Title: Heart and Soul
Author: Evangeline Anderson
Publisher: Loose Id
Genre: Contemporary M/M
Length: Novella (21K words)
Rating: 4.25 stars out of 5
THE BLURB
The Boys are Back…
It’s been two years since tall, dark, and stoic Detective Valenti, and his partner, blond, intense O’Brian came to terms with their true feelings for each other. Going undercover at the RamJack, the most notorious gay resort in the country, tested their friendship to the limit and forged a new love between them that has grown immeasurably since. The partners always have each other’s backs and never let each other down.
But now O’Brian has accepted a new, dangerous undercover assignment where Valenti cannot follow. Working for James Talbert, the man who is single-handedly responsible for more illegal pornography than anyone else in the country, is bad enough. But the porn kingpin is also suspected of making gay snuff films—and his last five stars have ended up six feet under.
Valenti begs his partner not to go, but O’Brian is determined to take the assignment—and then fails to check in at the appointed time. Fearing the worst, Valenti goes undercover to rescue his partner, only to find himself caught in Talbert’s sadistic web. Now he and O’Brian will be forced to act out a madman’s darkest desires on film and hope they both survive. The ordeal will test and twist their love for each other, but will it draw them closer together or drive them apart? Whatever happens, it will force them to bare themselves to each other in a way they never have before, both Heart and Soul.
THE REVIEW
It’s no secret that The Assignment reviewed here is one of my top 10 M/M romances. Sean O’Brian and Nick Valenti can do no wrong in my book. This new adventure, Heart and Soul, their first book since The Assignment (other than a couple of fun shorts around Christmas and the Fourth of July), showcases O’Brian’s and Valenti’s talents as detectives and their ability to make the tough decisions when needed. This book also shows once more their love and devotion for each other and that they will do whatever it takes to keep that love going.
In Heart and Soul O’Brian volunteers for an assignment to bring porn kingpin James Talbert to justice. Talbert wasn’t your usual dealer of porn – he made snuff films using gay twinks. O’Brian had some experience playing a twink on their last mission so he felt qualified to take on this role again. Valenti was upset that O’Brian had accepted the job without consulting him as they had been lovers for 2 years since the Ramjack and whatever decisions Sean made affected him as well. Nick feared he could lose Sean, but despite his pleas he couldn’t change his partner’s mind. Outside of the love and hot sex between them they trusted each other and Valenti felt betrayed that O’Brian had violated that trust by not at least discussing this operation with him before signing on. In his mind this mission put both their lives at risk; if anything bad happened to Sean he couldn’t go on without him. Sean O’Brian on the other hand felt strongly that it was up to him to take Talbert out and shut down this monster’s operations..
A month after Sean had been on the job he didn’t call in as usual and Nick was so upset he demanded that Captain Harris send in a team to extricate Sean. He was sure that something was very wrong because Sean never failed to call every day as he knew how important this was to Nick, and the only way he wouldn’t do so was if he was incapacitated. When Nick was given permission by his boss to check on his partner his worst fear was realized, Talbert had him showcased as his newest star – bound, hands behind his back and blindfolded, with a noose around his neck; and now Nick was also Talbert’s prisoner. Would they be able to extricate themselves from this newest hell hole alive? This was another life or death situation for these two detectives who had come through relatively unscathed from the Ramjack assignment, but would this newest test prove to be their undoing?
This story is much darker than The Assignment and O’Brian and Valenti are Talbert’s newest recruits who are destined for stardom and then death at the end of the movie. But before they get there Talbert has plans to make their lives even more miserable, tightening the noose, literally, around Valenti’s neck with a gun trained on both of them to show he meant business, as he orders Sean to do his dirty work for him.
Evangeline Anderson upped the ante with her newest villain James Talbert who made Vincent Conrad the drug dealer from the Ramjack assignment seem like small change. Talbert played Russian roulette with our heroes and had many other weapons in his arsenal that didn’t involve firearms but were just as deadly. He made O’Brian injure Valenti so badly he required medical care and both their professional and personal relationships were in danger of being terminated as O’Brian’s guilt and anguish about his partner’s injuries at his hands had a traumatic effect on him.
