Tag: author Kaje Harper

Review: Transparent Is a Color (A Subparheroes Novel) by Kaje Harper

Rating: 4🌈

“Peregrine Crawford stared in horror at the box sitting on top of his delivery cart. That’s a bomb.”

I’m a fan of Kage Harper’s work. This author manages to take a “ordinary” person’s, or someone who has been categorized as “sub par”, approach to an extraordinary set of circumstances and make it and him relatable.

That’s Perry whose super powers are anything but. Perry can make things change colors but not indefinitely. Yellow rug to blue. Until the color fades. He has one more talent but it doesn’t always work and takes a lot of power and practice. So Perry hasn’t told anyone about it. That makes him a disappointment to his mother, especially as his only job he can hold is in a mailroom.

Perry is that easy to connect with character. One whose life changes when he does the right thing and meets Sergeant Deckard of the Nova City Bomb Squad and his canine patrol partner, Nix.

Harper combines an investigation into a serial bomber with a sweet developing relationship between Perry and Deckard. The super hero organization, SPAM, isn’t much of a element here but does appear largely as a smaller thread.

This is a good take on the theme and a sweet couple.

Subpar Heroes series- 15 books:

🔷The Accidental Necromancer by Liv Rancourt

🔷Behind the 8-Ball by A. E. Wasp 5/30/2024

🔷Transparent Is a Color by Kaje Harper

🔷Impossible Things by Alexa Land

🔷My Not-So-Super Blind Date by Allison Temple 6/6/2024

🔷An Ex-Hero’s Guide to Axe Handling by Jenn Burke 6/13/2024

🔷In The Nick of Time by Elle Keaton 7/25/2024

🔷Static/Cling by Jaimie Samms 7/30/2024

🔷Spiritual Guidance Not Required by Jacy Braegan 8/1/2024

🔷What Could Go Wrong? By Toshi Drake 8/6/2024

🔷License to Chill by Chantal Mer 8/8/2024

🔷Code Name Dolittle by Lynn Michaels. 8/22/2024

🔷Signed, I’m Yours! By Rhys Lawless 8/29/2024

🔷A Taste of Danger by Morgan Brice. 9/5/2024

Buy link

Transparent Is a Color

Blurb

Perry’s mother told him he’d develop the superpower of flight, like his grandfather. She even named him Peregrine, so folks would call him “The Falcon.” Spoiler— they don’t. Because when he did come into his power, all he got was the ability to change colors. Not even himself, like some kind of Chameleon Man, but the color of objects. He can de-pukify the shade of his bedroom curtains, turn a bully’s sweatshirt pink, or even turn a red traffic light green. (Not a good idea.) He hasn’t told anyone except his disappointed mom about his power. What would they call him? The Interior Decorator?

Back in high school, under stress, he did convince his power that transparent was just another color. Now that ability’s sometimes fun in an illicit way. Then one morning, in the mailroom at work, he turns a cardboard box transparent and sees a bomb inside. And Perry’s ordinary life explodes.

Sergeant Deckard of the Nova City Bomb Squad never thought much about superheroes, or supervillains for that matter. He has plenty of work with ordinary humans and their explosives. Until he and his bomb-sniffing dog, Nix, get called to a possible-explosives situation in a highrise mailroom. The guy who reported the bomb is a nerdy twink in dark-framed glasses who pushes all of Deck’s buttons. When he finds out the young man has a weird superpower and may be the target of a villain, every protective instinct comes into play.

Deckard’s goal is to keep his job, his dog, Nova City, and Perry intact. His libido can just sit down, shut up, and take a number. But as their attraction gets hotter and the villain closes in, their future might be blown apart before it even has a chance to start.

Transparent Is a Color is a part of the multi-author Subpar Superheroes MM romance series.

