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elettra_passerini's review
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
informative
inspiring
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
anamustacho's review
4.0
*Received in a goodread's giveaway*
If you like a book with a sense of humor and a mixture of passions, then you should give this a try.
Lucky is chained to his past but is almost free from them, he just has one last 'mission'. In here Bo comes in and Lucky's build up wall is being broken down. Together they try to uncover those behind the scenes selling expired or forbidden drugs.
Besides their adventure capturing the exploiters, both Lucky and Bo feel this connection btw them..is it lust, or something more?
Honestly you should give this book a try, I've reread it twice just bcs of how funny most scenes are and how you just want to find out what happened in both their pasts to have gotten them in this 'prison'-like situation.
The book is, as I said in the beginning, filled with humor and passion.
Some scenes will drive even a straight person to the edge, if you get what I mean.
And if this doesnt convince you then let me tell you this:
Ive read scenes from the book to my friends and they fell in love with it to the point they begged me to lend them 'Diversion'.
If you like a book with a sense of humor and a mixture of passions, then you should give this a try.
Lucky is chained to his past but is almost free from them, he just has one last 'mission'. In here Bo comes in and Lucky's build up wall is being broken down. Together they try to uncover those behind the scenes selling expired or forbidden drugs.
Besides their adventure capturing the exploiters, both Lucky and Bo feel this connection btw them..is it lust, or something more?
Honestly you should give this book a try, I've reread it twice just bcs of how funny most scenes are and how you just want to find out what happened in both their pasts to have gotten them in this 'prison'-like situation.
The book is, as I said in the beginning, filled with humor and passion.
Some scenes will drive even a straight person to the edge, if you get what I mean.
And if this doesnt convince you then let me tell you this:
Ive read scenes from the book to my friends and they fell in love with it to the point they begged me to lend them 'Diversion'.
divapitbull's review
4.0
Diversion was closer to 3 ½ stars for me. I really didn’t feel the chemistry between Lucky and Bo until the very end, and I felt they got together too quickly. I would have found it more enjoyable if they had started a sexual relationship while maintaining their (snarky, asshole, loner) training the (naive, clean cut, newbie) roles; with feelings developing gradually. Instead they seemed too easily to fall into a “playing house” couple. Of course, Lucky really isn’t a loner or a complete asshole; he has self-esteem issues and it’s easier to keep people at arm’s length and push them away than it is to risk being looked down upon or rejected. And Bo really isn’t a wholesome, green tea with stevia drinking vegan because he believes his body is a temple; he has his own issues too. Lucky is a former pharmaceutical drug trafficker and Bo is a former marine with PTSD turned pharmacist with a substance abuse problem. They both have plenty of trauma and past to contend with.
Lucky (who has a moniker that I generally dislike – squeaks by on it being a nickname, given his last name is Lucklighter ) is just finishing up his 8 years of indentured servitude with the Southeastern Narcotics Bureau Department of Diversion Prevention and Control; a team of misfits presided over by the fatherly Walter of the healthy appetite and significant girth. Walter plucked Lucky out of a jail cell, 2 years into a 10-year sentence and gave him the opportunity to use his skills and knowledge for good – in return for his (sort of) freedom. However now that Lucky’s sentence is coming to an end and he’s about to earn his actual freedom; Walter needs him to train his replacement, Bo – the pharmacist who got caught with his hand in the cookie jar and lost his license.
The actual investigation ping pongs between somewhat interesting and somewhat snoozey. It helped that I really liked the characters. Despite Lucky’s ridiculous efforts to try to be as obnoxious as possible; the more of his backstory that unfolds, the easier it is to sympathize with him. And despite Bo’s newbie status, he not only holds his own with Lucky – but he sees through his act pretty easily. Their bantering isn't the best I've ever read; but it's fun. There's some humor in the story and despite dealing with some heavy stuff, the mood is generally light. I’m continuing on with the series.
