Book Review: Novella–Ninja at First Sight by Penny Reid

Ninja First SightI am a big fan of author Penny Reid and her smart heroines. I love her style and…I tend to be picky about that. She writes with intelligence and passion. I also write contemporary romance and it’s my favorite reading genre. When I found this romance by Penny, I was excited and knew I’d enjoy the world she wove with her words.

Ninja at First Sight is subtitled as a Knitting In The City novella. This series featured Penny’s big success Neanderthal Seeks Human, but the characters in that book–and the subsequent ones of the series that I’ve read–don’t appear in this novella. It left me a little confused. Ninja at First Sight follows heroine Fiona and hero Greg at their first meeting in college. Fiona is recovered from devastating health issues and escapes into college.

While Fiona is charming and Greg mysteriously attractive, I feel this story doesn’t satisfy or lead me to want to purchase the follow-up Happily Ever Ninja. Fiona is presented as naïve while Greg is more worldly and experienced. The novella is the story of them meeting and getting involved. Other than the difference between their world experience–her illness–and her unhappy family, nothing happens here. There is a lot of sexual chemistry. These two characters are very hot for each other–although in a demure way–but there is no conflict between them beyond his playing hard-to-get and her wondering if he’s interested.

If I were to discuss this with a reading friend, I’d have to say Penny Reid has great writing chops. Her work should definitely be explored, but this offering, which ends with a proposal, could be skipped.