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fresholivebread's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
funny
hopeful
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Two new partners try to solve murders while overcoming their antagonism. The steady, confident Sawyer is likeable, but the brash, hot/cold Royce took some time to warm up to. Though there's a fair bit of lusty thoughts from Sawyer, their romance burns slower due to their issues of love and loss, and Royce's perceived straightness. There's a lot of snarky banter and tension that then turns sexual, which leads to some explosive moments.
It's pretty steamy when they finally get together, and Sawyer opens up the more caring, sensitive side of Royce. There's a fair bit of push pull though. TheirHFN ending with them wanting to try for a relationship is fitting (TBC) . The mysteries are on the simple side, and I preferred a centralised case to a few cases at once. And I would've liked a peek into Royce's thoughts.
It's pretty steamy when they finally get together, and Sawyer opens up the more caring, sensitive side of Royce. There's a fair bit of push pull though. Their
Content Warnings
Moderate: Racism and Homophobia
eesh25's review against another edition
4.0
In January, I'd planned to start a bunch of new series, and five of them were romances. Out of those five, this is somehow the only one that worked out. Two books I hated, one series only had a single book out, and one I'm not sure I want to continue despite liking it quite a bit.
This book follows Royce Locke and Sawyer Key. Sawyer has recently joined the police department, and he's Locke's new partner. The two have a rough start because Locke's still dealing with the loss of his old partner. He's a bit douchy at first. Nothing too bad, though, and it gives us fun banter. He's also straightforward about why he's behaving the way he is and how he didn't want a new partner, and I really appreciated that.
The story is half about the cases Locke and Sawyer work on and half about their relationship, whether it's as work partners or romantic ones.
And you know, of the two I books hated in January, this was what I'd wanted one of them, Orientation, to be. It was interesting and fun. We got to investigate murders, it had good banter, and there was the beginning of a romance that will develop in the next two books. I really liked reading it.
Speaking of the cases, because yes, there were multiple (two of them, to be exact), neither of them was a big mystery. They were normal cases without any criminal masterminds involved. The murderer was often the one Locke and Sawyer thought it was. And I mention this because I buddy read the book, and the lack of mystery bothered the person I read it with. For me personally, I liked the mundanity of the cases. They were interesting still, and we got to see Sawyer and Locke work together.
I did feel that the first case the protagonists worked on went too fast. But the pace stabilized after that, and I really didn't have any issues with the book after. I thought the writing was good, the cases were coherently presented, and the characters were likable.
I also liked the subplot with Sawyer still dealing with the loss of his husband and only just starting to get back into dating. The author was careful with how she presented his grief so that it was part of his story, but not overwhelmingly so. It gave him and Locke something in common, too, because they've both lost someone important to them.
Overall, this was a great read, and definitely one I'd recommend checking out. I'm starting the second book in a few days and excited to see how it'll go.
This book follows Royce Locke and Sawyer Key. Sawyer has recently joined the police department, and he's Locke's new partner. The two have a rough start because Locke's still dealing with the loss of his old partner. He's a bit douchy at first. Nothing too bad, though, and it gives us fun banter. He's also straightforward about why he's behaving the way he is and how he didn't want a new partner, and I really appreciated that.
The story is half about the cases Locke and Sawyer work on and half about their relationship, whether it's as work partners or romantic ones.
And you know, of the two I books hated in January, this was what I'd wanted one of them, Orientation, to be. It was interesting and fun. We got to investigate murders, it had good banter, and there was the beginning of a romance that will develop in the next two books. I really liked reading it.
Speaking of the cases, because yes, there were multiple (two of them, to be exact), neither of them was a big mystery. They were normal cases without any criminal masterminds involved. The murderer was often the one Locke and Sawyer thought it was. And I mention this because I buddy read the book, and the lack of mystery bothered the person I read it with. For me personally, I liked the mundanity of the cases. They were interesting still, and we got to see Sawyer and Locke work together.
I did feel that the first case the protagonists worked on went too fast. But the pace stabilized after that, and I really didn't have any issues with the book after. I thought the writing was good, the cases were coherently presented, and the characters were likable.
I also liked the subplot with Sawyer still dealing with the loss of his husband and only just starting to get back into dating. The author was careful with how she presented his grief so that it was part of his story, but not overwhelmingly so. It gave him and Locke something in common, too, because they've both lost someone important to them.
Overall, this was a great read, and definitely one I'd recommend checking out. I'm starting the second book in a few days and excited to see how it'll go.
zaza_bdp's review against another edition
2.0
2.5 ⭐
Je n'avais encore jamais lu cette auteure, et là je dois dire que je ne suis pas du tout convaincue.
Les enquêtes policières (car il y en a deux) sont assez médiocres, tout est résolu avec une facilité déconcertante, et le seul truc que j'ai trouvé sympa, c'est l'ambiance du "commissariat".