I loved Heart and Soul and the characterizations were just as good as I have come to expect from Evangeline Anderson but there were missing elements and I would have loved some of the humour between the guys that was very evident in The Assignment. The writer’s trademark angst is apparent although there wasn’t too much of this in Heart and Soul, mainly I think due to the length of the book. I should point out that the plot is quite similar to The Assignment – only the location, the villain and the crime are different. Also, I thought the end of the takedown was rushed. However, I realize that since this was a novella the author’s speed to wrap up the story and resolve Sean’s and Nick’s personal issues was quite understandable.
The best part of this book for me was the way the love between the protagonists has matured and deepened since I last met them. Although O’Brian and Valenti were in imminent danger in their current situation I had faith they would come out of it reasonably intact, otherwise there would be no hope for other adventures starring two of my favourite detectives. 🙂 As always, the sex between these two characters was intense as they climbed into each other’s skin and had a party that didn’t require firecrackers.
Even though Heart and Soul didn’t have the complexity of The Assignment which introduced readers to these two detectives, it was unique in its own way by showing how suppportive they were of each other in the middle of an extremely dangerous operation. The Assignment was the first Gay For You M/M book that I had ever read where the romance between two straight men seemed realistic, and I became very fond of the guys because of the way the author made them so three dimensional. In this new story I thought that the characters were just as well drawn.
If you’re a fan of either the author or The Assignment and like GFY romances you won’t want to miss Heart and Soul, another dangerous but enjoyable episode with O’Brian and Valenti who just can’t seem to stay away from trouble and each other. While you can enjoy this book without reading The Assignment I would strongly recommend that you read the previous book first to fully understand O’Brian’s and Valenti’s story. I had a really hard time rating this book and waffled quite a bit even just before posting this review, but I had to be as objective as possible even though I love this series.
Heart and Soul will be released on Tuesday, February 9th, by Loose Id.
Great review, Wave 🙂
I really enjoyed their previous stories and this one sounds like another good one.
Hi Lily
It is a good story. The only problem is that every book written in The Assignment universe will suffer from being compared to the original.
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Evangeline did a really good job here and Sean and Nick were just as lusty as ever. 🙂
As soon as I saw the heading of this post in my Blogger reading list and read “Evangeline” and “the boys are back” I squee-d and rushed to Loose ID – only to realize the book wasn’t out yet :(. Damn. *pouting* I don’t mind it being darker or having the same basic plot as the Assignment, all I want is more Valenti and O’Brian, especially since you say Evangeline’s managed to develop the relationship between them even further. *drums fingers and checks how many hours are left until Tuesday*
Mary
Now I can prove that you don’t read my reviews. 🙂 If you had read it you would have seen the release date at the bottom highlighted for people like you.
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It is a good story, but as usual I wanted more, more, more.
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I hope that the response to this story is so good she will have to write another one.
Good Morning! I absolutely loved The Assignment. Was a bit dissapointed to see Heart & Soul not available yet, sooo I think I’ll re-read The Assignment today in anticipation!! Can’t wait!! Thanks Wave
Sue
Not only did I review Heart and Soul for all the fans of The Assignment, but Evangeline is guest blogging here tomorrow. If you care to drop by you can ask her questions about the Assignment as well as Heart and Soul.
Lol. I went to check Loose ID before I read the review – I just saw the first few lines in my Blogger dashboard’s Reading List thingy, you know the place where you see the latest posts on the blogs you follow? Anyway. I actually didn’t want to read the review because whenever I’m highly anticipating a release, I’m afraid of learning bad things about the book which I would have preferred not to know. Since the book wasn’t to be found at Loose ID or on Evangeline’s site, I gave in and opened the review, and that’s when I saw the date at the bottom. I skimmed through the review trying to avoid seeing too much details ;). The surprise effect enhances a read a lot for me.
And I know you know I read your reviews, so I won’t bother claiming my innocence 😀
Mary
I know you don’t read my reviews until after you have read the book so I’m not surprised. 😀
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Don’t forget that Evangeline will be here guest blogging tomorrow.
You are so lucky, great review!
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I think The Assignment was the first m/m I read. I wasn’t dissapointed. Two more days to wait for it, I guess I’ll have to read T.A’s new book while waiting for this one. 😉
Hi Aliens
It’s only 2 days to go – at least I didn’t review it when I actually received the book or you guys would have killed me. 🙂
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T.A.’s new book will be a good way to pass the time while waiting for Tuesday.
