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Blood & Bitcoin
Criminal Delights
Chris Emmett has a talent for screwing up and landing on his feet. As a SEAL, he managed to evade bullets and court-martials alike. As an FBI agent, he dodged danger and disciplinary action—right up until he didn’t.
With his career and freedom hanging in the balance, he’ll do whatever it takes to clean the slate… including an off-the-books deep cover solo mission.
The objective: infiltrate the Hive, a complex crime syndicate operating on the dark web, and find out who’s trying to kill Piker, the organization’s enigmatic and strangely alluring Mob boss.
The moment he’s pulled into the Hive, Chris enters a world where no one is what they seem, including the man he’s there to protect. Lines blur between moral and wrong, legal and criminal, ally and foe, and—as Piker’s seductive magnetism draws Chris in—straight and queer.
Chris is running out of time to stop a killer. He has dangerous feelings for a dangerous man, and the deeper he moves into the realms of modern day organized crime, the less he knows and the fewer people he can trust.
And that’s before he learns the truth about Piker’s assassin.
————
This 104,000 word book is part of CRIMINAL DELIGHTS. Each novel can be read as a standalone and contains a dark M/M romance. For other books in the collection, please see: Criminal Delights Listopia
Warning: These books are for adult readers who enjoy stories where lines between right and wrong get blurry. High heat, twisted and tantalizing, these are not for the fainthearted.
Chris Emmett has a talent for screwing up and landing on his feet. As a SEAL, he managed to evade bullets and court-martials alike. As an FBI agent, he dodged danger and disciplinary action—right up until he didn’t.
With his career and freedom hanging in the balance, he’ll do whatever it takes to clean the slate… including an off-the-books deep cover solo mission.
The objective: infiltrate the Hive, a complex crime syndicate operating on the dark web, and find out who’s trying to kill Piker, the organization’s enigmatic and strangely alluring Mob boss.
The moment he’s pulled into the Hive, Chris enters a world where no one is what they seem, including the man he’s there to protect. Lines blur between moral and wrong, legal and criminal, ally and foe, and—as Piker’s seductive magnetism draws Chris in—straight and queer.
Chris is running out of time to stop a killer. He has dangerous feelings for a dangerous man, and the deeper he moves into the realms of modern day organized crime, the less he knows and the fewer people he can trust.
And that’s before he learns the truth about Piker’s assassin.
————
This 104,000 word book is part of CRIMINAL DELIGHTS. Each novel can be read as a standalone and contains a dark M/M romance. For other books in the collection, please see: Criminal Delights Listopia
Warning: These books are for adult readers who enjoy stories where lines between right and wrong get blurry. High heat, twisted and tantalizing, these are not for the fainthearted.
378 pages, Kindle Edition
First published April 26, 2019
133 people are currently reading
939 people want to read
About the author
L.A. Witt
226 books2,735 followersL.A. Witt and her husband have been exiled from Spain and sent to live in Maine because rhymes are fun. She now divides her time between writing, assuring people she is aware that Maine is cold, wondering where to put her next tattoo, and trying to reason with a surly Maine coon. Rumor has it her arch nemesis, Lauren Gallagher, is also somewhere in the wilds of New England, which is why L.A. is also spending a portion of her time training a team of spec ops lobsters.
Authors Ann Gallagher and Lori A. Witt have been asked to assist in lobster training, but they "have books to write" and "need to focus on our careers" and "don't you think this rivalry has gotten a little out of hand?" They're probably just helping Lauren raise her army of squirrels trained to ride moose into battle.
Visit her website at http://www.gallagherwitt.com/.
Authors Ann Gallagher and Lori A. Witt have been asked to assist in lobster training, but they "have books to write" and "need to focus on our careers" and "don't you think this rivalry has gotten a little out of hand?" They're probably just helping Lauren raise her army of squirrels trained to ride moose into battle.
Visit her website at http://www.gallagherwitt.com/.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 91 reviews
October 2, 2020
September/October 2020: Audiobook = ***4.5 Stars***
******************************************
Original review April/May 2019:
***3.5 Stars***
Talk about contradictions here...
