Imperial Stout

Imperial Stout (2018) Layla Reyne (Trouble Brewing)

Dominic “Nic” Price has been a lot of things: SEAL, JAG, and now assistant US attorney. But he didn’t think he’d particularly been in love, until he meets Cameron Byrne, the FBI’s kidnap and rescue expert.

Cameron Byrne has played the field for as long as he’s been aware there was a field, but he
loves his job working for the FBI because it allows him to leave his past behind him. Moving to the west coast has been hard to Cam’s finances, but it is good for him to be closer to his best friend–even if his new partner (and boss) is said best friend’s husband. Who is out of the country on his honeymoon right now, leaving Cam and Nic to deal with the fallout when an operation goes completely pear shaped.

Unfortunately, things are even more complicated than normal for Nic.

Worse still that Nic was in jeopardy for a man who’d disowned him, who’d turned him out for being gay.

One of the things I liked was the awareness of just how difficult the shift to California was for Cam.

“For what it’s worth,” Lauren said, “I’m a fan of the weekend dressed-down policy you’ve got going while the boss is gone.”

Cam tried not to wince. It was a professional rule he hated breaking and would have never considered it in Boston. But dry cleaning here cost twice what it had back home, and he’d frankly run out of clean dress clothes.

I enjoyed seeing Aidan, but even more I enjoyed seeing Lauren, who gets to play a much larger part in this story.

Aidan dropped into a visitor chair. “What would Whiskey do?”

Lauren clapped, absurdly loud in the otherwise deserted room. “Oh! We should get W-W-W-D bracelets!”

“No,” he and Aidan said together.

She stuck out her bottom lip in a pout. “I’m going to grow a sense of humor tree in the corner.”

The mystery was a good one, and the tension of the story was ramped ALL the way up almost from the start, with the operation that went badly. In fact, I am NOT starting the next book immediately after this, because I need to go to bed at a decent hour this evening.

But soon. I shall read it soon.

Publisher: Carina Press
Rating: 8/10

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