Mia had a crazy crush on Rob, just like everyone at her school.  Their mom's are best friends so they basically grew up together.  When tragedy strikes and he notices her, she feels like it is the time to make the most of it.

Rob, to his credit spends a lot of time with her.  She has no idea why and worries about it a lot.  Mia does not feel worthy of him - but still he comes back around again and again.  Is it even possible to wish a future into happening?

This story was quite wordy.  I felt the pace went fast and I felt lost several times while reading.  This was more of a coming of age book to me than young adult.  I give this a 3/5 Kitty's Paws UP!

***This early copy was given in exchange for an honest review.

When a book is named for a scheme to rate pain from insect stings, you know it's not going to be a feel-good kind of read. C.S. O'Cinneide delivers the kind of book you'd expect from that title and readers are the beneficiaries.

Candace Starr is the daughter of a hitman who followed in her father's footsteps. She spent a few years in prison, and now released, she's trying to retire. Her days are full of drinking, sleeping with anyone handy, drinking some more and then occasionally manning the till in the convenience store below her apartment.

But her name is still out there (among people who know hired killers, anyway), and a potential client approaches her wanting her daughter's boyfriend (a low-life drug dealer/user) eliminated. But Candace is trying to retire and the target it seventeen. And that's just not something she can do.

But someone kills him and Candace is worried that she'll be a suspect (for fairly obvious reasons). So when homicide detective Chien-Shiung Malone asks her to consult for the investigation—she takes the opportunity (Malone offering information about her father's killer doesn't hurt).

Candace is smart, acerbic and tries really hard to be apathetic. Malone is smart, driven, and tough. Put the two of them together and you've got a great combination—this is definitely the beginning of a beautiful friendship (assuming they live that long)—emphasis on "beginning." I thoroughly enjoyed watching the interplay between the two and the establishment of their relationship.

We also meet a few other cops—some seem pretty cool, others are focused on bringing Candace down (whether she's guilty of whatever they're suspecting her for). Not to mention people from Candace's world—bartenders, waitresses, other hitmen, Candace's surrogate family, and biker gangs. Candace is starting to not fit into their world as much as it's clear that she doesn't belong in Malone's. In between are friends, classmates, parents of the victim and other associates. There's a lot of pain and suffering (in various forms) going on with every character we encounter.

The hunt for the killer has more than the requisite twists and turns—and by the time the true villains behind everything are exposed, I was surprised. I was kind of write with one of my theories, but even then I was wrong—and even more wrong about all the details that were revealed in the closing pages. O'Cinneide's plotting—and the reveal it all led up to—were rock solid and as intricate as you could hope for.

It's a fun ride, a clever read, and Candace's perspective on crime, family, and loyalty make this a high-spirited read. I'm struggling (and failing) to come up with a way to describe the gritty, but entertaining; dark, but not oppressive; witty, without being facetious feel to this book. Candace (and her voice) is sort of a hybrid of Huang's Cas Russell, Ford's Teagan Frost, and Rucka's Dex Parios (without the superpowers or super-genius abilities). And even as I write that, I can see the problems with the comparisons. That's as good as it gets for now. Undoubtedly, about 20 minutes after this posts, I'll hit on the way I should've said it. Hopefully, this is enough of a flavor to tempt you to take a look at this book.

Not only did I enjoy this rollicking ride, I am definitely coming back for the promised sequel. Based on how things turned out here, it is going to be a completely different kind of story, and I'm really curious to see how O'Cinneide is going to tackle it—and hopefully a few more sequels after that. There's a great kind of chemistry at work in The Starr Sting Scale and I encourage you to sample it.

Disclaimer: I received this eARC from Dundurn Press via NetGalley in exchange for this post—thanks to both for this.

I can pretty much guarantee you’ve never met a character like Candace (don’t call me Candy) Starr. In a nutshell she’s a 6’3” hard drinking, foul mouthed ex-con with a diverse resume. Before she went to prison, she was a killer-for-hire. Her father was a hitman & just like any proud papa, he brought his kid into the family business. Now she lives alone above the E-Zee Market where she mans the counter & bounces meth heads who frequent the store.

But it can be hard to shake your reputation. Candace is approached by a wealthy woman with a problem. Her teenage daughter’s boyfriend is a drug dealing slacker & she’d like him…um…extracted from their lives. Perhaps Candace would come out of retirement & help.

The thing is she could really use the money but…whack a teenager? Turns out her reluctance is a moot point. Candace opens the newspaper one day & sees the guy’s smiling face. It seems his body was found in a nearby ravine. Huh. Unfortunately, it brings an old nemesis back into her life. Saunders is the cop who put her away & he’d like nothing better than to send her back to prison. So he pops by the store, sure that she is responsible for his latest homicide.

It’s not a happy reunion. He still thinks she’s in the game, she still thinks the smell of his aftershave is “like being assaulted by a basket of rancid fruit”. But his partner is a different story. After Saunders stomps out, Detective Chien-Shiung Malone has a proposition for Candace. Help solve the case & she’ll tell Candace who murdered her father several years ago. 

That gets Candace’s attention. She’s never been able to learn who killed her dad & the need for revenge is like an open wound. She figures all she has to do is hang around with the petite & proper Malone for a few days & she’ll have the name of her final target.

Pretty straightforward, right? Well….that’s before you factor in a couple of pretentious soccer moms, a bounty hunter, a mole in the police force & a dangerous motorcycle gang with hygiene issues (seriously, if you have access to running water there is NO excuse for eye watering BO).

Needless to say there’s much more to the story & there are a couple of pivotal twists so I’ll leave it here to avoid spoilers. What you do need to know is despite the addition of Candace’s snarky humour this is a dark, gritty, hardboiled read. There’s plenty of violence & the f-bombs fly thick & fast. Those bothered by stronger language, racial epithets and/or misogyny should walk away. I confess some of it was a bit much although entirely in keeping with the characters. Just a matter of personal taste & not a reflection of the author’s skills. It is what it is.

Two things in particular really stood out for me. One is the relationship between Candace & Malone. They’re from different worlds. But a gradual understanding & acceptance develops as they spend more time together. The other element was the final few chapters. Despite one disturbing scene (couldn’t decide whether to yell “Eeeew” or “Gross!”) there is a clever reveal that made me reevaluate what I thought I knew. Well done, Ms. O’Cinneide.

Rating this is a tough call. I think I was expecting something slightly lighter due to marketing blurbs & endorsement quotes. If a story is well written/plotted, It all comes down to what you enjoy reading. So if your tastes run more toward the hardbitten take-no-prisoners approach to the genre, this should be right up your street.