REVIEWED by Jen B.
TITLE: The Trouble With Tony
SERIES: Sex in Seattle
AUTHOR: Eli Easton
PUBLISHER: Eli Easton
LENGTH: 111 Pages
RELEASE DATE: January 30, 2020
BLURB:
As part of the investigation into the murder of a young woman, Seattle P.I. Tony DeMarco poses as a patient of Dr. Jack Halloran, the therapist who treated the victim at a Seattle sex clinic. This isn’t the first time Tony has gone undercover, but it’s the first time he’s wanted to go under cover with one of his suspects. He can’t help it—Jack Halloran is just the kind of steely-eyed hero Tony goes for. But he’ll have to prove Halloran’s innocence and keep the doctor from finding out about his ruse before he can play Romeo.
Dr. Halloran has his own issues, including a damaged right arm sustained in the line of duty as a combat surgeon in Iraq and the PTSD that followed. He’s confused to find himself attracted to a new patient, the big, funny Italian with the puppy-dog eyes, and Tony’s humor slips right past Jack’s defenses, making him feel things he thought long buried. But can the doctor and the P.I. find a path to romance despite the secrets between them?
REVIEW:
This was a fun, sweet story. It’s a re-release, but I missed it the first go around. It’s an easy read that doesn’t get too deep in any direction. Tony is an ex-cop turned PI who is hired to figure out who murdered a young woman. That woman had been receiving sex therapy which, with the addition of some of the other details, seems like the logical place to look for suspects. So, Tony goes undercover.
Dr. Jack Halloran is ex-military, medic turned sex therapist who has some scars of his own from combat. When Tony presents for his appointment, Jack is skeptical and immediately suspicious of Tony. Tony quickly comes up with using a problem he actually has (what he calls “picky dick syndrome”) and uses that as a way to gain access to information he needs to find the murderer. The job quickly turns into Tony trying to find information that will clear Jack from the suspect list as he becomes Tony’s No. 5, or only the 5th guy who Tony’s sausage has ever perked up for.
I loved the fun aspects of Jack and Tony’s interactions – Tony needing Jack to use euphemisms when talking about Tony and his issue – for one. They had an easy chemistry that took a little while to flesh out, as Jack was determined to not get involved with a patient. Of course, that roadblock is blown away when Tony cracks the case and the truth about his undercover work comes out.
So, all in all, I really enjoyed this. It wasn’t too sweet but it had a sweet heartwarming feel nonetheless. Given their respective body issues, these guys were perfect for each other, and I appreciated how their hang-ups weren’t what held them back for very long. They were definitely things that had to be dealt with, but it didn’t get tiresome hearing about them. I also liked the pacing of this story. It’s not very long, but didn’t feel rushed or dragged out either. A nice start to a series I’m hoping and looking forward to continuing.
RATING:
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