Rating 3.75 stars out of 5

What did I think I was doing? I wasn’t a detective. I wasn’t even really an art expert. I was only a lowly security guard with a penchant for true-crime shows and mystery novels and a weakness for good-looking men who tossed coffee on me. The realization hit me hard.

Life has changed a lot for Miles Koprowski over the past year. Nowhere in his past did he see himself being laid off, being dumped, and trying to start all over at the age of forty. After a failed attempt at fast food chains, he finds himself in a not-so-cushy security job for a company with an expertise in photocopiers. Exciting? I think not.

But then again, he’s not really into risks and doing daring things, so maybe it kind of fits him. Nothing is ever that easy, though. His boss is Mr. Perfect, gorgeous and flirty and, well, perfect. And then there’s this other thing… the building is covered in art, pretty nice, expensive art, but somehow that art is being switched out with copies that no one should notice, or would, but maybe that art degree does come in handy. And maybe this easy, risk-free job isn’t so easy or risk-free.

 

The city was alive and it was never more apparent than during the summer, when Torontonians crammed every ounce of enjoyment they could into a few short months. Pedestrians coursed like blood along the main arteries; the subway trains roared through the tunnels below the surface, the steady ta-dum, ta-dum of the wheels on the tracks drumming like an underground heartbeat. I felt as though I’d returned from a long absence and was seeing it with new eyes. The city embraced me, welcoming me back like an old friend, no hard feelings. If only my real friends would be so forgiving.

In a word, this story was cute. It’s the kind of story you’d curl up next to a fire place with a warm cup of hot chocolate (or wine, if that’s more your speed).

For some reason, despite the blurb, I didn’t quite realize the role that a mystery would play in this. It’s not just part of the plot, it pretty much is the entire plot. It reminded me a lot of a cozy mystery, very sweet and not too serious, but full of life and characters.

Some of my favorite parts about the book were the characters. The author did a really great job of creating this whole spectrum of individuals who had their own color. Even though both the MCs are fairly alpha male, they don’t blend into each other. They’re distinct. I will say, though, that I was hoping to get to know Colton just a bit more. We got to see pieces of him, but I just felt like there was so much more for his character to offer.

I also had an issue in that I figured out the mystery by the halfway point in the book. This may have meant that I had issues enjoying the rest of it, but that didn’t really play too much of a role here. It’s just that when it comes to mysteries, I like to be left in suspense to the very end. There’s something to be said for keeping the reader on the edge of their seat, and this didn’t really do that. I think that if the author had spread out details a bit more, the hints, then it would’ve worked better. It was just that a detail was revealed, and then a hint shortly after, and it was a bit too obvious for me.

I was also a bit disappointed with the lack of steam in this. There’s a couple scenes, and the author does a great job with them, but I just wanted more. They talk about topping and such, but it never happens. Granted, the entire book takes place in a time span of two weeks (with one of them being the epilogue of sorts), and there’s a lot of other stuff going on during that week. But I can’t help but be greedy.

One other thing that confused me a bit was adding in the bit about Miles’ ex. I’m not sure it really needed to be there. I was a bit like “huh?” when that part was revealed. It was kind of thrown in for another element.

Still, this was a really cute story. It was light and easy and fun.

The cover art by Bree Archer is nice. It certainly fits the location of Toronto and the profession of one of the MCs. I just don’t really find the angle of the models face very appealing in this. It makes his neck kind of… disappear, which isn’t terribly attractive. So nice, but not the most amazing cover I’ve seen.

Sales Links:   Dreamspinner Press    All Romance (ARe)      Amazon     Buy It Here

Book Details:

ebook, 200 pages
Expected publication: January 26th 2015 by Dreamspinner Press
ISBN139781632164018