Baltimore homicide detective Malcolm Khalaji has his own way of doing things: quiet, methodical, logical, effective, not always particularly legal. He’s used to working alone—and the last thing he needs is a new partner ten years his junior.

Especially one like Seong-Jae Yoon , who also ranks higher than him. Icy , detached & beautiful Seong-Jae is all that and more, impossible to work with and headstrong enough to get them both killed…if they don’t kill each other first.

Criminal Intentions by Cole McCade has 29 books so far and split into 3 seasons , 13 books each in the first two. In a way, it is like any ongoing tv drama with set episodes & seasons ; episode wise cases and one thread going throughout the season that will ( I hope ) climax into a larger story arc. And just like the tv dramas, the relationship of the leads & people around them develops gradually & steadily , one day at a time.

A quick look at the book ratings on Goodreads will tell you that none of the books has been rated below 4 so far, and if that doesn’t spell consistency, nothing else can. Having read 2.25 books from the series so far , I can safely say , the praises are well deserved.

First thing , the covers are gorgeous. Every time I look at the collection in my kindle, I just love the series a little more. And I plan to start collecting the paperbacks soon for the same reason.

Frankly , no one can say it better about the series than the author, who has done this wonderful thread on each book and what to expect from it.

But still, I will try to summarize why I am so much in love with the series already :

❝ He spoke a million words with every little touch, even when he said nothing at all.

But sometimes, somehow …

It soothed the scrape of the raw edges, where they tried to fit together. ❞

☆ Grumpy older wolf-ish Iranian lead who loves to be alone , but has the most love for people he likes

☆ Even colder, Korean American , beautiful lead who loves to annoy the other and has no concept of space with his partner.

☆ Interesting cases that explore human psyche and focus on not only the victim but people associated with him ; how death affects everyone touched by it

☆ The leads bicker like old married couple , protect each other, poke each other lot more and can be total ass with each other but they always apologize for things that matter

☆ They talked over phone about their feelings , and it was so intimate and sweet.

☆ They make a killer team together

☆ The single episodes always end with hints of something bigger and more evil lurking around the leads. It creates so much atmosphere to the story.

☆ LGBTQ+ representation & Amazing side characters

☆ Good humor & sarcasm , great flirtations and very real relationship progression for the leads

☆ The constant psychoanalysis & trying to understand each other is so intense , in a very good way.

Well, with two books, I can only talk this much but I know from the research that their slow burn is so epic and totally fulfilling. I can’t wait to finish the season and return to talk so much more about these two men in one of my future posts. *Promise*
Here’s the Goodreads page for the series-

https://www.goodreads.com/series/230782-criminal-intentions

If you want to follow my live updates on the series, please follow my reading journey on twitter-

https://twitter.com/hashtag/PratsReads?src=hashtag_click&f=live

Rating- 4.5 of 5