Category: M/M Paranormal Fiction

Review: Twice Bitten: A Blood Bonds novella (Mismatched Mates Book 9) by Eliot Grayson

Rating: 4.5🌈

Twice Bitten is a great example why I enjoy the writing of Eliot Grayson. Its well written, snarky, it’s characters have great back stories and layered personalities.

Located in Grayson’s Blood Bonds series universe, Twice Bitten is the story of two bitter Paranormals , one a vampire enforcer with a secret. The other a werewolf Alpha seeking a wayward mate who’s caused unbearable damage in his wake. They cross paths when the Alpha, Jack comes looking for aid outward his own territory in locating his mate and finds Angelo, the high ranking enforcer for the Vampire whose territory he’s in.

Grayson’s tale then starts revealing all the details about the paranormal politics surrounding Jack’s arrival in their territory, Angelo’s past and current emotional struggles with mates and mating, and the secrets that lie behind the scenes.

All that drama, and it’s not without humor. There’s some wonderful moments of comedy.

The two person POV works to give the reader advantage as to the characters secrets and struggles before they reveal them to the other person. So we get a better understanding of their motivations for their actions and emotions.

I enjoyed seeing some of the characters from the other Blood Bond stories but it’s not necessary to read them to understand this.

My only slight regret is that I felt that Angelo’s issue was handled, off page, too quickly and conveniently, for the powerful aspect that it was to his character. I felt it should have been a bigger part of the ending.

That aside, I really enjoyed the story, this couple, and their journey towards a HEA.

I’m highly recommending it. And check out the Mismatched Mates series too if a Paranormal romance is your thing!

Mismatched Mates series:

✓ The Alpha’s Warlock #1

◦ Captive Mate #2

✓ A Very Armitage Christmas #3

✓ First Blood #4

◦ The Alpha Experiment #5

◦ Lost and Bound #6

◦ Lost Touch #7

◦ The Alpha Contract #8

✓ Twice Bitten (A Blood Bonds Novella) #9

Description:

A werewolf walks into a vampire bar… ouch.

Vampire enforcer Angelo has enough problems already, and a tall, dark, and irritating alpha werewolf is the last thing he needs.

With his cheating, murderous mate on the run, Jack’s looking for help from the local authorities—who assign Angelo to solve the problem quickly.

They don’t have anything in common on paper, but sharing magical compatibility, a sense of humor, and a common goal can build a bond—whether mundane or otherwise. Even when another bond’s impossible…

Warning: Contains magical attack scorpions, knotting, and a vampire who’s desperate to avoid ruining his suit, falling in love, or other catastrophes. Spoiler alert: He falls in love. Does he ruin his suit, though? Read and find out! Happy ending guaranteed.

Review: Cat’s Chance in Hell:(Charm City Chronicles Book 2) by Meghan Maslow

Rating: 4.75🌈

It was so easy to fall back into Meghan Maslow’s rich paranormal universe of Charm City Chronicles. Baltimore or if you’re local then it’s “Bawlmer” or “Bawl-ah-mur.” A city so rich in varied cultures, a startling variety of architectural styles, and history that it’s a place to overwhelm your senses. In good and, *cough* bad ways.

Maslow’s setting is both a love letter and an acknowledgment of the reality of life in every aspect and area of that old (by American standards) city. Resting place of Poe, birthplace of the nation’s anthem, with the wildness of the Bay at its side, surely magic must exist there.

As it does in the series. Vampires, werewolves, shifters, and a Demon! Oh my!

In Demon’s In The Details, our initial introduction to the Demon Tommy Tittoti and his mate, the Raven shifter, Poe Dupin, we met Tommy’s assistant, Carter Strike.

Sassy, snarky, sexy Siamese shifter, Carter Strike. Exceptionally gifted when it comes to gathering information about Tommy’s enemies, he’s not afraid to take risks to get what he’s looking for.

We instantly adored him. And wanted more.

