Reckless Behavior

Bad Behavior #3

by L.A. Witt, Cari Z.

Book three in the Bad Behavior series

After too many years of putting his job first, Detective Andreas Ruffner is getting his priorities straight. He’s ready to spend some quality time with his adult kids, not to mention come clean about some things he should’ve told them a long time ago. And introduce them to his partner and boyfriend, Darren Corliss.

But in a heartbeat, a family dinner turns into Andreas’s worst nightmare. When the dust settles, one of his kids is hurt, and the other three have been abducted.

Andreas is going to find his kids, and nothing, not even a broken ankle, is going to stop him. Thank God for his sharp, level-headed partner . . . who has a crisis of his own pulling him away when Andreas needs him the most. As both men try to support—and lean on—each other, they get no closer to finding the kids. And the longer the children are missing, the less likely it is they’ll ever be found.

Word 69,700; page 260

Genres: M M Romance, Romance, Mystery, Contemporary, Audiobook, Suspense, LGBT

264 pages, Kindle Edition

First published December 30, 2017

About the author

L.A. Witt and her husband have been exiled from Spain and sent to live in Maine because rhymes are fun. She now divides her time between writing, assuring people she is aware that Maine is cold, wondering where to put her next tattoo, and trying to reason with a surly Maine coon. Rumor has it her arch nemesis, Lauren Gallagher, is also somewhere in the wilds of New England, which is why L.A. is also spending a portion of her time training a team of spec ops lobsters.

Authors Ann Gallagher and Lori A. Witt have been asked to assist in lobster training, but they "have books to write" and "need to focus on our careers" and "don't you think this rivalry has gotten a little out of hand?" They're probably just helping Lauren raise her army of squirrels trained to ride moose into battle.

Visit her website at http://www.gallagherwitt.com/.

Reviews

[len ❀ · Rating 3 out of 5]

“I don’t want a partner. I want you.” I touched his face and leaned in a little closer. “Before Hamilton assigned you to me, I didn’t want to work with anybody because I couldn’t trust them. I couldn’t imagine a partner I’d trust with my life and who I could work with. But with you . . .” I traced his cheekbone with my thumb. “Truth is, I can’t imagine doing this job without you now.”

– Risky Behavior

this is a series overview (books 1-4) because i’ve repeatedly said i am absolutely horrible at reviewing every book in a series that follows the same characters/couple.

the series of bad behavior follows our two leads, andreas ruffner and darren corliss, a detective who has been a part of the field for more than 20 years and a rookie. they get paired up to be partners despite the instant rejection both have towards each other. darren is first put to keep an eye on andreas by IA to see what he’s hiding, but darren slowly finds himself inching towards andreas instead of away. while the two don’t trust each other at first for obvious reasons concerning miscommunication, unloyalty, and trust issues, the two begin to have suspicions about the same people and things. realizing they can’t trust anyone besides each other, their relationship slowly begins heating up with each passing hour.

⚖️ age gap (29 and mid-40s)
⚖️ detective x rookie
⚖️ forced proximity
⚖️ younger top, older bottom
⚖️ “you and me against the world”

i haven’t read many mm detective stories, but this series reminded me of why i love them: the longing created by the lack of moments the two protagonists have. it may sound like i’m basically hoping to suffer, and yeah, essentially that’s true, but it creates a yearning from the characters that are a reason why i continue reading. we see how the two characters have zero time to be together due to the busy schedules they both have caused from their work and personal lives. it adds to the progression of their relationship as we see them gave small moments in between through looks and touches. the moment they’re together and find that desire to be together, it’s either ripped apart by a call from their captain letting them know a new update or they’re too tired to do anything that sleep eventually calls their name. yet, in between those moments, we see how willing both characters are to go far for each other. while there’s an age gap between them, both characters are experiencing different life circumstances that only create and add to the obstacles affecting the long-lasting romance they hope to have later on. but the reason i love these moments is because that longing they have shows how they’re falling for each other, no matter the timing and pace of it, and we see how the trust, loyalty, and love grows.

both authors don’t sugarcoat what happens in any law enforcement field, which i wholeheartedly appreciate. as a politics student, it’s even making me reconsider continuing to work in the law field and considering picking up some other field cause this shit is breaking my brain more and more every day. luckily for me, i really enjoyed this entire series. even though i rated books 3 and 4 three stars, it was still enjoyable, and i was up all night reading it until i got to the end to finally see how our two mc’s would get their stress-inducing, highly-earned HEA.

but, i do want to point out something that may or may not help my fellow friends who are considering giving this a chance. i may like these stories because of how much those small moments between the mc’s mean, but i want to note that those small moments still didn’t feel like enough. book 3, in particular, felt the most lacking. most of its focus is on the plot/case and on what the characters are dealing with (darren’s brother, andreas’s kids, more dirty cops, unsure who to trust, etc). in fact, i would hardly consider this series romance, and instead say it’s more of a love story. we follow two flawed characters who are taking down one obstacle at a time as more form in their life. they keep getting thrown into social situations they can’t solve quickly and have little to no time to decompress and just be. like i said, those moments they did have together are mostly tender and show the softness and growing love they have, but even as the reader, we can feel the stress growing in them. so, if you’re expecting more romance, i’m sorry to say you won’t completely get it. it’s more plot focused, and i didn’t mind, but i do know some people don’t care much for the case. besides book 4, the case(s) take over the story for most of it, and its focus is heavy on what they’re trying to solve. even with book, where our two leads get married, felt a little lackluster because of how little the two characters actually had time together. after everything they’ve been through, i thought they would finally catch the break they deserved and have some time for each other. it didn’t feel right nor fair.