It is a big cruel tease to print the review days before the book is released. I have been anxiously awaiting H&S since Anderson mentioned it on Facebook a few months ago.
I really enjoyed your review. I don’t mind if the story is dark, I will take whatever I can get from these great characters. Now I just need a copy of the book! 😛
Hey Diane
It’s only 2 days. As I mentioned to Aliens, I could have reviewed the book before but I didn’t want everyone to hate me. 🙂
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You can talk to Evangeline tomorrow when she’s on the site and tell her you’re pissed at me because you have to wait ONLY 2 days for the book. 🙂
I read the whole review (but then I know the end already) but was wondering how I’d missed that we’d already released it. Glad I read to the end. 🙂
Hi Treva
Darn it – you weren’t supposed to see this until Tuesday. Where did I mess up? 😀
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Hey even though I’m early I’m doing a good job promoting both this book and The Assignment. I still remember when I got other readers to petition Loose Id to release the Assignment in print. 🙂 We love these guys.
I loved The Assignment, also, but I am sad to see that it will not be released in print yet. It is a lot more convinient for reading purposes, and I will have to wait to download it online. However, if it does come down to downloading, I will. The series is wonderful, and I fell in love with the characters. I can’t wait to own it, one way or another!
Evangeline’s “The Assignment” initiated me to M/M. So this should be a must-read for me. 🙂
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I wonder if Evangeline knows about Valenti and O’Brien making the dream of V/Butch come true, in a way. 😉
Lilli
A lot of M/M fans have Evangeline to thank for The Assignment.
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Mary is the one to talk to about Butch and V since she’s a huge fan. I even have a PWP with them – maybe I should send it to you if I can find it.
OMG! That would be great, Wave, I’d love to read it some day. Thank you! 🙂
I’m a huge fan, too, and – of course – a devoted member of “team Qhinn/Blay”. 😉 (I’m sure I forgot an “h” there somewhere…)
Lilli
I found it. Email me at jessewave@gmail.com and it will be on its way, you perv. 😀
*lol* I’ll take that as a compliment from you. 😉
Thanks again, Wave! 🙂
The Assignment is one of only a handful of books that have bought both in ebook and print formats. Is H&S scheduled for a print release too? Do we need to start another petition? 🙂
Diane,
At 21K it’s too short for print. Maybe if we can persuade Evangeline to write another adventure starring the boyz, Loose Id will consider it if we petition them at that time. 😀
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You should ask her when she’s on the site tomorrow if another story is on the horizon.
“Mary is the one to talk to about Butch and V since she’s a huge fan.”
Hehehe. I was in the process of writing my reply to Lilli’s message when yours popped up, Wave 😀 Oh yes, Evangeline knows about the Butch & V parallel *g*. I first read The Assignment when I was at the height of my Butch & V obsession, shortly after Lover Revealed came out, and it fitted the Butch and V situation so closely, characters, personnalities and chemistry so well I almost couldn’t believe it was a coincidence. But it was, since Assignment was written before Lover Revealed came out. The Assignment probably saved my sanity in those days, I was dying from the frustration and the yearning for Butch and V’s relationship to get the resolution it should have had. However, I do want to mention that I soon started to appreciate Valenti and O’Brian for themselves :-D.
*g* I can so understand the obsession part. 😉 V and Butch got me curious and in my utter frustration I served the net to mourne with fellow fans and by accident stumbled upon a rec for “The Assignment” as a kind of “substitute”. But you’re right, Mary, Valenti and O’Brian very quickly liberated themselves!
I pretty well remember that I came out of that story a bit dazed because before that I hadn’t even thought about M/M, not to mention M/M erotica. *g* Henceforward I was addicted. Badly. And now I’m a perv, go figure! 🙂
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I cross my fingers that we’ll get a Qhay story…!
Mary
I’m so glad that you came over to the dark side where real men play. None of this waffling that goes on with Butch and V – Are they gay? Are they not? Do they? Don’t they? We know that O’Brian and Valenti do the nasty together. 😀
Whee! 🙂 Mark me down as another who read The Assignment as one of my first M/M books…probably 2nd or 3rd, I don’t recall. In fact, several of my first half dozen books were all hers. 🙂 I went on an Anderson reading spree in my early days….
