Book Review: Strangers In Crime

Reviewed by Andrea Marks-Joseph

Delicious, desperate sex between an under-appreciated cop and an intriguing pub owner leads to a collaboration in love and daring rescues.

Set in Glasgow, this dual-pov story has so many of the best romance tropes: opposites attract; an unknowing hookup on the other side of the law; a tough, thoughtful man turned weak for a strong, skilled lead. And it’s all told with a charming local pub home-base.

Shana Frost opens this story with an on-foot police chase, having us meet our lead woman while she’s in the middle of a sprint, chasing a man through the streets of Glasgow. Frost has us feeling almost out of breath as we run alongside police detective Cheryl, whose boss “was on her list of people she would happily knee in the balls. But he was also on the list of people she’d told herself not to assault–until push came to shove anyway. And it hadn’t yet.” 

After this exhausting day at work, she goes to quench her need for food and sex at the nearest pub. This is where Cheryl finds a strange man aggressively confronting a woman he calls his wife, and soon, she’s joined in trying to rescue the woman by a very hot, capable man who says he’ll get the aggressor out of the pub, asking Cheryl to ensure the wife is safe and sorted. He also asks her to wait for him to get back; he’d very much like to get to know her. And the feeling could not be more mutual.

They spend a sensational night together, but at work the next day, she hears about a crime that took place the night before, the details sounding all too familiar but much more violent and suspicious than she was aware of.

Her unlikely but outrageously compatible love interest, Anthony, is an ideal romance hero in many senses: He’s a generous lover who makes sure that Cheryl is satisfied first—and many times over. Vigilante work aside, he’s got an interesting job as pub owner, which author Frost expertly uses to show how he’s capable of taking both tremendous care of and responsibility for his staff. He’s got intriguing secrets that are important to him and he doesn’t want cops around. “I’m not some Batman wannabe who dons a suit and rides around in a fucking car. This is an operation. We investigate everyone for hard evidence, even the victims.” He may not be Batman, but his action scenes are top tier.

Cheryl’s work caused me some stress and anger though. Anthony’s vigilante operation has saved countless women and children from abusive men when the police could or would not, but Cheryl doesn’t engage with that idea much. It’s surprising that someone who grew up in and around foster homes would react with the naivety and disconnection that she did. After Anthony’s explanation, she finally gets to an understanding where she’s willing to lie to her bosses and circumvent the truth, but she is still doing so more to act like a decent human being in this singular social situation than she is recognizing the fault in the job or the law she’s been trained to uphold.

The author provides a helpful content note at the start of the book, which covers the necessary content warnings well, noting that this novella is for readers over the age of 18, confirming open-door sex scenes and that the story “revolves around events, situations, effects and casualties to do with domestic violence.”

Strangers in Crime does so much with its limited number of pages, I’m honestly quite dazzled by it. How can I have so many feelings about the couple (and side characters who I only met briefly!) after such a short time (for me, and for them—it’s only been a few days total in their timeline.) But there’s a weight and a vulnerable quality to the truths shared by Anthony and those closest to him. Cheryl’s change is invaluable and they could only find success because both of the book’s brave leads leaning in to help.

The sneak-peek of the sequel at the end of this book reveals the start of a story just as sexy, suspenseful, and thrilling as this one, for its skirting of the law, pulling at our heartstrings, sense of justice, and our desire for really satisfying on-page sex. It also delivers a handful of laughs, making me anticipate more of the fantastic, sharp comedic bite from this universe’s cast.

With the size, pace, and thrills of Strangers in Crime, you could start reading now and run only a little late for your next meeting. And it will be worth it.

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