Reviewed by Annika
TITLE: Guardian Angel
SERIES: Jimmy McSwain Files #4
AUTHOR: Adam Carpenter
NARRATOR: Joel Leslie
PUBLISHER: Tantor Audio
LENGTH: 9 hours, 44 minutes
RELEASE DATE: May 19, 2020
BLURB:
The dual forces of good and evil take center stage in this, the fourth installment in the Jimmy McSwain Files, one that finds the tortured, sexy detective battling an unforeseen enemy: happiness. Yet murder will soon rear its desperate chill, hurtling Jimmy into the highest society and the lowest of lives.
Winter is nearly upon Manhattan, the holidays right around the corner. Jimmy is hired to escort the infamous tabloid favorite Serena Carson to a charity benefit, intent on guarding her from an abusive ex. Yet the job takes a brutal turn as Henderson Carlyle, the privileged, spoiled lothario, is found sliced to death outside of Serena’s brownstone.
The cops warn Jimmy away from the case, including his former lover, Captain Francis X. Frisano. Jimmy has his hands full anyway, as his visiting cousin Kellan was found beaten by one-time family friend, Mickey Dean, a Hell’s Kitchen thug with a dark past and even darker threat.
As the snow falls and answers remain buried, Jimmy finds himself thrown into the midst of two conflicting cases, one of which will expose a dormant clue to the long-unsolved murder of his NYPD cop, Joseph McSwain.
Complicating matters is a new man in Jimmy’s life, who promises Jimmy security and safety, neither word easy for him to accept. When fate sends Jimmy’s world into turmoil, he realizes there’s a devil at work in a season usually owned by angels.
REVIEW:
Adam Carpenter has created a great set of characters, a wonderful sense of place and a mystery you can sink your teeth in. I’m seriously addicted to this series and if I could I’d listen to all six books in one go, but sadly that’s not possible as the next two have yet to be released. Anyway Guardian Angel is the most complex of the books so far in terms of the plot. I’d also say that this book does not stand on its own because so far each book has built heavily on the events taking place in the previous ones and the Forever Haunt case is taking up more and more page time.
However, this story doesn’t start there, but with Jimmy acting as a bodyguard for a wealthy woman at a charity event, protecting her from an abusive ex-boyfriend. The case takes a turn for the unexpected when said boyfriend is found gruesomely murdered outside his client’s apartment soon after the event. He’s hired on to find out who did it, but at the same times the cops warn him to stay away. It’s only a matter of time before things get a bit dicey.
Then tragedy hits close to home when Jimmy’s cousin ends up in a lot of trouble. Trouble caused by a former family friend, one that now runs in the shadows and has no love lost for the McSwain family. He also might have some answers to questions Jimmy has been asking for the past fifteen years. His attention is split between the cases and judging by the number of people and cases that tugs on Jimmy for his attention it’s a wonder he hasn’t cracked under all the strain.
His love life is still very much a mess. He and Frisano are still dancing around each other, both having feelings for the other, but also knowing that now isn’t the time for them. Too many things are keeping them apart, things that for now are insurmountable. So Jimmy does what he does best, avoidance. He’s met a doctor and the two have been dating for a short while and I have to say I didn’t get great vibes from him. On the surface he might seem like a great guy but there is a bit of a creep factor there for me.
As always the mysteries are the main focus of the book and all the romance parts are only interludes every now and then. Carpenter balances them all in a good way and keeps you interested start to finish, ending up wanting more.
Joel Leslie is great at catching the moments, the good and the bad. He makes you feel Jimmy’s desperation for answers and how the loss of his father still cuts so deeply after all these years. I love his accents; they add a lot of flavor to this colorful set of characters. The old Lady was a hoot (can’t remember her name, but you’ll know it when she shows up). As always he made this book a treat to listen to.
I’m glad that Forever Haunt is only a few weeks away. In a way I think it’s the most anticipated book in the series and the one that will bring us answers to so many questions about what happened that night fifteen years ago. So until then I’ll be sitting right here, anxiously waiting for the book.
Highly recommended to all gay mystery lovers out there.
RATING: 
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