Reviewed by Sadonna
TITLE: A Shot at Perfect
SERIES: Vasquez Inc 4
AUTHOR: Lou Sylvre
LENGTH: 168 pages
RELEASE DATE: January 24, 2020
BLURB:
~New trauma threatens the love of a Dom and his sub. Investigating crime may threaten their lives.~
After a crash left him with new mental and physical scars, Jackie Vasquez has finally regained his focus, flair, and bright outlook. Though he’s letting Brian Harrison’s marriage proposal simmer, it’s not for lack of love. He’s set his sights on putting his life right first — a new job and a fresh start at graduate school. But Los Angeles — the city of devil winds — has new trauma in store for him. Another accident leaves him with the stump of a leg and defeated spirits, adrift despite Brian’s devoted attentions.
While Brian copes with his own emotional trauma, he hopes to break through Jackie’s apathy, but work at Vasquez Security takes more and more of his time and attention. Specifically “the Espen case,” which his boss — Luki Vasquez — has forbidden him to pursue. Help comes on all fronts from friends and family for both Brian and Jackie, but even as it does, danger mounts from outside. Can the two men find their way back to love as well as passion and fulfillment in their D/s roles? Can they survive the confrontation with danger that seems to loom closer and darker every time LA’s hot winds blow?
REVIEW:
Note: This is the 4th book in this series and should be read in order. It doesn’t really work as a standalone.
Jackie is recovering from his accident, but he’s not happy being dependent on anyone. He does seem to get along with his PT and he’s made huge progress – so much so that he doesn’t tell Brian he is going to apply for a position at the university that would begin before his official matriculation. However, there is another unfortunate accident and this time the leg cannot be saved. 🙁
Jackie recovers from the surgery and eventually returns home, but he’s in a lot of pain and has a lot of healing to do and it’s even harder than his last recovery. And he can’t allow himself to feel anything, because then he’ll feel everything – anger, grief, isolation, desolation, loss – and he’s sure it will swallow him whole. He’s not responded to Brian’s proposal and he continues to push Brian away.
In the meantime, the mystery surrounding the prior manager, Epsen, gets more and more strange. And Brian has to share with Luki what he’s found. Luki and Sonny help him uncover more and it’s clear that this is a lot bigger than they thought. Jackie helps the guys figure out some approaches to the case as well.
While Brian and Jackie are trying to find their way back to each other, danger appears yet again and Brian will not risk Jackie. Luki insists on working with Brian to figure out what’s going on with the Espen case because it appears that it might be tied to something else that Luki has been investigating. The rest of the VSI team is helping the case as well, but there are still a lot of leads to follow up on and Luki calls in a few favors. While progress is being made, it’s clear that this is way bigger than a disappearing manager and that the stakes are high for everyone.
Whew! This one was a wild ride. Poor Jackie just cannot buy a break! It seems like LA is just cursed for him and now for Brian as well. So much has happened to them and it’s taking all of their strength and willpower to get through it. Luki and Sonny thankfully are there to support them, but the loss of Jackie’s leg is just the latest in so many things that have gone wrong for Jackie and Brian – practically since they’ve gotten together. Jackie is having a good deal of trouble dealing with everything and he hasn’t found the right person to help him. Brian finally Doms him and that seems to get them back to something like they have been in the past, but Jackie is still struggling – and truthfully so is Brian. The case has turned absolutely crazy and there is so much going on that is a lot bigger than anyone even imagined, but they are definitely getting closer. I can’t wait to see what happens next. Highly recommended!
RATING: 
BUY LINKS:
Changeling Press