Designed For Murder by Avery Flynn – a Review

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Description:
Some fashion statements can kill…

Mika Ito combines her two favorite things in life—textile design and live-action role-playing (LARP)—by creating costumes for her fellow Magic Battledome gamers. Lately, someone’s been assaulting LARPers and stealing their costumes. Concerned for the safety of her friends, Mika hires Maltese Security…only to discover that the lead investigator is the super-hot stranger she just hooked up with.

Carlos Castillo is all too familiar with Magic Battledome. A former legend in role-playing circles, he was all about gaming, until things went very, very wrong for him. Now he’s forced to return to the game undercover—as Mika’s boyfriend—to find some answers. Only playing “boyfriend” with his gorgeous one-night stand is more temptation than a guy can withstand…

Someone wants the costumes enough to kill for them. And when it comes to murder, nothing is what it seems…

Review:

Designed for Murder begins with two different sets of friends having drinks at a local watering hole. Carlos is there with his Maltese Security coworkers to blow off a little steam. Mika and her friends are having a girls’ night out. When one of Carlos’ coworkers dares him to go over and ask one of the girls to dance, he has no idea how much things are about to change. He approaches Mika and she points out there is no dance floor, to which he replies “I’m willing to risk it”…………. They hit it off and decide to go back to his apartment. However, after a lust filled night, Mika awakens to discover that she’s late for a very important meeting and skips out, much to Carlos’ disdain…..But, he knows it’s for the best. After his last relationship ended horribly (UNDERSTATEMENT!), he doesn’t think he has it in him to start another.

Mika runs into Maltese Security late and a little disheveled. As she tells them that someone is attacking members of her court and taking, of all things, their costumes. The police don’t seem to be too concerned, but Mika knows something is up, and she’s afraid someone will be seriously injured. As she explains about LARPing, they tell her they have the perfect guy for this case. Enter, yep, you guessed it, Carlos. You can just imagine how shocked he and Mika both are to see each other so soon. When Carlos protests his participation, he is told by his boss that he will take the job.

As Carlos begins to question Mika about what exactly is going on, he soon figures that things aren’t as they appear. The two of them start tracking down information that leads to startling revelations and soon discover that their attraction and chemistry is undeniable. Will Carlos be able to finally put the ghosts of his past to rest in order to keep Mika safe? Well, you’ll just have to read to find out.

Designed for Murder is a fun, fast paced read. It’s also a little different. I mean LARPing??!! LOL!! This was a first for me, but I loved the story. Mika and Carlos are great together. She is a little spitfire that he’s not quite sure about at first. And, she knows that he’s holding back for some reason with her. As they both work out their issues, the romance that blossoms is great to read. If you’re looking for a fun, sexy and a little different read, you can’t go wrong with Designed for Murder. Well done, Avery Flynn!

Reviewed by Vickie

Copy provided by Publisher