We get it when he runs through and smack into Bengal Damon-Cowles, the Roger or head of the South-West Baltimore territory. That starts an explosive relationship between him and Damon-Cowles, a Rakshasa, a powerful being of secretive origins.

Maslow’s story has launched a new storyline with this book that’s full of mystery, packed with potential dread and suspense for all our favorite characters going forward, and yes, there’s a bit of a cliffhanger at the end.

There’s just no way to go into any aspect of this book without giving away some secrets or important information that would spoil something for the reader.

I will say I wasn’t expecting the romance elements and that turned out to be so very satisfying.

Now I need that all important next installment. Asap!

I’m definitely recommending this. But if cliffhangers make you crazy, you decide if you want to wait until the next book is released and then read one after the other.

I’ve listed the books in the order below.

Charm City Chronicles:

✓ Demon’s In The Details

✓ Cat’s Chance In Hell

Amazon.comhttps://www.amazon.com › Cats-Ch…Cat’s Chance in Hell: An MM Paranormal Romance (Charm City Chronicles Book 2)

Description:

When a feline fatale meets his magical match, Baltimore might just go up in flames.

I, Carter Strike, Siamese shifter extraordinaire and a powerful demon’s right-hand cat . . .er, man, have a job to do. My boss’ boy toy is in the crosshairs of an unknown assassin. And when my boss is unhappy, all of Charm City burns.

That’s where I come in. Intel is my specialty and leads me to the doorstep of one drop-dead gorgeous but annoyingly secretive Rakshasa.

Bengal Damon-Cowles—even his name is obnoxious—runs South-West Baltimore and is nothing if not frustratingly contrary. I don’t care if he is a demi-god among shifters, I don’t need the complications from a sexy as sin Rakshasa with the utter gall to turn down a fine piece of feline-fantasy like myself. Especially when we’re forced to work together. Except, every day we spend in close proximity turns up the heat between us.

A roomful of secrets, a looming Nor’Easter, and friends with questionable—or nonexistent—morals, add gasoline to the blaze. As the stakes climb ever higher, and people start dying, I’ve got a cat’s chance in hell of coming out of this one unscorched.

Cat’s Chance in Hell is a 113k snarktastic, size difference, forced proximity, enemies-to-lovers, car-careening-out-of-control romance with a guaranteed happy ending and lots of steam. Shenanigans include: a catnapping gone very, very wrong, a hot pot incident that will go down in infamy, and a Rakshasa with more layers than a Smith Island Cake.

Review: Born This Way by Macy Blake

Rating: 2.5🌈

I didn’t realize it until I read the author’s note but this was originally published under a different pen name in 2012 in a shortened version. It shows it’s older origin in so many ways.

Blake states she revised and edited it before rereleasing it under Macy Blake but it really demonstrates how much this author has grown as a writer from 2012 to now, no matter how much it’s been revised.

There’s no universe building so we’ve no idea the world the characters exist in. Those same characters have no real history related or even chemistry to pull us into their relationship. It’s instant mating drive no matter what one might argue.

We have some rather strange narrative decisions, ones clearly made after the fact. For example, a human lives with a Lion pack as part of the pack for the majority of his life, but the fact they actually have an animal side, do Lion type things unnerves him? No real reason for him being there. It’s so disjointed.

And , a major peeve of mine , a disappearing pet.

As in:

“Dayton snuggled up on his couch surrounded by lots of cushions to support his arm and tried to relax. His cat, Cookie, curled up on his chest and purred.”

That’s the first and only time Cookie the cat makes an appearance. Cookie then goes poof for the remainder of the story. No explanation.

I could make a long list of things that happened narratively that make a reader go “wait, so that happens?” But it would be a page long and that’s more time than I think this review needs.

If you want to read this, do so as a fan of the author to appreciate the work she’s now putting out and exactly how far she’s come since 2012.

Otherwise, if you’re a fan of paranormal fiction and romance, there’s others out there I’d recommend, including books released by this author more recently.

