Necessity’s Door by Fiona Glass
M/M Contemporary Romance
Being an openly gay detective in Birmingham comes with its share of problems. For one, the pay is awful. For another, Jake always gets stuck with the crappy undercover jobs. Like posing as a prostitute to catch the new crime boss in town—a man notorious for rough sex with pretty young rentboys.
Jake’s latest op is fraught with difficulties, all of them men. Like his partner, Mac, who he’s secretly fancied for months. And his new client, Graham, who he keeps sleeping with for reasons far beyond maintaining his cover. And of course there’s the target, Frank Warren, who’s much harder to lure than anyone had anticipated.
The longer the op drags on, the tougher it gets for Jake to juggle his own needs with those of the job. They may be closing in on Warren, but Jake’s heart—and his sense of right and wrong—are slipping through his fingers. Mac is there to back him up, but is he really the man Jake needs? Tough to know among all those lies Jake’s been telling himself and everyone else. (Publisher’s Book Blurb)
Rating by Nicci: stars
Necessity’s Door is part of Riptide Publishing 2012 Rentboy Collection. There are four books in the series written by different authors. This is my second review of the series. The first one, Priceless by Cat Grant, can be viewed here.
REVIEW
Jake is an undercover cop working in Birmingham, UK. His current assignment is Frank Warren, a new drug dealer in town who happens to be into young, pretty boys. Working undercover, Jake meets Graham, married to a wife that turns a blind eye as long as Graham remembers his duty to his family.
My initial thoughts on the story setup, isn’t prostitution illegal and won’t this create legal problems having Jake bedding clients and being paid for his services. Well, I did learn unlike the law in the states, prostitution may in fact be legal in England but also falls into the gray area, whatever that is supposed to mean. Don’t you just love it when bits of information give substance and credibility, helps the reader to experience the telling of the story.
There is a strong sense Jake is riding the line of impropriety working as an undercover cop. In some respect, that is an expected disadvantage working undercover. We’ve seen enough movies and read the books where the cop becomes like the criminal to make his role believable and to avoid undue risks to their life. Jake’s financial situation is in a terrible state. Throughout the story, Jake and his conscience will wrestle with the idea of what to do with the money he earns as a rentboy.
What I enjoyed is the relationship between Jake and Mac. Jake does have a crush on Mac. Unfortunately, for him, Mac is utterly straight but he does care for Jake in as a friend and partner.
What didn’t draw me into the story is Graham and Jake as a couple. Their connection felt contrived and convenient. Jake shifts his feelings for Mac to Graham rather quickly and Graham is there for the sex. There was no real development allowing me to experience their connection. It bothered me each time Graham is with Jake he’s looking out the window as though he’s anticipating getting caught with his pants down. Too bad about Mac is straight because the chemistry between him and Jake was much stronger.
Overall, I think Necessity’s Door was too short and didn’t allow enough space to flush out the details of characterizations and the conflict with Jake’s problems. I felt dissatisfaction with the ending resolving too easily the conflicts in the story.
BOOK DETAILS
Title: Necessity’s Door
Author: Fiona Glass
Website: http://www.fiona-glass.com/
Publisher: Riptide Publishing
Publication Date: May 2012
EBook: ISBN: 978-1-937551-39-1
Page Count: 49 PDF format
Buy Link: Riptide Publishing
This ARC was furnished by the publisher for an honest and objective review.
About Nicci