~ a ruthless Mafia boss with a heart and conscience
~ high-heeled boots vs. Krav Maga
~ flamboyancy vs. hardcore business
~ loyalty vs. betrayal
~ saving one's own neck vs. feelings coming amiss
~ straight vs. gay
~ a supposedly dark story feeling rather... sweet?
Don't get me wrong, there are some twists and turns here and some blurry lines of right and wrong and moral standards being crossed, but if you are looking for depravity, gore and scenes that might take you to your limit, go and find it elsewhere. Not that I'm complaining - my dark side only comes occasionally out and wants to play, so this here was right up my alley - but people who might expect pitchblack darkness will be disappointed.
I would have enjoyed it even more, if it weren't for the numerous typos and some repetitions that virtually lept to my eye and got stuck there like a suction-cup dart, despite at least one - quite 'famous' - editor, me smelling Chris's purpose in this black op from a mile away and one sex scene fading to black. My inner pervert was not pleased, I can tell you. The rest of the sex was hot, though, with some voyeurism thrown into the mix (part of the latter m/f, but not explicit, more like making out) and a butt-virgin.
I'm rounding my rating up because of the action and the last 20% of the story that led to a strong and for me very satisfying HFN.
******************************************
Original review April/May 2019:
***3.5 Stars***
Talk about contradictions here...
~ a ruthless Mafia boss with a heart and conscience
~ high-heeled boots vs. Krav Maga
~ flamboyancy vs. hardcore business
~ loyalty vs. betrayal
~ saving one's own neck vs. feelings coming amiss
~ straight vs. gay
~ a supposedly dark story feeling rather... sweet?
Don't get me wrong, there are some twists and turns here and some blurry lines of right and wrong and moral standards being crossed, but if you are looking for depravity, gore and scenes that might take you to your limit, go and find it elsewhere. Not that I'm complaining - my dark side only comes occasionally out and wants to play, so this here was right up my alley - but people who might expect pitchblack darkness will be disappointed.
I would have enjoyed it even more, if it weren't for the numerous typos and some repetitions that virtually lept to my eye and got stuck there like a suction-cup dart, despite at least one - quite 'famous' - editor, me smelling Chris's purpose in this black op from a mile away and one sex scene fading to black. My inner pervert was not pleased, I can tell you. The rest of the sex was hot, though, with some voyeurism thrown into the mix (part of the latter m/f, but not explicit, more like making out) and a butt-virgin.
I'm rounding my rating up because of the action and the last 20% of the story that led to a strong and for me very satisfying HFN.
Read
November 5, 2018Available April 2019. Part of the Criminal Delights series, which means dark. Sooooo dark. Delightfully dark.
May 18, 2019
****3.5 Stars****
Let's get something squared away first: Michael Ferraiuolo is one HELL of a NARRATOR!! This audiobook narration was AMAZING!
Second: This is NOT A DARK BOOK! Not at all. Even as thrillers go, it wasn't even scary. As organized crime goes, this book presented a humanitarian crime organization (another reviewer said it better).
Third: It was kind of obvious what was going to happen from the beginning and what the "plot twist" would be.
Fourth: I didn't quite buy the romantic relationship between the bisexual crime boss and the ex-navy SEAL/Dark Op FBI agent who finds himself attracted to a man for the first time.
Fifth: OTT
Now, let's put all that aside because I ENJOYED THE HELL OUT OF THIS BOOK! Would I have done so without Michael F narrating? I'm not sure, but he sure bumped it up in my opinion. LA Witt is a hit or miss with me, but this one worked well enough despite the lack of darkness advertised in this Criminal Delights series concocted by KA Merikan.
My rec? Don't take it too seriously and enjoy it!
Warning: MF sex scenes are described, although not in great detail.
Let's get something squared away first: Michael Ferraiuolo is one HELL of a NARRATOR!! This audiobook narration was AMAZING!
Second: This is NOT A DARK BOOK! Not at all. Even as thrillers go, it wasn't even scary. As organized crime goes, this book presented a humanitarian crime organization (another reviewer said it better).
Third: It was kind of obvious what was going to happen from the beginning and what the "plot twist" would be.
Fourth: I didn't quite buy the romantic relationship between the bisexual crime boss and the ex-navy SEAL/Dark Op FBI agent who finds himself attracted to a man for the first time.