The way I’d fallen in love with him all over again every time I’d watched him reading to Emily or snickering about something with Erin. The helplessness when he’d almost slipped away from me on the tarmac a lifetime ago. The dumb arguments when I’d be genuinely pissed off, and how he’d piss me off even more by making me laugh until I couldn’t be mad anymore, and then we’d laugh and fuck and be okay again. The moments when he’d been the one thing anchoring me and keeping me sane and grounded while my kids had been in danger. When he’d kept me strong even when he should’ve been crumbling under the weight of his own grief after his brother’s death. The nights he didn’t know about when I couldn’t sleep, and I’d watch him in the darkness and wonder how the hell someone like him had ever found a damn thing endearing in someone like me.

– Romantic Behavior

nonetheless, there is more to appreciate on the fact that the authors don’t sugarcoat this. we have andreas, who is a bisexual, divorced father of four in his 40s and is HIV positive. we learn this in book 1, as well as how it happened and what’s been happening. but, the part that felt pretty thought provoking, actually, was how i hadn’t really thought about how stigmatized hiv+ people really are, especially queer men. i’ll admit and say i don’t know much about hiv, but i’m sure many of us are familiar with the basics of it, but i had never really thought about how to approach a relationship with someone who is hiv positive. i actually appreciated how this topic was breached in the book because not only did it provide a positive light for it, but at the same time, it didn’t necessarily ignore the stigma around it. andreas hides that he has hiv from darren and his entire team because he’s afraid of their reactions, and for good reason. he hides his meds, and that actions causes him to be seen as a junkie, yet in reality he’s taking meds to help himself not only with a disease, but with conforming his health, making sure he’s stable enough, and understanding that there are precautions he has to take. when darren finds out he has hiv through his medic bracelet after andreas had a dizzy spell, his reaction was pretty blank. it didn’t change how he saw andreas, and it didn’t cause an awkwardness between the two that affected how they started feeling about each other. when i read about characters feeling neutral but cautious about mental health and/or any medical conditions, it’s refreshing. it shows a positive outcome of someone and can even make the reader feel like they’re being seen if they can relate.

but of course, supportive darren is also dealing with his issues, mostly involving his brother asher who is struggling with early onset alzheimer’s. this story and part of darren was heartbreaking, to put it in simple terms. seeing how much darren was putting on himself for his brother, parents, andreas, and cases was exhausting for myself. it was a journey i was going through without actually even being there, and i can only imagine how someone like darren was coping through it. we see how he puts others before him because he feels like a failure if he doesn’t do something that he has the potential to fail.

“I don’t know. I don’t care.” He shrugged. “I just want a couple of weeks away from everyone and everything.” Reaching for my hand, he added, “Except you.”

– Reckless Behavior

the series overall is pretty damn exhausting, but i was in it for the long run (just like darren told andreas). i was anxious but excited to get to the hea they deserved from the start. the necessary steps taken to getting there were difficult. each step was rocky and never straight, always taking a tumble in all directions when the two almost had a moment for each other. there’s a lot the two deal with, especially after the events following book 1. like i previously mentioned, the authors don’t sugarcoat this, and everything we see in the series is relevant to real life. every cop/detective show, movie and book i’ve read has the same theme going on: you’re a traitor if you betray your own. but are you really betraying them when you’ve shown the public their true colors? this is another reason i like books and media related to law enforcement or politics of any kind, whether it involves the police or lawyers and prosecutors. it shows a morally gray questionable scale on what and who is right. darren and andreas become inseparable partners, but others wouldn’t mind stepping in between them and tearing them apart (quite figuratively and literally). following the events of book 1, after andreas and darren expose the reality of some of their colleagues, the rest of the team aren’t big fans of them. allies turned into enemies, and the two can only trust each other. the only person they can trust is paula, a side character who works with them, who i absolutely adored and cherished and wish her the best.

i loved seeing this scope of morality because it shows how many of these aspect there are in the field of politics and law. andreas and darren both get involved in situations that may seem wrong in their eyes but are still necessary to take in order to prevent similar situations they’re dealing with. it’s really a lot to take in, and it shows how far they’re both willing to go for the safety of others and themselves, but it’s also life risking and shows the potential of literal death the two get involved in.

something else i really appreciated was the inner monologue being relatively balanced out in terms of what the two characters were dealing with. i’ve noticed it’s pretty common in many romance books for characters to quickly and/or instantly make comments on the others appearance. i’m not saying you can’t not notice someone’s appearance, but i am saying it’s annoying how common it is for us, the readers, to constantly follow their thoughts on the others appearance. while the relationship between andreas and darren isn’t completely slow burn, it isn’t instant or too fast either. the two point out each other’s looks, but they don’t spend every waking moment thinking about them and commenting on their appearance.

i’m the type of reader who needs character development in a relationship more than individual development because the relationship development has a mix of both. we successfully see how andreas and darren go from hating each other to realizing they don’t have another choice but to trust each other. and what a beautiful choice that was. their relationship is not always rainbows and butterflies. besides being always being exhausted with their work, both don’t have much free time for themselves. they’re always being interrupted, hardly get any sleep, and are constantly going around looking for clues surrounding their case. i was hoping for the day and time they would finally be able to rest, but it wasn’t until book 4 when they finally got to take a break and rest from everything and everyone. their life is brutal, and it even takes a mental toll on you because you’re seeing them go through contract grief—for their family, for their love, for the public. but, as i mentioned previously, a reason i love reading these stories is for those small moments they get, and we definitely see those here. those tender and small moments can mean even more than the ace hal big moments between them because they would do anything for some peace and quiet even if it’s only for a couple hours.

i think this series is still underrated and worth giving a shot. even if the romance may not be the preferred type for many, i found the authors to do a wonderful job with the cases as well as balancing it all out. i would have definitely appreciated more on the romance side, but it didn’t completely falter my enjoyment.

“And I guess what this all comes down to is that you’ve had my back from day one, and you have my heart until the end.”

– Romantic Behavior

series overview
Risky Behavior - 4 stars
Suspicious Behavior - 4 stars
Reckless Behavior - 3 stars
Romantic Behavior - 3 stars

[Shile (Hazard's Version) on-hiatus · Rating 5 out of 5]

Houston!!



So many amazing reviews have already been written about this series. Nothing more to add.

