The Will Darling Adventures

The Will Darling Adventures
(Slippery Creatures, The Sugared Game, Subtle Blood)
K.J. Charles, 2020, 2020, 2021

I've sung the praises of K.J. Charles here before, but not in proportion with how many of her books I've actually read. It's a lot. It might be all of them. It's definitely so many that I'm not 100% sure whether it's all of them. 

I just love the way she balances romance with well-researched history and adventure. Her romance protagonists always face dire dangers as well as emotional struggles. This series is a romance trilogy that's also a 1920s action-spy-thriller. 

Will Darling is many things, an ex-soldier, a reluctant "war hero," a man with a rather large knife he knows how to use, a man who unexpectedly came into possession of a bookshop, and bisexual. Kim Secretan is a dashing, effeminate nobleman who comes into Will's life just when he needs a friend and ally. It's clear from the start that Kim is full of secrets, though, and those secrets almost tear them apart over and over, not to mention nearly get them both killed. 

I found the first book a little awkward at first while I was waiting for whatever the reveal was going to be about Kim. It's obvious that something is too convenient about his presence, even as his attraction to Will seems genuine. But once those reveals started to land, I was completely on board with this series. Will is our perspective character, and he's a stubborn, good-hearted (occasionally moralizing), hotheaded brawler. Kim, meanwhile, depends on charisma, intelligence, deception, and finesse. 

They are both great at what they do well, and incredibly bad at the other's specialty. Together they make a powerful team, but only after they can trust each other. Their romance is passionate and tempestuous, complicated by all the secrets and lies. The scenes where they are struggling with their emotions and their relationship are every bit as compelling as the ones where they are fighting for their lives. 

Each book builds on the twists and turns of the previous book as Will and Kim dive deeper into conspiracies to find new enemies. By the end, the series tells a sprawling story of espionage, danger, and love that reads like a breathless thriller. I adored it. 

4, 5, 5 Stars - Awesome Books