Fifth: OTT
Now, let's put all that aside because I ENJOYED THE HELL OUT OF THIS BOOK! Would I have done so without Michael F narrating? I'm not sure, but he sure bumped it up in my opinion. LA Witt is a hit or miss with me, but this one worked well enough despite the lack of darkness advertised in this Criminal Delights series concocted by KA Merikan.
My rec? Don't take it too seriously and enjoy it!
Warning: MF sex scenes are described, although not in great detail.
July 3, 2019
A Joyfully Jay review.
3.75 stars
Overall, Blood and Bitcoin is an entertaining and enjoyable story. I really liked Piker and Chris. Piker is brilliant, mysterious, strong, funny, vindictive, tantalizing, and full of hidden depths that the story coyly hints at. Chris, however, seems like a hot mess of contradictions. On the one hand, he has the will, discipline, and focus not only to make it in the military, but to make it successfully through to become a SEAL. However, he can be almost fatally impulsive in the name of his “the ends justify the means” mentality. Impatience is definitely his Achilles’s heel, so it’s a good thing he can take an a$$-whooping. However, he’s also a loyal, brave smartass.
The first half of the book is Chris trying desperately to get Piker to trust him, while not being able to be honest with him, so of course, Piker is slow to trust. The next half deals with Chris trying to find out who put the hit on Piker, struggling with his attraction to Piker, dealing with the ramifications of some of his earlier actions, and uncovering more mysteries for every handful of answers he finds until he gets the ultimate “oh sh!t” answer with it’s inevitable fallout.
Read Jovan’s review in its entirety here.
3.75 stars
Overall, Blood and Bitcoin is an entertaining and enjoyable story. I really liked Piker and Chris. Piker is brilliant, mysterious, strong, funny, vindictive, tantalizing, and full of hidden depths that the story coyly hints at. Chris, however, seems like a hot mess of contradictions. On the one hand, he has the will, discipline, and focus not only to make it in the military, but to make it successfully through to become a SEAL. However, he can be almost fatally impulsive in the name of his “the ends justify the means” mentality. Impatience is definitely his Achilles’s heel, so it’s a good thing he can take an a$$-whooping. However, he’s also a loyal, brave smartass.
The first half of the book is Chris trying desperately to get Piker to trust him, while not being able to be honest with him, so of course, Piker is slow to trust. The next half deals with Chris trying to find out who put the hit on Piker, struggling with his attraction to Piker, dealing with the ramifications of some of his earlier actions, and uncovering more mysteries for every handful of answers he finds until he gets the ultimate “oh sh!t” answer with it’s inevitable fallout.
Read Jovan’s review in its entirety here.
September 20, 2024
I have I think 4 books in the series, which is stand alone by diffrent authors just similar themes and all m/m romances. But I was excited that I found this as an audiobook and decided to listen to it.
I enjoyed it a lot was a suspenseful and "fun" plot to it which was engaging to listen to and I enjoyed the romance.
I enjoyed it a lot was a suspenseful and "fun" plot to it which was engaging to listen to and I enjoyed the romance.
April 29, 2019
3.5 stars
I was under the impression that these were "Dark" M/M novels but book 4 wasn't even close to dark.
I was so hung up over the other books that I was looking for the blood and gore along with the deranged and cray cray but no dice with this volume of Criminal Delights.
All in all the story was good. Just missed the Dark. On to the next book of this series.
I was under the impression that these were "Dark" M/M novels but book 4 wasn't even close to dark.
I was so hung up over the other books that I was looking for the blood and gore along with the deranged and cray cray but no dice with this volume of Criminal Delights.
All in all the story was good. Just missed the Dark. On to the next book of this series.
July 19, 2019
Dark-lite
I wouldn’t call this dark, exactly, at least in my definition if not the official one. It was entertaining, with a cop/criminal/QFY romance aspect and spiced up with some action. I mean with guns and stuff but the action between the sheets was plenty hot and not overdone. The plot was twisty with only enough clues for me to guess the broad outlines before the big reveal. Some of the explanations of events along the way didn’t make complete sense to me but didn’t mar my overall enjoyment.