I have read 2 series back to back that has got little to no romance and no sex scenes and i love them.

Huh! who are you and what have you done with the perv Shile?



-The Mystery was heartbreaking and great, the edge of your seat kind.

- Darren's brother story broke my little heart over and over.

-Andreas kids are amazing.

- The writing is on top and keep you glued from the beginning.

-Darren and Andreas are still going steady.

-The dry sense of humor in this book is on point.

Oh! and we got Hans Solo shout out.



We should just give Michael Ferraiuolo an Emmy already He deserves it. The guy got talent.

[Simone - on indefinite hiatus - · Rating 5 out of 5]

***4.5 Stars***

This time it gets personal...

... by any account.

After everything that happened in the previous books, you would think Andreas Ruffner and Darren Corliss deserved a bit downtime to get some rest and work on their relationship. Well, knowing these guys and their record for getting into trouble, you can be sure that this is wishful thinking.

Andreas, still not at the top of his game and not fit for active duty after the injury he sustained in Suspicious Behavior, has only one thing on his mind: facing his kids and come clear about his relationship with Darren and his health status. When their meeting goes terribly wrong and some of his kids are snatched from under his nose, it soon becomes apparent that somebody has it in for Andreas and tries to make him suffer in every possible way.

Even though former enemies suddenly become allies and surprisingly show a united front in an attempt to help them any way they can, their franctic search for the kids and all their inquiries lead to a dead end and time is not on their side, either.

When Darren -on top of it all- receives devastating news and tries to deal with it on his own, both men are forced to make some of the hardest decisions of their lives...

Okay, I guess it is time to come out with my deepest secret: I'm a toggler! I can't help it. As soon as a book appears on the website of this publisher my fingers start to twitch and I have to click the additional details and toggle them all. Maybe I was a cat in my past life and too curious for my own good, I don't know. This time I was glad I gave in to the twitching, so I was prepared for the heat wave to be non-existent, meaning no smexy times for the guys and I got a clue what to expect. But honestly, Andreas and Darren have barely time to sleep and get some rest, much less be more active between the sheets and they have more important things on their minds than sex. God, if I were in their spot, the sleep deprivation both men sustained in the few months they know each other would make me look like a zombie and guarantee myself a role in the next season of The Walking Dead without a casting first. ;-)

As a consequence, the romance took understandably once again a back seat, but their love for each other oozed from the pages with each tender moment, each gesture, touch and thought. Each and every kiss...

I had an inkling of who the culprit might be - yeah, I know... I'm a sucker for mystery/suspense novels, so maybe my lifelong career in book law enforcement helped a bit ;-) - and in the end I was proven right, but that did not lessen my enjoyment of the story. No, quite the contrary.

The tragic event that affected Darren was the hardest for me to take. Maybe I'm a wuss, maybe it was my mood or maybe it was the fact that I'm totally invested in the characters by now, but not only what happened itself, but also the way he dealt with it - or rather not dealt with it - made me feel deeply for him and that made it sometimes hard to read through the tears in my eyes.

When the whole world was on fire, we leaned on each other and got each other through it. When everything was boring and nothing was happening, we stayed close just because we wanted to. It was perfect .

The ending made a promise of what to expect in Romantic Behavior, the last novella in this series. Now you want to know if I toggled those details as well, right? What do you think? ;-)

Highly recommended!

[* A Reader Obsessed * · Rating 4 out of 5]

4 Stars

Another solid entry about established couple Andreas and Darren!

Things are slowly kinda returning to normal after the last installment. Andreas is healing from his broken ankle, ready to come clean to his adult children about his health and his relationship with Darren. In turn, Darren is still grappling with his brother’s battle with early onset Alzheimer’s, and he’s trying to decide whether or not he himself should be tested to see if that’s his ultimate fate as well.

These poor guys can never catch a break for long, especially when their lives are further turned upside down when someone kidnaps several of Andreas’s kids in revenge.

Interspersed with plenty of feels, this 3rd entry is more about good detective work and putting a spotlight on the relationship dynamic that takes precedence over the hot and heavy. That may be disappointing to many but this is still solid storytelling, and I didn’t miss it….much. Darren and Andreas may have gotten off to a really rocky start in Risky Behavior, but things have obviously evolved into so much more. Their support, care, and unwavering love for each other through thick, and especially thin, is never really threatened. They’re solid as a rock, and despite all the horrible shit thrown their way, I never doubted things would fall apart.

Pretty much a fitting and happy end to a really great series, minus 2 more shorts and a spinoff that I’m looking forward to!!

[Optimist ♰King's Wench♰ · Rating 4 out of 5]

Welp, the authors did not lie when they said they were going to be SUPER mean to the boys. They delivered.

Almost immediately Andreas is shaken to the core by the kidnapping of three of his children. He tries to hold it together and does so for the most part but there were a couple dark nights of the soul. Without Darren I'm not sure what would've become of him. Darren is the rock of Gibraltar through it all until his number comes up too. Then he hides in the case to escape his own reality.

Both events were harrowing and heart wrenching to read, but the thought I kept circling back to was how much they relied on each other to get through it all and if they could get through all this together it would make their relationship stronger. This installment along with the previous two does a fantastic job of reinforcing their connection, but if you're interested in super sexy times... you should prolly look elsewhere. Because no sex.

These authors have spent a great deal of time crafting Andreas and Darren and showing how much they not only love each other but fit together and in so doing, I truly believe that they are partners in every sense of the word after finishing Reckless Behavior. If their words didn't convince me the Han Soloing certainly did.

The kidnapping keeps them and us occupied and served to keep the pacing uptempo. My only quibble is for a kidnapping to be so painstakingly planned to then have no real endgame seemed odd not to mention anticlimactic. For me. However, I enjoyed all the case building, car chases, secondary characters and everything involved in resolving the case. If you're a fan of suspense thrillers, I suspect you probably will too.




A review copy was provided by NetGalley.

