Did you ever think about falling for a killer on the run? Eliza Jane Brazier delves into that dark and thrilling world with her book, *It Had to be You*. It’s a “Mr. & Mrs. Smith” style romance where two contract killers find themselves entangled in an intricate dance of lust and murder across Europe.
The tale opens as Jonathan and Eva meet on a sleeper train from Florence to Paris. Sparks fly between them, but the promise of something real is cut short when Jonathan suddenly disappears. Turns out he’s been dealing with a bullet wound, leaving him lost and alone.
As they each navigate their own past trauma and self-destructive tendencies, Eva learns that her next target is Jonathan. It isn’t long before she finds herself drawn into his world, their paths crossing again in the grand Hall of Mirrors at Versailles.
Their encounter is explosive, both literally and metaphorically. Eva was hired to take him out, yet there’s a strange spark between them. The tension is palpable as Jonathan’s face hardens and her hands begin to tremble with barely-contained anger. This isn’t just about contracts; it’s about the raw power of attraction when two people are on opposite sides of the moral fence.
Brazier weaves a tale filled with dark humor, as Eva and Jonathan try to ignore their feelings while also navigating dangerous missions across Europe: They drink, they flirt, and, at times, they even attempt (with varying degrees of success) to kill each other, which is oddly charming in this world where love has no place.
This isn’t a story about redemption or fairy tale romance, though; It’s about two people whose lives are consumed by violence, and how their own twisted desires become entangled with the dark undercurrents of their profession. If you crave a gritty, edge-of-your-seat read that pushes the boundaries of love and death in equal measure, *It Had to be You* is for you.