(Content warning for abduction, parental emotional abuse)

• Publication date: May 23, 2024

• Language: English

• Print length: 271 pages

Buy link

Transparent Is a Color

Blurb

Perry’s mother told him he’d develop the superpower of flight, like his grandfather. She even named him Peregrine, so folks would call him “The Falcon.” Spoiler— they don’t. Because when he did come into his power, all he got was the ability to change colors. Not even himself, like some kind of Chameleon Man, but the color of objects. He can de-pukify the shade of his bedroom curtains, turn a bully’s sweatshirt pink, or even turn a red traffic light green. (Not a good idea.) He hasn’t told anyone except his disappointed mom about his power. What would they call him? The Interior Decorator?

Back in high school, under stress, he did convince his power that transparent was just another color. Now that ability’s sometimes fun in an illicit way. Then one morning, in the mailroom at work, he turns a cardboard box transparent and sees a bomb inside. And Perry’s ordinary life explodes.

Sergeant Deckard of the Nova City Bomb Squad never thought much about superheroes, or supervillains for that matter. He has plenty of work with ordinary humans and their explosives. Until he and his bomb-sniffing dog, Nix, get called to a possible-explosives situation in a highrise mailroom. The guy who reported the bomb is a nerdy twink in dark-framed glasses who pushes all of Deck’s buttons. When he finds out the young man has a weird superpower and may be the target of a villain, every protective instinct comes into play.

Deckard’s goal is to keep his job, his dog, Nova City, and Perry intact. His libido can just sit down, shut up, and take a number. But as their attraction gets hotter and the villain closes in, their future might be blown apart before it even has a chance to start.

Transparent Is a Color is a part of the multi-author Subpar Superheroes MM romance series.

(Content warning for abduction, parental emotional abuse)

• Publication date: May 23, 2024

• Language: English

• Print length: 271 pages

Review: Magic Burning (Carnival of Mysteries story) by Kaje Harper

Rating: 5🌈

Magic Burning is a perfect example of why I find these types of series so exciting. Kaje Harper’s story incorporates the central theme of a mysterious otherworldly carnival smoothly into her multi-layered narrative. The author weaves the Carnival of Mysteries seamlessly within the novel’s important topics of late coming out, parallel existing worlds, magical governments with its own governing bodies and laws, dysfunctional families, found families, and fighting for love once found.

And did I even mention fires and the firefighters?

Harper has so many elements here and uses them superbly. Some in combination and some are addressed individually.

The magical aspect, which has so many of its own unique features, is centered around the character of Alan Hiranchai. He’s gay, Thai-American , fourth grade teacher, and an unregistered sorcerer. That last bit plays into the magical universe that’s a part of a previous series of Harper’s and it’s folded into the world building here. One where sorcery has always been a part of human history, it’s use both for good and evil purposes leading to wars and political instability. Now unbeknownst to humans, the magical realm has made new rules and withdrawn, making magic users seem useless to the human world.

This is a beautifully crafted aspect of the story and deeply rooted for Alan as far as his history and his personal abilities. And it will play out into how his relationship with firefighter might be affected.

Jason, the human firefighter, is another fantastic character. A solid dependable person, leader of his team, but one struggling with his own sexuality. He’s afraid to admit he’s gay to his large conservative family which includes his firefighter family as well. His strengths as a firefighter are believable, the bonds formed between the group realistic. And the pain of his coming out to his family is heartbreaking.

Apart and together, Alan and Jason are a formidable team. And I haven’t even addressed Alan’s hilarious familiar, a conure named Sunny. I need more of every one in this book actually.

There’s quite a bit here I haven’t even delved into. Marvelous work of narrative storytelling that brings together side groups of characters you can’t get enough of, and more fascinating interactions from magical beings that begs for more time and tales.

It’s a fantastic story, magnificent characters and a great ending. And it leaves me wanting more.

Magic Burning (Carnival of Mysteries story) by Kaje Harper is a highly recommended book! Grab it up immediately! And prepare yourself for a delightful trip into a magical place!

Love these covers!