Can’t wait to read this–thanks for reviewing. And compared to SF review blogs where one might read a review days, weeks, or even months before a book comes out…a few days is nothing, folks! LOL.
Hi Kendall
Join the club. We are all fans of The Assignment, but Heart and Soul is not chopped liver by any means – it’s a terrific story. However, as I said earlier, every subsequent book starring O’Brian and Valenti will be compared to the original.
Keep telling yourself you are not evil Wave, and maybe someday I will believe you. That slip about a new TA book was also by accident I suppose??
Good thing tuesday comes here sooner than in CA!
Ingrid
Et tu Brutus? I only posted the review 2 days before. 😀 I swear I’m not an evil witch. Treva is not mad at me (I think) 🙂
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T.A’s book is out today so you can read another good book until Tuesday rolls around.
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I swear this is the last “advance” review (till the next one). 🙂
Hi all,
I’m on early (or rather late) and can’t believe the lovely response Wave’s review has already gotten. Thanks to everyone who asked for a new Assignment book and made me want to revisit the boys. As anyone who reads my books knows, I almost NEVER write sequels. However, O’Brian and Valenti are so real to me that it’s easy to slip back into their world–almost like writing fanfiction of my own original story, if that makes any sense. : )
I will indeed be guest blogging at Wave’s tomorrow and will try to be off and on answering any questions. My two year old son has pinkeye, though, and will be home with me all day so it may be hit or miss. And I will probably be answering everyone’s dirty questions about hot M/M sex while The Wiggles play on Youtube for Ben. lol (Good thing he’s too young to read!)
And for those of you who mentioned Butch and V and team Quay, guys, I am right there with you. I adore JR Ward and am in awe of her writing style and craftsmanship. I so want Qhuin and Blay to have their very own book, not just a piece of someone else’s. They are a hot couple and I am hoping JR will decide they deserve a book of their own.
Will see you all later! And thanks Wave for the great reivew, you’re always so supportive. I really appreciate it.
Hugs, Evangeline : )
Hi E
Good morning. I hope Ben is feeling better today.
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As you can see the guys are all over me because I reviewed Heart and Soul 2 days before the release date. 🙂 They don’t mind, not really (do you guys?) I LOVED the book and am hoping that you will write another one with O’Brian and Valenti so that we can get a matched pair of print books – I know this one is too short for LI to release in print, but with another book they won’t have any excuse. 🙂
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Looking forward to seeing you on the site later today.
I loved The Assignment and can’t wait for Heart & Soul! I hope Valenti wasn’t injured really, really, really badly tho! I have no more tears to shed after reading Keeping Promise Rock! Thanks for the review, Wave!
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And I’m glad I get to read reviews before the books come out, I’ve regretted a few bad buys from Dreamspinners of late..
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I’m sure though, a sequel to The Assignment couldn’t possibly be anything but good!
Hi Salina
You will really love Heart and Soul. I read it again last night and loved it even more. Maybe I’ll change the rating! 🙂
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As for Valenti’s injuries you will have to read the book to find out more – my lips are sealed.
Poor Valenti, he has it rough in this one. But he pulls through with a little help from O’Brian.
: )
I liked the story good enough but I think it missed a kind of build up. Also how was Sean caught?
To me it could have done with a few more pages.
Ingrid
I mentioned in the review that the takedown was rushed and I missed some of the elements of The Assignment which made it unique, especially the humour between the guys. However because this is a novella there was much that was between the lines, including how Sean was caught. Heart and Soul was mainly from Valenti’s POV so there’s not a lot of what happened to Sean until the end.
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I think another 25 – 30 pages would have helped to fill in the blanks but with these short formats authors have to work within a word count and readers end up asking a lot of questions about missing elements in the stories.
*mild spoiler ahead*
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Hey Wave… you weren’t kidding when you said this one was dark. I expected the “film” scene to be more like the showdown with Conrad in The Assignment. I figured the guys were going to be “forced” to engage in some kinky BSDM play that they would ultimately like, and that maybe O’Brien was going to get too into it and accidently hurt Valenti… but wow, that was not the case.
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I still liked it, mainly because of O’Brien’s new attitude about thinking of himself as gay. I love how each novella hallmarks a different milestone in their relationship.
