Urban fiction is the last on my genre list for a class I’m taking. I was pumped to try it out, since I volunteer at a jail library, and urban fiction is a common request. The Cartel series is extremely popular, so I chose that one to read.
I quickly realized I wasn’t going to like it, but when I found it on audio through the digital library, I decided to stick with it. Cary Hite is a good reader, except for when he’s trying to do accents (they all sounded Jamaican to me, whether it was someone from Haiti, the Dominican Republic, or Barbados), and he reads slowly enough that I could bump the speed to 1.5 and he still sounded fine.
I didn’t know what exactly to expect. The violence was no surprise, but I was shocked by how extreme it was. The frequent explicit and ickily-described sex scenes bothered me even more. I think I’m used to a lot more euphemism from other books I’ve read with sexy stuff.
At first, I thought the criminals (all the main characters) were being portrayed as heroes, and maybe some of them were supposed to be. I think Young Carter was. But more than anything, the book is a tragedy, with a major Romeo and Juliet vibe in Young Carter and Miamor’s relationship. Although certain aspects were hard to swallow as plausible, it was very realistic in the sense that no one was safe in the murder-infused lifestyle these characters lived.
I did actually care about some of the characters by the end, but I couldn’t stand the writing, especially the sex scenes. It was also annoyingly materialistic. No one could just put on a jacket or a dress or get in a car. We had to be told the brand name of everything or be pointed to how expensive the cars were.
One scene that made me smile was when two of the younger characters went to Borders to buy books. It was moment of sweet innocence in the midst of hatred and revenge. Plus, Borders.
I’m glad to have finally read something in this genre, since I’ve been curious about it for years, but I doubt I’ll be checking out anything else like it any time soon. ( )

Well ok then. The Cartel is about this gang in Miami who runs the town. The father, Carter Diamond, is killed by a Haitian gang starting a gang war. His illegitimate son Carter Jones, steps in to take care of the family and run the cartel. He falls for a girl, Miamor, who is out for revenge on the cartel because one of the legitimate sons killed her sister who was trying to kill him. She has no idea Carter is related to the cartel, nor does Carter know that Miamor is a hitman for hire. Needless to say a mess ensues. The plot is interesting at most. The writing is TERRIBLE. There are so many typos, did anyone read through it? So much of the writing of what a character is repeated, even if its a different character. A character could be feeling one way in one paragraph and then the next in the next the character has moved on and stating the opposite without any reason. The plot kind of falls apart at the end and the actual ending isn't and ending just a cliffhanger for the next book which I won't be bothering to read.

This isn't my typical book and I read it because patrons at the library I work at are interested in it, so I understand the book and plot isn't aimed at me. With that said, the writing is just awful, the plot started off interesting, but the last 50 pages or so it went overboard. ( )

The port of Miami brings in millions of dollars' worth of cocaine every year, and the Cartel controls eighty percent of it. The Diamond family is a force to be reckoned with, but all hell breaks loose when they lose their leader.

This was my first read by Ashley & JaQuavis, man what a ride! This is not your usual run of the mill, "I'm a kingpin, I'm on top of the world" type of book. Yes, The Cartel does sell drugs, but beneath their 'gangster' exterior, is shrewd business sense. Carter Diamond runs things with an iron fist; he loves hard, works hard, & plays hard. This book had the right amount of drama, suspense, and some very steamy sex scenes. The book was easy to follow, and I really enjoyed it! ( )