Le trope du duo de partenaires qui doivent apprendre à se connaître, connaissent des tensions avant de fricoter et plus si affinités est un de ceux que j'aime lire de temps en temps, mais ici, je n'ai pas franchement accroché. Le roman est écrit à la 3ème personne mais on n'a que le POV de Sawyer Key ; celui de Locke (oh il a un prénom bien pourri le gars, il s'appelle Royce) m'a manqué, dans la mesure où il traverse une période difficile psychologiquement parlant, sans parler du fait qu'il concrétise ici enfin son désir pour un homme ...
Bref, un ensemble très médiocre, que j'ai fini sans vraiment savoir pourquoi. Je ne pense pas lire la suite car le couple ne m'intéresse pas. :/
Je n'avais encore jamais lu cette auteure, et là je dois dire que je ne suis pas du tout convaincue.
Les enquêtes policières (car il y en a deux) sont assez médiocres, tout est résolu avec une facilité déconcertante, et le seul truc que j'ai trouvé sympa, c'est l'ambiance du "commissariat".
Le trope du duo de partenaires qui doivent apprendre à se connaître, connaissent des tensions avant de fricoter et plus si affinités est un de ceux que j'aime lire de temps en temps, mais ici, je n'ai pas franchement accroché. Le roman est écrit à la 3ème personne mais on n'a que le POV de Sawyer Key ; celui de Locke (oh il a un prénom bien pourri le gars, il s'appelle Royce) m'a manqué, dans la mesure où il traverse une période difficile psychologiquement parlant, sans parler du fait qu'il concrétise ici enfin son désir pour un homme ...
Bref, un ensemble très médiocre, que j'ai fini sans vraiment savoir pourquoi. Je ne pense pas lire la suite car le couple ne m'intéresse pas. :/
___tamara___'s review against another edition
Time of death: 16%
There's awkward dialogue and then there's awkward dialogue. Some examples are in my reading updates for this book, but there are many many more. You don't even have to look for it to see it, just open a random page and start reading.
I couldn't bring myself to read a moment longer, it tested the limits of how far to the back of my head I'm able to roll my eyes. I was going to push through it in hopes the story or the characters might turn out okay. I was hoping a little bit of bitching to my GR friends and searching for the right .gif reaction would make it fun enough even with the writing such as it is. But no - I give up. There are books I want to read and not enough time already, so I'm not going to waste my time on a book I'm not enjoying one bit.
There's awkward dialogue and then there's awkward dialogue. Some examples are in my reading updates for this book, but there are many many more. You don't even have to look for it to see it, just open a random page and start reading.
I couldn't bring myself to read a moment longer, it tested the limits of how far to the back of my head I'm able to roll my eyes. I was going to push through it in hopes the story or the characters might turn out okay. I was hoping a little bit of bitching to my GR friends and searching for the right .gif reaction would make it fun enough even with the writing such as it is. But no - I give up. There are books I want to read and not enough time already, so I'm not going to waste my time on a book I'm not enjoying one bit.
hellishlyawkward's review
adventurous
emotional
funny
hopeful
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Overall, a pretty entertaining listen.
Unusual that the story continued through the MCs solving more than one crime. Most romance books with a mystery or crime story running parallel only span the length of one case to its completion, especially when the case is so detailed and explored so thoroughly. Was not a drawback though, just interesting.
Liked the MCs fine. Found the pace of their relationship a little odd, but perhaps that was just Locke’s reaction to things - he was all in, but he kinda wasn’t… Just seemed a bit wishy-washy at times.
First book I've listened to with Tristan James. Found his narration distracting at first, but after a while I settled into it and it was ok.
Unusual that the story continued through the MCs solving more than one crime. Most romance books with a mystery or crime story running parallel only span the length of one case to its completion, especially when the case is so detailed and explored so thoroughly. Was not a drawback though, just interesting.
Liked the MCs fine. Found the pace of their relationship a little odd, but perhaps that was just Locke’s reaction to things - he was all in, but he kinda wasn’t… Just seemed a bit wishy-washy at times.
First book I've listened to with Tristan James. Found his narration distracting at first, but after a while I settled into it and it was ok.
latoinombra's review
dark
hopeful
mysterious
reflective
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.75
jagiaquinto's review against another edition
4.0
This is entirely my own issue but I'm not a big fan of single pov romance novels. I always question what is going on with the other half of the relationship. I know the second book is from royces pov but sawyer was only somewhat compelling. I enjoyed the story but I felt like it would have been better with both povs. The two cases we see are interesting but I would have liked more substance with both of them. I'm gonna read book 2 so I can see royces backstory so yay!
hollsbooks's review against another edition
emotional
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
3.5