Shards of Hope (FISA Agents #1) by B.L. Jones

Shards of Hope is the start of a new sci-fi series where experimentation has led to super-humans, both good and evil. Where children are raised to be killers and maybe one man can find redemption and friendship when he's rescued by an optimistic alphabet agent.

From the blurb:

Hope can be a prism of scars from which light shines.

Twenty years ago, an infamous scientist created Liquid Onyx, a world-changing chemical which led to the rise of superheroes and supervillains.

Jack Roth is not a superhero. He’s an assassin, a killer, a lethal weapon forged and controlled by the evil organisation Obsidian Inc.

Leo Snow isn’t a superhero either. He's a British secret agent who spends his life protecting the world and saving everyone he can.

When these two men’s lives collide on the streets of Danger City just as Obsidian Inc is gearing up for another cataclysmic scientific discovery, they’ll both need to reckon with their dark past, messy present and potentially hopeful future.

SNik's Review:

First in series (FISA Agents). Science fiction. Grumpy/sunshine. Slow burn. Dual POV. 

As a superhuman experiment, Jack has only known pain and death since he was a child, and once he loses his brother,brother, he is angry to be left behind to live his life as a killer. When Leo Snow stops Jack from abducting a fellow agent and instead kidnaps Jack, Leo offers Jack freedom and a chance at redemption. 

There are some very gritty parts to the story, Jack’s survival from horrific experimentation and Leo’s difficult family past and present, but somehow the two men find they connect from adversaries to eventual coworkers. 

Leo is irrepressibly friendly and Jack follows along with the banter and teasing, even though socially he had always relied on his brother to find moments of levity, Leo does start to bring out some of Jack's underlying personality. 

Intrigue and action, along with the futuristic world building, kept me entertained and wanting to spend more time with Jack and Leo as their friendship grows. 

The romance is secondary to the overall story and has a HFN, as the series will continue and Shards of Hope ends with a soft cliffhanger in anticipation of more problems arising from the evil Obsidian Inc. and the FISA agents trying to stop them.

Rating: 4.5 Stars

Shards of Hope is available to buy as an ebook, paperback, or to read with Kindle Unlimited subscription.