I wouldn’t call this dark, exactly, at least in my definition if not the official one. It was entertaining, with a cop/criminal/QFY romance aspect and spiced up with some action. I mean with guns and stuff but the action between the sheets was plenty hot and not overdone. The plot was twisty with only enough clues for me to guess the broad outlines before the big reveal. Some of the explanations of events along the way didn’t make complete sense to me but didn’t mar my overall enjoyment.
January 6, 2020
Not the best
This one was way too long and hints you could see from a mile away. Too predictable! I would still have enjoyed it if it was half as short. As it was, it just dragged on and on and with nothing much added to the story. 🤷🏻♀️
This one was way too long and hints you could see from a mile away. Too predictable! I would still have enjoyed it if it was half as short. As it was, it just dragged on and on and with nothing much added to the story. 🤷🏻♀️
July 20, 2019
4,5 stars for this!
This book was really good! I love L.A Witt!
An ex-SEAL infiltrates a mafia!
Review to come.
This book was really good! I love L.A Witt!
An ex-SEAL infiltrates a mafia!
Review to come.
April 7, 2021
2.5-3 stars
There was a couple times I was going to DNF the book, I was listening to on audio and Michael Ferraiuolo is one of my favorite narrators soo I kept listening. I also wanted to see how the mystery of who wanted to kill Piker, and while I couldn’t say I was shocked I didn’t expect that outcome...
The romance was also.... weird, Piker is bi (?) he had a relationship with his assistant who was a woman but Chris thought Piker was gay. But with that said I couldn’t feel any chemistry between Piker and Chris or Piker and Natalie... soo it was missing the main ingredient making this a romantic suspense haha
Overall it was entertaining but lacking a lot of the key ingredients to make this a great read..
There was a couple times I was going to DNF the book, I was listening to on audio and Michael Ferraiuolo is one of my favorite narrators soo I kept listening. I also wanted to see how the mystery of who wanted to kill Piker, and while I couldn’t say I was shocked I didn’t expect that outcome...
The romance was also.... weird, Piker is bi (?) he had a relationship with his assistant who was a woman but Chris thought Piker was gay. But with that said I couldn’t feel any chemistry between Piker and Chris or Piker and Natalie... soo it was missing the main ingredient making this a romantic suspense haha
Overall it was entertaining but lacking a lot of the key ingredients to make this a great read..
March 7, 2021
This is a good book but this is not a dark novel, I dive right into this series expecting that it will be bloody and gory with deranged MCs like the previous books. This actually seems like an action romance. It was a bit slow at times but overall it was a decent story and still enjoyable.
May 8, 2019
It pains me on so many levels here. I just couldn't warm up to the characters and story. 😕
dnf
May 16, 2019Giving up because I'm bored. This doesn't feel dark at all. Maybe a nice light grey at best.
Want to read
June 21, 2019
Part of the Criminal Delights series. While part of a series each can de be read as a standalone:
May 1, 2019
1. Wrong Way Home ★★★★
2. Devil Next Door ★
3. Only The Devil Knows ★★★★
4. Blood & Bitcoin ★★★1/2
I would give this a 3.5/5 rounded up. Its a corporate espionage, action, and intrigue type of story. Not very dark but still really good, and I feel like I needed a break from the dark after the previous two. Piker is technically a criminal, but a criminal with a heart of gold. This is the type of story that I have often read before, about spies and thieves and special agents. But I could have used a bit more focus on the romance and less on the mystery. There is some action shooting but not even close to the level of violence the other books had.
So, on my made up Dark Romance scale this is how dark I would rate the Criminal Delights books so far:
1. Wrong Way Home 4/10
2. Devil Next Door 10/10
3. Only The Devil Knows 10/10
4. Blood & Bitcoin 2/10
2. Devil Next Door ★
3. Only The Devil Knows ★★★★
4. Blood & Bitcoin ★★★1/2
I would give this a 3.5/5 rounded up. Its a corporate espionage, action, and intrigue type of story. Not very dark but still really good, and I feel like I needed a break from the dark after the previous two. Piker is technically a criminal, but a criminal with a heart of gold. This is the type of story that I have often read before, about spies and thieves and special agents. But I could have used a bit more focus on the romance and less on the mystery. There is some action shooting but not even close to the level of violence the other books had.