Amazon.comhttps://www.amazon.com › Born-T…Born This Way: A Paranormal Fated Mates Romance – Kindle edition by Blake, Macy …

Description:

Even a human like me knows that to a shifter, pack is everything. So when my best friend asks me to check up on her brother—a lion/tiger hybrid who was been banished from his own pride—I agree…

And find out I’m his fated mate.

Hart’s been through a lot, and I know it. The circumstances of his birth made him an outcast, and those scars run deep. He’s also got a million excuses for why he never came back to claim me the way he says he wanted to.

But when he sees me on his doorstep and suddenly decides to make up for lost time… well, let’s just say I’m not falling for it.

Claiming is a forever thing. And nothing about Hart Sherman with his fancy career and solitary lifestyle says he wants forever with small-town guy like me.

If he wants me to believe he’s serious, he’ll have to prove it. By finding a place in the pride for the amazing man he made himself… and for the liger he was born to be.

Review: Devil May Care ( The Reckless Damned Book 2) by Lark Taylor

Rating: 4.5🌈

I enjoyed the first book, but it didn’t really prepare me for the layered narrative and twists I found in Devil May Care, the second book in the Reckless Damned series.

Moving onto the tiny, vicious Harlow, the brother often underestimated for his small size and flamboyance, Harlow has moved through lovers like a true commitment phobe until he meets the huge human Bailey.

Bailey, best friend of Oscar, brother Cal’s mate, is an enormous man, a complex personality with baggage that includes body image issues, huge insecurities and self worth problems, deep emotional wounds that have plagued him and kept him from any meaningful connections and relationships.

They are what make him run from the sparks that fly when the soul/mate connections hit between Harlow and himself.

Harlow, another great turn, is equally stunned and on the run.

Taylor has the story work to put these beings, with all their secrets and baggage, together.

There’s other plot threads running simultaneously to the tortured path of Harlow and Bailey’s romance. They are of equal importance even as they weave in and out of the couple’s lives.

It’s all part of the twists that will come roaring at you. I really didn’t see it coming.

I suspect the twists also include hints about the other brother’s mate to come and background.

This series just upped its game. And now I can’t wait for the next installment.

I’m highly recommending this story but read the first book before reading this one. Each lays down the groundwork for the next.

The Reckless Damned series:

✓ Devil’s Mark #1

✓ Devil May Care #2

◦ Deal With the Devil #3 – March 1,2023

Goodreadshttps://www.goodreads.com › showDevil May Care (The Reckless Damned #2) by Lark Taylor

Description:

One life-altering kiss sets our whole world on fire.

Harlow

I’ll tell you what isn’t on my agenda for this century: finding my fated mate only to have him reject me.

In fact, having a mate and tying myself down for eternity isn’t even a blip on my radar. But the moment I meet Bailey, there’s no denying he’s meant to be mine. Everything about the gentle Welsh giant calls to me, consuming my thoughts.

The problem? He doesn’t feel the same way. One life-altering kiss has him running in the other direction, leaving me to watch over him from the shadows.

When the opportunity arises to build a friendship, I grab it with both hands. Surely being his friend is better than nothing, right?

It will have to be, especially with a clan of mages sniffing around and looking for trouble. Not unusual since I am an estranged son of Lucifer. But now that I have my mate to consider, things are a lot more serious. How can I truly protect Bailey when he doesn’t even know I’m a demon?

Bailey

I learned a long time ago that relationships aren’t for me. Nobody wants to commit to a bigger guy, especially one who craves a different role in the bedroom.

When Harlow sashays into my life, I can’t help but wish things could be different. Sure, he seems interested, but history has proven that eventually, everyone leaves me.

There’s no way a vibrant firecracker like Harlow wants to be anything more than friends.

But the closer we get, the harder it is to keep him at arm’s length. He tells me he wants a relationship, but how can I believe him when I know he’s hiding something from me?

