The Sex Detective

by Anna Natasha

Xochitl Ruth Bader Bernstein Buenaventura works in the public health department to ensure that all the citizens of Los Angeles County can have all the safe, shame-free sex their hearts desire. But her own sex life is nonexistent now that she's living at home with her Ashkenazi Jewish family after a miserable break-up. She's always felt like an outlier ever since her Mexican mother died. But at least she has her work. Until the patient in her latest case turns out to be her former high school crush.

Cristian Martinez has been kicked out of the art residency program that was supposed to lead to his dream career. Then he really hits rock bottom when a Public Health caseworker informs him that he's been exposed to an STI. An extremely flustered, strangely familiar caseworker, who, for some reason, he can't stop thinking about.

When his ex-girlfriend denies everything, Cris and Xochi team up and uncover a shocking underground adultery ring that busts Xochi's case load wide open. As secrets come to light, their growing attraction threatens to ruin everything Xochi has worked for. Because the most important rule of being a good Sex Detective is never to fall for your client.

Genres: Romance

320 pages, Paperback

Expected publication January 19, 2027

About the author

Anna Natasha is a writer who works in reproductive healthcare and feels like it’s her professional duty to sneak sexual health tidbits into her characters’ mouths.

Reviews

[Glad]

What a lovely book! I got hooked and couldn't do anything other than read it straight till the end.

First, two things that were completely weird and immediately got me into the story: the name of the FMC - Xochitl - and the word gonorrhea!!!

The story starts with quite an unexpected plot, with Xochitl working for the health department and calling people with STIs to try to prevent the spread of the infection. Well, as she tracks down the sexual partner of one of her patients who got gonorrhea, to tell him to get tested and treated, she finds out that he was her high school CRUSH.

Of course, the guy doesn't even recognise her. It was quite a painful unrequited crush!!! But this time, the guy needs Xochitl. He realises that his girlfriend has been cheating on him, and Xochitl is the sex detective he needs to team up with...

It was such a funny story with this awkward partnership. Slowly, the attraction starts to grow between them while they investigate together. We also get to know more about the family dynamics of these characters, one is jewish mexican, the other latinos and both are back at their parents' houses after feeling like they have failed in life.

I really enjoyed this book and really grew to like these two characters. We get to feel their emotions and empathise with them. The author also does a good job of bringing in their cultural backgrounds. And we really feel for their messy lives, their families' expectations and what they actually want to do with their lives.

So it's also a story about self-growth and being true to yourself. If you love a good romance with lots of funny moments and some emotional ones too, go and read it!

Thanks to NetGalley for providing me with this ARC.

[Melissa]

Most of the couples in romance books are a mess, but Xochitl and Cris are a FUN mess to read about. Their shenanigans are so exciting and fun, paired with the awkward dialogue at first that slowly turns into a more comfortable and banter-filled relationship. I found myself laughing out loud multiple times, and the large amount of Spanglish was a lot of fun as someone who just learned Spanish as a third language. I thought there were some discrepancies / continuity issues here and there, but nonetheless this is a solid 4 stars and I would absolutely recommend this to any romance reader down for a good time. And last but not least, thank you NetGalley for the eARC. This is the first ARC I’ve ever received, and it certainly didn’t disappoint.

[Caitlyn Herbst]

I really enjoyed this one. The whole “Sex Detective falls for her client” setup immediately caught my attention, and I loved how it mixed a serious public health job with a messy, unexpected romance. Xochi and Cris already have history, so watching that old crush come back into the picture made their relationship feel more personal.

Xochi was probably my favorite. She’s smart, passionate about her work, and clearly cares about helping people, but she’s also dealing with feeling like she doesn’t completely fit in anywhere. I liked that she isn’t just defined by her job—there’s a lot going on with her family, her breakup, and everything she’s trying to figure out for herself.

Cris was also really easy to like. He’s going through his own career struggles, and the fact that he reconnects with Xochi under such an awkward circumstance makes their chemistry even more entertaining. Their banter and growing attraction were definitely some of my favorite parts.

I also really liked the mystery involving the adultery ring because it gave the story something beyond just the romance. It kept things moving and created plenty of opportunities for Xochi and Cris to get closer while knowing they probably shouldn’t.

Overall, this was funny, spicy, surprisingly heartfelt, and just a really entertaining read. I loved the combination of romance, public health, family dynamics, and mystery, and Xochi and Cris were such a fun couple to follow.

[MadReads]

Thank you to Cosmo Reads and NetGalley for the ARC! I absolutely loved this book! The humor, the messages of being true to yourself and finding out the light you seek might just be inside you, the spice, and the romantic, familial, and family relationships between our main characters. The premise felt fresh, unique, and relevant with its discussions of mental health, religion, cultures, and even STIs. I really appreciated how the book presented Cristian's STI and how it doesn't make someone dirty, with emphasis the importance of getting tested. Xochitl's experience with her family and her upbringing was sad and uplifting and showed how one might feel being in two different cultural worlds. I loved Cristian and Xochilt's relationship and how Xochilt's dream of being with her high school crush became a reality! I would recommend this book to anyone looking for characters who are flawed and yet finding they can still be loved, embracing your culture, and finding love through STI contract tracing!

[Annabel]

Thank you to NetGalley for this ARC.

The title of this book made me wary of reading it but the blurb was the seller.

This is a classic rom-com which I enjoyed.
The characters were lovable and sweet and although the way they connect is unusual, it brings some light hearted humour to the story.

Both of them go through hard times, which is lightly touched upon. It would have been nice for these to have been more core to the storyline to really build the emotion.

This was a nice, easy read that was good to pick up and put down at any point.