So, on my made up Dark Romance scale this is how dark I would rate the Criminal Delights books so far:
1. Wrong Way Home 4/10
2. Devil Next Door 10/10
3. Only The Devil Knows 10/10
4. Blood & Bitcoin 2/10
August 9, 2020
Book Reaction: https://neverhollowed.com/2019/05/10/...
Rating: 3.5 Stars – that place between like and love
Rating: 3.5 Stars – that place between like and love
March 6, 2022
I put this one off for a long time because I struggle with the whole undercover fall for the bad guy thing. But I did like it. Terrifying Piker not so much, but I did like the way they were together and just how badass Piker was in his rescue attempts to save Chris. Had a feeling it was a set up. I was surprised it wasn't Chris topping but it was pretty nice all round.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
June 10, 2019
Great romp, enjoyable, but forget about the reality factor, & not that dark
July 21, 2019
4.5 stars..one hell of a.story. Twists, turns and betrayals. Infiltration of a mob to gain his life back only for it to bite him in the ass. It was.a.crazy story.
May 24, 2019
This one was just okay. Dropped a full star because of the MF scenes, both on page and off, in this MM book. (not alluded to at all in the blurb or anywhere else to warn us of the book containing such scenes which is a big no-no for me) And because the MC's didn't actually get together or even really showed interest in each other until the 70% mark of the book and we were expected to believe their HFN/HEA. Um...nope.
I hope the next book in this series is better...
I hope the next book in this series is better...
July 14, 2023
2.75 stars; this started out strong, but was ultimately too plot-heavy, too slow-burn and at times too boring for my tastes. The characters lacked chemistry, there were a couple of moments that felt truly uncomfortable and overall the book was just too long for what it was trying to convey, thus preventing me from fully enjoying the story. Unlike most people, though, I did like the main plot-twist and didn't think it was overly obvious, and in general the end of the book – along with the falsely promising beginning – somewhat managed to pull the story along in a decent way. Still, this was far from a truly satisfactory read, and it definitely left me wanting something more.
(As a side note, if the concept of this book sounds intriguing to you, I highly recommend the Fog City series by Layla Reyne because that one's fire and it has all the elements you'd expect from a story like this!)
(As a side note, if the concept of this book sounds intriguing to you, I highly recommend the Fog City series by Layla Reyne because that one's fire and it has all the elements you'd expect from a story like this!)
March 15, 2023
DNF 43% but marking read because this was a long book. We are almost half way through and I feel no 0 zilch chemistry between our characters. However they both decided to sleep with half the city (literally everyone BUT each other.) this was frustrating I don’t want to read 4 sex scenes involving other people especially multiple other women. Who wants that in a MM romance?
Read
August 10, 2019This was really enjoyable. Not *dark* dark, more along the lines of gritty romantic suspense.
The narration was absolutely superb. Wow.
The narration was absolutely superb. Wow.
April 23, 2019
I was given a copy of this book to read and review for Wicked Reads.
This action adventure/hacker thriller is an exciting read. This is unlike anything I can remember reading by LA Witt and I was thoroughly entertained by the genre bending adventure.
Chris and Piker both exist in a world of murky grey morality. I quickly gave up on the idea of good guys and bad guys and I loved trying to figure out both men’s motivation. Most of the story is told from Chris’ perspective but he’s a delightfully unreliable narrator. Too many of his actions are suspicious and every time I thought I understood who he was working with/for and why, I had to recalculate. Piker is even more difficult to figure out and he’s surrounded by employees who do their best to maintain Piker’s enigmatic identity.
This is a busy novel with tons of subplots. Some of the subplots don’t necessarily contribute to the main story arc and others weren’t completely convincing. Piker catches Chris too many times and I feel like he’s way too forgiving for such a successful crimelord. My brain had to work hard to piece everything together and I feel like the Hive world could have been more successfully introduced over the course of a series - there’s a little too much information thrown at readers in a single novel.
