The Hitman's Guide to Staying Alive Despite Past Mistakes: The Hitman's Guide Book 2, Alice Winters

With the same level of awesome as book 1, I was so very pleased. The humor was just as fantastic, but this time around I felt a level of depth that made it so much richer. From the through-the-roof ridiculousness to Jackson's sappy, constant declarations, Leland is firmly ensconced on the path of personal healing, but not without his special brand of humor to lighten all the feely moments.

Jackson's heart continues to be just as sentimental and the perfect level of cheesy goodness for Leland's seemingly cavalier responses to human emotion. His adamant and dramatic response to the heart-tingles is pretty much my favorite funny bits. That and their sexual shenanigans continue to be hugely, inappropriately hilarious and on point for their relationship. I like that Jackson is so clearly whipped and will give in to all of Leland's outlandish ideas and yet it doesn't feel like he's being taken advantage of...well, not in a negative or viciously manipulative way.

What's nice in this story is that Jackson is finally getting through to Leland without making empty promises or assurances of "I'll be fine" or anything similar to that platitude, instead he emphasizes choices and those who truly bear responsibility for them. It helps with his perspective regarding the whole Lucas thing too.

That brings me to the Lucas drama. I wasn't convinced. There was just something off here. Either the build-up was too much, the confessions were too stereotypical or predictable, the accomplices were slight caricatures, or just something else, but I wasn't really feeling that whole scene. The two characters that chose sides by the end were suspect for me so I won't say I was surprised the the "baddies", especially with an instance of pronoun usage that caused me to lean a certain way in my suspicions. I think one of them became more complicated in a good way while the other was demoted from a thinker and a doer to a mindless, emotionless puppet and I can't say I was thrilled with that last one, though I kind of forgive the cast off because it wasn't like I was completely drawn in by them before that point.

There's more depth to this story than the last one and the trite romantic pitfalls and conflicts that could have been used were non-issues which I absolutely appreciated. The family tensions were there as before, but I am thinking I'm going to like where we eventually end up, especially if Lewis continues to interject his bits of surprising playfulness. Overall I was so pleased that we got more from these men and I'm looking forward to anything else they get up to going forward. Especially if we get more from Jeremy and his admirer =].

*$4.99 on Amazon!

Jackson
Now that Leland’s decided to give up his life as a hitman and take a walk on the mild side, we’ve been enjoying a simple life of taking down bad guys the legal way. I didn’t know he would be just as reckless as a PI, but it’s not my fault if I happen to enjoy helping him hunt down the occasional criminal. If only I could keep the house from being overrun by Leland’s gun shrine—or stop him from making our cases “more exciting” by terrorizing people into confessing. Overall, life seems perfect, right?

Wrong.
We’ve been called in to investigate a suspicious murder committed by someone claiming to be the Sandman. When we find a note on the victim’s body, we realize that this could ruin our lives forever.

Leland:
I wasn’t involved in the murder. It might look like my writing and my note, but I wouldn’t do that to Jackson—especially after I promised him that I wouldn’t take a hit ever again. At least, not without telling him. I’m finally starting to learn that we’re stronger together, and I’m not going to jeopardize that.

Luckily for both of us, this copycat doesn’t know who he’s dealing with. Game’s on, fake Sandman. You think you can mess with me? Well, maybe you can, but that’s beside the point, because I will protect Jackson no matter what, even if I almost drown him in the process. (Really, that wasn’t my fault. He should learn how to swim better.)