Murder Aforethought: Cabrini Law Book 2, Parker St. John

Sometimes you wake up one day and have no idea that this is the day that will change your life forever.  Maksim definitely wasn't expecting the young man that would grow step by step to be his heart, nor was he expecting a whole heap of danger to nip at their heels the entire way.  But Maksim didn't get where he is today by giving up and his tenacity and determination will be what carries him into the life he never knew he wanted despite any and all obstacles, even if one of those obstacles is the very man he wants to share that life with.

Val caught my attention right from the very beginning.  You could so clearly see everything Maksim saw right away, that damaged and vulnerable inside covered under a hard shell.  In their attraction it was very much a case of like calls to like where they both know something of hardship and facades.  To protect the ones they love most they're willing to do and say what's necessary even if no one sees it as valor or anything other than despicable.  What I loved most about both of them is that we got right to their hearts and could see just how much they could provide a safe-haven for one another.

"I've been waiting 42 years for this kind of special." -Maksim

The drama was kinda big, but it actually fit quite well.  It worked well with the mob mentality and while there were a few threads that didn't find a conclusion, I'm almost sure we'll get those with Miguel's story...super excited for that one, by the way.  I can see who his partner will be and I'm really stoked to see how they overcome their pasts to find their future together.  What was included in this story for the drama didn't feel too outlandish or too big to "solve" by the end.

The one big issue I had was something that bothered me in Risk Assessment.  The person that sought out the other for reunion wasn't the one I felt should be the one to make the move.  Both men needed to find their place now that their eyes and hearts have been opened and Val really needed to see how valuable he is as a person, but if the person who did the chasing didn't actually make that move I feel they wouldn't have had another chance to be together.  Self-sacrificing is one thing, but stubborn and a martyr complex is another.  While it all turned out for the best in the end, I just wished the lead up to that moment had gone a little differently.  Overall though, the story was engaging as were the characters and I'm even more invested in the outcomes of everyone at Cabrini Law.

*$3.99 on Amazon

A ticking clock. A deadly enemy. Can they keep their heads in the game when their hearts are already on the line?

Valentine Rivetti made a horrible mistake when he became a Marine Sniper at the age of twenty. Returning home with PTSD and a guilty conscience, he’s blackmailed into working for the mafia to save his family.

Maksim Kovalenko has everything he ever dreamed of growing up in a Ukrainian slum. As a notorious corporate attorney, he has the world at his feet. But wealth and power can’t protect him from the emptiness he feels every time he shuts his eyes.

When Val is arrested for a murder he didn’t commit, his redemption is a silver fox in a three-piece suit. But Val’s lucky day becomes Maksim’s nightmare when the mafia begins to cut loose ends… starting with them.

The passion between them is overwhelming, but can two solitary men learn to trust each other before it’s too late?