Rhys Ford - Sinner's Gin

There’s a dead man in Miki St. John’s vintage Pontiac GTO, and he has no idea how it got there.
After Miki survives the tragic accident that killed his best friend and the other members of their band, Sinner’s Gin, all he wants is to hide from the world in the refurbished warehouse he bought before their last tour. But when the man who sexually abused him as a boy is killed and his remains are dumped in Miki’s car, Miki fears Death isn’t done with him yet.
Kane Morgan, the SFPD inspector renting space in the art co-op next door, initially suspects Miki had a hand in the man’s murder, but Kane soon realizes Miki is as much a victim as the man splattered inside the GTO. As the murderer’s body count rises, the attraction between Miki and Kane heats up. Neither man knows if they can make a relationship work, but despite Miki’s emotional damage, Kane is determined to teach him how to love and be loved — provided, of course, Kane can catch the killer before Miki becomes the murderer’s final victim.

Comment: I got interested in this book after a recommendation by a friend. I had previously read another book by the author which I didn't like that much, but I've decided to give this one a try and I liked it better than the other one, but still not as much as I hoped for.

Miki St John is the singer in a successful band and when the story begins, they have just gotten out of the Grammys but a terrible accident kills the other three members, leaving Miki very hurt but the sole survivor. Then, some time later, Miki is a recluse in his home, he knows he should try to get better, especially emotionally, but he can't forget how things used to be and about the loss of his friends. His neighbor is detective Kane Morgan, from the San Francisco police and they finally meat each other when Miki's dog leaves his house and invades Kane's space. Although Kane tries to be stern with Miki about dog leashes, he can't help but feel attracted to him but everything is put aside when a body is found on Miki's car, in his garage. Upon investigation, the body belongs to a man from Miki's past, someone who abused Miki when he was a foster kid. Kane decides he should help Miki but when the person doing these things escalates, can it be Miki is in danger too?

I can see why this is a popular book among the several the author has written. Miki is a vulnerable but snarky guy and it's compelling to want to see him finding peace and happiness. Kane too is a reliable character and quite appealing,not only because of his protective role but because he is part of a large family and all the allusions and dynamics make for a cute and vibrant story. The contrast between their pasts makes a possible relationship amusing to see happen.

In fact, that was probably the element I liked the best in this story, how Kane's family - so many siblings and almost all in the police forces - being Irish is fun and loving and how that provides Miki with another side to things. This makes him realize he doesn't have to be isolated nor away from others and I liked the scenes where he met Kane's family and they started to be closer. The romance was cute and Kane always quite considerate of Miki's experiences and past but he never coddled him, making him aware he was a grown up man and he was able to choose what and who he wanted.

This said, it's true I had an easy time reading the book, but the writing style is hard to explain, I liked it but it isn't "magical" in the sense that it made me eager to know what would happen or eager to understand what was going through the protagonist' heads. Some writers can write about the simplest of actions and make everything effortless and smooth and while there's no problem with this author's skill, I just didn't feel the impact of what was happening.

Since I've found the writing wasn't always as special, the plot also looked a bit superficial. Miki went through a lot and although this addressed, I feel the emotional content wasn't always up to what was being described. Some times yes, others not so much, and that means it felt as if Miki could quite easily go between lighthearted and worried and that jarred me. Kane has had a better childhood and it shows on his behavior and personality but I still don't think I got to have a good grasp on their thoughts, their true selves.

As for the plot, I could say some details feel s bit too easy, a bit predictable regarding the bad guy's identity, but the psychology of everything isn't that terrible. I suppose I just didn't feel very invested in this because it was a given something would happen and that the police would find the culprit or do their job somehow. One could say there's some mystery ongoing but nothing really complex as we would see in a more thriller focused plot.

It also seems as if the author's books have to include some (light) paranormal aspect and that was shared right at the end in what I assume is a sort of cliffhanger. I wasn't overly surprised because I remember the other book by the author also had some similar content, but here it looks as if it is coming out of nowhere. I bet it will be the start of the next novel in the series but to be honest, right now I don't know if I want to read it. Perhaps one day if I feel like revisiting this author.

Grade: 6/10

Rhys Ford - Fish and Ghosts

When his Uncle Mortimer died and left him Hoxne Grange, the family’s Gilded Age estate, Tristan Pryce knew he wasn’t going to have an easy time of it. He was to be the second generation of Pryces to serve as a caretaker for the estate, a way station for spirits on their final steps to the afterlife. The ghosts were the simple part. He’d been seeing boo-wigglies since he was a child. No, the difficult part was his own family. Determined to establish Tristan’s insanity, his loving relatives hire Dr. Wolf Kincaid and his paranormal researchers, Hellsinger Investigations, to prove the Grange is not haunted.
Skeptic Wolf Kincaid has made it his life’s work to debunk the supernatural. After years of cons and fakes, he can’t wait to reveal the Grange’s ghostly activity is just badly leveled floorboards and a drafty old house. The Grange has more than a few surprises for him, including its prickly, reclusive owner. Tristan Pryce is much less insane and much more attractive than Wolf wants to admit and when his Hellsinger team unwittingly release a ghostly serial killer on the Grange, Wolf is torn between his skepticism and protecting the man he’d been sent to discredit.

Comment: I got this book a few months ago based on the promising blurb. I had hopes this would be a fascinating and romantic story. If there is one thing I look for in m/m books is the romance and relationship element and for that, one needs the writer's talent.

This is Wolf and Tristan's story.

Wolf and his team of paranormal researchers try to prove many supernatural manifestations are purely schemes aiming for profit. When they are asked to prove Tristan is a crazy unbalanced young men, they go to the property where Tristan works and try to prove the place is not haunted as people say.

Tristan not only believes in ghosts but he wants to help them any way he can and the Grange, left by his uncle seems to be a place where ghosts come to when they are ready to leave. He agrees to the team's presence there to assure his family ghosts exist o they can leave him alone. But Wold is a surprise for Tristan, on all levels...

I won't be long with this comment. I was disappointed with this book. It didn't work for me for several reasons, being the two main ones the following:

- The romance felt flat. I didn't believe their emotions that much. I assume the author has a specific vision about how things were happening but I wasn't sod on them. At first yes, the reluctant attraction (one of my favorite things in romances) was interesting enough, but from then on, their slow paced relationship got too indifferent. They just didn't seem to click as a couple and I never felt much sexual chemistry between them, even when in more intimate moments.

Tristan is a very likable character but he also had a sort of too innocent take and although I can understand why for the story's development and vibe, I still think he got a bit whinny at some point. He just stopped being endearing to me.

Wold was more the type of character I like in these romances, more assertive, confidant and almost alpha, but he didn't push Tristan right away and things started slowly. Still, despite his personality being captivating, together they didn't seem to work that much. Then Wolf's past and origins got in the way and the story started to feel like too much was going on.

- The plot seemed interesting at first but after a while so many things were the focus, the paranormal activity, Wolf's family, the bad ghost, the tactics to stop the bad ghost from further harm, the main character's relationship... so may things that well paced and structured could make this really special. But, for me, it was just so confusing, I had some trouble concentrating on the story and on what was happening.

It's not that I didn't like it per se, but so many elements just didn't seem to match together. I can see how many lied the story and how the author's style can be interesting, but for me things didn't work. I could discount the plot if the romance was a winner, but unfortunately, neither convinced me.

I think the good parts, mostly about the ghosts presence and the why of things weren't enough to distract me from the things I believe could have been better. Some times, some books can be good but not work for someone in particular and this happened to me here.

Grade: 4/10