Series: The Will Darling Adventures Book 1
Author: KJ Charles
Self Published
Publication date: May 13, 2020
Length: 215 pages
Reviewed by Sammy
Synopsis
Will Darling came back from the Great War with a few scars, a lot of medals, and no idea what to do next. Inheriting his uncle’s chaotic second-hand bookshop is a blessing...until strange visitors start making threats. First a criminal gang, then the War Office, both telling Will to give them the information they want, or else.
Will has no idea what that information is, and nobody to turn to, until Kim Secretan—charming, cultured, oddly attractive—steps in to offer help. As Kim and Will try to find answers and outrun trouble, mutual desire grows along with the danger.
And then Will discovers the truth about Kim. His identity, his past, his real intentions. Enraged and betrayed, Will never wants to see him again.
But Will possesses knowledge that could cost thousands of lives. Enemies are closing in on him from all sides—and Kim is the only man who can help.
A 1920s m/m romance trilogy in the spirit of Golden Age pulp fiction.
Review
After coming home from the war, Will Darling tries to find a
job but to no avail—it’s as if his country is no longer interested in her
finest and brave once they’ve served their duty. Desperate, Will takes a
friend’s advice and contacts an uncle he’s never met only to be received warmly
and given both a place to stay and a job in the bookstore his relative owns. A
short time later, his uncle dies and leaves everything to Will. Determined to
eventually clean out the endless stacks of boxes and books and make a success
of the shop he now owns, Will begins the process of going through mountains of
papers in an effort to clean house. When some shady visitors begin to make
threats and demand Will turn over the papers he has no idea he even has Will
turns to a stranger, Kim Secretan, for help. But lies abound and mystery
surrounds both the papers bearing some sort of formula for a deadly weapon and
Kim, himself. If only Will weren’t attracted to the man—perhaps them he would
stop being duped by the stranger who is rapidly worming his way under Will’s
normal reserve.
With more twists and turns and fast paced action than I can
ever recall reading before, KJ Charles has released their first book in a new
series called, Slippery Creatures.
This novel starts with a bang and never lets up. Set in the 1900’s in England,
Will Darling has just returned home from serving in the war. He is determined
to survive and stepping into his Uncle’s shoes as a bookstore proprietor may
not have been his first choice but he gives the job his all. Unfortunately his
uncle seemed to have been corresponding with a man named Draven—a scientist who
has concocted a deadly weapon—a plague capable of being weaponized and killing
millions. When the war office comes demanding the formula—citing the country’s
safety as its goal—will is reluctant to turn over papers he has no idea where
to find without knowing more about them. Then a man named Libra, who has connections
to a shady group called Zodiac who are determined to get the formula and use it
to reset the world structure (i.e., wipe out mankind) begins to threaten Will.
And demand the papers. Without a clue as
to what he is searching for, Will turns to a virtual stranger, Kim Secretan who
offers to help. Kim is an enigma—a sexy one, no doubt, but still a man with
lots of secrets.
Poor Will now faces multiple break-ins and threats to his
life, kidnapping, torture and more while never really knowing who he can trust
or what to do about the hand written hieroglyphics that serve as the key to a
deadly weapon. With both incredible bravery and heaps of foolhardiness and
obstinance, Will manages to avoid death while coming close multiple times. But
as things heat up both with those pursuing him and with Kim in the bedroom,
Will is not sure what to do about the papers—hand them over to the war office
or destroy them.
This story was magnificent in the way it kept one guessing
who was the real bad guy to the very end—the novel makes a case for more than
one enemy here—even dragging Kim into the mix. While there is no real HEA or
even a HFN ending it still leaves you with the idea that Kim and Will are going
to make an attempt to be honest with each other and pursue a relationship—as
much as one can in that time era. There is a sizzling sense of chemistry between
Kim and Will and even though Kim has been less than honest, Will still is drawn
to the man. Of note, there are also two side characters-both females-who I hope
to see more of—they are delightfully shrewd yet seemingly innocent and make
great companions to the two men. There are two more books slated in this series
and I am happily onboard for them all. If you love exciting mysteries with a
dash of romance then look no farther than KJ Charles new Will Darling Adventure series.
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