| Title | : | The Consequence of High Caliber (The Mako Shark, #1) |
| Author | : | |
| Rating | : | |
| ISBN | : | - |
| Language | : | English |
| Format Type | : | ebook |
| Number of Pages | : | 168 |
| Publication | : | First published December 12, 2014 |
Miko is in love.
Excerpt: The server shifted his weight, nervously asking, “Is everything all right, sir?” when it was very much apparent that everything was not all right.
Miko stared unblinkingly at his dinner, seeing dead gray flesh floating in a plate of blood where there was only filet mignon with a side of steamed vegetables. He was trembling, his face pale and glistening with sweat. “I am a vegetarian,” he said quietly, finally turning away from his plate.
“But…you ordered it. Rare, sir. Extra rare.”
Gripping the steak knife in his shaking hand, Miko managed to stammer, “On a separate plate.”
“Yes. I’m…I’m sorry, sir. You are correct. It’s my mistake. I’ll bring you—”
“No. Please, the check. The check.”
“Of course.” He departed with a bow.
Miko released the knife and draped his napkin over the plate, his stomach turning. The napkin remained bleached white, failing to soak up the inches of gore that were not actually there. He loosened his tie, then pushed the plate away and slowly brought his hand into his coat pocket where he kept his nine millimeter. And his sanity.
The waiter arrived with the check just as Miko slipped a little red candy between his lips, closing his eyes and pressing it against the roof of his mouth with his tongue. Spicy, sugared relief flooded his senses and he sighed languidly. “Thank you,” he said. His English was not particularly clear even without having his mouth full, but Miko did not care whether the waiter understood him. Or if he understood what his error could have cost them both.
The Consequence of High Caliber (The Mako Shark, #1) Reviews
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Free for KU users!
This is a spinoff of the
Chance Assassin: A Story of Love, Luck, and Murder series. Review soon (here's a hint 4.5 stars), but in the meantime check out my interview with Miko. He is very...special.
Interview:
http://www.attentionisarbitrary.com/2... -
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This is one of my favorite reads ever...and somehow I never reviewed it? Bad, bad, bad Lisa. Can we just suffice it to say that Miko is my book boyfriend, and I've never said that before, and it also makes me one weird, odd-ball, and I'm really okay with that.
Miko won't be everyone's cup-o-tea, but if you love the weird, the strange and the entirely off-beat, this is for you.
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I loved Miko. Full Stop. This story was dark and violent. Miko is a totally messed up dude, but his romance with Toby was so sweet....it was a contrast that had me riveted. Toby's need to believe in Miko was vital to him and to Miko as well. It got him through. I am looking forward to diving into book 2. This book easily made my best of the year list.
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This would have been an easy 5 stars but I hated the ending! I just hope the next book comes out soon and that Miko and Toby get what they deserve
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3,5 stars
First things first: This book is part of the Chance Assassin universe, but it can be read as standalone. But, if you read it before
Les Recidivists, than this may spoil the ending for you to a degree, since plot of both books overlap at the end.
****
Our merry band of assassins just got bigger...
This book follows Miko, one of Silva's assassins-group of elite contract killers. Due to tragic accident in his childhood that cost him more than his fingers, Miko developed several quirks: he constantly chews cinnamon candies, he has to make special sleeping arrangements and he is squeamish. He also has a reputation of a terrible bloodthirsty killer that's not really true, because he really didn't plan to kill his marks the way he did- it happened. :| After one of his assignments, he goes out and picks up a guy. That's how he meets Toby with whom he eventually starts a relationship.
Now, I know this is not a new, never-heard-before plot...( Hmm,
Warrior's Cross comes to mind, for example) and Miko and Toby face all the same issues these couples have, the biggest being lying about his true vocation.
But what makes this book standing out is the weirdness, quirkiness of main character....who doesn't get miraculously cured with the love of fine man. This is what I like about Nicole Castle: she takes a character, she fucks him up beyond recognition and then she makes him fall in love with another man who doesn't really try to fix him- he kind of works around these character glitches, doesn't try to point the moral of things and in some occasion even hone them (Vincent, we are looking at you). It also happens here- For example,
We also get several chapters of Miko's past and people who trained him and these were my favorite, especially scenes with Nasir.