Lucky (who has a moniker that I generally dislike – squeaks by on it being a nickname, given his last name is Lucklighter ) is just finishing up his 8 years of indentured servitude with the Southeastern Narcotics Bureau Department of Diversion Prevention and Control; a team of misfits presided over by the fatherly Walter of the healthy appetite and significant girth. Walter plucked Lucky out of a jail cell, 2 years into a 10-year sentence and gave him the opportunity to use his skills and knowledge for good – in return for his (sort of) freedom. However now that Lucky’s sentence is coming to an end and he’s about to earn his actual freedom; Walter needs him to train his replacement, Bo – the pharmacist who got caught with his hand in the cookie jar and lost his license.
The actual investigation ping pongs between somewhat interesting and somewhat snoozey. It helped that I really liked the characters. Despite Lucky’s ridiculous efforts to try to be as obnoxious as possible; the more of his backstory that unfolds, the easier it is to sympathize with him. And despite Bo’s newbie status, he not only holds his own with Lucky – but he sees through his act pretty easily. Their bantering isn't the best I've ever read; but it's fun. There's some humor in the story and despite dealing with some heavy stuff, the mood is generally light. I’m continuing on with the series.
wildfaeriecaps's review
5.0
The plot of this one was pretty interesting. Wasn't sure what was going on in the beginning (look, I buy a book and then almost immediately forget what it's about. I can't explain it), but it held my interest regardless. It's always fun to read books set in Florida, especially when the people in them are just as thrilled with certain aspects as I am (yes, that is sarcasm about being thrilled). Anyway, I look forward to reading more of this series in the future.
ofbooksandromance's review
4.0
4.5 ‘’Oh fuck. I’m useless! Done gone and fell in love‘’ stars
Did Bo have any idea how far Lucky had fallen? Did he know Lucky would give up a shot at freedom to spend a few more days with him? Dangerous thoughts.
I was expecting to like this but I wasn't expecting to love it as much as I did. Everything about this book was perfect for my taste and I had such a fun time reading it.
Brief summary: Lucky has been caught in a crime and was sentenced to 10 years in prison and to save himself some prison time, he has to work for the Southeastern Narcotics Bureau for 8 years. When we meet Lucky, he only has a couple of months left of his deal and then he's free. This is when he meets Bo, who is the new recruit at the bureau and they have to work together on a case linked to a drug ring.
First, I really love Bo and Lucky, they all just felt so real. They both had flaws and good parts to them and I loved how they both felt like actual humans. I loved those two very much. I also really loved them together, they were really good together and really good foils for each other. And I adored their banter, it was so fun.
Second, I really enjoyed the plot of the book. It was really engaging and there was never a boring moment, the action always pulled me right in and kept me interested in the story. I really enjoyed all of the details about their case and how the drug ring worked, it was really enjoyable to read about. The plot was so interesting and I always wanted to keep reading to know what would happen.
Third, I really loved Lucky, even if he was an asshole. He was so grumpy and prickly all the time but I really fucking loved that about him. I also really liked how sweet he was when he let his guard down, it was so nice to get a few glimpses of that. I loved how we got to slowly learn about him and why he's so guarded throughout the book. I loved how he never planed to let someone close to him again but it just happened, it was so nicely done. I really enjoyed how he started to care bit by bit, it started slow and just went bigger and bigger. It was so nicely done. Also, I loved how his fear of attachment was portrayed, it was so nice. Often he would seem like an asshole because he kept pushing Bo away but it made so much sense why we knew his history and why he doesn't trust people. It was hard to be mad at him for it because he felt so real, I could definitely understand why he was so guarded and why he acted how he acted.
Fourth, I really loved Bo too. I loved how sweet he was and how all he wanted was to care for someone. He was so damn nice. I really loved how he was always there for Lucky and just cared for him without ever pushing him. I really loved seeing him open up, he had such a hard past but he was so strong, god I just loved him so much.
How did someone who’d gone through such hell turn out to be so damned nice, wanting nothing more than to do little things for someone else, make coffee, serve them dinner, not expecting anything in return?
Fifth, god did I love the sex in this book. It was so hot. I really loved the dirty talk and the public sex, big fan of those. The sex was just really good, I loved those scenes very much.
Sixth, there were some shenanigans towards the end that normally would really have bothered me but it just made so much sense in the story that it didn't bother me at all. I felt like it needed to happen and I understood why it happened. And I really loved how everything was resolved at the end, it was so damn cute and perfect for these two, I loved it very much.
I really loved this book and Lucky and Bo and i'm so excited to continue on with this series.