[Elise ✘ a.k.a Ryder's Pet ✘ · Rating 3 out of 5]

⋰⋱⋰⋱⋰⋱*Better, but not much*⋰⋱⋰⋱⋰⋱

We're back with the ‘newly minted detective’, Darren Corliss (28) and the no longer ‘lone wolf detective’, Andreas Ruffner (in this forties?). This time we get more romance and affection, though not much, as Andreas' kids gets kidnaped. Although I had expected to see more of Andreas together with his kids, Erin (how old?), Ben (24), Casey (21), and their half sister, Emily (4), we didn't get a whole lot of them. Overall, I hope we get more depth in the last book with the couple. It was pretty sad about Asher, Darren's brother who has Alzheimer's. Hanging himself like he did, almost the same as my own brother.

When the whole world was on fire, we leaned on each other and got each other through it. When everything was boring and nothing was happening, we stayed close just because we wanted to. It was perfect.
The future was anyone’s guess. We were cops—anything could happen to either of us. That was the reality of our job.

Quick basic facts:
Genre: - (Adult) Contemporary Romance (M/M)
Series: - Series, Book Three.
Love triangle? - No.
Cheating? - No.
HEA? - For now.
Favorite character? - Darren Corliss.
Would I read more by this author/or of series? - Probably.
Would I recommend this book/series? - Yes.
Will I read this again in the future? - Probably not.
Rating - 3 stars.

[Erth · Rating 5 out of 5]

I can't say how much I've enjoyed every one of these books. Darren and Andreas are awesome characters and I love reading each time they face some new crazy in their world.

Great story. Reckless Behavior is the third book in the Bad Behavior series and it was good reading. The writing was good, and the action and suspense were non-stop. Andreas and Darren are partners at work and at home and they compliment each other. Love them.

You definitely must read this series in order.

[Fabi NEEDS Email Notifications · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was good!

and sad, and scary, and oh so wonderful.

Darren and Andreas *sigh* - that's adult love right there.

There's not a single sex scene in the book, yet the love and devotion stand out like no other story I've read in recent memory. Through the critical times and the mellow times, these two are a perfect match.

Reckless Behavior keeps us in critical mode 99% of the time. It's an edge of your seat suspense that tests our MCs' limits. Through it all there is love and caring and support that shine brightly from friends and family and especially from each of our guys.

It's just downright beautiful my friends.

I love this series. It has a full plot, crime, suspense, family ties, and a little romance thrown in to the mix. Exciting story with wonderful characters.



Review ARC graciously provided by Riptide Publishing via NetGalley.

[Karen · Rating 5 out of 5]

Well this creates a problem...

you see I do try really, really hard to be honest in my reviews and I'm sure I'm hardly the first person to face this dilemma but I gave this one 5 stars and that's where my problem arises...I need more than 5 stars...seriously more than 5 on this one.

I loved the hell out of this story. I was addicted to this series from the word go and with each book my love for these books for the stories and characters contained within has only continued to grow. While there's not a lot of sexy times in this series what there is...is one hella' good relationship. It's there, it's strong and from that first book where we got to watch as Darren struggled to find a way to make his partnership with Andreas work to this one where we watch as Andreas and Darren work together as partners both on a personal and professional level to find Andreas's kids and bring them home to Darren's own heartbreaking news the strength of the relationship between these two men is so evident.

I love the relationship that's built between these two. For all that might not be here in terms of the physical relationship between these two the emotional connection, which to me is so much harder for an author to bring out has been made and is so wonderfully real and present between these two. I love that no matter what is going on for one of them they don't lose track of what's going on with their partner and the toll that events are taking on each other emotionally.

There's a lot going on in this one but it's well done and I didn't have a problem following events or feel like it was a jumble of chaos as could have easily been the case. A lot of this story focuses on every parent's worst nightmare. Andreas and Darren are doing dinner with Andreas's kids. Andreas is trying really hard to fix his relationship with his kids and come clean with them about things that he's kept from them as well as introduce them to the other important person in his life...Darren. Things start out a little awkward but for the most part the dinner's going well or at least it was until the evening comes to an end and suddenly two of the kids are missing and as everyone's trying to find the girls, Erin and Emily there's a threat to Andreas's sons, Ben and Casey. When the dust settles only Ben's still there...Erin, Emily and Casey have all been abducted.

As Andreas and Darren work to find the missing children, they're surprised to realize that for whatever's happened in the past their brothers in blue are there for them and they're not alone. But even with the addition of all this unexpected support for Andreas it's Darren's presence that means the most. But when Darren gets hit by a personal tragedy of his own...choices have to be made. Choices that neither man finds easy, but Darren is determined to be there for Andreas, he knows that he can't control or change what's happened in his life and it'll all be there for him to deal with once Andreas's kids are safely back where they belong.

Having children of my own it took zero effort for me to understand how Andreas and his ex's felt. Just the thought of one of my kids being taken is terrifying and makes my blood run cold...so yes, there were tears and more than a tissue or two was sacrificed to the reading of this book but more than this what twisted my heart and still reduces me to a sad, little sobbing puddle of tears was the tragedy that blindsided Darren because truthfully it blindsided me as well because I so did not see that one coming and there went a whole lot more from the tissue box and then there was the ending and there went a few more tissues...hey, even happy tears require tissues.

There's so much more that I could say about this story because it's not a simple story and a lot of what happens in this book is connected to events of the previous two stories and truthfully I think the best thing that I could say here is if you haven't read those first two books go back and read them before you tackle this one because it'll all make a lot more sense and be a more enjoyable story if you have all of that background filled in.

I know there's at least one more story coming in this series and it's going to be released real soon...like in less than a week soon...it's called Romantic Behavior and it's hopefully going to give Andreas and Darren the happily ever after that they so very much deserve. I'm looking forward to the next installment in this series and if it's anywhere near as good as this one I'm going to need a lot more than 5 stars to show how much I enjoyed it.

*************************

A copy of 'Reckless Behavior' was graciously provided by the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

[Kati *☆･ﾟ · Rating 5 out of 5]

4.5***** stars


This was gooood.

