I liked the story, the mystery, the characters, and the setting. Rory especially appears to have an interesting backstory that I would like further elucidated.
It's rather a refreshing departure from the cozy trope that these amateur detectives are completely incompetent, nearly getting themselves killed, and the wrong person arrested, more than once.
There were several issues and inaccuracies, however, that prevented me from completely enjoying this cozy mystery.
1. There's a lot of talk of "obstruction of justice." Wouldn't that be called "perverting the course of justice" in England (nothing will convince me that the author is British)? And while the police threaten to charge our MCs for obstruction of justice after they merely talk to other witnesses, other characters canremove evidence (including the body) from the crime scene and destroy it with impunity. Heck, even the murderer isn't prosecuted!
2. The author seems to have no concept of how far "500 metres" (later "500 yards") is. For example, when a bus drops Haley off 500 yards from her suspect's house, she walks even further away to avoid being spotted from their window.
3. It seems inconceivable to me, in this day and age, that Haley wouldn't even suspect that Rory is gay, or have a word for her own asexuality. And while it's quite clear why Rory wouldn't tell his father he was gay, there's no reason he wouldn't mention it to Haley -- especially afterZach started dropping by the house. The author's apparent show more explanation -- that the MCs didn't want to hurt each others feelings? Even though they were "fake dating" they were afraid the other one was falling for them? -- well, I just don't buy it.
4. Several silly typos. Tory becomes Tori (and back again); Rod is called Rob.
Not bad; I expect I'll read the next one. Hopefully the author will pay for an editor this time. show less
It's rather a refreshing departure from the cozy trope that these amateur detectives are completely incompetent, nearly getting themselves killed, and the wrong person arrested, more than once.
There were several issues and inaccuracies, however, that prevented me from completely enjoying this cozy mystery.
1. There's a lot of talk of "obstruction of justice." Wouldn't that be called "perverting the course of justice" in England (nothing will convince me that the author is British)? And while the police threaten to charge our MCs for obstruction of justice after they merely talk to other witnesses, other characters can
2. The author seems to have no concept of how far "500 metres" (later "500 yards") is. For example, when a bus drops Haley off 500 yards from her suspect's house, she walks even further away to avoid being spotted from their window.
3. It seems inconceivable to me, in this day and age, that Haley wouldn't even suspect that Rory is gay, or have a word for her own asexuality. And while it's quite clear why Rory wouldn't tell his father he was gay, there's no reason he wouldn't mention it to Haley -- especially after
4. Several silly typos. Tory becomes Tori (and back again); Rod is called Rob.
Not bad; I expect I'll read the next one. Hopefully the author will pay for an editor this time. show less
Stars: 2.5
Typically, I’m a sucker for Amy Lane’s brand of tearjerker, but this one wasn’t pulling me in at all. After two false starts (DFNs after just a couple of pages), I finally read the entire book (I had to, as part of a contest). I’m not sure if I was put off by the statutory rape, or as near as . . . the MC was 14 and his lover was 17 or 18 in the first chapters or what. I just didn’t find the characters engaging or the story compelling.
Typically, I’m a sucker for Amy Lane’s brand of tearjerker, but this one wasn’t pulling me in at all. After two false starts (DFNs after just a couple of pages), I finally read the entire book (I had to, as part of a contest). I’m not sure if I was put off by the
Stars: 2
While I found this angst-filled romance about a down-and-out rock star and his childhood-friend-turned-Catholic-Priest compelling, I marked it way down for the harmful gay stereotype.The gay priest broke his vows and had sex with a man. I don’t see why Jazz couldn’t have quit the priesthood before having sex with Nicky, but I guess that would have led to fewer sex scenes in the book. So the gay priest is portrayed as someone who can’t control his sexual desires . That’s the sort of gay stereotype that needs to die. The book tries to soften it, saying things like it would be “the same for a straight priest and a woman,” but it isn’t the same, because the harmful stereotype just isn’t there in that situation. Not to mention I predicted the end from Chapter 2, but since this isn’t a mystery I guess I can’t really complain.
While I found this angst-filled romance about a down-and-out rock star and his childhood-friend-turned-Catholic-Priest compelling, I marked it way down for the harmful gay stereotype.
2.5 Stars: I prefer my romances with a bit of mystery, so I thought this MM romance/paranormal mystery would fit the bill. While the romance in [b:Stalked by Shadows|53666499|Stalked by Shadows (Simply Crafty #1)|Lissa Kasey|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1590854785l/53666499._SY75_.jpg|73887415] is nice enough, the mystery is sorely lacking. I prefer when plots are tied up in a neat little bow; this book gave no explanation, whether rational or paranormal, for the events: ”What do you think happened?” . . . “I think it doesn’t matter now that you’re back.” “So we move forward like nothing happened?” . . . “Will dwelling on it help either of us?” . I suppose later books in the series might clear things up, but for now, the book is ultimately unsatisfying, as if even the author has no idea what the explanation is, but figured she’ll just publish book one and maybe think of something good later.
Review: Stars: 4.5
I typically have little patience for the ubiquitous YA/New Adult discovering-sexuality-coming-to-terms-with-being-gay-and-coming-out book, but [b:Know Not Why|13614864|Know Not Why (Know Not Why, #1)|Hannah Johnson|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1335247981l/13614864._SX50_.jpg|19215714] is an exception – a laugh-out-loud funny, sweet and endearing little story. All of the characters, both main and supporting, are well-drawn, if a bit too perfect (other than Howie) to be fully believable. If you’re in the mood for a fun, funny book, low heat and low conflict, this is a great choice.