I received a copy of this book in exchange of my honest opinion
Did Bo have any idea how far Lucky had fallen? Did he know Lucky would give up a shot at freedom to spend a few more days with him? Dangerous thoughts.
I was expecting to like this but I wasn't expecting to love it as much as I did. Everything about this book was perfect for my taste and I had such a fun time reading it.
Brief summary: Lucky has been caught in a crime and was sentenced to 10 years in prison and to save himself some prison time, he has to work for the Southeastern Narcotics Bureau for 8 years. When we meet Lucky, he only has a couple of months left of his deal and then he's free. This is when he meets Bo, who is the new recruit at the bureau and they have to work together on a case linked to a drug ring.
First, I really love Bo and Lucky, they all just felt so real. They both had flaws and good parts to them and I loved how they both felt like actual humans. I loved those two very much. I also really loved them together, they were really good together and really good foils for each other. And I adored their banter, it was so fun.
Second, I really enjoyed the plot of the book. It was really engaging and there was never a boring moment, the action always pulled me right in and kept me interested in the story. I really enjoyed all of the details about their case and how the drug ring worked, it was really enjoyable to read about. The plot was so interesting and I always wanted to keep reading to know what would happen.
Third, I really loved Lucky, even if he was an asshole. He was so grumpy and prickly all the time but I really fucking loved that about him. I also really liked how sweet he was when he let his guard down, it was so nice to get a few glimpses of that. I loved how we got to slowly learn about him and why he's so guarded throughout the book. I loved how he never planed to let someone close to him again but it just happened, it was so nicely done. I really enjoyed how he started to care bit by bit, it started slow and just went bigger and bigger. It was so nicely done. Also, I loved how his fear of attachment was portrayed, it was so nice. Often he would seem like an asshole because he kept pushing Bo away but it made so much sense why we knew his history and why he doesn't trust people. It was hard to be mad at him for it because he felt so real, I could definitely understand why he was so guarded and why he acted how he acted.
Fourth, I really loved Bo too. I loved how sweet he was and how all he wanted was to care for someone. He was so damn nice. I really loved how he was always there for Lucky and just cared for him without ever pushing him. I really loved seeing him open up, he had such a hard past but he was so strong, god I just loved him so much.
How did someone who’d gone through such hell turn out to be so damned nice, wanting nothing more than to do little things for someone else, make coffee, serve them dinner, not expecting anything in return?
Fifth, god did I love the sex in this book. It was so hot. I really loved the dirty talk and the public sex, big fan of those. The sex was just really good, I loved those scenes very much.
Sixth, there were some shenanigans towards the end that normally would really have bothered me but it just made so much sense in the story that it didn't bother me at all. I felt like it needed to happen and I understood why it happened. And I really loved how everything was resolved at the end, it was so damn cute and perfect for these two, I loved it very much.
I really loved this book and Lucky and Bo and i'm so excited to continue on with this series.
I received a copy of this book in exchange of my honest opinion
teresab78's review
4.0
I really enjoyed this book. Lucky and Bo were interesting characters and I liked the plot. I’ve never considered pharmaceuticals to be an exciting subject before.
bookish_notes's review
3.0
Apparently I reviewed this back on my blog May 2020 and just forgot to post this on Goodreads, so here it is!
I gave the entire book a chance because I own the vol. 1 audiobook box set that contains the first 3 books in audio; otherwise, I feel like I would've DNF'd this early on. This book is told solely from Lucky's POV and he can get really tiring to read, very quickly. One saving grace is that the narrator, Darcy Stark, is actually very good and entertaining to listen to. Lucky is a former drug trafficker who got sentenced to 10 years in prison and after 2 years, is now working off the rest of his 8 year sentence working with the SNB - the Southeastern Narcotics Bureau.
Trigger warnings for violence, drug trafficking, mentions of suicide, and mentions of drug addition.
Lucky doesn't have friends at the SNB and he's just planning on working off his time so that he can retire in peace. The man he's closest to is his handler, Walter, who he doesn't hate as much as he pretends to. When Walter finds a newbie for Lucky to train as his replacement, Lucky gets saddled with a partner he never wanted.
