Genre: Adult Urban Fantasy
Year Release: 2021
Source: Kindle

Content warning: blood play, violence, murder, autopsy

Vampire Dorian Villeneuve and cowboy Cassius “Cash” Leroy are hunters going against all sorts of cryptids, from vampires to mothman to the pair of weredeer hunting others for their hearts. Partners in crime, but it seems they both want to be partners in much more.

This book is a goddamn delight with a compelling friendship-turned-romance that’s as easy to invest in as the mystery behind the grisly murders.

Dorian and Cash are as compelling as they are sexy. Both men have pasts that haunt them in ways both supernatural and emotional. I found myself getting so invested in their individual and mutual healing, especially when both of their damage affects the relationship between the two. There are so many layers that unfold as the story goes on. I also do like the comforting details, namely Dorian’s Chihuahua and Cash’s love of karaoke. It adds such much-needed levity amidst the angst and tension.

Another triumph in this work is the accessibility of the prose. It’s so clear and crisp, with elegant turns of phrase that highlight both the horrors and the tenderness found throughout. The action and emotional beats were super easy to follow, and the reiteration of each character’s damage felt organic despite the more immediately life-threatening situations.

Cubed has such as knack for characterization, and it was wonderful spending so many pages with these two, I can’t wait for more.