Carnival of Mysteries series:

✓ Crow’s Fate by Kim Fielding❤️

✓ Step Right Up by L.A. Witt

✓ Magic Burning by Kaje Harper ❤️

◦ Night-blooming Hearts by Megan Derr – Aug 2,

◦ Assassin by Accident by E.J.Russell-Aug16

◦ Dryad on Fire by Nicole Dennis – Sept 13

◦ Gods and Monsters by Rachel Langella – October 25

Buy Link:

Magic Burning: Carnival of Mysteries

Description:

Alan

I haven’t been out with a guy in the last two years. Partly because I’m a gay elementary-school teacher in a fairly small, conservative town. Partly because I’m a sorcerer, and dating ordinary humans only leads to trouble. Sleeping with one though? That’s doable, so when my birdbrained familiar Sunny lines up a tall, muscular firefighter for me, I’m not going to say no. Just once, though. Maybe twice. I don’t need more trouble in my life.

Jason
I don’t regret moving back to my hometown and my big family. Well, not much. I’m not out to them, and I miss the anonymity of the big city, but I like the local fire house and the slower-paced life. Still, when I see my niece’s teacher, Mr. Hiranchai, in gray sweatpants talking to a mini-parrot on his shoulder, something inside me (or maybe something in front of me) perks up and says “I want that one.” I can’t have an actual boyfriend, but I sure wouldn’t mind getting laid, and Alan’s slim, dark-haired, smart-assed style rings all my bells.

It’s no surprise we turn out to be great together, even if my job and his responsibilities make it hard to find time. It is a surprise when I realize I want more than just an occasional night. But some weird fires out in the brush keep us firefighters hopping, and when this strange carnival comes to town and lands me with a pair of magical doll shoes, life gets truly confusing. There’s more to Alan than he’s telling me, and I’m getting a bad, bad feeling about all this.

Magic Burning is a story in the Necromancer universe, 60 years after Marked by Death, and is part of the multi-author Carnival of Mysteries Series. Each book stands alone, but each one includes at least one visit to Errante Ame’s Carnival of Mysteries, a magical, multiverse traveling show full of unusual acts, games, and rides. The Carnival changes to suit the world it’s on, so each visit is unique and special. This book contains a snarky, matchmaking bird, a lonely young teacher, and a gay firefighter finally coming out to his large family.

A Chaos Moondrawn Review: Changes Coming Down (Changes #1) by Kaje Harper

Rating: 4.25 stars out of 5

This is an expanded edition of a short story being turned into a series. The relationship dynamic between the three lead characters is clear from the first scene, which is a phone call about a fatal car crash. The alternating of all three points of view throughout the story is vital to help piece together the different personalities, as well as softening the reader’s perception of what are three strong masculine characters. There are moments of insecurity and jealousy on Scott’s end, but it was Scott who decided they needed a third–someone nearby for Casey while he was on the road during hockey season, to be there for him with the horrors of his job as Sheriff. After adding Will, they have all been together three years. The author does a great job of capturing the tensions of the triad needing each other, but not being out–of not being able to touch each other in public, of everything happening behind locked doors, of living in fear of discovery. This relationship works really well because Scott is the glue that holds it all together–I knew it, but it was good to hear the guys say it too, that they know. These characters feel real. There is intimacy in everything they do, so while the sex is satisfying, it’s not the reason for the book; it’s well integrated into their relationship and the plot.

Due to them being closeted, there is a bubble they live in. Other characters are mentioned, but they don’t let anyone else into their lives. Casey’s family is cringeworthy. People can disagree on the politics of war, but they are very disrespectful towards Casey’s military service and job as a sherrif. Past hurts and pride are too much for Casey to overcome at one point, but that is as much a part of his character as anything else. Casey’s job takes center stage when it looks like the Slaters’ death wasn’t an accident. The Slaters were really Will’s only friends/family so with them dead, the ranch becomes the character that shows the most about who Will is as he struggles with his self worth, grief, and his place in the world. Even though he’s the oldest and in charge of the ranch, he rarely takes the lead in his personal life. Scott’s family is highlighted, but not focused on in this book. I like that the reader gets to see Scott’s POV when he is out of town in Canada, so that his profession isn’t given less weight as this plot mostly revolves around the ranch and Casey trying to solve the crime right before the election.

Even though I knew it was coming, parts of this are sad and disheartening. Kudos to the author for getting me so invested in these characters and their happiness, in what they wanted for themselves, that I forgot that sometimes when things don’t work out the way you want them to, things are actually better in the end. I liked all three characters enough to root for them as they make difficult choices. Life changes for each of them and they choose to grow together, using their relationship as a touchstone when all their careers are in transition. I would have rated this higher, but I wanted all the characters to feel as real as the triad. I wanted the epilogue to have been more nuanced rather than such a big slash. Still, those are small things since this is a book I can read enjoyably over and over.

The cover art is by Karrie Jax Cover Design (karriejax.com). I have to admit I didn’t love it at first as it’s a bit jarring, but that works well with the title and plot. The pictures show a lot about the book. Even the color choices are appropriate. It’s growing on me the more I look at it because the words also match each picture.

Sales Links:  Amazon

Book Details:

ebook, 250 pages
Published December 1st 2019 by self-published (first published November 27th 2019)
Edition Language English
Series Changes #1

A MelanieM Release Day Review: Love and Lint Rollers by Kaje Harper

Rating: 4.5 stars out of 5

Even with six beloved cats at home, Thom Fletcher can’t help opening his heart to a little injured stray he finds at Pride. Luckily, the generosity of the veterinarian who helps him means he doesn’t have to open his wallet. Thom’s budget is stretched pretty thin, between his struggling start-up and medical expenses for his Crohn’s disease, so the free cat care helps a lot. Thom may have fallen for the little feline, but he’s also intrigued by the attractive vet in the bi-pride bracelet.

Dean Edwards went to Pride with his colors on his wrist, hoping to find community after his divorce. Instead, he’s pulled into a cat rescue by an appealing man. Dean likes Thom’s kindness to strays, his blue-gray eyes, his intelligence, and his perspective from decades as an out gay man. Maybe with Thom, Dean will finally feel able to explore his long-neglected attraction to men.

They’re not a perfect match. From Dean’s cat-hating dog to Thom’s chronic health issues and preferences in bed, going from a casual date to something more will be a challenge for both of them.

I don’t know when I last read a story with so many elements that stood out as remarkable and yet still folded nicely into a heartwarming romance in the end as the ones in Love and Lint Rollers by Kaje Harper.   First the characters are older which I really appreciated, one in his early fifties, with all that means emotionally, mentally, and baggage wise.  Thom Fletcher has the added complications of Crohn’s Disease, something that has drastically affected his health and his love life (no anal sex to be explicit). Harper addresses life with Crohn’s through Thom and we see all stages of the disease and its effects on his life and relationships.  For some readers it might not be enough information. For others too much.  We definitely learn a lot about life lived with this illness and its tight restrictions.  And how not to give up as well.

The character of Thom is someone I just loved and understood, even if I wanted to given him a shake or two.  If you have ever known anyone who has or had had serious illnesses, then you know how their focus can or sometimes must narrow down to dealing with their own health issues, especially if they have been doing so over a length of time.  And doing it on their own.  Letting someone else in is hard and Harper shows that realistically.  Especially with a diseases such as Crohn’s.  Portraying Thom’s shame, fear, and belief that no one will ever stay with him because it’s too hard will ring true with all readers who will emphasize with this man.

Dean Edwards too is dealing with past issues, coming out at his age, overcoming the emotional restrictions his deceased parents placed on him that still effect him.  I really liked Dean and believed in his internal battles and choices he was making.  As well as his love of his animals and Thom. Oh, and Dean is a vet with years of medical experience behind him which helps when one has many animals and other issues.

Ah, the animals!  Cats Gin, Snap, Buster, Louie, Onyx, Salem, and Cinder.  Plus elderly but still fierce dog Tig.  All with their huge roles to play in Thom’s life, this couple’s relationship, and in the story. And of course, the reader’s heart’s they wind and twine their way into.

There is a lesbian couple with a bestie half with tendencies to want to control Thom’s life.  That was a character i found irritating, probably realistic as there are always people like that in RL who believe that they know better than another person what path that person’s life should take. That they do it out of love doesn’t make it any less controlling. That you as a reader want Thom to have this person back off?  Well, it means that Harper has done her job and written this bestie so believably we have become put off by their behavior.  Well done.