Devil May Care is an exciting, high-heat, friends-to-lovers paranormal romance with a guaranteed HEA. It is the second book in The Reckless Damned series, and although it can be read as a standalone, more enjoyment would be gained from reading the series in order. Each book focuses on a different couple and will have an HEA.

——

Unless it’s noted, all books reviewed have been purchased by the reviewer

Review: Screwing With A Ghost ( Haunted Love #3) by Morgan Mason

Rating: 4.5🌈

Screwing With A Ghost is the first book I read by Morgan Mason and also the first I picked out of the Haunted Love collection. The description intrigued me and I love the chance to explore a new author.

This paranormal romance has so much to recommend it. A haunting back story for the ghost, a charming personality and engaging character for the young, very much alive man who has returned home to see his mother through yet another failed marriage and emotional struggles.

I’m never sure how an author will handle a love affair that involves a ghost as part of the romantic equation. There’s a certain bittersweet element that’s built into such a relationship seeing as one person is alive and another is dead, physically removed from the other. For them to realistically be fully together, they both should share the same plane.

How Mason resolves this aspect of her story isn’t revealed until almost the very end.

Until then we are treated to an unlikely friendship between a ghost with a well known horrifying past, Andrew Blackwell, and a young artist, Miguel, who buys at a huge discount, the infamous haunted Blackwell farm. Back to take care of his mother, he’s left his friends and a prodigious art studio invitation behind, for a farm that needs lots of work to live in and a barn he wants for his studio.

A two person POV gives us a wonderful introduction to both men, their backgrounds, and in Andrew’s case, his ideas of masculinity and his era’s thoughts on homosexuality, all of which were toxic in the extreme. He gets a shock when he sees Miguel, who loves color and dresses gender free.

Their relationship is woven slowly through wisps of swirling air and leaves, the briefest of chilly touches, and the sheer need to communicate. It’s moving and heartbreaking as they begin a relationship that has become increasingly difficult yet so important to each other.

I wished there was more to the ending and all that was happening there. It wasn’t as layered as the rest of the story but felt a bit rushed.

Still , this is a really interesting and compelling romance and I’m happy to have found a new author to look forward to.

I’m recommending Screwing With A Ghost ( Haunted Love #3) by Morgan Mason and will be diving into the other books.

Haunted Love collection with various authors:

◦ Stargazing With A Ghost by K. L. Hiers #1

◦ Sexting With A Ghost by Ashlynn Mills #2

✓ Screwing With A Ghost by Morgan Mason #3

◦ Gardening With A Ghost by Amanda Meuwissen #4

◦ Baking With A Ghost by R.M. Neill #5

◦ Necromancing With A Ghost by Cari Z #6

◦ Dancing With A Ghost by Alex J. Adams #7

◦ Haunting With A Ghost by B. Ripley #8

◦ Flunking With A Ghost by Baylin Crow #9

These don’t seem to have any order to be read in.

Goodreadshttps://www.goodreads.com › showScrewing with a Ghost by Morgan Mason

Description:

When Miguel decides to move back to his hometown to help his mom and sister, the only home in his budget is the abandoned and haunted estate he used to vandalize in his youth. He’s not exactly worried, but meeting the resident ghost isn’t high on his list of priorities. As Miguel sets about cleaning and converting the old barn into his new art studio, his ghostly housemate demonstrates strong opinions on Miguel’s life choices.

As far as new landlords go, Edward is pleased Miguel plans to restore his deteriorating ancestral home. Miguel’s ludicrous notion that men can wear dresses and sew, however, has Edward rethinking his ex-pastime in hauntings. But as Edward learns more about Miguel and his nontraditional lifestyle, plus the strange connection they seem to share, he can’t suppress his increasingly inquisitive nature or his burgeoning feelings for the one man who truly sees him, despite being invisible.

What starts out as a tentative truce, turns into something more as indignation melts into curiosity, then flirty teasing. Is it totally crazy that Miguel might have the tiniest crush on a ghost? Would it be even crazier to hope his ghost might have a crush on him back?

