Okay. So this is the second book in the Criminal Delights series that I read and I can tell you this one is twisted.

Mark is vain. Let's get that out of the way. When we meet him, all he seems to worry about is his looks and how turning forty is a kind of deathnail for gay guys. So when he is offered the chance to undergo the 'Youthology' blood-infusion experiment and write about it for the magazine he works for, he jumps at it because of the age-defying promises of the program.

Weeks after he starts the process, the changes to his body are dramatic. He acquires the youthful results he wants. However there are shocking side effects. He also acquires the physical and mental traits of his donor.

Mark acquires a few more deadly vices to add to his vanity and I mean deadly. Things take a twisted turn or two and I'm not going to give you spoilers.

This story is more of a dark psychological suspense and less of a romance, in my opinion but I loved it regardless.




BLURB

Death eventually comes for us all. But what if there’s a way for older people to regain their youth? To stay a step ahead of the grim reaper?

Turning 40 was the last straw for me. It’s practically 60 in gay years and I wasn’t ready for dentures yet, so I came to Youthology — a program that injects clients with blood transfusions from young, fit and healthy donors.

I chose Nick.

Handsome. Masculine. And more importantly, young.

I thought I hit the lottery, until my life started to change for the worst. Not even the top medical experts can explain what happened to me. From the moment Nick’s blood flooded into my veins, I stopped being me, and I became something new; something dangerous and deadly.

I became my donor.

His obsessions are mine now. His darkest desires, his dreams, his needs, and nightmares are all a part of me, and I don’t want to let them go.

I embrace them and the beautiful boy who haunts both of our dreams.

My blood pact was sealed the moment I entered Youthology.

I never thought I’d become a killer.

This book is part of CRIMINAL DELIGHTS. Each novel can be read as a standalone and contains a dark M/M romance.

Warning: These books are for adult readers who enjoy stories where lines between right and wrong get blurry. High heat, twisted and tantalizing, these are not for the fainthearted.

I read this book a while back but I just haven't stopped long enough to write a coherent book review.

First of all. Wow. I love the concept of this series--Criminal Delights. I've read two books in the series so far and both of them are so good.

In Wrong Way Home, Colin, a student doctor, is a man who never takes risk and always follows the rules. The story opens with him driving home from university and thinking about how he never takes chances. He decides to take a detour from his normal route just to do some thing different and ends up witnessing a murder scene in the middle of nowhere. 

I'll admit that opening chapter read like a horror scene from The Texas Chain Saw Massacre movie or something similar. But once Colin is taken captive by Taron, who is a prepper/survivalist who lives in a cabin in the wood, and held in his dungeon things kind of level off and we get to find out about the characters, what makes them tick and see the romance blossom between them as the days turn into weeks.

As with KAM books, you can expect the steam to rise with their interactions and some sticky sweetness. The black moment was brilliant, although the wrap up of the story was a little too easy for both characters. I expected more consequences, for Taron especially.

As dark romance novels go, this is probably not as dark as some people will want. Yes, it's a captive/captor romance and yes, Taron commits murder but that's about as dark as it got. And it worked for me.




Blurb

— ONE WRONG TURN. ONE RIGHT MAN. —
Colin. Rule-follower. Future doctor. Witness to murder. Captive.
Taron. Survivalist. Mute. Murderer. Captor.

Like every other weekend, Colin is on his way home from university, but he’s taunted by the notion that he never takes risks in life and always follows the beaten path. On impulse, he decides to take a different route. Just this one time. What he doesn’t realize is that it’s the last time he has a choice.

He ends up taking a detour into the darkest pit of horror, abducted by a silent, imposing man with a blood-stained axe. But what seems like his worst nightmare might just prove to be a path to the kind of freedom Colin never knew existed.

Taron has lived alone for years. His land, his rules. He’d given up on company long ago. After all, attachment is a liability. He deals with his problems on his own, but the night he needs to dispose of an enemy, he ends up with a witness to his crime.