For me, I might have wished for a little less of the Crohn’s, and  a little more of Thom and Dean together at the end with the menagerie for Love and Lint Rollers by Kaje Harper to fulfill all the promise I had hoped for. But honestly?  It came so close I’m not complaining.  I loved it.  And think you will to.  Especially if you love cats as well.  I highly recommend this!

Cover Art is adorable.  At first I thought the models were too young.  Still wavering on that.  But Thom is remarked to look more like in his 40’s than the early 50’s he is and I loved the cats.  More cats.  Where is Louie?

Sales Links:  Amazon

Book Details:

ebook, 220 pages
Expected publication: October 9th 2018 by Kaje Harper
ISBN139780463646465
Edition Language English

A Barb the Zany Old Lady Review:Don’t Plan to Stay by Kaje Harper

Rating: 3.5 stars out of 5

Adam Lindberg’s best friend, Donnie Kagan, was sent to prison when he was eighteen after police ruled he was at fault in a collision that killed an old man when the vehicles met in an intersection.  Donnie had been drinking and though his blood alcohol was only .04, since he was underage and the other driver was killed, it was considered a major crime.  Adam was seriously hurt and couldn’t testify on his behalf, nor could Adam’s older brother, Nate, who was in the front seat but knocked unconscious.  Now, six years later, Donnie heads home to Tallbridge to check on Adam and his family—a family that had treated him as one of them until the accident.  He doesn’t plan to stay, but he can’t resist seeing Adam to finally say goodbye.

Adam is shocked when he sees Donnie since Donnie never responded to any of Adam’s letters and Adam didn’t even realize Donnie was finally out of prison.  Not wanting to talk about his time in prison is one thing, but not wanting to open up and talk about anything at all is another.  But Adam finally convinces the reticent man to help out at the family’s Christmas store and Donnie reluctantly agrees. Things have changed while he’s been gone, and Adam’s mom passed away in the last year, leaving he and his father and brother bereft and finding it difficult to cope with the holiday season.  The dog that adopts Donnie when he’s out wandering his old neighborhood is the key to helping Adam’s father finally come out of his depression, and Adam’s consistently positive and forgiving attitude toward Donnie goes a long way toward helping Donnie finally open up. 

Eventually, old scars are healed, new paths are forged, and Donnie accepts that he’s not going to be heading to warmer climates. Instead, he’s going to follow his heart and stay with Adam after the Christmas break. The two seem to have been destined to be together from the time they were children, so it’s very possible they’ll be together for a lot longer now. 

I enjoyed this story, but I’m sad to say I didn’t like it as much as I’d hoped.  I think that’s because Donnie is a tough character to get to know and like, though that’s understandable since he spent so much time in prison, and he doesn’t give away a lot of personal information or open up until late in the story. Much of what we learn about who he is comes from flashbacks and from his actions in the present—everything from rescuing an abused dog to working for his former boyfriend’s family business for little to no pay, and then helping out a friend who saved him from a beating while in prison.

It’s one of those books that kept me coming back, but not one that I avidly looked forward to each time I was forced by RL to stop for a while.  One of my favorite parts of the story is a subplot about converting a prison tattoo from carved initials to an open cage with a caterpillar emerging. Without giving further detail on that, I will say that I loved the comparison and enjoyed meeting the young man who emerged from the stoic ex-con who first showed up in town and became the open, happy young man who finally expressed his love for Adam and found comfort in its return. 

I most certainly recommend this as a story of healing and hope.

~~ Cover art by Karrie Jax Cover Design using a photo from Dan Skinner Photography features two young men, one draped across the other’s chest, holding hands as they sleep.   It’s a very sweet representation of the MCs. 

Sales Link:  Amazon

Book Details:

ebook, 110 pages
Published December 8th 2017 by Kaje Harper
ISBN139781370006045
Edition LanguageEnglish setting North Dakota (United States)

A Melanie Release Day Review: Building Forever (The Rebuilding Year #2.5) by Kaje Harper

Rating: 5 stars out of 5

Four years ago, Ryan and John decided they’d wait to get married until it came with full legal equality. Now, thanks to the Supreme Court, that historic moment has finally arrived. But two hundred miles separate Ryan’s hectic residency from John’s busy campus job. With a son in college, a daughter choosing her future, and a rambunctious Irish Setter needing attention, planning a wedding isn’t simple.

