Rating: 4 stars
Buy Link:
Amazon | iBooks | Amazon UK
Length: Novel

 

Shadows of London is an ongoing series that is intended to be read in order and this review will naturally reveal plot points for the series in general.

John Domenici knows he shouldn’t get involved with Kage’s disappearance, but he can’t let it go. He should just stay in London with Alexander Kempthorne, the man that has become his in every way, but John needs to know what happened to Kage and help him even if he doesn’t know if he can trust Kage.

John and Alex’s relationship is changing every day. The men crave each other and fuel each other like they were always meant to be together to create something incredible. A journey to America is not at all what Alex wants to do, but it seems he will follow John anywhere. Being a latent in America is harsh and John and Alex are on the radar of the authorities immediately and they once again can’t trust anyone. But someone is after them and John doesn’t know everything and Alex is still keeping secrets. The longer they stay in America, the worse their chances become of ever leaving as they are hunted throughout the city. But Alex and John know how to survive and they will let nothing and no one come between them no matter the cost.

The end of the last book in this series, Trial by Fire, saw John and Alex (formerly referred to as Dom and Kempthorne) survive more attacks and advance their relationship. The heat is intense between them and their relationship has become one of the best things about this series. It took them a while to get together, but now that they are, the need they have for each other adds another layer to the intrigue.

This book focuses on Kage’s disappearance. John is being his usual good guy as he wants to find out what happened to Kage and Alex wants to protect John. Alex, of course, still knows more than he’s telling John. The moment they arrive in America, there are enemies everywhere and Alex and John can really only rely on each other. John is starting to realize that there may be more to him than he ever thought and his “trick” may be more noteworthy than he realizes. With danger everywhere, there is plenty of action and plenty of heated and tender moments between Alex and John.

The main issue I have with this series still remains and now that the book is set in America, it again becomes obvious. From my reading perspective, a lot of the way Americans and America are portrayed feels done in a way to highlight things not to like about Americans. America is more than what someone sees on the news or, as referenced in the book, on cop shows on television. There are as many British villains after John and Alex as American ones, yet the Americans are portrayed as worse because we are reminded often that they are American. I am also familiar with the areas where a majority of the plot takes place and it reads from the perspective of having never been to those places and some of it didn’t hold together for me.

This undercurrent in the series does lessen my overall enjoyment. However, the ending brings Alex and John through another major event in their lives and sets them up for the finale in the series. I like these men together and I like the larger story they have gone through and I will look for the final book in the series as their next steps will again bring extraordinary changes to their lives.