As much as I liked Miko I didn't have any opinion on Toby. I don't feel like we really get to know much about him. Maybe it was because Miko was so peculiar, so he steals every scene, but I needed some balance thrown in. I also didn't expect it to end with a cliffie, so I was sorry when I reached end.
Fans of Chance Assassin series know that Castle changed her style with second book- kind of like zooming out her lens, so focus can be shifted to include bunch of other characters beside Frank and Vincent.
And it wasn't just that: Stylistically, tone-wise and narrative-wise book #1 and book #2 couldn't be more different.
The Consequences of High Caliber? Again, a whole new beast.
This is not warped and twisted like CH nor satirical like LR. This book is actually following the usual mm romance formula - we have a Meet Cute. A Big Mis. And a HEA (Or HFN since it ends on a cliffie and sequel is expected). Thus, it's what makes it predictable in few places. -__- I also wasn't really sold on Miko's bff plot and her lack of options, but I ended up going with it because of where it took us- it opened an interesting plot to be handled in second book. (I know, I am a terrible person).
tl;dr- It's a short, fast-paced read you can gobble in few hours. -
That was so beautiful. The characters, the story, the writing style - everything. Just perfect.
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And here we are – She’s somehow made me love another assassin more than Frank *gasp*
I know, I’m shocked too. From the moment that she sent me the first few chapters of this book, I found myself staring at my screen and drooling, prodding her for more information. Threats were made! (“I shall come up with a new cringe worthy pun every hour and text it to you until my demands are met!” For anyone who doesn’t know me, that’s a legit threat.)
If you cannot enjoy a book about an assassin, this is not the book for you. By assassin, I do not mean someone who kills for a noble reason, or needs the money. I mean someone who kills because that is just what he is meant to do. His calling is ending lives, if that is a problem, then do not read this book.
Miko is a difficult character to describe. At first you almost think he’s a little slow in the head, but then once you start getting to know him it becomes abundantly clear that he’s very smart and rather witty. He’s just a good 30 degrees off center, and never in the way you’d expect.
This book is the best kind of quick read that you can get, where it keeps you interested and curious until the very end, and a bit afterwards but we’ll get to that in a minute. The character of Miko is enough to make the book worthwhile, but Ophelia, Toby, and Nasir (who for some reason I have started to love unconditionally) bring so much flavor to the story that it is impossible to put down.
All in all, Miko will take you for a hell of a ride, and when you get to the end I’m sure you’ll be right there with me, offering everything from bribes to threats until Miko #2 is released.
It’s no secret that Nicole Castle and I are friends, at least not to anyone who reads either of our blogs. Friend or not, this story was fantastic. It would make me a fan of hers even if I hadn't read the Chance Assassin books. If it’s your sort of genre, give it a try. -
4 Stars
I keep saying this but, "Holy Cow!" What a book!
Also, as I've mentioned in other reviews, I'm not a fan of jumping all over the time line - but it totally works for this story. In fact, I can't see it working any other way than by unfolding the plot through time shifts and flashbacks. A linear progression would have bored me to tears, I think. Although, it DID take forever to finally get to the childhood scene that explains the title, damn it.
Loved Miko...he was so oddly literal sometimes (which I find to be an endearing trait for some reason) and a total mess. I tend to eat cinnamon candies like crazy, too - but now I'll end up thinking of him every time. That's kind of brilliant. (Just like going into a Savers makes me think of the Psycop books; no it's not the same store {SaverPlus} but the name is close enough to evoke the memory.)
Plus, the need for constriction, for pressure against his body (or folding himself into tight spaces), to feel comfortable? That's why moms & dads swaddle infants; it's a security measure. I absolutely adored that the (sometimes accidentally) ruthless & bloody assassin needed it, still. It's almost like he reverted to using infantile coping measures and was psychologically arrested at a time when parents should have protected him & his sister.
Very engaging and I will definitely be adding the others to the TBR pile (well, I think they're already there). I'd like to see if my hunch is right about that Lewis/Bella hit feeling off...and if nothing else, I need to know if Miko was right about what happened to Ophelia. (I think he was.) I don't think it was her parents (if it was then they are exactly the kind of people that need a killing) but maybe somehow tied into Silvo's entire operation - and targeting those close to the stable of assassins. -
I love everything about this book. Everything.
And I just love Miko so much! I love his english! a
www...
I just re-read it and it's as awesome second time.