The romance is seriously on the backburner here but this is to be expected considering all the shit Darren and Andreas had to handle. It was A LOT.

I loved the part Mark Thibedeau played in this one and the party he and his team from Internal Affairs threw as a distraction. I wished we could’ve had more from that moment bc it was the only hilarious thing happening in this one - well, despite the circumstances and all, it was really funny.


After this shit-show is done I’m hopefully looking forward to a little more romance in the novella next - the title at least sounds promising in that regard. ♡


****************
Bad Behavior Series:

Book 1 - Risky Behavior - 4.25 stars
Book 2 - Suspicious Behavior - 4.5 stars
Book 3 - Reckless Behavior - 4.5 stars
Book 4 - Romantic Behavior - audio tbr
Book 5 - Protective Behavior - (romance for our favorite IA Detective)
Book 6 - Cuddly Behavior - novella

[L.A. Witt]

Y'all thought we were mean to them in books 1 & 2....*cackles*

[Annika · Rating 5 out of 5]

Audiobook review

I was going to jump straight into this story after finishing Suspicious Behavior last night. Then I read the blurb.. and holy hell!! I quickly realised that for my sanity's sake (what little there is of it) I could not start this book at 10pm at night. At least not if I wanted to get any sleep. But let me tell you, waiting to start this book was not easy!

So, almost immediately after waking up this morning I started listening, and listening. I also uttered more than a few curse words when life interrupted and forced me to stop listening for a while. I was not happy about that. Anyway, I loved this book. This book was intense! It was full speed right ahead and I was at the edge of my seat the entire book.

So what is this book about? Well it all starts with Andreas and Darren being out to dinner with Andreas's three grown kids. He's finally sharing a few truths about his HIV status and his true relationship with Darren, about being bisexual. Andreas's ex girlfriend and his four year old daughter arrives to the gloomy dinner, lightens the mood a bit. However, not long after that all hell breaks lose and three of his four children end up kidnapped by masked men. Andreas and Darren are racing against the clock to get them back safely. As they investigate they finds themselves questioning who they can trust and that the enemy might be closer than they think.

In the middle of it all there's Asher, Darren's brother. He'd been moved into a home and is deteriorating before their eyes. The love between them were there in every encounter, and the hurt Darren was feeling when Asher was unwell was real, you felt it in every word, spoken or not. Felt the toll it took on the family, watching but never being able to do anything. Once again, it was heartbreaking to watch. Yet at the same time I feel strangely privileged to have been a part of it.

So you might have already guessed this, but this book is packed. It's fast paced and non-stop. And it was great! I love Darren and Andreas. They feel genuine and real. They have issues and problems, they love and hurt, they feel human, and to me there is nothing better than characters I can believe in.

There wasn't much time for Andreas and Darren and some alone time, there was just too much going on with both sides of their families for that to have been an option. But you still feel the connection between them, the give and take, the unconditional support, and the love. It's there in every encounter - however brief.

Michael Ferraiuolo was perfect for this book. He fit the story, the characters to a T and brought it to life. He truly made you feel with the characters, you heard it all in his voice, He lived this story, he was this story. I can only applause his efforts with this book, because it was spectacular.

Reckless Behavior is my kind of book. Great characters and awesome plot heavy on the suspense and mystery. Personally I can't get enough, so luckily for me I have the next book ready to go. Highly recommended.

A copy of this book was generously provided by the publisher in exchange for an honest review

[Christelle · Rating 5 out of 5]

**4.5 stars**

Fast-paced, very emotional…I’m exhausted on behalf of Darren & Andreas : these guys deserve a break…and for sure don’t get it here.

This is not a standalone and the series needs to be read in order. The case these 2 detectives are personally eager to solve is directly linked to the one they solved in Risky Behavior and the relationship they have started takes another level in depth as Darren is faced with heartbreaking family issues while winning his place within Andreas’s own family.

Andreas and Darren’s bonds are once again tested and it’s swooning to witness. Of course, I would have loved more steam, but to be honest, they had not much time and as all the feels are there, I won’t complain…much.

My favorite in this series.

**Note for Simone : once again, a huge fat thank you to you for this gift !!!. <3**

[haletostilinski · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.25 stars

***ARC provided by Netgalley in exchange for an honest review***

This series has been consistently good. This book did not disappoint, as it kept me invested and it was hard to tear away from it at all.

Andreas is still recovering from his ankle injury in book two, and because he needs multiple surgeries on it, he starts out this book still in a cast and in crutches. Even then, I feel like before things went to shit, or even after, we could have gotten a little something something with these two.

The annoying downside to these books is the next to no romance or steam. Well this one had no steam at all. And while that was understandable once the action got going - sex isn't not something these two could even think about with the shit going on in their lives - we could have got something before it happened, or after. I'm not even saying full on sex here, just something.

Seriously, all we get with these two physically is kisses, and aside from one kiss at the end, not very strong, passionate kisses. More like sweet, quick kisses which are cute, but does not add any steam to anything.

And romance wise, while there were moments of that nature between Andreas and Darren, they were also pretty few and far between.

Honestly, I kinda feel like when they say "I love you" to each other it's earned but also kind of not? I have felt the romance, the love between these two over the last two books, but so much goes on and they have to focus on that shit that they barely have gotten a chance to breathe, so at the same time I'm like...how can you know when you've barely gotten days, weeks at a time to just breathe, get to know each other, fall in love?

I know they work together, so it's not like they're apart, but when they're working they're rarely focused on anything else but work, you know? Or whatever disaster they're dealing with, so it hardly counts.

But on the action side of things, this is still as good as ever. The plot in this was intriguing, it had me on my toes, it had me as tense as the characters.

As the blurb says, Andreas' kids get kidnapped, and what follows is a race against the clock to save them and get them back safe. The perp of this crime was so...ugh he pissed me off. But I was glad when his crook cop father was disgusted with him. He deserved that.

