Reviewed by Jen B.

TITLE: Sleight of Hand

SERIES: The Kings: Wild Cards #3

AUTHOR: Charlie Cochet

PUBLISHER: Self Published

LENGTH: 208 Pages

RELEASE DATE: July 6, 2021

BLURB:

Former Special Forces Green Beret, Sacha “Joker” Wilder, is well-versed on the subject of demolitions. As a silent partner of Four Kings Security, Joker spends his days working alongside his brothers-in-arms and his best boy, Chip—a bomb-sniffing Belgian Malinois with sass. Years of military and private security experience have prepared Joker for almost anything, except the explosive attraction between him and Giovanni Galanos.

When Gio returns from his travels abroad, everyone is charmed by the handsome billionaire philanthropist, but in Joker’s experience, anyone who’s too good to be true usually is. Gio is hiding something, but the more time Joker spends around Gio, the more his walls start crumbling, leaving him exposed and at risk of losing his heart, something he swore he would never do. Love is for suckers, and that’s not him.

For years Gio has dedicated his life to his charity work, helping people around the globe, but when things go horribly wrong during one particular trip, Gio decides it’s time to come home for good. The desire for family, and a certain ex-Green Beret with a chip on his shoulder, has Gio eager to restart his life Stateside. For all of Sacha’s blustering and griping, no one makes Gio feel safer. If only Sacha could see how right they are for each other.

Danger lurks in the shadows as someone sets their sights on Gio, and secrets are forced into the light. If Gio and Joker are to have any kind of future together, they’ll have to face difficult truths, because where love is concerned, it’ll take more than sleight of hand to make things work.

The Kings: Wild Cards series is a spin-off of the Four Kings Security series.

REVIEW:

I’ve been looking forward to Joker and Gio’s story from the moment they had their first encounter. I am happy to report this one didn’t disappoint. It’s been a while since Ms. Cochet has released something new, and as I haven’t had much luck lately in the new release in a long-time series department, I was relieved to find she hasn’t missed a beat. Sleight of Hand is just as entertaining and carries on the same theme as the previous books. It picks right up where the previous one left off, and even though there has been a bit of a gap since we last saw these guys, the characters are all here just as I remembered them.

We all know Joker is not looking for a relationship. He’s happy doing his thing with his loyal partner, Chip, right by his side while he watches all of his brothers and teammates take the tumble into love. But, he is unable to resist the pull that exists between him and Gio (Laz’ brother).

Likewise, Gio is in the same predicament, although he is determined to make something happen. That aside, Gio is dragging some major issues behind him, and it doesn’t take long for them to come to light. Luckily, Joker is exactly the right person to see him through, and with the help of the rest of the team (in more ways than one), they are given the chance at something special.

I thoroughly enjoyed this story. I absolutely love the camaraderie of the Four Kings and the Wild Cards, and their significant others have all added something positive to the ever-growing family. My only real niggle with this story is that there is a lot of build up, and then things happened very quickly and were over. Those things felt a little rushed when all was said and done. But, this story keeps Ms. Cochet on my auto-read list with a reminder that they are worth the wait.

RATING:

BUY LINK:

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