Chill Factor

Chill Factor:Weather Warden Book 3 (2005) Rachel Caine

Chill Factor takes up where Heat Stroke took off; Joanne has to get to Las Vegas to try and stop Kevin and Jonathan from inadvertently destroying much of the ecosystem of the planet.

Unlike Heat Stoke, Chill Factor doesn’t have a cliff hanger ending, which is a major point in it’s favor. It does, however, leave major unresolved plot points, which I really don’t care for, but we’re not left wondering about Joanne’s immediate survival.

I still have continuing issues with Joanne, specifically I really hate the way that Joanne is so focused on clothes and fashion. Yes, great. She’s gorgeous and dresses well and can walk in high heels. So what? Rachel Caine writes about this like it’s a good thing for a woman to be obsessed with fashion and looking good and remaining thin and spending all her money on clothes. All I can think is, “What a waste.”

Additionally, I was thrown violently out of the story by what was meant to be a cute random plot point: Joanne’s fight against her new curly hair:

A sleek faux-ivory brush appeared under my nose. I looked up to see he was holding it out. I took it and began dragging it through my curly hair…ran the brush through my hair until the curls became glossy black waves.

Umm… no. It doesn’t work like that. You never every brush curly hair when it’s dry–at least not if you don’t want it completely full of frizz and sticking out around your head. You can brush it while you’re blow drying it, which will straighten the curls, assuming you use enough product, which it is not mentioned that Joanne does. So unless Joanne is using magic on her hair, that is so not happening. Never mind the fact that if her hair was as messy as it would have been, it would have taken a very long time and a lot of conditioner to straighten out the mess.

So sorry, but as someone who has spent years fighting with her curly hair, what Joanne does is completely delusional.

This isn’t to say the story wasn’t enjoyable–the story, as in previous books, was fast paced and engrossing. Joanne isn’t perfect, and things almost never work out the way she wants them, and she has come to rely upon those around her to help her solve the problems she faces.

But because of the things that bother me, I’m not sure if I want to continue to read the series. I’ll think about it and get back to you.
Rating: 6/10

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