About the AuthorBrett Battles is a Barry Award-winning author of over thirty novels, including the Jonathan Quinn series, the Project Eden series, and the time bending Rewinder series. Hes also the coauthor, with Robert Gregory Browne, of the Alexandra Poe series. He is one of the founding members of Killer Year, and is a member of Mystery Writers of America and International Thriller Writers. He lives and writes in Los Angeles. More info available at www.brettbattles.com.Abby Craden is a professional actress and voice artist who can be heard in numerous TV and radio commercials, video games, and audiobooks. An AudioFile Earphones Award winner as well as an AudioFile Best Voice of 2012, Abby is an award-winning stage actress and a resident artist with the prestigious theater A Noise Within. can reading be bad for you Poe: An Alexandra Poe Thriller
29 of 29 people found the following review helpful. One + One = ThreeBy Michael ShererPut two established thriller authors together on a project and you might see sparks or you might see an implosion. The collaboration on POE, the first Alexandra Poe thriller, results in a nice, tight fireworks display. Maybe not a New Year's Eve display off the Sydney Harbor bridge, but definitely up there with a mid-sized city's Independence Day show.In each other, Brett Battles and Robert Gregory Browne have found a simpatico genre, voice, style and writing partner, and the result is greater than the sum of the parts. And if you've read either of these two authors independently, you know their work as individual authors is damn good. Each is a well-known journeyman writer in the thriller genre, and while they've never really crossed into each other's territory, their work on POE is seamless, almost as if each had come up with the idea, the characters and plot on their own and happened to share typing duties.Alex herself is a terrific protagonist in this particular era, joining the ranks of kick-ass female characters like Zoe Sharp's Charlie Fox. But Alex is most certainly her own woman, and at no point during the course of this book did I have any doubt about her abilities or how she acquired them.Her allies in this book, her bounty hunter partner Deuce and former army compatriot Cooper, both of whom look to be recurring characters, are a little less defined, but are both sympathetic due to their loyalty to Alex, and will likely take shape in future books. My only nits were that Deuce didn't seem to have enough to do, which could make him a third wheel. But the potential for conflict and tension between two guys who obviously care deeply for Alex, though neither is romantically involved (yet), makes this trio a nice device for Battles Browne in future episodes. (But instead of a little Deuce-Coop--pun intended--in each book, I think the authors ought to really ratchet up the tension by giving these two more to do in their own subplot and making things a little tougher for them instead of simply waiting for Alex to do her thing. Whatever. Not my call.)Is this great literature? No. But it's not supposed to be. It is well-written straight-ahead action-adventure that will keep you turning the pages and yearning for more when you're finished. It's definitely five stars worth of entertainment value.Some things, like bacon and eggs, just go together. Battles-Browne is one of those pairs that complement each other so well you wonder why they didn't do this a long time ago.21 of 21 people found the following review helpful. What a thrill!By JwsAbsolutely loved this book. I was hooked from start to finish and left wanting more. Fast paced, great plot and some interesting characters with full on action - I read this in one sitting - I couldn't put it down. Cleverly the authors did not reveal too much about Alex and the other characters' backgrounds which leaves it open for further character development in the series. Needless to say I loved the character of Alex. Can't wait for the next instalment.12 of 12 people found the following review helpful. New Addition to Battle FranchiseBy RemRonVancouverBCFollowing other franchise writers, Cussler comes to mind as the most recent one, Battles Browne seem to be looking to build their own thriller/action/adventure empire. And at first that is what worried me with their first book in the Poe series. To be honest I have not yet read anything else by Browne, just everything by Brett Battles. Early on the book was looking like a mirror of The Cleaner series with much of the same format. (Okay, so this genre is all about the formula.) About halfway through I was enough in love with Alexandra Poe to forget the other books and buy into her world. By the end she was a strong enough character to pull me through. Her supporting cast was much weaker, but then it is only the first book, what do you want? I greatly enjoyed the read. The action was solid, well paced and the authors did not buy into the obvious exploitation route they could have taken with the chosen setting; a women's prison in a foreign land. Instead their character is strong, confident and self-reliant from beginning to end with just enough quirkiness to make her unique. I definitely look forward to the next installment of this action series.