Review: The C21 Box Set by Edward Kendrick

Author: Edward Kendrick

Publisher: JMS Books

Length: 351 Pages

Category: Mystery/Suspense

At a Glance: This is a danger filled and suspenseful trilogy.

Reviewed By: Maryann

Blurb: C21 is a covert operation comprised of good men and women who ended up on the wrong side of the law. Now they have a chance to track and punish criminals to whom the law doesn’t seem to apply. In this gay erotic romance box set by best-selling author Edward Kendrick, meet three of C21’s newest recruits.

Contains the stories:

Dylan’s Dilemma: When Dylan accidentally kills his ex-lover, he knows he’s in trouble. Then he meets Mars, who offers him a solution — join C21. There he learns his ex was an arms trafficker and goes undercover to bring down the rest the gang. Things get interesting as he becomes involved with both C21 and Mars. Can their relationship grow before the work they do tears them apart?

Sean’s Predicament: A professional thief, Sean is caught breaking into the home of C21 handler, Jonah, who makes him an offer he can’t resist. Join C21 and put his talents to better use. Teamed with Ken to destroy a phony adoption racket, Sean fights his growing interest in the man, certain it won’t be reciprocated. Is he right? Or will they become more than just partners while stopping a gang of jewel thieves?

Tate’s Quandary: What’s a C21 operative to do when his partner is kidnapped? In Tate’s case, he unwillingly hooks up with Van, an FBI agent and his ex lover, to rescue Gwen from Barone, who runs a prostitution ring they are trying to shut down. Can Tate and Van put aside their past, to find Gwen and stop Barone? Or will working together only destroy the last vestiges of what they once felt for each other?

Review: DYLAN’S DILEMMA

Dylan Russell is not such a bad guy. He has a decent job working as a hotel assistant-manager, and he’s smart. He figured out that his ex-boyfriend was controlling—and then left him—but in a moment of lust and weakness, he makes a big mistake and goes home with his ex, Thomas Samson. When Thomas tries to blackmail him, Dylan accidentally kills him. Going into survival mode, Dylan covers his tracks so no one will discover what occurred, but someone besides his ex has been watching him: C21 operative Garrett “Mars” Marsden.

Mars is a former thief, now a motorcycle riding operative. He tracks Dylan down and gives him an ultimatum. Dylan also finds out Thomas wasn’t exactly who he’d pretended to be. Dylan does feel remorse about his ex, and he feels joining C21 will help him make amends for a terrible mistake. But his life will never be normal again.

At first, I didn’t think Dylan and Mars would hit it off. Mars questioned Dylan’s hook-ups, but Dylan and Thomas had already been on the outs. As Mars and Dylan begin to learn about each, and work as a team, their feelings start to grow. Dylan and Mars find themselves in plenty of danger as they’re partnered up to end a lucrative gun-running business.

Dylan’s Dilemma is the start of an action packed, fast paced, easy to follow danger, suspense and romance trilogy by Edward Kendrick. I thought the concept of the C21organization and its operatives really made this a solid story, and there is an abundance of characters that will take us on their individual journeys.

SEAN’S PREDICAMENT

Sean Miller is an expert thief; he can get past any type of security system and is meticulous about executing his burglaries. He’s also a loner in his escapades, and personal life, and moves from town to town with his trusted and only friend, Pax.

Ken Ward has been with C21 for a while. He was caught in an embezzlement scheme while working for a casino. As a C21 operative, he handles the security technology, so he doesn’t go out on many assignments.

Sean is out on a mission and checking security systems at a certain mansion when he finds himself approached by two men, one of whom is Ken. They tell Sean they’re very much interested in his expertise, and give him his options. Sean and Ken are paired up for training, and as partners to take on a lawyer who is swindling couples out of their money by offering babies for adoption.

Sean’s Predicament is the second installment in Edward Kendrick’s C21 trilogy. Besides being a suspenseful and intriguing thriller, it’s also a sweet love story. Both Ken and Sean are lonely and they become friends—and then, gradually, they grow closer. There are other C21 operatives who have their own stories and make their appearances, but I feel each of the novellas stand alone because there is enough information about C21 carried over to each book.

TATE’S QUANDARY

Tate Butler, C21 operative, is on a mission with his team member Gwenn. She’s been abducted by drug runner and prostitution boss, Barone. In order to find Gwenn and Barone, Tate goes in search of information in the homeless community, and runs across a Mr. Charles, who tells Tate to find “Lay”.

Van Layton, FBI agent, lives among the homeless. He’s also on a mission to try and find Barone and put an end to his drug and prostitution business. Tate is surprised when he finds Lay—who is none other than Van’s former lover. Their relationship just wasn’t meant to be because of different opinions on how missions should be handled. Van, being FBI is straightforward and by the book. Tate, being a C21 operative, deals with a mission to get the job done by any means possible. They team up to find Gwenn and put an end to Barone, but when the mission is over, Tate and Van once again go their separate ways.

Tate’s Quandry is another danger filled and suspenseful story in the C21 trilogy, with romance and a little humor too, and is a great finale to the series.

You can buy C21 Box Set here:
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