Few things in life can come between a grim reaper and her coffee, but the sexy, sultry son of Satan is one of them.

Now that Reyes Farrow has asked for her hand, Charley Davidson feels it’s time to learn more about his past, but Reyes is reluctant to open up. When the official FBI file of his childhood abduction lands in her lap, Charley decides to go behind her mysterious beau’s back and conduct her own investigation. Because what could go wrong?

Unfortunately, another case has fallen into her lap—one with dangerous implications. Some very insistent men want Charley to hunt down a witness who is scheduled to testify against their boss, a major player in the local crime syndicate. If Charley doesn’t come up with an address in 48 hours, the people closest to her will start to disappear.

Add to that a desperate man in search of the soul he lost in a card game, a dogged mother determined to find the ghost of her son, and a beautiful, young Deaf boy haunted by his new ability to see the departed as clearly as he sees the living, and Charley has her hands full. The fact that Reyes has caught on to her latest venture only adds fuel to the inferno that he is. Good thing for Charley she’s used to multi-tasking and always up for a challenge…especially when that challenge comes in the form of Reyes Farrow.

The Charley Davidson series has become my guilty pleasure — steamier than I normally prefer, but I can’t seem to walk away from the humor. So few authors do humor well that I can’t seem to abandon the ones who do (even if it means having to skim a few pages).

Like her previous books, this episode of Charley Davidson sees her confront bad guys, fight with Reyes, make-up with Reyes, battle the forces of evil (heavenly and on earth), and rise above it all. And she does it all with little seriousness and some disrespect — except when it comes to the departed. This series continues to amaze me in how I’m laughing one minute and heartbroken the next. The character may take things lightly, but it comes across as a bit of a defense mechanism because she’s also forced to confront some truly horrid situations.

Worth noting: I love this series, but that doesn’t mean I agree with her interpretation of the spiritual realm (I don’t) or that I condone everything that happens in the book (I don’t). I do think, however, that Jones is a brilliant storyteller, so the writer/editor in me has to keep reading.

I will say there were a few of things that irked me about this book (hence the 3-star rating instead of 4-star):

  1. I’m not a huge fan of the 12 yo girl sneaking out with the 16 yo boy. That’s just a little too young for me to be comfortable.
  2. I’m not really sure why Charley keeps arguing with/refusing to answer Reyes. They do finally start talking at the end, but they keep having the same argument, which got a little old.
  3. Why does every keep secrets from each other?? They all supposedly love each but also lie to each other constantly.

Overall, though, I just ate this book up — I love how Jones keeps the series going. Unlike Janet Evanovich’s Stephanie Plum series, there’s constant character development and relationships keep growing and changing. I can’t wait to see what happens next!

R-rated for sex, language, and violence. Get your copy here!