Next of Kin by Astrid Amara

Being a Hell Cop is hard on a man, especially on Parmas City where all things technological are powered by demons and those demons are controlled by a few select families. Jay Yervant has several strikes against him as a Hell Cop – first, he's gay, second, he's one of the heirs of the powerful sorcerous families and lastly, Jay has so much energy coursing through him that he ignites everything he touches unless protected by special clothing.  Everything for Jay changes when he meets the strangely innocent Brian Day – the only person that has ever been able to touch Jay without burning. But as Brian is hunted by rogue demons Jay realizes that there is more to Brian than meets the eye… But will they survive to pursue whatever relationship they can build together?

Astrid Amara outdoes herself in Next of Kin creating a novella that is full of compelling characters who live in a fascinatingly dangerous world. Jay is a jaded man that has learned to live without human touch, but that hasn’t stopped from sorely lamenting the lack of it in his life. Brian, on the other hand, is charmingly naïve and full of surprises that change more lives than his own – especially Jay’s in the best way possible. Next of Kin is both a lava hot read that is action packed from start to finish as well as a riveting read that will make it hard to put down once you start reading it!

Red Sands by Nicole Kimberling

Michael is not having a good day. Although he finally is returning home from one of the demon realms, he gets bumped during transit with what ends up being his dead cousin’s body, so now Michael if the chief suspect the police have for this crime. Luckily, Michael has a good lawyer and seems to have stumbled onto a cop that looks to have a genuine interest in clearing Michael’s name. But the more information they find out, the more questions remain unanswered… Will Michael survive this ordeal long enough to explore his feeling for this strange cop?

Red Sands by Nicole Kimberling is an interesting read full of intriguing characters. However, it felt that the development of the plot and the romance between the characters was hampered by the short length of the story. Still, Red Sands is a fun and engaging read that left me with the desire to look up more Nicole Kimberling works.

Touching Sparks by Ginn Hale

When James Sparks first went to his old neighbor Detective Ben Moran with the concern of an illegal demon fighting ring and venom trafficking, James thought that would be the end of it. However, when Moran started explaining how difficult it would be for the police to do anything of significance without hard evidence, James sets himself out to gather the evidence that Moran needs to end this grotesque form of entertainment, but also to impress Moran into seeing him as more than the boy he knew so many years ago. But when the stakes are raised and both their lives are in danger, will Moran and James have what it takes to survive and come together?

Ginn Hale wrote a compelling and scorchingly hot story in Touching Sparks. Moran is taciturn to the point of incomprehensibility, until we get a glimpse at his thoughts and his reserve becomes clearly understood. James, on the other hand, is young but not impulse – he is driven by his need to right wrongs and impress upon Moran that he is a man that is not only capable, but willing, to take him on. The action in Touching Sparks is fast paced and gripping and the explosive connection between James and Moran will have you sweating long before the last pages is turned!

Hell Cop is wonderful collection of stories that are neat threaded together by the shared world and common characters. It must be noted that Next of Kin by Astrid Amara clearly stands out as the best story in the collection, and in and of itself is worth the price of admission. As a whole Hell Cop is an anthology that should not be missed by m/m lovers that like having paranormal elements driving the action of the story. Pick it up today!