PJ Trebelhorn

Now that is a heckuva start to a story. Yikes. Car wreck.

And then from there, it got even more intense. The emotions in this novel sorta floored me. I'm not sure how Trebelhorn did it, or why it was different, but, while most lesbian fiction books definitely have emotion running through them (they'd be boring if they didn't), in this one it seemed as though those emotions were right at the surface of the book.

It's about Riley and Vic, and it's sort of a second chance romance--ish. The two show more women went to school together in Wolf Bay. Vic's family and Vic are rich. Riley and her Mom weren't, and Riley's Mom was an alcholic too. That made life pretty hellish for Riley. And, while Vic sorta had a very hidden crush on Riley, Vanessa (Vic's twin sister) and their friends bullied Riley relentlessly, especially their senior year.

But, it's 20 years later. Vic is back for her sister's wedding and a lot has changed for her, and for Riley too. They slowly grow closer. But, there's still a lot of stuff hanging on from when they were kids, a lot of very very heavy stuff.

They, as well as the other characters were pretty awesomely written and I liked them (or well written and I hated them as I was supposed to). I wish there'd been more Tyler, but, overall it was a really really fun read.

I was given this ARC by Netgalley on behalf of Bold Strokes Books. show less

Kay is a homicide Detective who's knee deep in an almost serial killer case. She thinks that Tommy Rayne is the one who's killed the victims. Unfortunately she and Tommy get into it a bit (Tommy's nose loses), and Kay winds up getting suspended for eight weeks and she has also royally pissed off Tommy.

Brenda and her father run a construction company that Kay hires to build a fence around her backyard as well as rebuild her deck. Of course, one of the regular workers (the one who gave Kay the show more estimate) isn't in on the day the project is supposed to start and so Brenda has to fill in for him. Sparks (only the good kind) fly.

The story is both that of Brenda and Kay's burgeoning love as well as the mystery of if Tommy did it, if he'll get Kay or if she'll catch him.

Brenda is wary of a relationship because of previous troubles she's had in them, and Kay is wary because of all the Rayne stuff that's going on.

For the most part I Liked the story, especially the thriller-ish part. I truly wasn't sure what the end of the book would be. Who would live, die, etc.

Still, some of the romance/relationship parts of the story seemed overdone a bit here and there. Stilted at times.

I also didn't totally understand the Rayne scratching his back thing, and it seemed only partially explained by the end of the book. Overall I felt like there were a lot of hanging plot points. Practically enough for a sequel.

Still, a solid enough thriller. Three stars.

I got this advanced galley through Netgalley on behalf of Bold Strokes Books. show less

I demand a prequel. Okay, not really, I'm just kidding, but, while I loved the characters at the point in their life that's in this book, my inner mystery lover would just love a serial killer mystery with these two sleuthing out the solution and having lots of angsty times as well.

Jordan is a former FBI agent turned poker player who's come to Las Vegas for the World Series of Poker, and to maybe play in The Main Event. She also has MS, which I thought would be a lesser part of the book, but show more was actually very present. I also thought that it was really well done.

Then there was Ashley. She's a former LAPD Detective (or perhaps an Officer, but it seemed like she'd been some sort of Detective) who's now the Head of Security at the hotel/casino where the World Series of Poker and Jordan both happen to be.

They didn't part fifteen years earlier on good terms, and so it's quite rocky when they first see each other. And even after that there are many twists, turns, and much angst in the story.

I liked the story. In some places it was super touching. In others outrageously funny, and super fun and fast read.

I got this advanced galley through Netgalley on behalf of Bold Strokes Books. show less

So, this isn't technically part of a series, I think, but, it does have in it characters from the previous book, The Right Kind of Wrong. Quinn and Grace. And it was nice to see them again.

But, this story is about Callie, a Police Detective (and Quinn's little sister) and Taylor, the owner of the bar and Quinn's boss. Neither of them are in the prefect place to start a relationship. Callie's been hurt before and people think she is a player. Taylor lost her firefighter wife about four years show more before the story starts, Andrea, who had also been Callie's BFF, and she is still grieving.

There is a ton of back and forth between the two as they're falling in love and it was interesting that when the book starts they may know each other, but they're not even friends.

I liked the book a lot, I liked how PJ weaved in Grace and Quinn (and all the characters' families) into the story. And the story between the two main characters too. The romance I've read there generally isn't a lot of death of the first partner (maybe in some). And that sort of push and pull between the two ladies usually produces a lot of surprising twists that isn't in a conventional romance. Oh, and one of the subplot's endings. Holy crap.

I was given this ARC by Netgalley on behalf of Bold Strokes Books. show less