—-

Unless it’s noted, all books reviewed have been purchased by the reviewer

Review: Monstrous Intent (Monsters and Mischief Book 1) by Alice Winters

Rating: 4.5🌈

If you’re familiar with Alice Winters, you know her writing often grounds itself in dark topics like murder, assassination, torture, themes of mass destruction, whether it’s in a contemporary world or that of an alternate reality filled with the paranormal.

Blending snarky, sharp, irreverent humor with moments of serious reflection and empathy, however, brief, the author imbues her characters and storylines with a slightly demented vitality that goes well with her high action packed narrative.

Declan is a former monster hunter for the Department of Research and Defense (DRD). But he became disillusioned with the constant attacks and killings so he left to become a teacher. Now with an increase in Chimeras sightings and killings, the DRD wants its best hunter back and won’t stop until he’s part of the organization again.

Lake, an enigma, works for the DRD , but Declan is instantly aware Lake is much more.

Winters’ complex plot, increasing cast of characters, and series foundation that’s being laid out as the storyline deepens, is a tale guaranteed to hold the reader’s interest and keep them engaged with the characters growing relationships.

Plus there’s fish again. That’s a odd reoccurring trend that’s got me wondering about undercover fish goals and other weirdness. Sort a love it.

Anyway, I really enjoyed Monstrous Intent and the open threads it left in this story that will drive the next part of the series.

If you’re a fan of Alice Winters or if this sounds like a tale that’s your jam, it’s one I’m definitely recommending.

Alice Wintershttps://www.alicewintersauthor.com › …Monstrous Intent

Description:

Declan
It’s really hard to pretend like life is normal when you’re staring a monster in the eyes, though he’s both tempting and irritating in his human form. I put my days as a hunter behind me, unable to cope with the death and pain anymore, to become an upstanding citizen and for what? To assist Lake, a man who claims he’s not a monster but keeps talking about me like I’m edible and–even worse–wants to woo me? Between my old organization trying to pull me in and Lake proving that things aren’t quite what they seem, I’m dragged back into this world of fighting the things that humans fear the most.

Lake
The human is exquisite. The first moment he told me he was going to hunt me down, I felt my heart burst. He’s beautiful, sassy, angry, and going to be mine (even if he thinks he can refuse my charms). But what Declan doesn’t know about me is that there’s a reason I’m hiding as a human among monster hunters. And while he definitely doesn’t know why, he’s willing to work with me because the people around us strangely want Declan and me dead at the end of this (I mean, who would want to kill us? We’re amazing).
But honestly… what’s more fun than dragging a hunter off to the dark side?

Warning: This is a chaotic monster and a chaotic human. Stuff happens. People die (but they were bad, so it doesn’t matter, right?) and there’s plenty of humor alongside a budding romance.

AMAZON

GOODREADS

—-

Unless it’s noted, all books reviewed have been purchased by the reviewer.

Review: Find the Jinn (Wilde Contracts #1) by Maz Maddox

Rating: 4.5🌈

Maz Maddox’s latest book in their new series is a great bit of dark storytelling. Told in first person perspective by a assassin/ fish trainer who hunts vampires on the side, we know immediately that the universe is a off kilter one.

Dangerous, filled with beings of all types running a metropolis that swings from swanky to crime ridden and hopeless. Drugs, sex, business as usual.

Our narrator is Dallas Wilde. Sarcasm, dry humor, and an apparent lack of self control camouflage the anguished state that lies beneath a callous, self involved façade. Over time, through scattered memories and distraught scenes, we see a traumatized man, who’s brutal past has never left him and the PTSD that he’s never dealt with.

It’s left, at least in this story, for the readers to start to cobble together the facts that have lead to Dallas’ trauma. It impacts everything that happens here, all his interactions and reactions with the beings and in every event.

I actually enjoy that Maddox isn’t ready to fill in the blanks for us with Dallas’s past history. Especially with all the mysteries and magical plot lines that have their own rabbit holes to go mentally and emotionally down.

