"Exposed" by HL Day- A post-apocalyptic MM romantic suspense book that is ALMOST a 5 star read for me

Any book that features an over the top obsessed, knife wielding MMC is probably going to get a glowing review from me.  This one is no exception.  It is set in a post-apocalyptic world, where X, the badass stalker, has been quietly watching over average guy Tate for years.  Then Tate is falsely accused of a crime & X jumps in to save him from execution.  The two of them then have to go on the run, trying to find somewhere safe from the relentless government assassins.

I'd rate this book 4 1/2 stars. It would be a 5 star book for me, except the ending is little odd.  It for sure has a HEA, maybe a too perfect one??  But my issue is actually how we get there.

After being on the run for 80% of the book, the couple finds an underground cavern to live in, with a bunch of other refugees.  It is a dirty, confined space, which X cannot stand.  He knows he has to leave & Tate refuses to be separated from him, so he insists on going along.

X is looking for a mythical city, where everyone is free.  He’s heard it’s to the north, across a desert.  They start off across the desert, quickly running out of supplies and nearly dying.  After they fall unconscious, they are found by scouts of the mythic city, who nurse them back to health and give them a home, jobs, and a place to belong.

My issue is actually with X here.  I do not believe that he’s spent 14 years guarding Tate and then risks his life on such a pie in the sky plan.  I believe he would’ve, at the very least, packed better supplies before starting off across the sand.  More likely, I think he would’ve left Tate to go look for the city himself, intending to return to Tate, if he found it.  At some point on the journey, in fact, X’s inner thoughts are like, “Wait, why didn’t I leave him and then go back later?”  Because there is no in-universe reason for him to take this route, except the author wanted them to hike across the desert together.

But there was a much simpler way to achieve this: the author could’ve had X leave alone, leaving Tate a note or something. Tate would’ve not stayed put, like the note instructed, because he’s Tate!  It’s very in character for him to go marching off after X.  He could catch up to him in the desert, insisting that they stay together.  Now, X is pissed, but also touched by Tate’s devotions.  Supplies run low because there are 2 people using them not one.  And when they pass out together and are found, it’s not because of poor planning on X’s part.

Is this a small quibble?  Probably.  Overall the book is still a really great read and I enjoyed it a lot.  I recommend it, if you like romance adventure books, because there is a lot of running around, with the two characters depending on each other to survive.  It’s one of the best book’s I’ve real so far this year.

{Exposed by HL Day}