This is marketed as a romance but romance is a pretty simplistic label for the connection between Chris and Piker. Their relationship is a little bit cat and mouse, a little bit alpha male showdown and a little bit bromance - all lashed together with heapings of sexual chemistry and suspicion. There are a few sexy scenes but nothing terribly romantic. I really enjoyed the relationship between these two men and they are both a welcome change from LA Witt’s recent stream of brooding middle aged men and their second chance romances.
This is an exciting read and I love that it feels fresh and new. The book has so much potential to evolve into a great series and I’m really looking forward to the next book in the Hive world.
This action adventure/hacker thriller is an exciting read. This is unlike anything I can remember reading by LA Witt and I was thoroughly entertained by the genre bending adventure.
Chris and Piker both exist in a world of murky grey morality. I quickly gave up on the idea of good guys and bad guys and I loved trying to figure out both men’s motivation. Most of the story is told from Chris’ perspective but he’s a delightfully unreliable narrator. Too many of his actions are suspicious and every time I thought I understood who he was working with/for and why, I had to recalculate. Piker is even more difficult to figure out and he’s surrounded by employees who do their best to maintain Piker’s enigmatic identity.
This is a busy novel with tons of subplots. Some of the subplots don’t necessarily contribute to the main story arc and others weren’t completely convincing. Piker catches Chris too many times and I feel like he’s way too forgiving for such a successful crimelord. My brain had to work hard to piece everything together and I feel like the Hive world could have been more successfully introduced over the course of a series - there’s a little too much information thrown at readers in a single novel.
This is marketed as a romance but romance is a pretty simplistic label for the connection between Chris and Piker. Their relationship is a little bit cat and mouse, a little bit alpha male showdown and a little bit bromance - all lashed together with heapings of sexual chemistry and suspicion. There are a few sexy scenes but nothing terribly romantic. I really enjoyed the relationship between these two men and they are both a welcome change from LA Witt’s recent stream of brooding middle aged men and their second chance romances.
This is an exciting read and I love that it feels fresh and new. The book has so much potential to evolve into a great series and I’m really looking forward to the next book in the Hive world.
April 15, 2019
**I received a free copy of this book to read and review for Wicked Reads.**
From page one Blood & Bitcoin pulled me in and left me on the edge of my seat till the last page.
Chris Emmett was a Navy SEAL that knew he way around danger. He got the missions done maybe not without going rogue a time or two. That was something the FBI wanted on their team until they didn't. Accusing Emmet of taking two lives which he swears didn't happen. With his life hanging in the balance he's pulled from jail for a special op infiltrating The Hive, getting intel and reporting back. Emmet makes it his mission to protect sexy Piker and find out who wants to kill him.
The Hive is a dark web controller of the bitcoin. Not many people know who Piker really is except those closest to him and now the person who wants him dead. Can the ex-SEAL, ex-FBI agent really protect him from this enemy? And better yet why does he want to? To prove his loyalty Emmet is put to the test physically on the ops team which only earns him Piker's undivided attention.
I was so invested in this story. I loved the chemistry Piker and Emmett had. The uncertainty Emmett had regarding Piker. He knew he wanted him but he couldn't understand why. I always love a good romance with a side of suspense. I couldn't put it! L.A. Witt delivered with this one!
From page one Blood & Bitcoin pulled me in and left me on the edge of my seat till the last page.
Chris Emmett was a Navy SEAL that knew he way around danger. He got the missions done maybe not without going rogue a time or two. That was something the FBI wanted on their team until they didn't. Accusing Emmet of taking two lives which he swears didn't happen. With his life hanging in the balance he's pulled from jail for a special op infiltrating The Hive, getting intel and reporting back. Emmet makes it his mission to protect sexy Piker and find out who wants to kill him.
The Hive is a dark web controller of the bitcoin. Not many people know who Piker really is except those closest to him and now the person who wants him dead. Can the ex-SEAL, ex-FBI agent really protect him from this enemy? And better yet why does he want to? To prove his loyalty Emmet is put to the test physically on the ops team which only earns him Piker's undivided attention.
I was so invested in this story. I loved the chemistry Piker and Emmett had. The uncertainty Emmett had regarding Piker. He knew he wanted him but he couldn't understand why. I always love a good romance with a side of suspense. I couldn't put it! L.A. Witt delivered with this one!
