Pre-release review: Love in the Shadows by Dylan Madrid
Love in the Shadows by Dylan Madrid
My rating: 2.5/3 of 5 stars
The blurb…
Quintin Pearson, an American living in London, has spent the last two years working as a magazine staff writer and nursing a broken heart. Craving a change in his quiet life, Quintin accepts an invitation to an exclusive party hosted by Regina Bremington, the U.S. ambassador’s glamorous wife. At the party, terror takes over when the electricity suddenly goes out and the ambassador is assassinated. In the safety of a dark bedroom, Quintin meets a mysterious stranger named Luca, an Italian spy. Even though the two men can’t see each other, a spark is ignited that soon becomes a mutual lust. Within days, Luca arranges for them to meet again at a remote seaside town in Belgium. There, Luca confesses his true identity and convinces Quintin they must team up to bring the ambassador’s killer to justice.
So what did I think?
Love in the Shadows was a really difficult book to rate as I felt quite conflicted about it. On one hand it was totally confusing and definitely not realistic but on the other, if I parked my confusion and disbelief, I didn’t mind the author’s style.
This is a mystery thriller, with mystery being the key word. I was largely baffled by the story the whole way through. Quiet, mild-mannered Quintin meets the wife of the US Ambassador and gets invited to a party where the ambassador is assassinated. Quintin is promptly sucked into the world of espionage.
The story prompts lots of questions. Why did Quintin’s boyfriend disappear? Why did Regina invite Quintin to the party after only exchanging a couple of words? Why did Quintin instantly feel attraction to Luca when they only met for a moment in pitch blackness? What sort of man would drop everything to travel around the world (seemingly without a passport!)? What was the point of travelling to Belgium, couldn’t the meetings have just taken place in London? Why did Quintin have to get involved at all? Who is masterminding the whole thing? and so on, and so on, and so on……
I think I could have just accepted the story for what it was, I could have ignored the craziness of the spy games, I could have even accepted that two men fell in love with Quintin during the course of one week, but the ending! Argh! The unresolved question of who Quintin chose to be with – annoying and frustrating! If this had been resolved then I it would have been a 3 star story but it is more like 2.5 due to the ending!
I understand that this maybe the first book in a series and if it is, I suggest waiting to read this one until the next is released. That way, hopefully, the issues with the ending are avoided.
An advance copy of this book was received from the publisher via Netgalley in return for an honest review.
❅❅❅❅❅❅❅
To find out more about Dylan Madrid and his books, visit his website.