Love the slow burn that this story had I love a good well written mm story. Would definitely read more books by this author.

This was a quick and entertaining read. The murder mystery plot was great. My only real criticism is that it felt like a soap opera at times.

Did not care for this one. Tried numerous times to read it and ended up not finishing it. It is totally me, and not the author as I really like this authors books.

I struggled with getting into this story. I found it a bit hard to get invested in the characters. I did eventually get into it and enjoyed the overall story.

3.75 stars

This was fun. Nice quick paced and action-packed.
The second chance romance was great, and the chemistry with our main characters was fantastic.
The murder mystery part was fun, although you can see the hints of who it is if you're paying attention from the start.
Overall, this was a fun, quick read.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publishers for the chance to read this book in exchange for an honest review.

I enjoyed the story, and found myself yelling at my Kindle screen when Lev couldn't figure out the bad guy was right under his nose the entire time. It was a fun, quick read - but it still had a fully fleshed out plot which I enjoyed. Character diversity, a nice slow-burn/second-chance MM relationship. Solid 3.5 stars.

I have not read from this author before. but I truly appreciate the diversity in this book. So often queer romance books focus on the white characters over BIPOC. Additionally, the plot was enjoyable if not aggravating at times because we, us readers, knew who the villain/antagonist was, but it took far too long for Lev to figure it out. I may have used a few choice words to express my frustration with his surprising lack of observational skills.

I did take away a star from the rating, however, as the drama sometimes read like a soap opera. I found it difficult to reconcile their reactions because they felt more like overreactions. Overall though, I did enjoy the writing and the plot.

ARC received via NetGalley, and I have given my honest and voluntary review.

This story is told in third person and follows Galen and Lev. I really enjoyed this second chance romance between a criminal lawyer and a homicide detective in LA. This is my first read by this author and worked great for me as a standalone.

Galen was a mess after the man he loved essentially ghosted him with no explanation. His professional life fell apart in the aftermath, and he doesn’t make the brightest decisions. Now he has his own solo office with pretty much one criminal client that gives him plenty of business but is dangerously connected…and he’s having an affair with her husband. There were times when I really felt bad for him and times when I was shaking my head with frustration over his latest decision, but I couldn’t put this one down.

Lev is a homicide detective with a relatively new partner named Callie, and he’s been trying to take down Galen’s number one client for both professional and personal reasons for years. Lev is gruff and hardened, determined not to show his feelings. The type of character that I really gravitate towards in both mystery novels and romances. In the beginning, I really enjoyed the relationship that was building with Callie, but later, I had some issues with some of her reactions as a partner.

When Galen finds his lover aka the boss’s husband dead, he immediately gets caught up in Lev’s investigation of the murder. There’s a great push and pull between these two especially as Lev finds himself sticking close to Galen when his life is threatened. I did have a small issue with Lev taking Galen’s fingerprints for exclusion in a burglary since California lawyers have their fingerprints on file. I assumed that Lev was taking them personally for an anonymous off the record request, but he put Galen’s name on the card, so that confused me.

I was so caught up in Galen’s and Lev’s entanglement that I was completely surprised by the resolution of the mystery in this one. Recommended to MM romance lovers who enjoy mysteries and romantic suspense. Tropes include second chance love, forced proximity, and only one bed. I’ll definitely read this author again.

Thank you to Netgalley and the author for a copy provided for an honest review.

Usually when im reading short stories like this i finish the story unsatisfied because of the superficiality of the plot and characters, for some reason i didn’t feel like that in this book. However since the story itself revolves around a murder mystery, i felt like some things were not as significant as they should be (like the story of the characters past relationship).
Even though the story has its flaws this read provides everything it offers. it was a quick and enjoyable book for me.

4 Stars and my thanks to Netgalley and the Publisher for the eARC!

LA Vice is a short, fun novel about Detective Lev and Lawyer Galen; the two of them working together to save Galen from a notorious crime boss while also struggling to make sense of their past love story falling to pieces.

I really really liked this book, enough to want to search out Cassidy's other novels. Her writing is so quick and snappy, I didn't realize I was almost done with this (admittedly short anyway) story.

The only thing that knocks my rating down a point is the fact that we don't learn the full story of why Lev left Galen the first time until more than halfway through the book, and I feel like that apology wasn't enough. Sure, Galen forgave him, but that was such a weak apology for something so devastating. Communication is one of the most important things in a relationship. (I say this knowing that Galen still re-initiated the relationship without saying he was present at the house after Chris was killed lol).

Other than that, I really liked this!

L.A. Vice by Kat Cassidy

Disgraced lawyer Galen Luskey becomes involved in a murder investigation, forcing him to seek help from Lev Kavazanjian, an LAPD detective and former lover.

This book feels like a soap opera, in that the book is plotted for maximum drama and damage and not necessarily in line with who the characters are supposed to be. I had a very difficult time relating or caring about any of these characters because all of them make wild choices and leaps in logic. I spent most of this book going, “but…. why? but how? WHAT?? NO, BUT WHY???”

Idk, if you’re reading for drama and less for things to actually make sense, then holy cow, do I have a recommendation for you.

Thanks to NetGalley and Kat Cassidy for a copy of this ebook in exchange for an honest and fair review.

#lavice #katcassidy #mmromance #secondchanceromance #mysteryromance

I enjoyed the story, and found myself yelling at my Kindle screen when Lev couldn't figure out the bad guy was right under his nose the entire time. It was a fun, quick read - but it still had a fully fleshed out plot which I enjoyed. Character diversity, a nice slow-burn/second-chance MM relationship. Solid 3.5 stars.

This was my first book by Kat Cassidy & i was positively suprised by the author's 𝗰𝗮𝗽𝘁𝗶𝘃𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘀𝘁𝗼𝗿𝘆𝘁𝗲𝗹𝗹𝗶𝗻𝗴! i'm looking forward to the next book in this series - even just for the possibility of getting more glimpses of Galen & Lev (hopefully🤞)

With all due respect to the author's hard work, after reading the opening I can no longer take this book seriously. It suffers from a lack of structure, and a nonsensical emotional flow. Some people may enjoy it, but I am not one of them.

.Second chance
.Lawyer & detective
.Murder mystery
.Forced proximity
.Only one bed

Quick and entertaining, this book delivers exactly what it promises.

The characters were well developed, their slow burn rekindling of an old relationship was good, and we get a sprinkling of spice I'm definitely not mad about.

While the murder mystery isn't groundbreaking and feels a bit convoluted and predictable, overall it was a fun read from start to finish.

This was a quick and enjoyable read. I loved the relationship between Galen and Lev. I think it was well paced and found himself wanting to see what was going to happen next with each chapter.

I'm rounding up to four stars because on the whole I enjoyed reading this. I almost noped out of it on page one when we started with unnecessary past perfect tense (the book is in present tense, so simple past is all that's needed for memories), and I'm glad I didn't. The main and secondary characters were engaging, and the plot was fairly twisty. I thought the reason for the (past) break-up was weak, and the big reunion got awfully monologue-y, but I was happy to keep reading to the end, and I'll look forward to the promised sequel. I do hope some particularly awkward/amusing misplaced modifiers get fixed before publication.

My thanks to the publisher/NetGalley for an advance copy of this book.