Bo is only 4 years younger than Lucky at 31-years-old compared to Lucky's 35, but is said to look younger than that. He's a trained pharmacist and can do the instead jobs that Lucky doesn't have access to on their undercover jobs. Bo is an ex-Marine and 6 feet, a significant height difference standing next to Lucky's 5 foot 6 inches.
I guess this is where I had a hard time reconciling Lucky and Bo's differences. There's nothing in Bo's character that would ever suggest he was ex-Marine and the voice for Bo in the audiobook doesn't really convey that ex-Marine feel to the character either. Bo has a really heavy drawl in his voice too on the audio, which is almost too heavy at times to the point of overdoing it, I think.
This plot of this first book was kind of thin. It does set up a forced proximity situation for the guys to get to know each other better while on assignment, but I really couldn't tell you what Lucky's job was during this whole middle section of the book. While we could see Bo going into and out of the office actually doing some sort of undercover work, it just seemed to me like Lucky acted more like his handler rather than someone who was supposed to be showing him the ropes. I did like that we saw Lucky in his element at the beginning of the book, because we certainly don't really see it the rest of the time.
One thing that was a big no for me is that Bo switched out Lucky's coffee to decaf without him knowing. As a coffee drinker, and seeing what Lucky does at his job, that would absolutely be grounds for murder in my personal opinion. You don't touch people's coffee and switch caffeine out for decaf without their knowledge. Lucky mentioned that he felt jittery after going to Starbucks (because that's where he was getting his caffeine when not at home/with Bo) and that he was feeling more tired than usual on other days. Switching out Lucky to a healthier and even a vegetarian diet? That's fine since Lucky at least KNEW about it. The coffee though? That's abuse and it's not cute.
I think it goes to show I've been reading too many dark romances lately, because I found Lucky's flashbacks with drug dealer and ex-boyfriend Victor more interesting than Lucky's current situation with Bo. I will say that Lucky and Bo's backstories and how they landed up in the SNB are both sad, but I like that they've made their peace with it. Walter is an interesting man for sure, to be able to bring these two men onto his team to work in the narcotics division, given their pasts. But I like that Walter has a bit of a bleeding heart and he cares for his people and willing to give out second chances.
The ending was definitely more dramatic than I would've expected. Also, how Bo tracked Lucky down seems wildly unlikely so a suspension of disbelief is needed. Like I said at the beginning, reading from Lucky's voice is tiring. He's very full of himself and that man has sex on the brain a LOT around Bo. He also has no filter. It was bearable because of the audiobook, but the writing would be hard for me to read in text.
Darcy Stark is a new-to-me narrator and he does a pretty good job. Sometimes a bit over-the-top with the Southern accents, but it's fine. He does female voices really well, which is a plus in my book. But his voice choice for Bo is too high pitched for someone who is supposed to be this 6 foot ex-Marine. It doesn't really mesh. I will say that scene breaks in the audiobook were a bit jarring at first because it felt like there were no pauses before it jumped to the next scene and I don't know if the pause was just too short because I was listening on 1.5x speed or if there was just no pause at all. The sex scenes in the audiobook were almost a little too awkward to listen to for some reason. I can't really pinpoint why, but maybe a bit too enthusiastic in Bo's voice.
This was just an okay start for me in audiobook but I don't think I would've enjoyed this as much in text. I liked the backstories of both Lucky and Bo, but it did feel like a lot of the rest of the story was all over the place. I will be continuing onto the next book, so we'll see how I'll feel about this story as it progresses.
I gave the entire book a chance because I own the vol. 1 audiobook box set that contains the first 3 books in audio; otherwise, I feel like I would've DNF'd this early on. This book is told solely from Lucky's POV and he can get really tiring to read, very quickly. One saving grace is that the narrator, Darcy Stark, is actually very good and entertaining to listen to. Lucky is a former drug trafficker who got sentenced to 10 years in prison and after 2 years, is now working off the rest of his 8 year sentence working with the SNB - the Southeastern Narcotics Bureau.
Trigger warnings for violence, drug trafficking, mentions of suicide, and mentions of drug addition.
Lucky doesn't have friends at the SNB and he's just planning on working off his time so that he can retire in peace. The man he's closest to is his handler, Walter, who he doesn't hate as much as he pretends to. When Walter finds a newbie for Lucky to train as his replacement, Lucky gets saddled with a partner he never wanted.
