annieb123
Originally posted on my blog Nonstop Reader.
Hide and Seek is a standalone M/M romantic cozy mystery by Josh Lanyon. Released 20th Oct 2022, it's 306 pages and is available in paperback, audio, and ebook formats. It's worth noting that the ebook format has a handy interactive table of contents as well as interactive links and references throughout. I've really become enamored of ebooks with interactive formats lately.
This is a well written shopfront cozy mystery with a fun retro "Macguffin" twist and a somewhat hapless amateur sleuth. It's more of a romantic drama with a side of murder mystery than primarily a cozy, but there's enough of both genres to keep most readers engaged. The plot does meander in places and there were a few places where ridiculous developments strained my suspension of disbelief, but all in all it's a fun and entertaining ride.
It's occasionally somewhat graphic for a true cozy mystery, with some on-page violence. There's also some explicit (but not gratuitous) sex scenes (M/M), so it might not be 100% safe for work. Quite a lot of the plot revolves around MC Andrew's abusive ex, so readers who prefer not to read on-page abuse and physical and emotional threats should be aware that this book contains a lot of both.
It's well written throughout and the author is adept at plotting and descriptive prose. There are some places where the plot meanders a bit, but it definitely gets there in the end. The denouement and resolution are sweetly satisfying.
Four stars.
Disclosure: I received an ARC at no cost from the author/publisher for review purposes.