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A review by spenkevich
Slippery Creatures by KJ Charles
4.0
‘Between greed and fanaticism people can justify anything.’
Secret documents, spies, and plenty of spice, Slippery Creatures from KJ Charles is a seductive little novel about a man who just wanted to organize his books. After inheriting his late Uncle’s bookshop following his return from the war, Will Darling was expecting a quiet life amongst the pages of novels but instead discovered he has also inherited a slippery little secret document men would kill for. Now he’s caught between tattooed henchmen, the British War Office and the dreamy yet possibly dangerous Kim Secretan. Moving at breakneck speed through a plot just as full of snarky humor and snappy dialogue as it is knife-fights, betrayal, shadowy intrigue, and a slow-burn romance, KJ Charles delivers an incredible period-piece spy drama that is nearly impossible to put down. Slippery Creatures is certainly a book you’ll want to get your hands on.
“You’re a bit of a mess, aren’t you?”
“My friend, you have no idea.”
First, a hearty thank you to Annaka and her review for not only getting me to read KJ Charles but pretty much half our library staff. I’m in my romance read era and Charles is certainly one of the best, being quite an effective period drama with a high-energy plot full of effective tension and twists while also delivering a romance story that is easy to root for and with as much action as the spy parts. I listened to this one on audio and Cornell Collins does an exceptional job as the reader, with plenty of excellent variations of British accents and a good growly voice that makes the spicy scenes extra spicy. I mean, I listened to this walking my dogs and this was spicy enough to melt the snow along the sidewalk, so thanks for looking out for us, Charles!
‘My dear chap, this is a bookshop. There’s never anywhere better to be.’
Slippery Creatures truly is a great deal of fun. It felt like an excellent BBC murder mystery series, being able to be just slightly over-the-top for maximum fun but never feeling foolish. The characters are outstanding. We have the endlessly lovable Will Darling who feels a bit like a John Watson character returned home from the war to discover there were no jobs and the people being thanked as heroes are begging for change on streetcorners. Luckily he was able to inherit the bookshop because ‘all he was good at now was killing people, which was discouraged,’ though these skills certainly come in handy when some tough guys and the government come demanding “The Information.” Unfortunately Will doesn’t know what The Information is (it is not, alas, an early copy of Beck’s 2006 album The Information) but he’s determined to find it first and take matters into his own hands. Enter Kim—full name Arthur Aloysius Kimberley de Brabazon Secretan—a complex character who’s assistance and eagerness in bed might be hiding his own set of secrets…
‘Calling it honour is putting ribbons on a pile of shit. It might look good, but it still stinks.’
I love that the characters are able to be flawed yet fully lovable. I love Will and even despite it all, it’s easy to love Kim. I mean, Will does so how can you not. ‘Suffice to say I love Kim dearly, but ‘love’ means an awful lot of things,’ he tells us. I also love how completely 1920’s British this is, with Charles really leaning into a lot of great lines and humor with that.
This was just a pure joy of a book that keeps you guessing and holding your breath as the walls are closing in for Will and keeps you rooting for our heroes. It is all so delightfully gay and riotously fun. And very Sherlock Holmes adjacent (did I occasionally imagine it in the world of The Great Mouse Detective? Perhaps.) Charles really has some great writing chops and Slippery Creatures is a lovely little read. I’m so glad this is the start of a trilogy because I will certainly be back for more and suspect I’ll be reading many more KJ Charles in the future.
4.5/5
‘Sorry, I’ve no time for a knife fight in the street on Thursday, could you make it Friday?’
Secret documents, spies, and plenty of spice, Slippery Creatures from KJ Charles is a seductive little novel about a man who just wanted to organize his books. After inheriting his late Uncle’s bookshop following his return from the war, Will Darling was expecting a quiet life amongst the pages of novels but instead discovered he has also inherited a slippery little secret document men would kill for. Now he’s caught between tattooed henchmen, the British War Office and the dreamy yet possibly dangerous Kim Secretan. Moving at breakneck speed through a plot just as full of snarky humor and snappy dialogue as it is knife-fights, betrayal, shadowy intrigue, and a slow-burn romance, KJ Charles delivers an incredible period-piece spy drama that is nearly impossible to put down. Slippery Creatures is certainly a book you’ll want to get your hands on.
“You’re a bit of a mess, aren’t you?”
“My friend, you have no idea.”
First, a hearty thank you to Annaka and her review for not only getting me to read KJ Charles but pretty much half our library staff. I’m in my romance read era and Charles is certainly one of the best, being quite an effective period drama with a high-energy plot full of effective tension and twists while also delivering a romance story that is easy to root for and with as much action as the spy parts. I listened to this one on audio and Cornell Collins does an exceptional job as the reader, with plenty of excellent variations of British accents and a good growly voice that makes the spicy scenes extra spicy. I mean, I listened to this walking my dogs and this was spicy enough to melt the snow along the sidewalk, so thanks for looking out for us, Charles!
‘My dear chap, this is a bookshop. There’s never anywhere better to be.’
Slippery Creatures truly is a great deal of fun. It felt like an excellent BBC murder mystery series, being able to be just slightly over-the-top for maximum fun but never feeling foolish. The characters are outstanding. We have the endlessly lovable Will Darling who feels a bit like a John Watson character returned home from the war to discover there were no jobs and the people being thanked as heroes are begging for change on streetcorners. Luckily he was able to inherit the bookshop because ‘all he was good at now was killing people, which was discouraged,’ though these skills certainly come in handy when some tough guys and the government come demanding “The Information.” Unfortunately Will doesn’t know what The Information is (it is not, alas, an early copy of Beck’s 2006 album The Information) but he’s determined to find it first and take matters into his own hands. Enter Kim—full name Arthur Aloysius Kimberley de Brabazon Secretan—a complex character who’s assistance and eagerness in bed might be hiding his own set of secrets…
‘Calling it honour is putting ribbons on a pile of shit. It might look good, but it still stinks.’
I love that the characters are able to be flawed yet fully lovable. I love Will and even despite it all, it’s easy to love Kim. I mean, Will does so how can you not. ‘Suffice to say I love Kim dearly, but ‘love’ means an awful lot of things,’ he tells us. I also love how completely 1920’s British this is, with Charles really leaning into a lot of great lines and humor with that.
‘He had no idea what civilians, or civilised people, would say in these circumstances. Thanks for that, old chap, much obliged, perhaps? Ought he apologise for coming in his mouth? Would this be a good moment to restart the conversation about where Kim had learned to use a knife? Thank God they were British. He took a deep breath. “Cup of tea?”’
This was just a pure joy of a book that keeps you guessing and holding your breath as the walls are closing in for Will and keeps you rooting for our heroes. It is all so delightfully gay and riotously fun. And very Sherlock Holmes adjacent (did I occasionally imagine it in the world of The Great Mouse Detective? Perhaps.) Charles really has some great writing chops and Slippery Creatures is a lovely little read. I’m so glad this is the start of a trilogy because I will certainly be back for more and suspect I’ll be reading many more KJ Charles in the future.
4.5/5
‘Sorry, I’ve no time for a knife fight in the street on Thursday, could you make it Friday?’