April 21, 2020
LA Witt has a wonderful way of dragging readers into a whole new world full of deeply interesting characters and intriguing stories. This story is fascinating, engaging and a delicious awakening for both MCs. Michael Ferraiuolo’s wonderful narration brings to life these characters in Audio and makes the hot scenes even more swoon-worthy!
May 3, 2019
Good! The romance was a little weak, but the action adventure part was great.
Want to read
December 7, 2019🎁 FREE on Amazon today (12/7/2019)! 🎁
January 2, 2021
This falls firmly into my "why the hell didn't I just DNF this" category of books. Lord only knows why I even bothered skimming this to the end.
1. The lengthy, angsty, repetitive internal dithering
This I know is a feature of L.A. Witt's writing, having read the Rebound/etc series. The characters spend literal pages in internal thought mode, and it's relentlessly the same throughout the entire book. I could skim pages at a time and not miss anything (I did do that). It doesn't enhance the story at all, in fact it only drags it down. The book could have been cut by at least 40% and it would have been a much better read.
2. The complete lack of dark
I was under the impression that this pseudo-series Criminal Delights was supposed to be dark and gritty. In the three I've read before this, there's definitely at least darkish elements. This one...had none. It's even a freaking humanitarian cybermafia!! I mean, even the least-dark one so far (Wrong Way Home - Criminal Delights: Taken) involved a cage and imprisonment.
3. The stupid
SO much dumb here. Loose cannon SEAL man, doing stupid things - I guess that was a given already though. Piker seemed to have really weak security for someone getting death threats/as high profile as he was, since Chris just sort of waltzed in all easy like. I know it was said to be difficult and Chris is all skillful, but mostly it made Piker and his outfit look really incompetent. He got Piker just sort of...faffed along.
Externally speaking: WST wants tech security contracts with all these tech firms, and if the tech firms hold out...WST uses the Hive to wreck them so the companies feel like they need WST to protect them. But why didn't any of them get suspicious? We're shown one company where the CEO man has been holding out against WST for a while...and then gets a ransomware attack a day later. One that WST can magically fix. Why does no one question this? (stupids)
Blah. Not a good installment of this pseudo-series, or (tbh) worth reading anyway.
1. The lengthy, angsty, repetitive internal dithering
This I know is a feature of L.A. Witt's writing, having read the Rebound/etc series. The characters spend literal pages in internal thought mode, and it's relentlessly the same throughout the entire book. I could skim pages at a time and not miss anything (I did do that). It doesn't enhance the story at all, in fact it only drags it down. The book could have been cut by at least 40% and it would have been a much better read.
2. The complete lack of dark
I was under the impression that this pseudo-series Criminal Delights was supposed to be dark and gritty. In the three I've read before this, there's definitely at least darkish elements. This one...had none. It's even a freaking humanitarian cybermafia!! I mean, even the least-dark one so far (Wrong Way Home - Criminal Delights: Taken) involved a cage and imprisonment.
3. The stupid
SO much dumb here. Loose cannon SEAL man, doing stupid things - I guess that was a given already though. Piker seemed to have really weak security for someone getting death threats/as high profile as he was, since Chris just sort of waltzed in all easy like. I know it was said to be difficult and Chris is all skillful, but mostly it made Piker and his outfit look really incompetent. He got Piker just sort of...faffed along.
Externally speaking: WST wants tech security contracts with all these tech firms, and if the tech firms hold out...WST uses the Hive to wreck them so the companies feel like they need WST to protect them. But why didn't any of them get suspicious? We're shown one company where the CEO man has been holding out against WST for a while...and then gets a ransomware attack a day later. One that WST can magically fix. Why does no one question this? (stupids)
Blah. Not a good installment of this pseudo-series, or (tbh) worth reading anyway.
May 12, 2019
I Give this book a 2.5/3 out of 5 stars, listing as 3.
This book took me 3 days to read, and I don’t know why honestly
Heat: 2.5 (it’s there but not a focal point in this book, I kinda would’ve like it to be more descriptive cause as a whole there isn’t much in here and I’m still not a fan of ‘next day or hours later’ scenes)
Dark: I’m A No Limit Reader. Bring on the Darkest of Dark.
