Avenging Angels: Back in the Saddle by Kristen Ashley

2nd in the Avenging Angels Series, a Rock Chick Series Spinoff

My thanks to Kristen and her team for providing an advance copy for review purposes. Ana’s Attic accepts no compensation for reviews, and all reviews contain my honest opinion, regardless of any relationship with the author. This post contains affiliate links, meaning I’ll receive a small commission should you purchase using those links.

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If you love the original Rock Chick series by Kristen Ashley, it’s impossible not to love the Avenging Angels Series. It brings back that classic Rock Chick vibe with a whole new squad of alpha protective hotties, a great group of girlfriends who constantly get themselves into trouble, and a bunch of OG favorites who are now in Phoenix instead of Denver.

If you haven’t read the first book in the series, Avenging Angel, here’s the setup: Nightingale Investigations has opened a new office in Phoenix, bringing some of the original guys and adding new faces to create the new “Hottie Squad.” There’s also a group of girlfriends living in a kickass apartment complex called The Oasis who solve crimes through an anonymous benefactor, like modern-day Charlie’s Angels. The Avenging Angels are the new Rock Chicks. Now they are “Back in the saddle” (though there are no horses) for another adventure with Avenging Angels: Back in the Saddle.

Jessie and her brother are incredibly close. He has schizophrenia, and Jessie has been his protector for years, ensuring he stays on his meds. But now he’s missing, and Jessie has no choice but to visit the city’s homeless encampments to try and find him. She hasn’t told her friends, but the guys at NI are starting to pick up on her dangerous solo missions. Eric Turner, one of the OG Hot Bunch now stationed in Phoenix, isn’t thrilled to discover that the woman he’s into is putting herself in harm’s way. When her secret gets out, her friends jump in to help.

“Avenging Angels unite so we can find your brother,” Harlow decreed.
Oh shit.
“Word,” Raye agreed.
Luna just nodded. Once.
Crap!

I struggle with remembering details, and with Kristen Ashley’s expansive character lists, it sometimes makes reading her books harder for me. That wasn’t the case here. Not only is there a helpful character list in the back, but most of the crossover characters are OG favorites like Tex, Shirleen, and Daisy, which made me feel right at home.

Eric has been biding his time, waiting for Jessie to be ready, and taking things slow.

“Eric isn’t Hottie Squad. Eric is Hot Bunch. He’s OG. He’s got experience with bitches like us. So maybe he’s into Jess but isn’t all the way down with being into Jess, considering she’s an Avenging Angel, and he isn’t all fired up to deal with stalkers and car bombs. So he’s gonna take shit slow and see how it plays out.”

But, as with every Rock Chick before her, when an OG Hot Bunch guy makes his move—especially under the guise of protection—there’s no stopping him.

“It’s not the nightie, Jessie. It was never the nightie. It was always the woman in the nightie.”

I loved every word of Avenging Angels: Back in the Saddle by Kristen Ashley. It was nostalgic, while also bringing something fresh and new, making it a perfect comfort read for fans of the originals. This book brought ALL the emotions—I laughed, cried, swooned, was on the edge of my seat, and even teared up happy tears.

Likes:

All of the things I love about Kristen Ashley’s original books.
The perfect blend of fun, nostalgia, campiness, romance, and emotion.
All of the scenes with my favorite OG characters, especially Tex!
As always, I love the friend group, which is such a huge part of her books.
She covered some very sensitive topics with care.
He was a good amount older than her, and she was in her early thirties.
I love all the new characters as well as the originals.
Everything that has made Kristen Ashley a favorite for 13+ years was in this book.
The character list in the back.
While it’s campy and silly in a way, I love that Kristen acknowledges that and makes it funny instead of corny.

Dislikes:

I’m confused about the title. The book listing says Avenging Angels: Back in the Saddle, but the cover says Avenging Angel (singular). The cover of the first book calls the series Avenging Angel Series, and the second calls it Avenging AngelS Series.

The Down & Dirty:

We’re back in the saddle with the second amazing addition to the Avenging Angels series. Kristen Ashley has been one of my favorite authors since I started this blog in 2012, and Avenging Angels: Back in the Saddle is a perfect example of why. No other author pulls me out of a reading slump faster, and her books remain the ultimate comfort reads. I loved the friendships, the found family, the romance, the intrigue, the inner voices, the emotions, and the nostalgia. This book is a love letter to the Rock Chicks and their fans, but even if you haven’t read the originals, I think you could start with Avenging Angel, the first in the series. If you’re a longtime fan like me, I can’t see how you wouldn’t fall head over heels for this one.