The last thing Taron needs is a nuisance of a captive. Colin doesn’t deserve death for setting foot on Taron’s land, but keeping him isn’t optimal either. It’s only when he finds out the city boy is gay that an altogether different option arises. One that isn’t right, yet tempts him every time Colin’s pretty eyes glare at him from the cage.

*

“When Taron looped the heavy metal collar around the slender neck and closed the padlock, his body throbbed with the excitement of knowing he owned this boy.
Was it wrong? Yes, yes it was.
Was it so, so good? Definitely.”

Themes: prepping, alternative lifestyles, disability, crime, loneliness, enemies to lovers, forced proximity, fish out of water, opposites attract, abduction, Stockholm syndrome, family issues

Genre: Dark, thriller M/M romance

Heat level: Scorching hot, emotional, explicit scenes

This book is part of CRIMINAL DELIGHTS. Each novel can be read as a standalone and contains a dark M/M romance.

Warning: These books are for adult readers who enjoy stories where lines between right and wrong get blurry. High heat, twisted and tantalizing, these are not for the fainthearted.

This book reminded me so much of my teenage years when writing love letters to your crushes was still a thing. Each chapter is a letter addressed to the persons the author had relationships with, some very brief and some others even from a distance.

While some of these letters weren't exactly love letters, they were written from a place of love, highlighting how those encounters no matter how brief impacted the author positively.

From Dear 'Birthday Guy' to 'Daddy', 'Blondie' to 'Athlete', each letter is meaningful and poignant, sometimes humorous, sometimes poetic and always comes across as genuine.
The reflections are so relate-able, they made me think of my past relationships and how I would address them if I wrote letters to them.

This is quite an easy read and I didn't want to put it down once i started reading. Definitely worth reading for anyone who enjoys memoirs and LGBT literature.

About the Author

Part of the fun of picking up a new book and reading it even when it is from an 'old' author is that you don't know what you're going to get. Not really. Yes, it's a kind of 'Life's like a box of chocolate' (quoting Forrest Gump) moment.

So imagine my pleasure, when I picked up this book, read it from start to finish in one sitting without putting it down. Yes, it was that brilliant.

Let me start with the plot. 
Kyler was hoping to get away from an abusive parent but ended up running away because he thought killed a hooker during a blowjob gone wrong and ended working at the gay strip joint, Cox Club. Seamus is on his first undercover gig at Cox Club as an FBI agent chasing a terrorist lead which the FBI thing Kyler is involved in.

I don't want to give away spoilers. But suffice to say that the plot is outlandish in places. But fiction is fantasy and sometimes you just have to suspend disbelief and hold on for the ride.
And this was a freaking hilarious ride. I mean laugh-out-loud, holding-your-sides funny.
And there was also nail-biting drama, and angsty moments that got you all tied up because you wanted the characters to find happiness.

Kyler and Seamus were perfection, every moment, every word, every kiss, every touch. The whole story was perfection.

This has just become my favourite book from this author and I know I will be reading it again and again. Thank you, Mr Cox.

Disclaimer: The reviewer owns a copy of this book, purchased from Evernight Publishing.


The day a hooker dropped dead on Kyler’s dick changed his life forever…

When Kyler graduated high school, he wanted to give himself the gift of his first blowjob from a sexy male hooker. Then said hooker drops dead in his lap. Yeah, he has that kind of luck. Now, the police are after him, he can’t go home because of an abusive father, and he ends up working at The Cox Club, a small town gay gentlemen’s club.

Seamus is on his first undercover mission for the FBI. The problem is that he doesn’t think their terrorist suspect, Kyler, is guilty. Oh, and there’s also the matter of giving Kyler a hand job … on the FBI’s hidden camera. His first field mission may be his last.

When bullets start flying, it’s up to Seamus to find out the truth and he has to do it before Kyler becomes a victim.