Author: Lex Veia
Spice: 🌶 🌶 🌶 🌶 🌶
Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Length: 391 pages
Format: Digital, Via Kindle
Genre: Urban Fantasy, Action, Mystery, Dystopian
Started: 02/27/2024
Finished: 03/02/2024
Brilliant, Whitty, Must Read MM Romance Debut!
For transparency’s sake, I received Shadow & Ghost: City of Shadows (COS) as an Advanced Reader’s Copy (ARC) and my review is honest and unpaid/unsponsored.
Tropes: MM Romance, Morally Grey MMCs, Neurodivergent MC, Slow Burn & Spice, Hurt/Comfort, Forced Proximity, Opposites Attract, Grumpy-Sunshine, Age Gap
Content Warnings: Violence, Drugs, Parental Neglect/Abuse (Off Screen)
Four Explicit Spicy Scenes: Chapter 9, Chapter 21, Chapter 26, Chapter 32
PLEASE NOTE: POTENTIAL SPOILERS AHEAD
With an opening line of “The problem was a pair of fluffy pink handcuffs,” the book will be no less than spectacular! COS is written in the perspective of Kit “Shadow” Winters, a neurodivergent chaos gremlin that I now love dearly. I was immediately immersed in Kit’s world and captivated by his tribulations. This book had me all across the emotions spectrum; I was laughing (arguable cackling at some points), crying, cheering, infuriated, worried, you name it. Each line was beautifully layered into a story that slowly, perfectly unraveled for the reader.
Kit needs to work on his self-confidence, but also needs to get over himself at the same time. Zach needs to work on more open communication. Honestly, they both need therapy. (A short bonus scene of them in couples therapy would be HILAROUS and MUCH APPRECIATED!)
I love that no matter how wildly Ghost is driving, he always uses his blinker.
I love that there’s an enchanted MP3 player that plays the thing you need to hear the most. It plays strictly music up until Kit attempts to listen to a conversation across a restaurant. How COOL is it that he could listen in on conversations he wants to hear but can’t get close enough to listen in on without an assist?! I also LOVE that Disturbed and Godsmack were honorable mentions in the book. Two of my favorite bands.
It was an Aldi 🥹💜
I have unlocked two new favorite phrases after reading COS:
- what-the-fuck-ery
- going possum-mode
HOLD ONTO YOUR HATS – THERE ARE SUPERWITCH HELLHOUND SHIFTERS ON THE LOOSE!
ALSO: THERE ISN’T A MOLE IN THE TEAM, THERES A SPY AND THE SPY IS KITS BROTHER, JAMES! MICHAEL IS INVOLVED, TOO, BUT AS FAR AS WE KNOW, JUST AS JAMES’S LACKEY!
COS is so quotable. Here are some of my favorite quotes from the book:
- “We need something to focus on. Something to make it all mean something.”
- “We are who we make ourselves…”
- “We were so busy being logical, avoiding our feelings, we forgot to stop and listen to them—to what we know, deep down…”
- “If I were a fairytale witch, I’d be cackling.”
- “That’s the thing about mass production, I guess. You don’t get the exquisite detail of a handmade. And I’m definitely handmade.”
- “As if I could walk away from you.” He sits up to lean his forehead against mine. “You make me feel … alive. And I don’t want to stop.”
We even get as much of a HEA as we possibly could with a Big Bad still on the loose. Overall, COS was hilarious, had whitty banter, and I cannot believe this is Lex’s DEBUT NOVEL. I can’t wait for book two in this series to come out later this year! I cannot recommend this book enough, honestly. I was originally on the fence about signing up for the ARC since MM romance isn’t usually my thing, but I’m SO INCREDIBLY HAPPY I took the chance on COS. It’s one of my top books of 2024 already and I cannot wait to see where Lex takes us next in the series.
XOXO
P.S. The book JUST released February 29th, 2024!
P.P.S. Check out Lex Veia’s Renegades after reading COS for fun bonus content, updates, and more!
#la_biblio_fille #lexveia #shadowandghost #bookstagram #cityofshadows #debutnovel #supportindieauthors #mmromance #urbanromance #dystopian #action #mystery #grumpysunshine #agegap #forbiddenromance #morallygrey #forcedproximity #neurodivergentmc #slowburn #spicyromance #hurtcomfort #oppositesattract
La Biblio-Fille 