And so, because Andreas' kids are missing, understandably nothing much can happen on the Andreas/Darren front until they were safe and sound. But what I'm complaining about is that we could have had more detailed romantic and sex scenes between them in the before and after.

Yeah, Andreas' foot is still healing, but there are things they can do that would keep his leg okay. So give us something? Gah damn. These two haven't sex, at least on page, since book one. Book ONE! They try and almost succeed in the second but of course they got interrupted and then one thing after another kept happening. ARGH.

All I'm saying is the last book has got to have something between these two romance wise and physically or I'm gonna be kinda pissed, to tell the truth. The blurb for the next book says that they're getting married, so hopefully that book focuses a lot more heavily on their romance than the last two books have? One can hope.



Also, for Darren, aside from doing all he can to help Andreas get his kids back, things are happening with his brother that he has to deal with. These two men are stretched so fucking thin in this book its ridiculous.

They barely get any sleep and Andreas does some more damage to his foot that requires a few more surgeries by the end of it. But anyway, Darren's brother Asher ends up killing himself in this, which I was not expecting. I was wondering if he would die, but he actually kills himself. How Darren held on so long until Andreas' kids were safe to break down and cry, I have no idea.

Okay, and lastly, I will admit that despite the lack of romance, these two were quietly and consistently there for each other, always there to support each other and make sure the other was okay and got through the tough shit. There is a kind of romance in that, the sweetness of their need to be there for each other. Just...the steam can be ratcheted wayyyyyy up, my friends, is all I'm saying.

Okay anyway, overall this was a good book. If you've loved this series so far, or enjoyed it at the very least, you'll enjoy this one too. And you might be as disappointed as me by the lack of steam, but maybe not? Who knows.

Just know going into this that the moments between Darren and Andreas are quiet, soft moments of support and soft and sweet kisses here and there. Which are cute and everything, but...i needs me my steaminess haha.

Also, the end? I was so happy to see these two having been able to breathe for 5 seconds. But also - and I don't think this is too big a spoiler because the blurb for the next book talks about their wedding - Andreas is planning to propose at the end and as sweet as that is, I also gotta be like huh? We got no indication of that desire from him. We just got to "I love you" in this book, and then after all the shit is over with and the dust has settled, it skips ahead six months. It would have been nice to have gotten an inkling that Andreas was thinking of proposing, is all. *whispers* also more romance would have made it less surprising and almost out of left field...is all.

So I would expect a well crafted story, and for it to keep up the quality of this series, and for it to definitely keep you on your toes plot wise.

Romance wise? Don't expect too much. But it is still worth the read if you've kept up with the series so far. Despite my issues with it, Darren and Andreas are still a couple I quite enjoy.

[Ariana (mostly offline) · Rating 5 out of 5]

*4,5 stars*

Reread November 2023
Everything I said last time (see below). I really loved this all over again!

original review

If I thought that Andreas and Darren could not possibly go through a worse time than what they went through in book 2 – I was completely wrong. The authors certainly excel at wringing the last drop of emotional and physical energy and strength out of both men here.

Still injured and exhausted from the events before, Andreas’s ultimate nightmare becomes reality when three of his kids are kidnapped. Someone out there clearly wants to see him suffer (and that’s not only the authors…).
And he does – to an extent it gets almost unbearable.

"My hip, my back, my hands …(on top of his ankle!) … I was a wreck. Mentally, I was worse."

And although Darren’s stab wounds from book 1 have mostly healed, he doesn’t fare a lot better. Apart from working himself to total exhaustion on the kidnapping case, the increasing deterioration of his brother causes more soul-wrenching hurt, culminating in such a heart-ripping climax, I had no chance of keeping my eyes dry. And the fact that Darren could have the illness too, keeps hanging over his head like the sword of Damokles.

Tbh, any one of these issues would be enough for one normal person to struggle with and drown under. Let it come all together like this – and you have got a ‘shitfest’ of the first order. I have no idea how either man is still standing by the end. This kind of sums it all up:

Maybe someday, I (=Darren) said, “we’ll both be healthy, and our families will be drama-free, and we won’t have a case more complicated than a lost puppy to deal with. That day will be a goddamn miracle. I don’t think a day like that had happened in the entire time we’ve known each other."

And yes, didn't I hope for a day like that for them, too!

Thank God, they (and we) get some quiet moments with gentle kisses, full of love and understanding, some tight and some tender hugs, which all underline how solid Andreas and Darren are together. It is surprising how little I missed on page sex, although I could have done with a touch more intimacy at one point.

Amazing writing! A series you won’t be able to put down!
Hoping our guys will get some reprieve in book 4!

[Kazza · Rating 5 out of 5]

Pre review -
Feeling excited because I love this series.



And nothing changed post reading, I still love this series. This is a great addition and if you're even remotely thinking about giving it a read, start with Risky Behavior and keep on going when this comes out on January 1st, 2018. One of the best "MM" series going at the moment.

Well written.
Well paced.
Dual and progressive POV.
Great MCs whose personalities fit their occupation well.
Terrific extended families.

There is no particular heat in this book, but would you want to fuck if your kids had just been kidnapped? Your much loved brother is terminally ill? Pffft. I think not. In other words, it's organic and true to the story being told - which is suspenseful and well executed. Anyway, there is so much love through actions and thoughts and occasional touch in Reckless Behavior, so many other wonderfully written aspects that are gripping, it's pretty perfect in my eyes.

Blog review without spoilers but you probably should read books one and two first.

[Melissa · Rating 2 out of 5]

I skipped a lot of this story. I just couldn't take how unrealistic this was. The police work wasn't legit in my opinion, and relationship with the MCs was not realistic, and Andreas relationship with his family was weird. Or I guess it's his internal dialogue that I couldn't handle when he thought about how much he needed to save them, and be a part of their lives more, etc.



I did feel sorry for Darren and his family because of Ben. That was a sad moment that I was surprised to see but not at the same time. I would have much preferred more page time with the brother and his struggles than anyone else in this story.