*sqeals* I get so happy when I start reading this book!
It's the feeling you get, when you start reading something and you just know crazy stuff will be happening and you look forward to it so muuuuch. -
So good! I'm happy for a new series by Nicole Castle and that it takes place in the same world as The Chance Assassin books. I fell in love with Miko and had to finish this book in one day. I can't wait for the next book to see what happens next.
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No me atrapó para nada la historia, y la relación entre Miko y Toby me pareció muy plana.
Con lo enganchada que estuve con Frank y V! Una lástima. -
Hmm. Not quite exactly sure what to say about this book. The story was good, not exactly mind-blowing but highly interesting.
Miko is an assassin, but even though he is one of the most brutal and deadliest assassin out there, I can't help but think that when he is not going around and ripping his mark's throat with his teeth or killing them with his bare hands, he can be truly adorable. He has his quirks and a lot of dont's, but even then, he is still a very lovable character.
“Shall I send a check?”
“Can you wire? I have his account number. I want to surprise him.”
She laughed again. “Miko, you don't surprise people with a hundred thousand dollars wired into their accounts.”
“No?”
Not to mention his obsession with candies, and the way he speaks English, and how he treats the people he cares about just gives him an innocent feel to his character.
“I am a spy.”
Toby feigned a wince, quickly placing his fingers over Miko's lips. “Don't say the S-word.”
“I am not a spy.”
As for the plot, it's very simple and very straightforward. Different than most of the books that I usually read, but I enjoyed it nonetheless. The book is short, just a little bit shy of 200 pages. I wished it could be longer so that there will be more character development and depth to it, but even with how the book is right now, I don't have much complaints other than the one I have stated above.
Altogether, it was a short and easy read – maybe not to some if violence and fucked up characters is not something you enjoy reading. But to me, it was good and I had fun reading this book.
“Given enough time, a person could come to terms with anything. This was what Miko believed. Some things took mere minutes. Some took years. Certain things he had yet to come to terms with but Miko knew that those too would cease to affect him someday. Until then he clung to them, governed by them through every aspect of his life. And this he intended to cling to for a very long time.”
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I absolutely loved this book, and was very happy to hear more on this character after reading the first two books by this author. The character is well thought, well written and completely lovable. The details and life story are intriguing and sad but that makes it all the more interesting. I would completely recommend reading this book, especially after the previous ones, it will not let you down! Can not wait to read more and to see what's to come in the future from Ms Castle
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Cliff hanger!!! I can't wait! Guess I'll be adding another book to my read now tbr.
At least the origin of the candy wasn't left to the next book...that would have killed me.
Violent, yet sweet at times.
Very nice start to the series. -
All of
Nicole Castle's books are free on Amazon right now.
https://www.amazon.com/Nicole-Castle/...
I've not read anything by this author and they seem a little...bloody...for my taste, but I "purchased" them since there are so many high reviews. -
Not really the kind of story I'd enjoy......
2.5 stars -
A side character journey in Castle's Chance Assassin universe. I read this after reading both book 1
Chance Assassin: A Story of Love, Luck, and Murder and book 2
Les Recidivists, and thought that it worked out well to have that progression. Definitely read book 1 ahead of this to get the weight of what's going on.
This "side series" follows assassin Miko who obsessively sucks on cinnamon candies, and kinda-sorta falls for a non-assassin chef named Toby in-between gigs.
The flashbacks about Miko and his backstory where interesting, but I mostly liked watching him unwind himself around Toby (or start to).
This is a short novel and a quick read. Although my preference is still the Frank and Vincent show in the "main" series, it was interesting to follow this side path and see how it connects, and I'm hopeful Miko will get further entwined with his chef in his series (now complete at 3 books). -
Phenomenal. This book was every bit as dark, as funny and a whole lotta strange.
A needed something challenging. Something out of my comfort zone, I read the sample of this book back in January, I guess I wasn't ready for the whole experience then. I felt ready now. It was worth every minute of my time.
Miko is a very troubled assassin. He hates blood, he's vegetarian, and he's the worst liar ever. He's whole personality is very controversial, and that made the story a bit humorous. Which is a good thing. Otherwise it was gruesome, there was no skipping the killing scenes, they were very detailed.
Miko fell in love with sweet Toby. Their relationship was not at the forefront of the story, but it was present all the way to the end.
