This book originally reviewed at More Than Just Magic 
 One of the first review copies I ever got when I started blogging was Jessica Martinez's debut, Virtuosity. It wasn't my usual kind of read but within a few pages I was hooked. Kiss Kill Vanish is a much different book from Virtuosity but ultimately I was just as hooked as I was before. 
 It immediately grabbed me because most of the novel takes place in Montreal. I love anytime a book takes place in Canada but, but you get bonus points for Montreal. Maybe it's the French Canadian in me. Our protagonist, Valentina, flees to Montreal after witnessing her boyfriend and her father kill someone. Her main priority is survival - which usually breaks down to money and food. She is not in Montreal as a tourist, nor is she in a financial position to really take in all the advantages of the city. Yet despite those factors, Martinez still manages to capture the ambience of Montreal. Especially the cold. 
 In my opinion Valentina had good reasons for running away from home. But that's not her whole story. She is a complex character with a lot of conflicting emotions. She is the embodiment of the idea that we can feel a lot of different things at the same time. She feels anger towards her family and boyfriend, she feels betrayed that she never knew about her father's drug business, she feels disgusted because she used to live in a mansion and now she shares a dumpy apartment, and she feels desperate as she tries to make ends meet without a work visa. And that's just the beginning. Things aren't easier for her but ultimately she keeps going, no matter how tired, hungry and cold she gets. I imagine a few readers won't take to her - she's a little cold to other people, and there's a good dose of self pity - but I kind of love her determined nature. 
 While in Montreal she finds work sitting for paintings. When her employer, Lucien, dies she forms an unlikely bond with his brother Marcel. Marcel is every bit as layered as Valentina. He starts off as a drunk, drug addict loser who only exists to torture and mock the main character. But as Valentina gets to know him so does the reader and before you know it you'll go from hating him to loving him. I don't want to go into too much detail about his character arc, for fear of spoilers, but trust me, it's a good one. 
 The pacing in this novel was very deliberate. You would think with the murders, drug cartels and lying boyfriends it would move at break neck speed. But it takes it time to get going and the action kind of sneaks up on you. It starts slow but then before you know it you're staying up until the wee hours to finish it (this is a true story of what actually happened to me). Kiss Kill Vanish is more about building suspense than story that will make your pulse race. Throughout the entire novel you never know who Valentina can trust. Anyone could betray her and there could be a horrible surprise waiting around every corner. 
 Kiss Kill Vanish was not my first Jessica Martinez novel and it certainly won't be my last. She's written yet another novel with great characters you can't help but become invested in. I loved the way this novel was constantly surprising me and I can't wait to see what unique story Martinez will come up with next.