As promised for my August 6th post, today I’m reviewing S.J. Coles’ latest release Hunt in the Night, book three in the Blood and Bonds series, a m/m paranormal romance.
Book Title: Hunt In The Night
Series: Blood and Bonds, book #3
Author: S. J. Coles
Genre: Contemporary Paranormal Mystery/Cop
Tropes: Bi Awakening, Vampire, Men In Uniform, Gay For You
Themes: Coming out, forgiveness
Release Date: August 6, 2024
Length: 71 136 words/282 pages
Heat Rating: 4 flames
Publisher: Pride Publishing
Blurb: Detective Inspector Mason Walker is good at his job. He has never focused on much else in his life. Women come and go. Friends take time he doesn’t have to spare. The job is constant. He works hard and has built a reputation for determination and integrity.
Now his skills are needed more than ever. The level of violence in York has risen, involving both the haemophile and human communities. These are unexplored waters for Mason, with both political and professional implications, and Mason is afraid to lose his way.
But there’s been a murder—a haemophile—and Mason’s facing the question of not only who committed the dreadful crime but how? Nothing seems to be adding up. And being assigned a haemophile partner, Special Officer Cai Bracken, a freelance detective working for the Met Police, only increases his tension.
What’s really unnerving is that Cai is not only making Mason question his professional convictions, but his personal preferences, too…his most personal preferences.
With so much at stake, can Mason really cope with overhauling his police work and his personal life all at once?
Note: It is book 3 of 3. It does not end on a cliffhanger.
Buy Links
Pride Publishing | Universal Link
Since I’m enjoying this series, I said yes when the chance came up to read and review the third and final book. I must say this is my favourite. The author knocked this one out of the ballpark.
Mason Walker, the detective from the previous novels, gets his chance to take a starring role. Obsessed with work, and not much for love or a home life, his boss dumps him as a lover at the beginning of the novel. As he’s dumped, and in the middle of a case, the unthinkable happens when a man in his custody escapes, a dangerous man from the previous novel who is responsible for the killings and torturings of hemophiles.
Cai Bracken is a hemophile, and the problem is he can’t remember who changed him or what happened exactly ten years ago. All he knows is he was looking for a missing child when his life changed forever. As a special officer for the police, he’s assigned to work with Mason to unravel the mystery of the killings.
This book really ramps up the suspense to eleven. I was glued to the book, wondering what would happen next. First, the two main characters are great. Mason is dedicated to serving justice, and so is Cai. Both are leery of love and romance. But the chemistry between the two is enormous and neither can fight the attraction.
Then there’s the mystery. It’s a back-and-forth of who is responsible that leaves them chasing bread crumbs left by the killer. When I found out who the killer is, I thought the author did a great job since this person was more than appropriate. As for the killer’s helper, I do believe this person got in over their head and didn’t realize what the outcome would be.
There are appearances by the heroes from previous novels that add to the story, and it’s also nice to get a peek at their lives and what they’ve been up to, but their appearance doesn’t impede on the plot. As a matter of fact, they are needed.
Then there is the ending. The author did a great job tying up all three novels and the plot that carried on over the trilogy.
This is a must-read novel, and I can’t say enough how much I enjoyed it. This is a great series and a smashing world the author created. She’s a wonderful writer, bringing to life emotions, setting, dialogue, and characters. Do yourself a favour and get a copy. You won’t regret it.
Maggie Blackbird 