I can’t in good conscience list this as a dark book, cause it’s not (to me so I won’t list it as such).
It’s just a ‘Criminal’ suspense nothing at all dark, just your average ‘cop and bad guy’ type romance.
No blip on the ‘Dark’ Radar Folks.
I was really gearing up for a really hot mega dark ‘dark web’ book, but the dark web was in a sense pushed aside and the author turned a blind eye on it and just painted the hive as ‘good natured anti hero do-gooders’ and pretty much left it at that. Nothing overall was in depth.
Suspense & Drama: 3.5 /5 I gotta say Honestly the was surprised at some twists, but when you finished the book and look back it was under whelming.
Biggest Issue(s)?: Trey aka Piker, was not at all what I was imagining as is that a bad thing? Yes. Because this is the creator of the Hive and he has no back bone and is in a way submissive the farther you read. I was expecting BADASS MAN and I got a horny teenager that is apparently smart and strategic in every sense, but I didn’t see smart nor strategic just all talk. He has this huge empire as Trent and as Piker, and I didn’t get to see really any of it in action.
What was apparent was the author wanted to take something rarely written in the romance genre, dark web dark romances are few and far between. You need to be in-depth and had to have done a boat load of research with this side of the internet to actually make it work and work well. You don’t see any of that, here.
Was I disappointed with the way this book was handled/written? Yes.
Fillers Galore.
If I turned a blind eye like the author did to this book, then overall it’s a good book.
Would I reread this book? If I was desperate.
I can’t explain why it took so long to read. I was expecting this book to be like Unfriended the Dark Web the movie only romancy. But in the end I got something like To Catch a Thief.
Did you get your questions answered? Ehh..
Remember those old harlequin romance books? This book could fit right in there.
Romance(?): Kinda. Was it convincing? Ehh..
HEA or HFN(?): HFN feel then an HEA.
Would I read more from this author? I’ll take a look at some other works if this Author.
This book took me 3 days to read, and I don’t know why honestly
Heat: 2.5 (it’s there but not a focal point in this book, I kinda would’ve like it to be more descriptive cause as a whole there isn’t much in here and I’m still not a fan of ‘next day or hours later’ scenes)
Dark: I’m A No Limit Reader. Bring on the Darkest of Dark.
I can’t in good conscience list this as a dark book, cause it’s not (to me so I won’t list it as such).
It’s just a ‘Criminal’ suspense nothing at all dark, just your average ‘cop and bad guy’ type romance.
No blip on the ‘Dark’ Radar Folks.
I was really gearing up for a really hot mega dark ‘dark web’ book, but the dark web was in a sense pushed aside and the author turned a blind eye on it and just painted the hive as ‘good natured anti hero do-gooders’ and pretty much left it at that. Nothing overall was in depth.
Suspense & Drama: 3.5 /5 I gotta say Honestly the was surprised at some twists, but when you finished the book and look back it was under whelming.
Biggest Issue(s)?: Trey aka Piker, was not at all what I was imagining as is that a bad thing? Yes. Because this is the creator of the Hive and he has no back bone and is in a way submissive the farther you read. I was expecting BADASS MAN and I got a horny teenager that is apparently smart and strategic in every sense, but I didn’t see smart nor strategic just all talk. He has this huge empire as Trent and as Piker, and I didn’t get to see really any of it in action.
What was apparent was the author wanted to take something rarely written in the romance genre, dark web dark romances are few and far between. You need to be in-depth and had to have done a boat load of research with this side of the internet to actually make it work and work well. You don’t see any of that, here.
Was I disappointed with the way this book was handled/written? Yes.
Fillers Galore.
If I turned a blind eye like the author did to this book, then overall it’s a good book.
Would I reread this book? If I was desperate.
I can’t explain why it took so long to read. I was expecting this book to be like Unfriended the Dark Web the movie only romancy. But in the end I got something like To Catch a Thief.
Did you get your questions answered? Ehh..
Remember those old harlequin romance books? This book could fit right in there.
Romance(?): Kinda. Was it convincing? Ehh..
HEA or HFN(?): HFN feel then an HEA.
Would I read more from this author? I’ll take a look at some other works if this Author.
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