Reviewed by Annika
TITLE: Collusion 
SERIES: Diversion #2
AUTHOR: Eden Winters
NARRATOR: Darcy Stark
PUBLISHER: Self-Published
RELEASE DATE: December 3, 2018
LENGTH: 8 hours, 3 minutes
BLURB:
Dead men can’t love.
Former drug trafficker Richmond “Lucky” Lucklighter “died” in the line of duty while working off a ten-year sentence in service to the Southeastern Narcotics Bureau, only to be reborn as Simon “Lucky” Harrison. The newbie he trained, former Marine Bo Schollenberger, is now his partner on (and maybe off) the job. It’s hard to tell when Lucky doesn’t understand relationships or have a clue what any sane human is doing in his bed. Bo’s nice to have around, sure, but there’s none of that picking-out-china-together crap for Lucky.
While fighting PTSD, memories of a horrid childhood, and a prescription drug addiction, Bo is paying for his mistakes. Using his pharmacy license for the good guys provides the sort of education he never got in school. Undercover with his hard-headed partner, Bo learns that not everything is as it seems in the world of pharmaceuticals.
When a prescription drug shortage jeopardizes the patients at Rosario Children’s Cancer Center, it not only pits Bo and Lucky against predatory opportunists, but also each other. How can they tell who the villains are? The bad guys don’t wear black hats, but they might wear white coats.
REVIEW:
I’ve read these books before, last year if I remember correctly and I wasn’t all that impressed by the first few books. “A work in progress” I think I called them. But I still stuck with the series. It had something that I just couldn’t let go of, and I’m so glad I didn’t, because it’s a great one. And listening to the audio adds another dimension to the book, and not only due to Stark’s amusingly smooth voice.
When we left Lucky in the last book, he was kind of….dead. Or well, his old identity is, the person is still very much alive. Just with a new name and a well-earned freedom going with it. He’s still (voluntarily this time) working for the Southeastern Narcotics Bureau with Bo as a partner, both on and off the clock.
There is a national shortage of prescription drugs. Everything from morphine to cancer drugs is on the short list. Doctors and hospitals are getting desperate, turning to the grey and black markets to get hold of drugs. Only problem is, there is no guarantee that the drugs they get are safe for use, or even contain what they are supposed to do. Lucky and Bo are sent to a hospital to investigate and shut down illegal activity.
Lucky, Lucky…. oblivious is the name of the day… I have to say it’s kind of fun watching him muddle through his relationship with Bo. A relationship he doesn’t even realise he’s in… to the point where he had to actually contact his sister to ask for “the early signs of a relationship”. Hilarious! Though to be fair, I do feel for Bo and all the shit he has to muddle through. I truly admire his patience and perseverance not to have left the man. Or at the very least strangled him. Patience like a saint.
You know what the scary part of this book is? The credibility of it. I mean, imagine that there really was a shortage of drugs. Drugs that are necessary to stay alive, to manage pain, to cure, to treat. Everything can happen and you will quickly have desperate people. People willing yo try and do anything, even getting drugs that might not be safe – in some cases they have nothing to lose. Imagine then unscrupulous people taking advantage and supplying drugs that are harmful. Drugs that haven’t been produced properly or mixed with additives that are toxic. This has happened in the past. And to me that makes this story scary. Just think what if.
Darcy Stark was a hit for this book. He truly captured Bo and Lucky. I loved how Lucky’s incredulity, frustration, and total obliviousness were so clear. It came through perfectly, as did Bo’s personality. Usually the calm and rational one, but also the frayed and stressed Bo. The feelings were all there, they were perfect. I loved to listen to Stark’s voice, some voices just speak to you, and his sure speaks to me.
I know that Lucky and Bo will get into more trouble in the books to come and I can’t wait to listen to them.
RATING: 
BUY LINKS: