Book Review: Treasure of Love by Scotty Cade

Title: Treasure of Love
Series: Love, Book 2
Author: Scotty Cade
Genre: Romantic Suspense, M/M Romance
Sensuality Rating: Erotic
Source: review copy from publisher
Published: May 2011 by Dreamspinner Press

Hunky Alaskan dive master and charter boat captain Jackson Cameron is absolutely sure he’s straight until openly gay treasure hunter Dax Powers calls him and offers him the adventure of a lifetime: Dax and his sister Donatella have found the Anna Wyoming, a ship that went down during the 1889 gold rush on return from Skagway Island—very possibly carrying a fortune in gold.

But real treasure is never free, and this one comes with some heavily armed strings attached. Jack and Dax struggle to keep their small crew safe from a powerful threat while they fight against the attraction they feel for each other. Between the danger of the hunt, the risks in the dive, and the thrill of being lost in passion, Dax and Jack are going to have a hard time holding on to their treasure... and to each other!

Reviewed By: J9

In a Nutshell: Great MM romantic suspense with a strong romance and compelling plot.

The Set Up: Dax and his sister are treasure hunters looking for a shipwreck off the coast of Alaska. They charter Jackson’s boat to help them look for the shipwreck. But openly gay Dax pushes Jackson’s buttons in ways he’s never felt before. But the attraction between the two men may be the least of their worries as another group is also after the shipwreck.

Why I Read this Book: I really enjoyed book one in this series so want to continue it. I have to also mention how much I’m enjoying reading male MM romance authors, like Scotty Cade.

What I Liked: Dax and Jackson have great chemistry. The sexual attraction is there but I really like how their emotional relationship develops. The men communicate with each other, especially important since gay attraction is new to Jackson. I like that Dax doesn’t rush Jackson in their relationship and this provides great emotional and sexual pay-off for readers. I also liked how realistic Jackson’s sexual confusion was. He didn’t just suddenly feel comfortable kissing Dax in public but it’s a struggle for him in the face of societal pressures. The first two books in this series have very accepting views on sexuality that it’s less about absolutes and more attraction for specific people and I enjoyed this gentle message.

What I Also Liked: Mac and Brad from book one are great secondary characters here, as well as Dax’s sister who is also his business partner. These three form a crew for the ship with Dax and Jackson and all work together to find the shipwreck. Their gentle humor helps Jackson alter his life in order to have a relationship with Dax and I liked this support network for both men.

The plot was also quite suspenseful. The shipwreck was straight out of a Discovery Channel documentary and I’m a sucker for this kind of thing. The book focuses a lot on how the crew finds the wreck, then how they dive to document it, claim it and then see what’s in the shipwreck. The rival group looking for the wreck provides just enough sinister action for the novel and rounded out this good novel.

What I Didn’t Like: Nada.

IMO: Good romance, good plot and good characters here. I’ll be continuing this series.

J9’s Rating:

 

 

J9’s reviews for other books in this series:
Wings of Love – 4 ½ frogs