*Gizmos Book Reviews* Early 4 Star Review - The Given (Celestial Blues, #3) by Vicki Pettersson

**I received this book for free from Edelweiss/Harper Voyager in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.**

*My Thoughts*

*May contain mild spoilers from the first two books*

The Given brings the Celestial Blues trilogy to a satisfying conclusion. Going into The Given, readers were left with a few mysteries to unmask. Who really killed former P.I, now Centurion Griffin Shaw and why? Would Griffin find his happy ending with Rockabilly investigative journalist Katherine "Kit" Craig or would he reunite with his wife Evelyn Shaw and turn his back on Kit?

Time line wise, SIX months have passed since Griffin learned that Evie was alive in the cliffhanger ending to The Lost. Shaw, who became an angel known as a Centurion upon his brutal death, lost a large part of his memories from the night he was killed and therefore can only remember bits and pieces of what actually happened. He's spent the past 50 years believing that Evie was also dead and now that she's alive, his relationship with Kit takes a major turn.

Shaw has one foot in the present, and the other stuck in the past. He learns that things are not exactly clear when it comes to his future as a Centurion. Since he's been allowed more free reign than any other angel, the powers that be aren't exactly thrilled at his progress, so they put a time restraint on his search for Evie. Time is definitely NOT on Griffin's side. Will Griffin discover the truth before his time runs out? Will he be given yet another chance by the powers that be? Or, will time run out, and Shaw is forced from the mortal plane? 

Meanwhile, even though she hasn't stopped helping Shaw find Evie, Kit is adrift in life after being left behind. She's lost her faith in the truth, the world, and even in God. She has a huge mystery all her own to deal with and that is the murder of her own father 14 years ago. The fact that her Aunt Marin buried a key piece of the puzzle in order to keep Kit safe from harm has never played right with Kit. Readers know that once Kit gets a bone in her mouth, there is absolutely no letting go. I will say that Kit is probably the stronger of the characters in The Given. Her attitude and the fact that she's actually a decent person, makes it hard to not to see Kit have a happy ending. It is also Kit stumbling into a bees nest, that leads to the final revelation that puts all the pieces together.

I have to tell you folks, the ending of The Given literally tore me up but in a good way. It was all due to Pettersson writing a letter from Shaw to Kit and spilling out his true feelings for her knowing that his time on the mortal plane may be coming to an end. I will also have to say that unfortunately, I had already figured out who was responsible for Shaw's death about 40 percent into the story itself, and was just waiting calmly, and patiently, for the characters themselves to catch up with me. One thing that I can say without spoiling anything is that everything, and everybody is connected in one way or the other. Don't skip ahead to find out what happens next and PLEASE read these books in the order that they were released!!!! 

Author - Vicki Pettersson
Title - The Given (Celestial Blues # 3)
Published by Harper Voyager
Expected Publication: May 27, 2014
Genre(s): Mystery, Romance, Noir, Fantasy
Format: E-Book 384 pages