Bo is only 4 years younger than Lucky at 31-years-old compared to Lucky's 35, but is said to look younger than that. He's a trained pharmacist and can do the instead jobs that Lucky doesn't have access to on their undercover jobs. Bo is an ex-Marine and 6 feet, a significant height difference standing next to Lucky's 5 foot 6 inches.
I guess this is where I had a hard time reconciling Lucky and Bo's differences. There's nothing in Bo's character that would ever suggest he was ex-Marine and the voice for Bo in the audiobook doesn't really convey that ex-Marine feel to the character either. Bo has a really heavy drawl in his voice too on the audio, which is almost too heavy at times to the point of overdoing it, I think.
This plot of this first book was kind of thin. It does set up a forced proximity situation for the guys to get to know each other better while on assignment, but I really couldn't tell you what Lucky's job was during this whole middle section of the book. While we could see Bo going into and out of the office actually doing some sort of undercover work, it just seemed to me like Lucky acted more like his handler rather than someone who was supposed to be showing him the ropes. I did like that we saw Lucky in his element at the beginning of the book, because we certainly don't really see it the rest of the time.
One thing that was a big no for me is that Bo switched out Lucky's coffee to decaf without him knowing. As a coffee drinker, and seeing what Lucky does at his job, that would absolutely be grounds for murder in my personal opinion. You don't touch people's coffee and switch caffeine out for decaf without their knowledge. Lucky mentioned that he felt jittery after going to Starbucks (because that's where he was getting his caffeine when not at home/with Bo) and that he was feeling more tired than usual on other days. Switching out Lucky to a healthier and even a vegetarian diet? That's fine since Lucky at least KNEW about it. The coffee though? That's abuse and it's not cute.
I think it goes to show I've been reading too many dark romances lately, because I found Lucky's flashbacks with drug dealer and ex-boyfriend Victor more interesting than Lucky's current situation with Bo. I will say that Lucky and Bo's backstories and how they landed up in the SNB are both sad, but I like that they've made their peace with it. Walter is an interesting man for sure, to be able to bring these two men onto his team to work in the narcotics division, given their pasts. But I like that Walter has a bit of a bleeding heart and he cares for his people and willing to give out second chances.
The ending was definitely more dramatic than I would've expected. Also, how Bo tracked Lucky down seems wildly unlikely so a suspension of disbelief is needed. Like I said at the beginning, reading from Lucky's voice is tiring. He's very full of himself and that man has sex on the brain a LOT around Bo. He also has no filter. It was bearable because of the audiobook, but the writing would be hard for me to read in text.
Darcy Stark is a new-to-me narrator and he does a pretty good job. Sometimes a bit over-the-top with the Southern accents, but it's fine. He does female voices really well, which is a plus in my book. But his voice choice for Bo is too high pitched for someone who is supposed to be this 6 foot ex-Marine. It doesn't really mesh. I will say that scene breaks in the audiobook were a bit jarring at first because it felt like there were no pauses before it jumped to the next scene and I don't know if the pause was just too short because I was listening on 1.5x speed or if there was just no pause at all. The sex scenes in the audiobook were almost a little too awkward to listen to for some reason. I can't really pinpoint why, but maybe a bit too enthusiastic in Bo's voice.
This was just an okay start for me in audiobook but I don't think I would've enjoyed this as much in text. I liked the backstories of both Lucky and Bo, but it did feel like a lot of the rest of the story was all over the place. I will be continuing onto the next book, so we'll see how I'll feel about this story as it progresses.
liza5326's review
4.0
Lucky made a deal to get himself out of jail early. Finish his time working to with the good guys and his record will be clear. He has a few months to go and now has to work with and train his replacement, Bo. Bo is a former Marine with a few issues of his own. With his pharmacist license, he is able to go undercover at a clinic. From there, the sparks start flying!
I loved Lucky`s internal dialog and how his story unfolded through flashbacks. There was great chemistry between Lucky and Bo and the entire story was incredibly satisfying.
I loved Lucky`s internal dialog and how his story unfolded through flashbacks. There was great chemistry between Lucky and Bo and the entire story was incredibly satisfying.