I don't know if I can use this word to describe the writing style, but it was very sophisticated. -
I usually don't get on with books that jump around time-wise and flashbacks irritate me, but this book just made perfect sense. It was as if the little jigsaw pieces that made up Miko and the other characters needed to be placed just so for this story to work, and managed to run the full gamut of emotions whilst holding on to an edge of grittiness. Highly recommended.
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This is not your romanticized assassin. He is flawed, he is damaged, he is... strange. He is not a hero. Miko is a compelling character: watching him struggle to interact with those around him is fascinating, and you find yourself getting pulled in to his world. Your mouth waters for a red cinnamon candy, and you keep reading.
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Nicole Castle makes you root for the craziest and most gruesome characters! This fast-paced book with very well-developed characters forced me to finish it without putting it down!
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Re-read June 2018
There's just something about Miko that captures your heart. I don't know if it's the cinnamon candy he's constantly sucking on, or the fact that he's kind of a hopeless assassin (effective but accident prone) but he definitely tugs at the old heartstrings. Miko is odd, even for a killer-for-hire but he has this childlike innocence about him that is kind of frightening and endearing in equal measure. Toby is more trusting than is probably wise, but somehow this makes him and Miko kind of perfect for each other. It was nice getting to know both of them all over again.
This is part of the Chance Assassin series but you don't necessarily have to read the one in order to start this series. It does help, however, to be a bit familiar with the players as there is some overlap of events. -
Very enjoyable
I love Miko!! I have nothing else to say... Lol... I enjoyed this book and learning about another of Frank's co workers...Off to book 2 -
~ 4.5 Stars ~
The Consequence of High Caliber is author Nicole Castle’s third published book, and I’ve read all three of them. She is now an author who is on my absolutely-must-read list, and it’s all because she has a knack for bringing to life characters that are broken to the point of being irredeemable—or should be—then somehow makes you relate to them in ways that shouldn’t be possible. Her characters’ psychopathy is their charm, if you can believe that: dangerous, deadly, flawed, funny and sympathetic all at once. There’s never been a more appealing group of assassins in all of fiction, and a great part of the fun of the books is trying to figure these people out.
Fair warning, I’m going to use the “C” word in this review. Yes…cliffhanger. Miko may well be one of this authors more heartbreaking characters, and is as deserving of a happy ending as any character I’ve ever read. He has a laundry list of emotional and psychological afflictions that began in childhood, and the way he came by all of them is the true sorrow because they’ve left him not only scarred but almost childlike in some ways. His heart is in the right place, but his actions are so skewed by his warped sense of right and wrong that he’s a walking contradiction, but one you can’t help but love.
The story is told in the present and past, which makes this sensitive and brutal man even more enigmatic as we are offered bits and pieces of his history and character, but must keep reading to put them all together. Then, just when things might be looking up, Nicole Castle throws in a big NOT and slams the door on the book at a critical point in Miko’s relationship with Toby, the man Miko needs more than anyone else in the world right now, and always. That darn “C” word…
If there has ever been a better example of “opposites attract”, Toby would best be described as Miko’s paradox. There’s a line drawn between these two men, one of them so sickened by violence that he does everything he can to avoid it, the other sickened by violence yet lives hand-in-hand with it as a way of life. Their two extremes do eventually collide, and it throws into evidence how very much Miko needs Toby as a touchstone to his humanity, if not his sanity, when Toby sends Miko away.
One of the more delightful aspects of this world Nicole Castle has created is the moral ambiguity experienced as we root for these characters. They shouldn’t be as loveable as they are. They are murderers with a twisted sort of logic, cold-blooded killers for hire who, with all their idiosyncrasies and sociopathic behavior and code of un-ethics, still manage to hold to their own brand of honor. Being completely enamored of such aberrant people probably says more about me than it does about the characters, but I am one-hundred percent hooked on them and their murderous ways.
A Consequence of High Caliber is a tightly paced one-hundred and sixty-eight pages, not quite as much action as the books in the Chance Assassin series (this book’s cousin), but every bit as irresistible because of its characters. If you’re looking for something that’s more than just a bit different from the norm, this book and its author won’t disappoint.
Reviewed by Lisa for
The Novel Approach -
This book is written differently then the stories I normally read. It isn't bad just different to me. (This statement is separate from the next two paragraphs).
