Reviewed by Becca
TITLE: A Summer of Smoke and Sin
AUTHOR: TJ Nichols
PUBLISHER: self-published
LENGTH: 282 pages
RELEASE DATE: February 28, 2019
BLURB:
To stop a serial killer a detective will need to explore his own vices…
Nathanial Bayard wants nothing more than to find the nobleman creating snuff pornography. If he fails, his career in the recently formed nobility taskforce will be over and as the youngest son he’ll be forced to obey his father and join the church. But a life of celibacy doesn’t appeal. Nathanial has never even kissed another man, fearing for his soul and his reputation.
Jericho Fulbright has never lived a wholesome life. After behavior unbecoming he was discharged from the army and sent home in disgrace. His inventor and nouveau riche father refused to have anything to do with him, so Jericho turned to what he knew best: opium, gambling and sex.
As the owner of the Jericho Rose, a club for gentlemen who like men, he enjoys a certain notoriety. Some would say he has a golden tongue, but the truth is a succubus lives within him feeding on souls. Once he needed her help, now she is a burden that keeps him from getting close to anyone.
After the unfortunate death of a young noble man in Jericho’s bed, Nathanial is sent to investigate. He is scandalized and intrigued by Jericho, but soon realizes that Jericho could be exactly who he needs to help break the snuff case. Together they are drawn into a web of lies that will result in Jericho facing prison unless Nathanial can unmask the real creator of the snuff, a man with rank and privileges that reaches almost to the King.
REVIEW:
I love TJ Nichols books. The paranormal in them is always so fun for me and I love the twists and turns in each of TJ’s books. But this one was harder for me to get into. And while the paranormal was there and there was mystery and intrigue, it was just a slow start for me and it just seemed to drag on to a point. Now don’t misunderstand me, the book is still good. It just wasn’t as big of a thrill as others for me. But don’t let me dissuade you from trying it for yourself and seeing what it’s about.
Jericho woke again to not knowing about what happened the night before and to a man dead in his bed. And knew his demon had been up to no good again. And he had left it too long in not feeding her. Now he had to cover up a murder before anyone caught on. But as he was setting up things, he was almost caught. The police had to be called and it came with a man named Nathaniel that Jericho could see right off the bat, wanted more than he could share. Nathaniel and Jericho begin to get to know each other under the guise of working for another case, but more and more, their feelings for each other were changing. The problem was, Nathaniel couldn’t let himself get out from under his father’s thumb and for Jericho, he was used to be just a commoner that no one seemed to really want. As they navigate secrets, lies and a serial killer, they find out what they both are really made of and what will change or not.
That’s one thing I’ve always hated about society. Old or new. The fact that some people are supposed to be better because they are of a ‘higher class’ than others. It’s such crap. We all are human and put our pants on the same. Well, you know what I mean. But it irritates me to no end about social status and class. No one is better than someone else. I understood Jericho’s point of view. As much as he hated housing a demon, he felt like he was somebody with it. And because of his family being buttheads, he was left with basically nothing and had to do everything himself. And that to me shows more strength and class than anything. Yeah, so he ran a gentleman’s club. Who cares. He built up his business himself and did everything himself. For the most part. He made something of himself. And then you have Nathaniel, who is a product of something he never asked for and is treated like a piece of dirt by his father. When all he wants, is to help free the world of criminals and help others. And finally be free to love who he wants. I felt for these two. A product of bad fathers and a crappy society. Men who just want to love and be loved. And live in a world free of judgement. And to solve the murders of those people who didn’t deserve what they got.
It’s a good little mystery. Like I said, it’s got a few twists in it that make it intriguing. It was just slow for me. But please give it a try and see what you think.
RATING: 
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