Reviewed by Cheryl

TITLE: Charisma Check

SERIES: Roll for Love

AUTHOR: Charlie Novak

PUBLISHER: Self Published

LENGTH: 274 Pages

RELEASE DATE:  January 19, 2021

BLURB:

Hatred is complicated, clothing is simple—Edward doesn’t need a man, and he certainly doesn’t need cosplayer and tattoo artist, Izzy Montes, AKA The Masked Gentleman, Edward’s ultimate nemesis.

Edward and Izzy have been antagonising each other for over three years. Their rivalry is fierce, and Edward is determined to keep Izzy at arm’s length. Which would be all well and good… if they weren’t engaging in a secret, heated hook-ups.

Forced to appear together at a film premier in LA, Edward is determined to get in and out with minimal damage to his reputation… and his heart. But Izzy Montes proves to be a complication Edward couldn’t have predicted. Biting, funny, and charming in equal measure, he’s the one man Edward needs to loathe.

He’s also the one man Edward can’t get out of his mind.

Not that Izzy plans on letting him.

Charisma Check is a 80,000-word contemporary MM romance featuring comic conventions, snark, many costume changes, and only one bed. It is book two in the Roll for Love series and is best enjoyed as part of the series.

REVIEW:

I absolutely love this series. Dungeons and Dragons is a wonderful game and in this installment I get to indulge my love of cosplay, too.

Edward and Izzy are fantastic characters and I absolutely love the way the author portrays their conflict and the gradual change from hate to love. Enemies to friends is not a new trope but there is something refreshing about the way it’s dealt with here.

There is no doubt that the author is top class. The writing is fluid and engaging and the characters – not just the MC’s but every single one of them – were clearly drawn and had a voice and a part to play. I adored Lewis, Edward’s PA, and can’t wait to read his story in the next book, although I don’t know how he could possibly beat Edward to my ultimate favourite spot.

Edward is larger than life in personality if not in form, and Izzy is the tattooed giant who dwarfs him in stature but certainly not in spark. I loved everything about Edward, from his snarky personality to his mad needle skills. The descriptions of the cosplay creations created by these two is first class and had me in awe.

Another favourite element of the story, for me, was the way the author was able to make the characters, at the same time, as tough as nails yet also vulnerable. This stops them, especially Edward, from becoming caricatures.

The cosplay scene is well drawn in all its vivid chaos as we are taken from convention to conventions, tasting the flavour of each and meeting some whacky but wonderful characters on the way.

When the boys get to walk the red carpet, the reader feels the thrill while being informed in no uncertain terms how hard it is.

I can’t recommend this book enough if you want something a bit different. For all its genre and themes, the book is not heavy. The story, as well as the characters, is bright and vibrant and there is little angst other than what is brought through the conflict between characters, which is surprisingly entertaining. As a bonus there are also burst of smoking hot sex – much of it in tucked-away toilets in convention centers.

RATING:

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