Honestly, there’s questions about so many elements here. Fish training? Kevin the beta? Plus those are minor details.

The massive narrative threads, especially those that have a dark turn or twist to them, come with a equal amount of puzzling aspects along with the foundation Maddox is establishing for her series.

I found the book, the characters, and the mind puzzles addictive. I was exceptionally surprised by each turn the story took and how quickly it ended.

It left several items unanswered, as I expected in such a convoluted story, and I’m anticipating the next novel in hopes of seeing the next stages the characters advance to.

There’s public sex, perhaps with a hint of noncon to it, after all moral ambiguities are status quo here. Murder is a job after all.

I’m highly recommending this . Read the warnings at the beginning. It’s dark fantasy or paranormal fiction.

Bring on book two!

Goodreadshttps://www.goodreads.com › showFind the Jinn (Wilde Contracts #1) by Maz Maddox

Description:

Wilde Contract Killing and Fish Training, how can I help you?

Murder contract? Piece of cake.

Find a jinn? No problem.

New necromancy powers while being followed by an unwanted vampire bodyguard?

Not so much.

Trained to handle even the most fierce undead, Dallas Wilde took out a powerful necromancer without breaking a sweat. Okay, that’s a lie – there was tons of sweat, but he was victorious all the same.

Unfortunately, killing a necromancer comes with some repercussions.

Broody, annoying, vampire repercussions and new abilities to resurrect the dead.

Can Dallas navigate his blood-sucking bodyguard, new powers, feelings for his attractive client and still handle his contract in time to pay his very, very late rent – all while trying not to get super murdered in the process?

Let’s hope so.

Find the Jinn is the first contract in a trilogy of death, pining, dark magic and a grumpy fish named Kevin. 

—-

Unless it’s noted, all books reviewed have been purchased by the reviewer

Review: Chasing Shadows (Daemons of San DeLain Book 1) by M.A. Church

Rating: 3.5🌈

Chasing Shadows is the first book in M.A. Church’s new Daemons of San DeLain series. A paranormal romance, the theme and background of the central characters hints at a darker story than it turns out to be.

A physically abused child is saved from his father’s continuing brutality by a monster that’s hiding under his bed. One who announces to the child that he belongs to him.

Church could have gone so dark with that storyline but instead the monster turns out to be a guardian who acts as protector, friend, and nothing more until the boy ages. He’s been a unseen companion, a voice and glimpses of darkness under the bed.

It’s not until Austin’s an adult with a career as a successful paranormal romance author that events cause a meeting that brings them finally face to face.

Church’s universe for this series has many of the usual paranormal characters as well as the new shadow daemons the author’s created. I found so many aspects about them interesting, the use of shadows to travel. Portals. The fact that there’s gender differences in appearances. That puzzled me btw. Why automatically assume or assign gender to daemons? Why not make coloration differences according to age?

At any rate, Kage, the head of his Daemons clan, aka the Monster under the bed, just doesn’t come across as all that monstrous. Courtly, old. Just not the feared being he’s supposed to be across all paranormal species.

That’s a factor here all through the various storylines. None of the hunters, werewolves, dragons, seem especially threatening.

The promise the dark elements threaded through the description shows never arrives. Which is fine if you like your paranormal romance on the light side.

Chasing Shadows , for me, is a lighter styled romance. There’s fated mates but no kink or wild sex that you’d expect from a daemon who’s claiming his long awaited mate. The story has some mystery, some suspense but ,again nothing chilling or high anxiety.

The relationships, the danger, even the mating bond itself was more along the quick entertainment level then anything with deeper narrative expectations.

If that’s what you want in a paranormal romance, or even something you’re looking for right now, check out the beginning of this new series, Chasing Shadows (Daemons of San DeLain Book 1) by M.A. Church .

Daemons of San DeLain series:

Chasing Shadows #1

Goodreadshttps://www.goodreads.com › showChasing Shadows by M.A. Church

Description:

The monster: They say I am powerful. They say I am the darkness. They say I instill fear in the minds and hearts of many.