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I could still use another story in this series. The publisher can bundle Fireworks, Heart and Soul and a final one into another print book to accompany The Assignment and I’ll Be Hot For Christmas.
Hi Diane
I’m still getting over the scene with O’Brian and Valenti; I thought it was too much. However that’s just me.
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For Heart and Soul to be out in print Evangeline would have to write another story to be bundled with it since H & S is a novella. Maybe, like you said, the publishers could add Fireworks to complete the series.
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If there is another story I just hope that the guys don’t get hurt like this again, it’s too painful. I realize they are just characters in a book but I like them a lot and I hate scenes like this.
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>>I still liked it, mainly because of O’Brien’s new attitude about thinking of himself as gay. I love how each novella hallmarks a different milestone in their relationship<< This was perhaps the best part of the story.
I was recently in a discussion about the differences between dubious consent and non-consensual scenes. Of course the line is different for everyone, but I often like dub con scenes where both people like what is happening but can’t allow themselves to admit it. The scene with Conrad in The Assignment I thought was a good example of that. After reading the disturbing (and extended) non-con scene in H&S, the difference in tone is unmistakable.
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It was definitely a risk for the author to take, but she has banked up so much goodwill with these characters I think readers will be able to follow her down a dark road for a bit.
Diane
I don’t mind dub con – sometimes it adds spice but I do have difficulty with non con such as that scene in H & S. Since O’Brian and Valenti are detectives I would expect them to be hurt while doing their job, especially if it’s undercover, but I think certain areas should be off limits for obvious reasons (I can’t say much because I don’t want to be a spoiler).
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Authors do have to show character growth and take risks, and Evangeline is an excellent author. I know that I for one can’t wait for the newest book in this series, if she decides to write another one – I just hope that injuries are kept to a minimum. I feel the same way about Ty & Zane in Sticks & Stones.
Hi guys, Evangeline here. I’m sorry so many of you felt like I put the guys in a dark place. But really (and this is the reason I usually don’t like writing sequels) every time you add to an established relationship, you have to raise the stakes in some way. There has to be more danger, kinkier sex, more angst or some kind of revelation that was lacking in the previous books in the series. At least, that is my take on it as an author.
I don’t really know if I could write a happy-go-lucky story about the guys on vacation or something like that. I will give it some thought but the bottom line is that they have to remain true to themselves. There would be nothing worse than trying to force out a story I thought everyone would like and finding that I had put the guys OOC.
I would like to write at least one more book in the Assignment universe. Let me give it some thought and see what the muse brings me. In the meantime, thanks everyone for reading and caring about Valenti and O’Brian.
E
Evangeline
As I said in the comment above, I recognize that there has to be character growth, it was just that H & S was much darker than I expected. Authors have to write the books they want to write, and as you said you have to be true to the characters. Injuries are expected in their line of work – I just didn’t anticipate this type of injury.
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We all selfishly hope that you will write at least one more story (and it doesn’t have to be hearts and flowers) 😀 because we would like to have another print book.
It’s okay, Wave, I don’t mind your critique and everyone is entitled to their opinion. When I told an author friend of mine, who is a fan of The Assignment, what the plot of this one was, she didn’t even want to read it at first. She did eventually have a look when I promised her there was a happy ending but it took some convincing on my part.
I’d love to do another print book too but, as always, that’s up to the Loose id crew. My guess is that it will depend on how well Heart and Soul sells. If the numbers are good, they may ask me to write another in order to put them all together in one book. If that happened, I would certainly try to get my muse working becasue I love those pretty author copies on my shelf!
: ) E
I bought the new book and then realized I had to re-read The Assignment, etc. before reading it. 🙂 Yay!
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I’m about to re-read the two shorts (I re-read TA last night).
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I can’t wait to read the new book; I’m even more intrigued now than before!
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Kendall (ready to follow into dark places 😉
Hi Kendall
Please let us know if this dark place is what you expected. 🙂 The fun part of this new book is that we all have an excuse to re-read The Assignment, as if we needed an excuse. 🙂
I need to take a week off to catch up on my reading…. I FINALLY read Heart and Soul. Not enough hours in the day….
I’m not sure what I expected, but I liked it and I was fine with the “darkness.” I liked how in the aftermath, picking up the pieces, they moved forward in a few ways (emotionally, sexually, and personally). 🙂