jonas) PHANTOM GAME, returns to Team One, Dr. Peter Whitney’s original team of GhostWalkers, a tight-knit group of enhanced soldiers considered a failure by GhostWalker standards. Jonas Harper, along with team members Dr. Kyle Forbes and Jeff Hollister have been sent on a mission by Team Captain Ryland Miller, searching for something or someone threatening the lives of the families secured in the compound for Team One but the further into the forest, the sicker Jeff and Kyle become, and Jonas is forced to go it alone. Pulled by an unknown source, Jonas will come face to face with Camellia Mist, one of the original orphaned girls experimented on by Peter Whitney, a woman who is a genetic match to our story line hero but a woman who was betrayed by someone she considered family and friend. Struggling to accept and trust Jonas Harper, Camellia is reluctant to follow but threats from a different ‘predator’ find Camellia helping the Team, and the man with whom she will fall in love. What ensues is the building romance and relationship between Camellia and Jonas, and the potential fall-out as a need for vengeance finds both Teams One and Two, targeted by a group of enhanced soldiers who are risking their lives for a perceived betrayal of one of their own. Camellia is a powerful GhostWalker whose abilities continue to evolve on a daily basis but Camellia is also of the mindset that death follows her at every corner, and the betrayal by a ‘sister’ pushed Camellia out of their lives. Jonas Harper has yet to discover the source of all of his ‘genetic make-up’ but meeting Camellia reveals a closer connection to the earth and wildlife than he could have ever imagined. As the Team comes under fire, Camellia and Jonas will work together using the power of their mind and nature to save the lives of people at home. The relationship between Jonas and Camellia is predicated and fated by manipulated genetics, and altered DNA. As members of the original unsanctioned GhostWalker experiments Camellia had been ‘matched’ with our story line hero, a match that could not be denied regardless of forethought or desire. Jonas and Camellia’s abilities would help one another when their lives, and the lives of Team One and Team Two are threatened, and it is these abilities that I am going to address below. The $ex scenes are limited but passionate. For readers and followers of Christine Feehan there is a recent and ongoing familiarity and corresponding comparison between the GHOSTWALKERS and DARK/CARPATHIAN series. The Ghostwalkers are now exhibiting some of the same powers, characteristics and abilities of the author’s Carpathian characters. PHANTOM GAME is a story of betrayal and vengeance, secrets and lies, family and friendships, fate and love. PHANTOM GAME covers but a few days in the life of the Ghostwalkers and our story line couple, and as far as the entire series, only advances a couple of years from the introductory story line. The action packed premise is twisted and tragic; the romance is intimate; the characters are edgy, inspiring and intense.