Good Morning Everyone,

Following my interview with Thea McAlistair, let’s get into my review of her debut novel, No Good Men!

Blurb:

In 1934, almost everyone struggles to pay the rent, and Alex Dawson is no exception. To support his writing habit, he moonlights with his mentor Donnie as a bodyguard for the mayor. It’s dull work, until the night a handsome, golden-eyed stranger catches his eye–and both his boss and his mentor are killed when his back is turned.

Jobless and emotionally adrift, Alex vows to find the murderer before the corrupt police can pin the blame on him. But he soon discovers he’s in over his head. The golden-eyed stranger turns out to be a mob boss’s cousin, and a suspicious stack of money in Donnie’s dresser leads Alex to discover that his mentor and the mayor were involved in something more crooked than fundraising dinners and campaign speeches. As the death count rises amid corruption, mob politics, and anarchist plots, Alex realizes that the murders aren’t political or even business. This is the work of a spree killer, and Alex and his new boyfriend are the only ones who can stop them.

The Review:

I gave this book five Whodunit stars!

I have been a fan of Thea’s writing for quite some time, so when I heard she was releasing her first novel, I jumped on the opportunity. Boy was I glad I did!

No Good Men is set back in the time of the Great Depression. We follow the main character Alex Dawson, who is a writer but has had to resort to bodyguard work due to hard times. One seemingly mundane night at the Ostia, he is done with a shift of work and goes to the bar when gunshots fire.

In a heartbeat, Alex’s boss and best friend are dead. With no other means of work besides writing, Alex struggles to pick up the pieces of his shattered life. Who had killed his boss and best friend? Why? And most of all, will they strike again?

This book was great through and through.

For starters, the characters were very well fleshed out and had interesting personalities and flaws. Alex believes in justice and has morals in a city where exposing secrets can cost you your life. Sev, Bella, Pearl, Martin, they were all great characters too. I loved every one of them. And Harlow? Pft! Don’t get me started on that dirtbag!

The plot was intriguing to me even though I don’t usually read mysteries. I mean, you’ve got the mob, a murderer on the loose, and a gay romance in a time where it was extremely taboo. What’s not to love? The city of Westwick reflected the effects of the Great Depression and was shabby, run-down, and corrupted. A perfect portrayal if you ask me.

Lastly, I’m bringing it back to the gay romance. This really brought things together for me. Sev and Alex meet in the strangest of circumstances, and from there I was living for it! Sev has a rough past, and Alex has his fair share of doubts as what starts off as a one-nighter starts to become much more than that.

Ultimately, I truly loved this book. If you like mysteries, adventure, and a healthy dose of romance, then this book is for you! I can’t wait to read more from this author!

That’s a Wrap!

Thanks for stopping by, and happy reading!

Have you read this book before? What did you think? Do you have a book recommendation similar to this series? Feel free to share in the comments!

If you’d like to see other reviews of mine, feel free to check out my blog homepage or my GoodReads. You can also follow my GoodReads reviews here. There are some great binge-worthy books on there!

Have a great day!

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