There are a lot of scenes about the past that aren't necessarily flashbacks but for the sake of this review I will call them Flashbacks. These Flashbacks are clearly stated/ organized, but I kept getting annoyed with them. I like learning about a character and Flashbacks are a good way to do that but I wanted to continue with the present state and not have to read through a Flashback to find out what happens next with the character. The Flashbacks were almost pushing the story into the past instead of moving forward with the story. All of the information we learn in these Flashbacks are interesting and informative but I felt like they were hindering the story instead of helping. I just felt that the information that the author was trying to portray about the character could have been written in a different style of writing instead of constantly reverting back to a Flashback.
I think that the style of writing was more important then the story and that annoyed me because I like the story and the characters but I was interrupted by these long winded chapters on the characters past. I think it was worth it to see what happened to the characters in the end, though it does leave you at a cliffhanger, but you really have to have patience and not get frustrated as you read through this book. Maybe you will like these Flashbacks and this is the story for you but I just couldn't appreciate the constant back and forth. -
Nicole Castle DOES IT AGAIN!!!! 🤗🤗🤗
I LOVED this book!,❤❤ but I loved
Chance Assassin: A Story of Love, Luck, and Murder as well. She has an uncanny knack of writing tortured assassins who REALLY HAVE NO BUSINESS "being PA's for German emissaries"😋, matter-of-fact, they should probably be locked up in insane asylums somewhere with the key thrown away... but then we wouldn't get to know and love them so.
Miko... 💓💓 my heartthrob Miko, what to do with you but love you unconditionally boo????? OHEMGEEEE, Miko has my heart. Sometimes I'd forget I was reading the thoughts of a 24 year old with how emotionally stunted he is, sometimes he sounds so much like a child, which is a testament to Nicole Castle's AMAZING writing style!
Toby... I'm still deciding whether we're keeping you, or whether you need to ! It's not that I blame you for your feelings, or even think that maybe on some level you aren't justified... 😑 😑 ON SOME LEVEL, I'm just not sure I like you very much... 🤨🤨
Ophelia... 🌹
Nasir... just thank you.
Hector... Idk. When I sit and think about it, I think WTF, but when it comes down to it, I guess what else could it have been?
Simon... 👿👿 ! You're a jerk... sometimes...😈 that-is-all.
All in all, P.H.E.N.O.M.E.N.A.L. read!!!! The characters are fleshed-out, you see clearly the distinctions in dialogue especially. The writing is FANTABULOUS--> yes, we will use that--> as always, with Nicole Castle. Miko's musings, etcetera range from all levels of the spectrum, sad, funny, hilarious, serious, juvenile, name it... and you get to go on all those journeys with him in the only place that could even remotely begin to make sense, in his head. 🦈😘 -
I expected some cool, slightly crazy story about an eccentric assassin. What I got instead was a love story that constantly had me melting. With dialogues that had you laughing out loud in surprise and an endearingness about the couple's interactions that made you feel warm and happy, and made you want to never stop reading about those two.
But this series is about more than a love story, it's about family. It's about parents and about siblings. And despite that we're moving in a world of assassins, every member of Miko's family is one of the most wholesome and relatable portrayals of family I've read in a long time. And Miko himself is an absolutely unique and likeable hero who you will root for and who you will feel protective of. And his boyfriend is a nice guy who manages not to be boring, which is a feat I've seldomly seen done successfully in either literature or TV. He's not a secret badass, he just brings a whole lot of character and wit to the table.
It's a book about dark themes, and bad things do happen, but overall this series will make you feel good. And not just in the sense of a happy ending after tons of angst, no, the entire read of the three books (which I finished in about two days) was a soothing, entertaining, touching and absolutely enjoyable journey. I'm so happy to have found this series, and I will definitely read it many times more! -
Miko is possibly one of my favorite characters ever written to date, he is the perfect amount of weird. All of Castle's characters are vastly different, almost as if each of them have their own author. In an intricate balance of gore and humor with a seasoning of social commentary, the tale is spun in a way that keeps you reading, shifting along the timeline each chapter.
I enjoy when an author trusts the reader to keep up without spelling out each plot point and theme in detail, it feels as if we're always on tip-toe waiting for the next piece to fall in place and keeps the story moving forward. Combine that with fangirl-worthy characters and this one is a hit!
