Reviewed by Cheryl K
TITLE: Now Comes the Dark: A LGBTQIA Romantic Suspense (Basic Instincts Book 1)
SERIES: Basic Instincts
AUTHOR: Thom Collins
PUBLISHER: Entwined Publishing
LENGTH: 241 pages
RELEASE DATE: February 11, 2025
BLURB:
FROM EXCITING AUTHOR OF LGBTQIA ROMANTIC SUSPENSE THOM COLLINS
Book one in the Basic Instincts series
Two strangers fueled by desire, and a killer consumed with lust.
Roman Ballentyne is forced to make some changes. The city he loves is no longer safe. Tensions are high as a psychotic killer preys upon the LGBTQ community. Five men have been murdered in the last year. Every encounter is a risk. Anyone could be next. The Viaduct was once the shame of Blyham, an illicit club filled with private booths and dark rooms, sleazy in the extreme. Now it offers a secure space to hook up when it’s too dangerous to take a stranger home.
Mallon Garnier catches Roman’s eye. He’s moody and mature and the hottest man in the club, but as Mallon pairs up with someone else, Roman thinks he’s missed his chance. When Roman is the victim of a hate crime at the end of the night, Mallon is his saviour, taking on his attackers with savage efficiency. Their attraction is immediate and intense. Roman knows it’s wrong to go home with a stranger, but what harm can there be from the man who saved him?
The encounter is the start of an intense and passionate affair. But as the murders continue, Roman learns Mallon is keeping a deep secret, and the killer is closer than he thinks.
REVIEW:
I am always intrigued to try a new to me author. Sometimes it works out great and other times not as much. I read the blurb for this book and was so excited to read it, bonus points that it was new to me author. I’d never read anything by Thom Collins before. Which brings me to my conflicted thoughts on this book. First, I have to admit that I almost DNF’d this book. I read the blurb on this book at least four times, as I struggled to finish it. Which I did. Some where along the way, this book just didn’t meet MY expectations. There were definitely some good aspects of this new series. I just wanted to see more of suspense aspect of this story.
The world building was good. The creation of Blyham was well done and created a good backdrop for the story.
The character development was well done. I definitely had angry thoughts about Roman’s roommate and his boyfriend. I enjoyed the community feeling, all the characters engendered, well all of them but Patrick.
I even liked his writing, but what I didn’t like was all the sexy times and then bam at 80% let’s now discuss in depth the suspense portion of the storyline. I mean don’t get me wrong, I’m all about the sexy times, I just prefer it to be more in line as a plot device than anything else. Once we got to the in-depth suspense part of the story is when I really became engaged in the story.
What secret is Mallon keeping from Roman? Will they figure out the killer in time?
If you enjoy a lots of sexy times, please consider reading book one of the new Basic Instincts series. You can find it available at your favorite eBook purchasing site.
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