This wasn't a win for me in the Witt column. Sigh. I won't be continuing the series. If you enjoyed books 1 & 2, then you should like book 3.

[Agla · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this one. It's mostly police work and the relationship is in the background. It is very fast paced, I was tired for both of them the whole time, they couldn't sleep... I was hooked by the kidnapping and really ok edge to find the culprit. It made sense even if some clues just fell into their laps. We got to meet more of Andreas' family which was nice. After the kidnaping plot is over we are told in a rarher short summary that their relationship deepened when everything quieted and I wanted to see that ! I hope we see more in the next 2 novellas that are about this couple. Jumping right in 😀

[Ronie Reads · Rating 5 out of 5]

Family, what can ya do

[Jaime · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another exciting installment with twists & turns... Not a lot of romance, but what was there was awesome! Bring on book 4!!

[⚣Michaelle⚣ · Rating 5 out of 5]

5 Stars

I made a resolution not to round up until GR finally gives us half-stars, but I can't rate this as low as 4 stars. It was just too damned good...

[JustJen "Miss Conduct" · Rating 5 out of 5]

4.5 stars - Andreas and Darren are back and still trying to recover from the roller coaster ride they’ve pretty much been on since they were first paired together. Andreas is also recovering from the surgery he had to repair his injured ankle. The time has come though to come clean to the rest of his kids about Darren, his HIV status, etc. It doesn’t take long for things to take another bad turn for these guys when all but one of Andreas’ kids are kidnapped right out from under him.

Barely fit for duty, let alone chasing down kidnappers, he relies heavily on Darren though he doesn’t give in very easily. And while they are focused on Andreas’ kids, Darren’s own family is in turmoil as well when Asher’s condition takes a turn for the worse.

This installment doesn’t focus so much on the romance, and there is little to no sex. They barely have time to sleep, and the injuries definitely put a damper on things in that department. However, it is chock full of feelings and love and how much these guys have come to mean to each other in such a short time. They definitely move forward with their relationship, and with everything else going on, it would have felt wrong to see more sex and focus on them. Their focus was where it needed to be, on their families, but they were the unwavering support each of them needed.

It is a race against time to figure out who has a big enough beef with Andreas to go after his family, but the list is pretty long with all the dirty cops they have taken down. There are still a few people on their side though, and though they still have a lot of people against them, the list seems to be shortening after the events in this installment.

In the end, these guys finally get some much needed R&R and we get an idea of things to come in the next and final book. This has been an excellent series thus far, and I’m sure it will end the same way, though I am really not ready to let these guys go. Definitely recommend this whole series.

Review written for Love Bytes Reviews/a>.

[Princess under cover · Rating 3 out of 5]

What happened to the sex???? NONE!!! Not even a real kiss!!!! And I guessed the bad guy at 9%!!

Not good that with every book the stars are getting lower!

[Valeen Robertson (Live Thru Books Blog) · Rating 5 out of 5]

This series just keeps getting better. I liked Risky Behavior and Suspicious Behavior, but Reckless Behavior has surpassed them both.



Andreas and Darren are healing from the events of Suspicious Behavior, and now it's time for Andreas to come clean to his adult kids about some stuff, and to spend more time with all of his kids. To that end, they're all at dinner, when three of his children are kidnapped. Yeesh, can these men not catch a break and enjoy some down time, ever?!?! L.A. Witt and Cari Z. said they were going to be even more mean to our men this time around, and they weren't kidding, because this installment is just one big clusterfuck. So much happens, and the men are having to try to get the kids back, deal with Andreas' now more messed up ankle, AND Darren's own family crisis, which is probably the most heartbreaking part of Reckless Behavior.



But through it all, they rely on each other and fall even deeper in love so that by the end, when they finally get to spend some quality time together, they realize just how much of a solid union they have.

When the whole world was on fire, we leaned on each other and got each other through it. When everything was boring and nothing was happening, we stayed close just because we wanted to. It was perfect.

I cannot wait for Romantic Behavior, which promises to be completely centered on our men and their happily ever after. Yes!!

I received an ARC via NetGalley for an honest review.

[Antisocial Recluse · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wow, this is one incredible thriller series and this is the most suspenseful and wrenching of the three. The book opens with Darren finally meeting Andreas’s other children, besides Erin, his two sons and his youngest daughter Emily. After the dinner, Andreas’ world caves in when Emily, Erin and son Casey are taken, without a clue as to who or why. The partners are still viewed with suspicion for crossing the blue line and taking down dirty cops, but with children’s lives at stake, most of the department rallies to help, especially Paula. She is an awesome character.

I was totally swept up in this, the tension ratcheting up with every chapter and every dead end lead. Andreas’s anguish and fear were palpable but so was the deep connection between him and Darren. There is virtually no intimacy in this book, at least not physically with only kisses exchanged, but the feels rolled off every page. The caring, support and understanding showed in every interaction, both so in sync, even when they clashed. Darren has his own crisis to deal with, yet puts the search and Andreas first. I enjoyed the investigative background, the grunt work of examining files for clues and chasing down informers. Any literary license used to enhance the plot did not erase the realism.

We were warned by the authors that they were going to be mean to the guys, but they haven’t gotten a break since book one! At the end, is a six-month time jump without much detail, Andreas is healed up and they’re boarding a flight for a tropical vacation. The fourth book promises to be much happier, with no hints of trouble but I don’t trust these darn authors right now! Can we please see these poor dudes get a little nookie finally, hmmm? Seriously, read books one and two, as they aren’t standalones, and be prepared to white-knuckle your way through this one.

*An ARC was provided by the author or publisher via NetGalley and I have chosen to publish a fair and honest review for Jessie G Books Reviews blog*

[Gerbera_Reads · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this book as much as the others! Even though romance took a back seat this time, there were plenty feels to keep me emotionally involved and rooting for Darren and Andreas! This was highly intense, fast-paced and angsty.

