Booklog 35/2021: K.J. Charles: Slippery Creatures – Will Darling #1

Post 1918, England is not a land fit for heroes as Will Darling, ex-soldier, sometime trench raider, and all-round handy man with a blade and his fists, discovers to his cost. Jobs are scarce, money dwindling, and it's only when he's down to rationing himself to one meal a day that he contacts his estranged uncle and is welcomed to a job in his uncle's antiquarian and second hand book shop. A few months later the uncle dies and Will inherits the building and the business, and counts himself lucky – until a thug makes it obvious that something precious is hidden in the shop and Will must give it up. It's a pity Will hasn't a clue what he's talking about. Enter Kim Secretan, a bit upper crust, but easy to talk to and easy to like. More than like if Will is honest. First a criminal gang and then chaps from the War Office threaten consequences, and Will and Kim (who turns out to be Lord Arthur, second son of a marquess, a disgraced aristo mired in lies) are thrown into an adventure involving spies, a criminal gang, a super-secret government department, kidnapping, violence and a web of lies, not all of them from the bad guys. It seems that Will has something that could be very dangerous. If he finds it, does he give it to the criminals or the War Office? Or might he find a third way?

I read this because of a good review on Goodreads from someone whose opinion I trust, and I'm glad I did. It's not my usual reading fodder, but I really enjoyed it. It's well-paced, and the characters are complex and multi-layered, not just Will and Kim, but Phoebe (Kim's very understanding fiancée) and Maisie (Will's best friend) who are fully rounded supporting characters. On top of the adventure and the violence there's an emerging m/m romance (with explicit sex) that draws you in and plays out alongside the adventure. Bear in mind that m/m sex in the 1920s was illegal, punishable by a two year stretch in prison for 'gross indecency.'

 

 

 

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