Of course, even the most perfect ceremony can’t solve all their problems. What does it take to build forever?

If you like me, fell in love with Ryan and John from The Rebuilding Years, then this is the story you’ve been waiting for.  Be prepared to laugh until your stomach hurts, cry more than a little, hold your breath through some white knuckle maneuvers and delays until we get to the culmination of their love story….their long awaited marriage.

It all happens in the heartwarming, joyous Building Forever (The Rebuilding Year #2.5) by Kaje Harper.  Much like John and Ryan, their inability to get legally married has left their readers frustrated as well as themselves.   So here we see the SCOTUS ruling having it’s effect all over again with the result that Ryan and John now finally get to get married.

Oh, if it was only that easy!

They are now living apart, divided by Ryan’s residency and John’s job.  Mark is in college and Rory is making her own plans, only their Irish Setter is still at home causing problems.  Getting everything into place for a wedding turns into an almost insurmountable feat, with obstacles piling up by the minute.  But (with Harper’s deft comedic touch and easily flowing plot) the narrative’s lively pace makes you howl and cry as the men scramble forward with love towards the one goal they’ve wanted…rings and HEA.

Harper brings in many of the secondary characters for the wedding, Tory and Mark their children, even the Irish Setter and of course the college as a setting.  All the elements are right, the dialog is perfect, and I just loved the ceremony.  Really, I couldn’t have asked for more.  For this couple or for us as readers.  It’s simply everything I wanted and didn’t know to ask for.

No, this is not a stand alone story.  Read all the others, starting with The Rebuilding Years and end here with Building Forever.  Better yet, read all three at once!  I highly recommend them all.

Cover by Karrie Jax.  I love the cover. It works for both men and setting.

Sales Links:

Book Details:

ebook, 80 pages
Expected publication: October 15th 2017
Edition LanguageEnglish
Series The Rebuilding Year #2.5

 

A Paul B New Release Review: Unsafe Exposure (Hidden Wolves #4) by Kaje Harper

Rating: 5 out of 5 stars

unsafe-exposure-by-kaje-harperWildlife artist Dylan Shore is accompanying his sister Frankie as she being Northwestern University.  He decides to go to the zoo to see if he can find anything interesting to draw.  Sitting at the wolf exhibit, a group of young men come up to him and ask why he did not pay respect when he came into pack territory.  Thinking his only way to prevent from being killed by this gang, he runs.  While he can outrun most everybody, these four not only keep pace but are actually gaining ground.  Only when a car pulls up along him does Dylan find an actual escape route.  He jumps in the car and they put the gang behind them.

Alex is a statistician doing medical research in Chicago.  As fourteenth in the Seattle pack, he is the lowest ranking werewolf there.  When he sees a strange werewolf running from members of the Chicago North pack, he decides to give the man a break, hoping the others don’t recognize him or his car.  After all, as a low ranking visiting wolf, you don’t want to piss off your hosts.  As he gets to know Dylan, there are two things that surprise him.  First, Dylan is a gay werewolf.  Second, Dylan has no clue that he is a werewolf.  It is no wonder that Dylan does not understand pack protocol.  With members of the Chicago North pack after both of them, Alex must now educate what it means to be a shifter.  But when both are captured and taken to a military research facility, Alex’s mission changes.  Now he must keep both of them, along with a young shifter boy, alive in order to escape.  When the escape occurs, it will have far reaching consequences for the werewolves not only across the country, but the world.

I have enjoyed Kaje Harper’s Hidden Wolves series from the start.  This is the fourth book (not counting two  interlude titles) to the series and as such should be read in order in order to understand the over-arching story lines. The series is a bit darker than most shifter series.  The emphasis is on pack politics and hierarchy, along with doing what wolves need to do to advance.  In fact, Aaron calls his mate “eleventh” during official pack business.   They are human wolves.