They’re right.

I am powerful. I am the darkness. I should be feared. Then I heard his cries and everything changed. Power can be tempered. There’s safety in the darkness. And the monster isn’t always the one under the bed.

Now only the heart and mind of one human interests me. He is mine. I wait, watching over him until the time is right to claim what belongs to me.

Austin: Do you believe there are monsters under the bed? I do. I don’t just believe; I know for a fact they exist. I’ve met one. Sort of. Okay, I haven’t actually seen the monster, I’ve only spoken to it.

Kind of hard to see much of anything when you’re hiding under the covers while waiting on your father to beat your ass. The monster saved me. Literally. He says I’m his, and he’s waiting for the right time to claim me.

Someone tell him to hurry the hell up.

—-

Unless it’s noted, all books reviewed have been purchased by the reviewer

Review: Dead Serious Case #2 : Mrs Delores Abernathy (Crawshanks Guide to the Recently Departed) by Vawn Cassidy

Rating: 4.5 🌈

Crawshanks Guide to the Recently Departed just got better with Case 2: Mrs. Delores Abernathy. I’m impressed with the manner in which Cassidy is crafting the ghosts “stuck” between worlds. It’s got a very different, humane feeling to it than other takes.

As it was with Dusty, it becomes just as poignant and as much a emotional journey here with Delores Abernathy. Delores is a sweet elderly woman suffering from Alzheimer’s , who’s poisoned in the same full care home as Tristan’s father. The ghosts who die before their allotted time are caught in a loop, forced to stay as they died until Tristan can help them move through whatever is keeping them here.

In this case, Delores the ghost still has Alzheimer’s, which makes it difficult to figure out how to help her, let alone who murdered her. Delores, a periphery gentle character becomes a strong narrative presence by emotional means of her illness and by association with Tristan’s father, who’s state in the same facility is ever worsening.

Both people make a huge impact on the readers as themselves and by the loving nature of the relationships a they have made with their families.

Both heartbreaking and heartfelt.

Of course Dusty is back, a lively, fabulous ghostly guide, when she chosen to be. But part of this storyline belongs to her and her great bestie and fellow drag Queen Chan. Cassidy intertwines their own pain/loss with the current case in a way that’s beautiful, sad, and wryly funny.

Tristan’s and Inspector Danny Hayes’ relationship, a wonderful aspect of this series, keeps moving forward. Typical of this couple, nothing about it is smooth. Gawky, awkward, painful, sexy, and in this actual case , full of ghosts and a secret that Tristan needs to divulge.

The story is almost a 5. There’s a cliffhanger. Not really one I mind actually. It’s more a hint of the next mystery to come. But it’s still a tiny one that introduces new major characters.

I can’t wait!

If you love a great mystery, paranormal characters and romance, here a fabulous story and series for you. Read them in the order they are written for characters and storylines development.

Crawshanks Guide to the Recently Departed series:

✓ Case 1: Miz Dusty Le Frey

✓ Case #2 : Mrs Delores Abernathy

◦ (Cold) Case #3: Mr. Brian Reyes -TBD

Goodreadshttps://www.goodreads.com › showDead Serious Case #2 Mrs Delores Abernathy by Vawn Cassidy

Description:

In the business of unfinished business…

It’s been over six months since a freak accident left pathologist Tristan Everett able to see ghosts, something he has yet to confess to his boyfriend. Instead, he now has a new calling, one he’s not entirely happy about… help the dead resolve their unfinished business so they can pass into the light, sounds simple right?

Wrong…

When the spirit of a sweet old lady suffering from Alzheimers follows him home he has no idea how to help her. When he finds out she’s been murdered by arsenic poisoning, a curiously outdated murder weapon, he once again finds himself tangled up in a murder investigation.