I typically have little patience for the ubiquitous YA/New Adult discovering-sexuality-coming-to-terms-with-being-gay-and-coming-out book, but [b:Know Not Why|13614864|Know Not Why (Know Not Why, #1)|Hannah Johnson|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1335247981l/13614864._SX50_.jpg|19215714] is an exception – a laugh-out-loud funny, sweet and endearing little story. All of the characters, both main and supporting, are well-drawn, if a bit too perfect (other than Howie) to be fully believable. If you’re in the mood for a fun, funny book, low heat and low conflict, this is a great choice.
I always enjoy visiting Victor and Jacob. These short stories come from various points in their “relationship” (one is even before they started dating) and are told from various POVs (mostly Vic, a few from Jacob, and one from Lisa). Really cute, with a lot of great insight into their relationship.
Serviceable, albeit formulaic, military romance set post-DADT. Easy reading, sweet romance, but no real surprises here.
Compelling vampire novel but with unsatisfying ending, leaving many plot threads unresolved.
Not the worst piece of fan fiction I've read. Only two really glaring grammatical/spelling errors, and I was kind of hoping for more when I got to the end.
“It seemed a bit anticlimactic that the evil villain of a vampire was actually dead and I’d slept through the whole damn thing . . .”
Ya think?
These reimagined, updated fairy tales were slow going. “The Cat Returns to Adderly” by Sam Burns, the “Puss in Boots” retelling, was the only one that sparked my interest; the rest I had to struggle through. 2.5 stars rounded up.
This was not the silly, sweet vampire-couple-raise-a-baby romance I was expecting from the lighthearted title, description, cover, and reviews, being quite a bit darker. The MCs are constantly being gravely injured in their line of work (fighting demons and rogue vampires), and the family is in danger from being “outed” as vampires. There is spousal abuse that I guess we’re supposed to not care about, or maybe forgive, because the couple are both vampires? Not bad, and still an interesting read, but not what I expected.
Decent enough story, but the (wolf) MC's manner of speech and accent were hard to swallow, especially since he kept slipping in and out of them.
Review: Excellent suspense romance. Very intense; not for the squeamish.
A bit less humor and more pathos than the (now) typical Amy Lane offering; she really throws every misfortune imaginable onto the two poor MCs (rather reminding me of the adventures of Mrs. Shakespeare Smith: “ . . . in one short afternoon their family was the scene of births, marriages, deaths, floods, earthquakes, tea-parties, and balloon ascensions.”)! However, for those who like that sort of thing (and I do), this is the sort of thing you’ll like.
Sweet (almost saccharine) gay-for-you romance, no surprises.
How did I not know this series existed? Excellent, fast-paced, twisty-plotted gay mystery. My only complaint is that a book set after I graduated from college is considered “historical.”
Extremely unlikely premise: gay man decides to experiment with a woman, they apparently both forget about protection, she gets pregnant and decides to carry, but not keep, the baby; man decides to hire neighbor with no childcare experience as a “manny”; manny is a SF writer whose publisher decides they want him to write romances). If you can suspend your disbelief, this is a cute romance with few surprises.
I enjoyed this fast-paced thriller-romance. Lucky is difficult to love but amusing (and he grows on you); I found Bo a little one-dimensional at first, but the author fills out his character nicely. A great read!
Wow, Barbara Elsborg is quickly becoming my new second-favorite author! Lovely blend of humor, romance and pathos.
It’s a little sad when you love a book only just up to the point when the MCs get together. Up until then it was hilarious, with a lot of fun sexual tension. Afterwards, everyone was miserable (including myself). 2.5 stars: average of four stars for the first half and one star for the second.
Alexis Hall’s standard combination of complex, wounded, lonely characters with overtones of melancholy, set in gloomy North East England. Be prepared to have your heart broken and put back together at least three times.
Stars: 4.5
Stars: 4.5
Light, amusing story about two wronged exes determined to “settle the score” with their former lovers (now together). Will their plan for revenge work, or will they end up just using each other as badly as they were used? Fun and funny if you’re in the mood for a nice, slow-burn romance.
3.5 stars rounded up.
3.5 stars rounded up.
The fourth installment of the Mercy Hills Pack series is long on pack politics but a bit short on romance. One rather wishes Holland's story could be told in one complete volume, as I forgot quite a bit of his origin story by the time I read this. 3.5 stars rounded up.
Review: Tear-jerker romance about a man recovering from the unexpected death of his partner. Keep the Kleenex handy! That said, I didn't love the narration by JP Handler and his Oh. Ver. Pro. Nun. See. Aye. Shun. Of. Each. Sill. Uh. Bill. It sounds almost like one of those computer narrations.
This is an exciting story, but it’s much more violent than I would have preferred, with respect to both the relationship between the two MCs and their willingness to kill and torture their enemies. These are amoral killers, not tough-on-the-outside-sweet-on-the-inside heroes, so it’s a bit difficult to really care about them.
What can I say? This is my gazillionth reread of Fatal Shadows and it’s still a favorite. The mystery and characters never get old.
