Review: I like this author's characters
Rating: 4 out of 5
Date: 04 18, 2012
These guys are incandescent together, very intense. Once I closed the book, what remains is them them them. I wouldn't tag this book as BDSM even if it's their kink, because it's not what defines their relationship. When I think of them, I see two guys who enjoy each other. Their relationship is complicated. They are both law enforcement, Nick is an agent with the Nevada Gaming Commission; Brandon is becoming a detective for the Californian Riverside PD. When they meet, it's at a Goth convention. Nick is almost over a long relationship and he's out; Brandon is divorced, he has a kid, and he is in the closet. It seems just a hook-up, a one-night stand, but the two men connect on a deep level, but when they meet again, they witness the murder of an ex-colleague of Nick.The suspense plot is important in the book, because it scatters conflicts and moves the characters around, but it was also the most difficult part to follow because it was very technical, so I got lost a bit, even if I like authors who pay attention to details.Both Nick and Brandon are lonely. Nick's previous relationship wasn't exactly healthy in my opinion. Brandon has random hook-ups, he misses not being able to be close to his daughter, and since he doesn't want to out himself, every possibility of a steady relationship with someone makes him run away. At the beginning I didn't like Brandon at all: it seemed he wanted to set the rules of the relationship and he really hurt and humiliated Nick, then he had this holier-than-thou attitude when Nick admitted he had had sex with his ex again. In my opinion it wasn't cheating, because Brandon had behaved like an a-hole toward Nick, as if he didn't want to have anything more to do with him. It took a while for me to warm up to Brandon. I think there was a bit of imbalance, Nick was the one more patient and the one who reached out, while Brandon seemed the one who thought he had the most important problems, the one who didn't want to compromise. By the end of the book, Brandon redeemed himself.It'll be interesting to see what will happen in the next book. I really like the characters created by this author and how raw and vulnerable, but strong together.