For Inspector Danny Hayes of New Scotland Yard, life couldn’t be better. After moving to London and meeting Tristan he’s ready to move their relationship to the next level, but something weird is going on with Tristan, he’s acting very strangely and with a killer on the loose he’s not taking any chances. He’s determined to discover whatever it is Tristan’s hiding from him.

Surrounded by a bunch of potentially murderous old ladies and aided by his sidekick, deceased drag queen and spirit guide in training, Dusty, Tristan must unravel the mystery of Mrs Delores Abernathy’s unfinished business and find the courage to share his deepest secret with the man he loves.

From author Wendy Saunders writing as Vawn Cassidy, comes the second book in this funny and touching paranormal MM romance/dark comedy suspense series.

———-

Unless it’s noted, all books reviewed have been purchased by the reviewer.

Review: Dead Serious Case #1 Miz Dusty Le Frey(Crawshanks Guide to the Recently Departed) by Vawn Cassidy

by Vawn Cassidy

Rating: 4.5 🌈

Dead Serious is straight up marvelous. It gave me a “new to me author” to look for more novels and the start of a clearly fabulous series checks so many of my must have narrative elements.

Dead Serious has a layered storyline that includes a complicated mystery, ghosts, romance, and characters with emotional depth and histories that enrich themselves and the story.

I was hooked from the beginning when I met Tristan Everett, pathologist at the Hackney Public Mortuary. He’s socially awkward, great at his job at conducting autopsies, remembering the people he’s working on with respect. Something that proves important later. Tristan is engaging, real, and someone we connect with.

The story that quickly draws the reader in starts a tad before the case of the murdered drag Queen Dusty Le Frey, a charismatic character herself. It’s the surprising event that happens at a retirement party for a colleague of Tristan’s that will have reverberations for this book and series, actually all of Tristan’s life.

Cassidy weaves the impact from that event on Tristan’s life continuously throughout the story. And probably stories to come. The implications are that huge.

While that’s happening, there’s a mystery to solve, a poignant father/son relationship to reveal, a sexy romance with a hot detective, and a new expanding group of friends for the introverted Tristan to draw on for support and affection.

Honestly, what a fabulous story and group of people.

I adore them and am moving onto the next in the series.

Highly recommending it for the romance, mystery, fabulous characters and found family!

Crawshanks Guide to the Recently Departed series:

◦ Case 1: Miz Dusty Le Frey

◦ Case #2 : Mrs Delores Abernathy

Goodreadshttps://www.goodreads.com › showDead Serious Case #1: Miz Dusty Le Frey by Vawn Cassidy

Description:

In the business of unfinished business…

Tristan Everett has always preferred the company of the dead because they usually don’t talk back. Being a somewhat awkward introvert working as a pathologist at the Hackney Public Mortuary suits him just fine. That is, until a freak accident with a rogue ice cube and suddenly he can see ghosts. No longer content to just lie on the table and let him figure out how they died, they’re now peering over his shoulder critiquing his work and confessing their most lascivious sins before skipping off merrily into the afterlife.

Just when he thought his life couldn’t get any weirder, sassy drag queen, Dusty Le Frey, is wheeled in with a toe tag and she’s not prepared to go quietly into the light. Not only is she furious at the prospect of spending eternity in last season’s gold lame, she’s determined that he help her solve her murder.

Suddenly Tristan finds himself thrown into a world of sequins and fake eyelashes, and worse still, he may have developed a bit of a crush on Scotland Yard’s brand new drool-worthy detective, Inspector Danny Hayes, who’s been assigned to Dusty’s murder. Oh, and as the icing on top of a really crappy cake, the killer now wants him dead too…

All he ever wanted was a simple life but suddenly he’s juggling work, a deliciously sexy detective, a stubborn ghost and a relentless murderer… and things have just gotten dead serious….

From author Wendy Saunders writing as Vawn Cassidy comes this hot and funny, slow burn, opposites attract paranormal caper across the East End of London.

———-

Unless it’s noted, all books reviewed have been purchased by the reviewer.