Andreas' kids come to visit, and he decides to finally come clean about some things he kept from them. But what should have been a dinner filled with revelations and hopefully stronger bond between them all turned into a nightmare. His kids were kidnapped right in front of him. Precinct is in uproar, everyone is searching despite the animosity towards Andreas and Darren because you don't mess with cop's kids ever. Andreas is pushing himself to the breaking point, lead after lead turns dead, no demands are made. He starts to lose hope when their painstaking efforts turn successful. And the truth is way worse than they thought.

Darren tries to be strong for his partner this time but it proves almost impossible when his own personal tragedy blindsides him. Struggling with grief he keeps going tirelessly, and in the end it pays off. When Andres' kids are safely returned, he has to be there for his mom and dad, but also for Andreas and his kids as well since they are now his family too. It's an emotional roller coaster from start to finish, constant chase for facts and emotional battle to not crumble from loss and terror. I loved it! I felt those emotions as I read the story. The ending is so sweet, and there is hope that Andreas and Darren will finally have time for themselves to heal and just enjoy each other. I highly recommend it!

[Alex · Rating 5 out of 5]

That was... A stressful reading. My poor, poor MCs...



I was honestly as exhausted as them by the end of the book...
But what a ride!!!

There is definitely more action and suspense from this book than the first 2 ones. There is also not one sexy scene but there is a lot of LOOOOOVE.
Andreas and Darren love each other deeply and we can feel it throughout all the book. It is really beautiful.

The story with Andreas"s Children was really addictive.. I honestly wondered at one point how all this was going to end. I mean the writers don't hold any punches against our beloved couple here.

The last one seems to be more lovey... So I'm going to jump on it!

[Dee · Rating 2 out of 5]

I don’t know if two star rating is fair but I’m just not happy with how Darren was with his family his behaviour came off as standoffish and for someone who was constantly saying he was close to his brother that is not the behaviour of someone about to lose a beloved sibling and even after he lost his brother he was too focused on the boyfriend’s family leaving his mom and dad on their own it was painful to read

Don’t get me started on Andreas 🤦🏽‍♀️, he wasn’t even firm about letting his boyfriend spend time with his grieving family, I get that his kids were kidnapped and he had almost the whole department looking for them and they were doing a great job and yet he kept quiet

Almost everything in the book was just over the top I nearly stopped reading 😅

[Annie · Rating 5 out of 5]

4.5 stars- this series continues to bring the excitement

Reckless Behavior is the third book in the Bad Behavior series co-written by Miss Witt and Cari Z. I’ve really enjoyed the series, and this book was no exception. Because the series deals with the same couple and some continuing story arcs with little to no backtracking, I wouldn’t classify it as a standalone. Reckless Behavior picks up as Andreas is still recovering from the ankle injury he suffered in the second book, but the couple is not down for long as they’re swept into yet another intense case.

I’ve said it before, but it bears repeating- this series is anything but formulaic. Of course there were plenty of exciting action scenes, suspense-building moments, nose-to-the-grindstone running down of leads, and twists; however, this one was a bit more personal and emotionally driven right from the start. The book led with a couple significant scenes that advance that continuing storylines as well as the couple’s burgeoning relationship. There’s this quiet connection between Andreas and Darren that underlies the entirety of the book, giving the romance aspect of the Bad Behavior series a unique feel. The relationship is never in your face and sometimes it feels slow going, but the emotional chemistry and strength Andreas and Darren get from each other, especially in moments of crisis affirms the depth of their connection. Would I love there to be more physicality to their relationship, sure. In the same way I watch a favorite couple on film finally make their way to each other, I hope for the “payoff”, but truthfully it’s not necessary. The authors do a wonderful job expressing all those feelings in the subtle glances, light touches, and kind words, and I never end one of these books feeling like I don’t get these two as a couple.

Though Reckless Behavior is full of emotional moments between Darren’s brother’s disease and Andreas’s kids being kidnapped, the authors again deliver the aspects I love: fun banter, fast- paced action, and some exciting twists which tie the series together. The climax of the book had me glued to my e-reader, and the resolution was almost more exhilarating and surprising then when we first learn who’s behind the kidnapping plot. The ending, especially the exchanges between Andreas and Darren had me teary- eyed but smiling…and that last line of the book- the perfect “until next time” tease.

Reviewed by Annie from Alpha Book Club

[Barb ~rede-2-read~ · Rating 5 out of 5]

A copy of this ARC was provided through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

This series is smokin’! Action-packed, nail-biting, heartbreaking—this book has it all. Though there’s not a lot of overt romance to this one, and no sex scenes, there is love—a deep and lasting love that’s developing between Andreas and Darren as well as the love of family. In this one, Andreas’s children are kidnapped so the love of a father for his children is a primary focus of the book, but there’s also the familial love of a brother for another as Darren’s brother, Asher, falls deeper into his disease and the situation becomes critical. As an aside, and without spoilers, we finally find out if Darren has the gene that has caused Asher’s mind to fail at such an early age.

Andreas is still struggling with his healing ankle from the injury in the last book. He’s screwed it up and needed a second surgery—but hang on folks—he’s about to make it worse when his kids are kidnapped virtually right from under his nose. He and his work and life partner, Darren, along with their highly personable and dynamic friend Paula, a detective we met in the last book, explore any and all possible leads to get the kids back. Though their theories are sketchy at first, eventually, with the help of Andreas’s daughter Erin, who manages to get free of the kidnapers, the team is on the right track. A tragic event in Darren’s life sidetracks him temporarily but he’s right back on the job as well. He loves Andreas and his kids and will stop at nothing to help his lover get them back.

This story is very fast-paced, filled with plot twists and turns, excitement, and hair-raising scenarios. I loved every moment and literally couldn’t put it down. I highly recommend this series to all those who enjoy law enforcement drama and romance, especially those, like me, who appreciate a writing team who can build excitement to fever pitch and yet give us a firm foundation to a wonderful pair of men whose love grows stronger with each story. I can’t wait to get my hands on book four!