Review: Soul of Discretion by Susan Mac Nicol and M. Tasia

Title: Soul of Discretion

Authors: Susan Mac Nicol and M. Tasia

Length: 220 Pages

Category: Contemporary

At a Glance: I highly recommend this story; it kept my attention and often made me smile. As first collaborations go, I think it is a good one and I hope it’s not their last.

Reviewed By: Carrie

Blurb: CAN YOU KEEP A SECRET

Simon Bridgeworth believes in loyalty, and keeping things in-house. When he discovers his best friend, who has been running the Canadian division of Simon’s tech empire, has been skimming millions from the company, Simon flies to Toronto to get to the bottom of the theft and learns his friend has been murdered. Devastated and at a loose end, Simon knows there’s no way the company’s problems can be kept under wraps now. Imagine his surprise when he learns the Mountie investigating the murder is the first repeat Simon has allowed himself in years.

Sergeant Nick Cooper is a proud member of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police. He’s served his country in the military, and now he’s protecting the citizenry of Toronto. But devotion to duty is no longer enough. On a whim, Nick hooks up with Aristocrat69 on crUIzer, and what started as one night of incredible sex turns into an attraction neither man can ignore. When a grisly mob murder sends Nick to the Breakforce corporation, he is shocked to discover his lover is none other than its CEO. When Simon’s life is threatened, ethical lines blur as Nick does anything to keep him safe – no cost is too high for the man who has become Nick’s everything.

Review: Soul of Discretion is the first collaboration between these two authors, and I hope it isn’t the last. Mac Nicol’s edgier side is complemented well by Tasia’s more romantic approach to writing, and the end result just works. Is it a police procedural or a mystery? No. It is, at its heart, a romance, and as such takes some liberties on the investigative side of the storyline. You can see where Mac Nicol’s additions ground the story when it seems to skew from probability, and provides a foundation for the characters that keep them relatable.

Simon Bridgeworth has worked hard to be the man that he is. Titled or not, he believes that hard work pays off. At twenty-eight he started Breakforce Limited, a company dedicated to interactive technology, AI systems, and creating better prosthetics for the disabled. Simon is a man in control, so when the new offshoot of his company in Canada loses over three million dollars, Simon is on a plane to track down what happened in person. Simon appointed one of his close friends, Jack Teeman, as the CEO of the Canada operations, and the betrayal is hitting him hard. A cryptic phone call from Jack has Simon wondering if something bigger than embezzlement could be going on.

Nick Cooper has given some of his best years to serving his country. Joining the army straight out of high school, he then became a Mountie and now works in their Drugs and Organized Crime Investigations Unit. After a decade of having such an intense job, Nick is a little burned out and is starting to wonder if there is more to life than putting bad guys behind bars. He longs for someone to come home to, someone to love.

From the first meeting on the page, our two MCs have enough chemistry to last a lifetime. The relationship doesn’t come right away, they make us wait for it, but as a reader you can feel the pull between the two men and know that one is going to cave, eventually. That it is Simon who caves first is oddly satisfying, signifying his acquiescence to letting a person behind his walls. It also serves as a counterbalance when the teeter-totter goes the other way, and in the end, Nick is the one who bridges the gap these two keep between them. The mystery portion of the story, where the missing millions went and why, wraps up in a way that’s reminiscent of a crime drama. I appreciated the fact that the crime and punishment portion of the storyline was used as a vehicle to push the romance forward, not the other way around, and hence, the story doesn’t end when the bad guys get arrested—the focus stays on our MCs, and I loved that.

Simon is a great character. He’s relentless without being rigid, and under all the bluster has a heart of gold and quirky sense of humor. Nick’s character is a curious dichotomy of hard-nosed Mountie with a military background on the outside and a kind hearted teddy bear on the inside. There is a colorful mix of secondary characters, ranging from Collette, Simon’s secretary (who has whispers of a Moneypenny type character), to her husband Peter, who acts as Simon’s personal right hand. These secondary characters along with Nick’s police force friends help to round our MCs and make them more than two-dimensional. This story flows well; it’s an easy read and while not scoring high on the angst or suspense scale, it reaches right up there with the romance. We get a dual POV with this story, and that really helps as both of our MCs are multilayered. The authors tried to throw some angst in there at the end, and it really could have been left out. When all was said and done, I just wanted Nick to have a pony, and in my mind, since they all belong to Simon anyway, he got one.

I highly recommend this story; it kept my attention and often made me smile. As first collaborations go, I think it is a good one and I hope it’s not their last.

You can buy Soul of Discretion here:
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