2017 Rainbow Award honorable mention ”A wonderful tale of lust, love, and the Japanese culture.”A bag of drugs. A twisted cop. A mob on the verge of self-destruction… doesn’t deal drugs… or does it?
When Nao discovers drugs in a locker owned by his syndicate, he no longer knows who to trust. With the police bearing down on the Matsukawa, Nao must make unlikely allies to find out the truth. Can he discover who is betraying him before time runs out, or will everyone suffer for a crime he didn’t commit?
Better Than Suicide is the second book in a Japanese mafia thriller series. If you like complex plots, gripping suspense, and splash of gay romance, then you’ll love the next installment in Amy Tasukada’s Yakuza Path series.
Buy Better Than Suicide to start the race against the clock today!
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This book starts 2-3 weeks after the events in the first book and shows first days of Nao being the godfather. The steam level is 0.5, the romance is low but suspense and mystery are very compelling and make this story great. Most of all we get the sense of what kind of man Nao really is: his moral compass, his convictions, what he holds dear and what’s most important to him. We also get to see that sometimes friends can be found in odd places and trust is hard earned, but when given is worth its weight in gold.
Japanese traditions and holidays feature heavily here. It’s an absolutely gorgeous visual that author creates with her words. I enjoyed reading about slight nuances and less known facts.
Even though I said that the romance level was low, it was more of a hum in the background that was very important nonetheless. Nao is always portrayed as a hard man but in several unguarded moments we see that he feels deeply, and if he lets himself love again he can find happiness. There is a person out there even for him – tough, uncompromising and ruthless godfather -someone who is very close. I can’t wait to see how the author spins this romantic angle.
This series is definitely slim on romance but rich on cultural and historical facts about Japan and its people. The suspense and steady pace keep this story from being stagnant. The characters both main and side are diverse and well written. I liked this book as well as the first one.
I’m loving the world and character building going on in this series and the slow pace of the romantic developments. Since this is a new world for me in terms of the Yakuza and Japanese customs in general, I like the fact that this book focuses on the world and characters as individuals and their roles within the organization rather than trying to rush the romance. I’m sure that will come, as we have several more promised volumes that I can’t wait to read.
I purchased this book and the first one a while back and remember thinking it wasn’t my thing because I was looking for romance and boy this is not it. So I picked it up again and read it out of order by accident and I’m glad I did. Lol. Really. This is an amazing story that near gave me a heart attack with plot twists and danger and intrigue.
Nao is the interim head of the local yakuza and struggles to find his place. He mistrusts everyone and has to carve out his place. He has internal struggles, issues with the police, the other families, the Korean mob all the while grieving over lost love. It’s the best soap opera in a book I have read in years.
Why do I think reading the books out of order was good for me? Well, A few absolutely shocking things happen in book one that are mentioned in book two. If I didn’t have that warning I would have lost my mind. So even though I knew it was coming, I was STILL rattled. How many times can you say that about a book? This is brilliant writing and the plot is crazy good.