How does John Meaney use imagery in Back in Black: An a-list Novel?

Imagery:

"Right now, I'm at a celibate life stage. Sort of like the Essenes around the time of Hillel" (Seven Deadly Sins, p. 61).

"There were no guarantees. They were alone in a city that neither of them knew. Just him, her, this moment, the truth" (Stratosphere, p. 294).