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Weston (Hard Body #2) by Debra Kayn
Three Stars
*ARC from publisher for an honest opinion.
Detective Rocki Bangli is working undercover in an attempt to bring down crime lord Darrell. Darrell instructs her to go to a local bar and play pool. He gives her very specific directions about what she needs to do. While she is at the bar playing pool she runs into Tony Weston. Tony, along with some close friends, is a mechanic/private investigator. After Rocki’s cover is blown, her life is in danger and Tony swears to protect her.
I went back and forth with a two or three star rating for this book. There were some parts that I thought were fantastic and other parts that I think suffered. Fantastic: Tony Weston. He is your typical alpha-butt-kicking-no-one lays a hand on my women –kind of man. He was intense and seductive, sweet and vulnerable all wrapped up into one man. I understood and liked Tony, but the one part that really got to me was his intense and immediate desire to protect and involve himself with Rocki. Apparently they had met in the previous book, Archer (Hard Body #1) when she had an interaction with Kage Archer and his girlfriend, Janie Beaumont. He also recognized her from when he was in the policy academy. Since these meetings he has spent a year thinking about her and fantasying about her.
I had a harder time with Rocki… Whereas she is a tough detective trying to bring down crime lord Darrell (who also happens to be Kage’s uncle) she also falls apart quite frequently throughout the story. She basically hides out in Tony’s home once her cover is blown. I thought Detective Gino Marcelli brought a very interesting mix to the story. I don’t want to give anything away but he definitely added more to the intrigue behind Darrell.
I didn’t understand that the hostility that Jane and her friend Sabrina had towards Rocki. Yes, at first they think she is working for Darrell but then they discover that she is an undercover detective and they continue to give her a hard time until Rocki tells them about her relationship with Tony. Then all of the sudden they decide that they are going to have a girl’s night out… This was a tough one… Rocki’s life is basically in danger and she heads out for a girl’s night out…Ironically they end up at the Crystal Palace… which is where Darrell and his men are??!! What? I didn’t get that at all? Tony puts a security system at his home to keep her protected, he calls in his fellow private investigators to provide security, his parents take her mom to Hawaii to keep her safe and Rocki thinks it would be great to head out for some drinks???!!
Ok, what I liked… I though Tony’s parents were hilarious! At the beginning of the story when Tony is filling them in about the danger that Rocki has surrounding her and those around her, the father goes to make a phone call and Tony flips out. His father says,” son, its just pizza”. I thought this was a great comedic relief. They provided light moments throughout the story. Another part I loved was Kage! He is a very interesting character and I loved the bond that he had with Tony. The rest of Tony’s friends reflected the strong bond that the guys had. They own the Beaumont Body shop where they work on cars and they are also private investigators (another confusing part). I thought this was a stretch. Despite some confusing moments, I have to honestly say that I enjoyed the tension that Detective Gino brought into the story more than anything else. Kage does find out some family history but the conflict of the story really surrounds Detective Gino. Overall, I would still recommend this story because it is an enjoyable read and I added Archer to my read list! I think that it will give me some insight to what I read about in Weston.
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