REVIEWED BY COLETTE
TITLE: Sacrifices
SERIES: Jeff Woods Mystery #2
AUTHOR: Chris T. Kat
PUBLISHER: Dreamspinner Press
LENGTH: 241 pages
BLURB:
Sequel to Attachment Strings
A Jeff Woods Mystery
When he was outed on the local news, Jeff Woods gave up his dream job as a detective to become an on-air radio personality. The sacrifice was worth it to keep Alex and Sean in his life, but Alex lost his job, too. Jeff can tell Alex worries he’s pressuring Jeff too much, first with Sean and now the lack of money, but he has no idea what that will lead Alex to do. Desperate times bring out the stupidity in some people, and when Jeff discovers Alex is in over his head in a situation he can’t handle, he needs all his self-control to stay calm.
Life is not easy with the Church of Virtue still spouting venom wherever they go, homophobes at the police department, a gangster who wants Alex in the worst possible way, and a bed that barely holds one grown man, much less two (and a child), but Jeff is there to stay for good, and he’ll do what it takes to make Alex believe him.
REVIEW:
When I read Attachment Strings last year, I have to admit I hated Jeff. There were so many things he said and did that made me want to slap him, he was such an insensitive SOB. (I tend to get very involved in the books that I am reading.) But by the end of that novel, while I hadn’t completely forgiven him for his sins, I was feeling more inclined to give him the benefit of the doubt and I loved Alex and Sean so I wanted to read the next novel when it came out.
I definitely liked this one more that the last. The story picks up about 6 months after the events at the end of Attachment Strings. Jeff is no longer an Atlantic City PD Detective, he had to give up the job he loved after being outed on TV; Alex is unemployed and taking care of his little brother Sean who has Cerebral Palsy and still has nightmares about what happened. Alex isn’t used to having anyone to rely on, and while he loves Jeff, he can’t completely trust that he won’t get fed up with all the hassles of dealing with Alex and with Sean’s disability and leave. Jeff has grown a lot since meeting Alex and Sean and he knows he is in this for the long haul; he just has to find a way to convince Alex that he is never going to give up on him or Sean.
Jeff is working at Atlantic City Radio, hosting a crime report call in program – he hates working there but doesn’t know what else to do and at least the job allows him to keep in contact with Parker, his old partner on the force. Parker reaches out to him one morning needing to talk, he’s working on a case that is getting to him and David, his boyfriend, has been offered a job in DC and wants Parker to go with him. Parker is not out on the job, although he is pretty sure some of the other cops know. David wants Parker to come out and leave the force.
Alex is worrying about being unemployed, about money, about Sean, about the Church of Virtue complaining to CP & P that he is not a fit guardian for Sean, about pushing Jeff away with all his problems, about being a burden. The man is just worried and all that anxiety causes him to do something very stupid. Before he gets a chance to tell Jeff what he has done, he is beaten up by some mobster types and suddenly his foolish action and Parker’s tough case merge and what was just worrisome becomes downright dangerous for Alex, Sean and Jeff.
What I really liked about this book was how much Jeff loved his new life with Alex and Sean, how happy he was loving them both and being a family – cooking dinner together, playing farm with Sean, getting him ready for bed, sharing their lives every day. The story is told from Jeff’s POV so you know how much he cares and how he wants to do the right things for Alex and Sean. I liked how he kept reassuring Alex that he loved him and he would always be there for him and Sean. The ending leaves the way open for more titles in the series and I look forward to seeing where the author takes these characters in the future.
RATING: 
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