Release Blitz and Review: The Case of the Boy in Blue by Amanda Meuwissen

RELEASE BLITZ

Book Title: The Case of the Boy in Blue

Author: Amanda Meuwissen

Publisher: Amanda Meuwissen Books

Cover Artist: Amanda Meuwissen

Release Date: February 14, 2021

Genre: Noir M/M Romance

Trope/s: Age gap, private investigator, noir, mystery & detective

Themes: Hidden agenda, revenge

Heat Rating: 3 flames

Length: 33 pages

It is a standalone story.

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Buy Links – Available on Kindle Unlimited

Amazon US | Amazon UK

This kid was going to be trouble, I just knew it.

“Have a seat, Mr. Valentine. What can I do for you?”

Blurb

Leonard Quill, private investigator, never expected a case to walk through his door quite like this one, complete with murder, a frame job, blackmail, and powerful players, especially coming from a man with bright blue eyes behind his glasses, a crooked bow tie, and an impossible smile.


Excerpt

Mr. Valentine—call me Westley—looks the part of bumbling fool, who’s too naïve to know he’s walked into the lion’s den even being near this neighborhood without packing some heat but turns out he has a few secrets even darker than mine. His old man is in the clink, doing time for killing his mother. Only Westley swears the real culprit is someone else and his father has been framed.

Maybe that’s true, wouldn’t put much past this city, but if Westley is right about who’s behind the frame job, this isn’t a case I can take lightly.

“Sorry, kid, but you think James Deckard is behind all this? He’s not the type of man you bring down legally.”

“I know that. That’s why I came to you. The cops laughed me out of the precinct.”

“I ain’t a hitman either,” I snarl, wondering if sweet and innocent was an act and this kid has it in him to get all murdery and scuffed up, so long as someone else does the killing.

But those blue eyes go wide, and I know that if there is a darker side to him, it’s buried much deeper than trying to pull one over on me. “I don’t want a hitman, Mr. Quill. But I need someone willing to go the extra mile the cops turn their noses at. Someone who’ll take the risk to get real evidence and finally put this monster away. Even the worst of the worst for all the crooked cops in this town can’t cover up Deckard’s deeds if we have proof.”

An optimist. Great.

Westley isn’t wholly off base though, with the right judge, the right amount of ammunition, but it would be life or death with my hide on the line to get it done. Usually, that’s par for the course, half the fun of the job is getting a little lost in the muck, but Deckard is the type to make you disappear real quiet like—to the outside world. You wouldn’t be gone right away; you’d stay breathing for weeks, screaming where no one could hear you.

“You tell my secretary all this?” I ask, already knowing the answer given Roxanne’s response to the kid.

“Of course. She was sure you’d agreed. Please, Mr. Quill, won’t you help me?”

Damn this kid, and damn Roxanne too. She knows the stakes involved, but she has it out for Deckard’s business partner, Jeffrey Yacobian, who she’s suspected for a long while had a hand in her sister’s murder. This opens another avenue to investigate the scum of our city with me as the point man.

Roxanne also knows I can’t say no. I promised her we’d catch Yacobian someday. Bringing down Deckard could pave the way for that and ease the potent grief of this kid in front of me who might be the last sunny disposition left in these dank streets.

“The risks involved ain’t gonna come cheap. How much is all this worth to you?”

Westley looks me square in the eyes, that blushing virgin routine set aside as he sits up taller—maybe all that light was a clever mask after all. “Everything I have, Mr. Quill.”

“Leonard. You’re either turning over your life savings when this is over or paying for my funeral if it flops, so call me Leonard.” Might as well be on a first name basis considering we’re both gonna end up on ice. “Now let’s start at the beginning, and you tell me everything you know.”

About the Author

Amanda Meuwissen is a bisexual author, with a primary focus on M/M romance. As author of the paranormal romance trilogy The Incubus Saga and several other titles with various publishers, Amanda regularly attends local comic conventions for fun and to meet with fans, where she will often be seen in costume as one of her favorite fictional characters. She lives in Minneapolis, Minnesota, with her husband, John, and their cat, Helga.

Author Links

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Review

Rating: 4 stars

*I received this novel for free in exchange for an honest review*

I really enjoyed reading this short mystery by Amanda Meuwissen. The atmosphere of the story had this gritty, dark feel to it which contrasted against Westley’s seemingly innocent characteristics. Leonard is a seasoned PI who finds himself not only drawn to the case but the man who brought it to him. The two of them have instant chemistry and work well together.

The case is full of intrigue and twists and turns that you won’t see coming. The ending wraps everything up nicely, but I hope that this is the start of a series.

If you like short, compelling mysteries then you’ll enjoy reading The Case of the Boy in Blue.

Review: The Boss (Under Red Sky #1) by J. Calamy

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The Boss

Nicholas Erickson is happy to be the smallest cog at the US Embassy in Singapore, a big step up from prison. Nick lives with a terrible secret: he killed a family of three in a traffic accident, for which he was imprisoned and became a pariah back home. The only threat to his second chance is the truth—and Nelson Graves.

Shipping Magnate Lord Nelson Graves is secretly the head of crime syndicate Red Sky, making him the biggest arms dealer and drug boss in Southeast Asia. Graves is tired, lonely, addicted to opium, and trying to get his imploding crime syndicate back to business. There is a traitor in his organization and an old enemy is back on his tail.

A romance builds between hot-headed, reckless Nick and unhappy, ruthless Graves. But nothing is that easy. Shoot-outs, bombings, and vindictive exes prove Nick’s past and Graves’s present may be a lethal combination.

Purchase: Amazon

Goodreads: The Boss (Under Red Sky #1) by J. Calamy


Review

Rating: 4 stars

*I received this novel for free in exchange for an honest review*

Nick Erickson tries to keep a low profile both in his job and his personal life. With mistakes from his past still haunting him and coupled with the fear of anyone finding out, he keeps himself somewhat closed off from those around him. Nick just wants to keep his life quiet. And that all changes when he meets Lord Nelson Graves. Graves is the owner of a shipping firm and also secretly the head of the crime syndicate Red Sky. Circumstances find the two drawn together and as Nick gets to know Graves he also begins to discover a lot about himself too.

I enjoyed reading this first installment of the Under Red Sky series. I liked the Singapore setting and being immersed in the location and culture. The Boss is gritty and unflinching in the descriptions of violence which really captures the genre and mood of the story well. Nick and Graves are both flawed, but human and each have likeable and not so likeable qualities. The two main characters go together well. Nick’s hot-headedness means he is unafraid to stand up to Graves’ more domineering and ruthless personality. The supporting cast are interesting and I hope to learn about them in later books in the series.

If you like a gritty, action-packed novel with a building romance between the two main characters you will certainly enjoy The Boss!