As for this book,  I like that the first part of the book focused mostly on the new characters that are introduced here.  There are mentions of the leader of the Alpha Council and the alpha of the Chicago North pack but do not play a major role until later.  In fact, the main characters of the previous books do not appear until two thirds of the way through the book.  Simon and Paul’s two kittens (both of whom think that they are wolf pups) make a cameo as well.  I await the next book in this series.

I like the cover by Winterheart Designs.  It has our two young men causally dresses as if going out in the Chicagoland area.  Below them is the skyline for Chicago.  Above them are wolf eyes watching out over the scene.  This fits the model of the other covers in the series.

Sales Links

MLR Press LLC

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Book Details

Ebook, 393 pages

Edition Language:  English

Published:  September 9, 2016 by MLR Press

ISBN:  978-1-944770-32-7

Series:  Hidden Wolves – add to your Goodreads shelf here:

A Lila Review: Tracefinder: Changes (Tracefinder #2) by Kaje Harper

Rating: 4.5 stars out of 5

Tracefinder- changesBrian Kerr is now free of his dangerous boss and his domineering brother. He’s eager to start using his psychic Finding talent to help people, if he can figure out how to do that safely. His dyslexia, and his tendency to act simpleminded under stress, make building his new life a daunting challenge. And while his not-quite-boyfriend, Nick, is willing to support him, in bed and out of it, Brian doesn’t want to lean on Nick. If their relationship is going anywhere, he has to be a full partner and handle his own problems.

Nick Rugo’s walking a tightrope instead of settling into the ordinary cop’s life he’d hoped for. He’s hiding too many things from too many people. He has told professional and unprofessional lies that will come back to haunt him. Now, with Brian determined to start Finding again, he’s not sure he can protect the man he cares for. If all that wasn’t enough to make him start punching walls, he also has a suspicion that Brian’s brother Damon and sister Lori may be out there, lurking, ready to complicate their lives.

Tracefinder: Changes is all about discoveries and relationships. The story starts months after the end of book #1. Brian and Nick have an established routine and are comfortable living in the same house as some sort of roommates. From there, we dive directly into action.

The events in the first Finding set the frame for the rest of the story. We see, not only how much Nick’s invested in Brian’s care, but how far Brian has evolved away from Bry. They still have a complicated relationship at this point, but with every day they spent together, they discovered something new about themselves and the other.

Brian’s dyslexia is front and center in this installment. The reader gets to experience it from Brian’s point of view, but also from other characters’ perspectives. We see how it affects him and what he’s doing to work through it. At the same time, we see Nick’s struggle with his job and his judgment. And how much, taking care of Brian and falling for him changes the way he sees and feels about his job as a cop. Nick’s also caught in police politics and chains of command.

As one of the changes, we get to see more of the effects the Findings have on Brian. This time, he’s the one relaying the information instead of Bry. We get a better understanding of his struggles and the effort he has to put to become more independent. Is almost as if the Bry veil covering starts to move away, letting the reader see the real Brian– the one only Nick saw in the first book.

The cases they worked on were simple but relevant to the story. The author brought back characters we met in the first book and added some other great ones.  The settings were pertinent and easy to visualized; as well as the weather. Other than Brian’s Finding abilities everything in this story is part of a contemporary setting very well meshed with the paranormal element.

A lot is happening in this story, and that’s one of the reasons I didn’t give it a perfect five. The beginning is a bit repetitive. I got lost following the action thread during a crucial scene, and the resolution seemed too fast and too perfect. But overall, that was not enough to make a significant impact on my rating. I enjoyed this volume better than the first, and can’t wait for the next one.

Sidney Lowell of Creative Minds helped the author find the perfect picture of Brian. He looks exactly as described in the story, and even his gaze seems up to par. Also, the setup follows the previous book in the series.

Sale Links: Smashwords | Amazon | ARe

Book Details:

ebook, 469 pages
Published: August 4, 2016, Self-Published
ISBN: 9781370526369
Edition Language: English

Series: Tracefinder
Book #1: Tracefinder: Contact
Book #2: Tracefinder: Changes