A review by katereads2much
Dirty Games by HelenKay Dimon

5.0

Justin Miller knows Finn Drummond is off limits and out of his reach. If the woman on Finn's arm when they met hadn't told him that, Finn's brother Alec had unquestionably made it clear Finn was in love with his girlfriend and, consequently, off the market. Knowing Finn is unavailable and straight doesn't keep Justin from wanting the man. When even hooking up with Finn's brother doesn't help take the edge off his attraction, he uses the only other weapon in his arsenal to keep Finn away from him--his anger.

Finn has worked hard to prove that he knows what he's doing in business and to be the kind of leader that the charity arm of his family's company needs him to be. When Justin asks Alec to come find out why some of the supplies have gone missing, Finn insists on going instead. It is going to be his responsibility and nothing Justin throws at him is going to change his determination, not even the intense dislike Justin has for him.

If you've been reading my reviews, you may know that I was lukewarm about the previous book in this series, Dirty Deeds. I liked the book, but I didn't love it. I did like Finn, who was introduced in Dirty Deeds and I was curious to see where the next book in the series would go.

Well, Dear Reader, let me just say that I was not at all lukewarm about Dirty Games, not even a little bit. This was precisely the read I was looking for in the last one. This one had me staying up so late that my eyes were watering, but I fought through every yawn to finish before I went to sleep because I had to know.

Justin is so scared of his attraction to Finn, even more so when he finds out that Finn is bi and not straight, as he had previously assumed because now he fears loving and losing.

I will say that Justin is stubborn, and it started to wear on me. However, as I would get ready to yell at him for being an idiot he would either make a step in the right direction, or his right-hand man would yell at him and say all the things I wanted to say.

There were a lot more guys in this than there were women as is typically for m/m romance, but I'm pleased to say that it at least made sense considering the environment--the actual place is fictional, but it's a believable tumultuous area where women would be discouraged from working. The women they do have in the story, make sense and are unique from each other and have different strengths, which I personally appreciate. And while each woman has people in her care, neither of them comes off as "motherly." I can't say enough how much I appreciate that.

The tension between the characters is marvelous, and the tension in the plot compliments the characters' chemistry nicely. The logistics, in my opinion, worked better in this one than in the first one and it made for a stronger, more immersive story.

There were a few places where I got a little frustrated with Justin, but overall, both characters had my heart, and I was invested in their story.

Dirty Games is exciting and engaging and hot. It is probably better if you read Dirty Deeds first, but you can read Dirty Games on its own.

Thanks to NetGalley for providing a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.