Fish Out of Water: Book Four – A Fish Out of Water/Racing for the Sun Crossover

Can a hitman and a psychic negotiate a relationship while all hell breaks loose?

The world might not know who Lee Burton is, but it needs his black ops division and the work they do to keep it safe. Lee’s spent his life following orders—until he sees a kill jacket on Ernie Caulfield. Ernie isn’t a typical target, and something is very wrong with Burton’s chain of command.

Ernie’s life may seem adrift, but his every action helps to shelter his mind from the psychic storm raging within. When Lee Burton shows up to save him from assassins and club bunnies, Ernie seizes his hand and doesn’t look back. Burton is Ernie’s best bet in a tumultuous world, and after one day together, he’s pretty sure Lee knows Ernie is his destiny as well.

But when Burton refused Ernie’s contract, he kicked an entire piranha tank of bad guys, and Burton can’t rest until he takes down the rogue military unit that would try to kill a spacey psychic. Ernie’s in love with Burton and Burton’s confused as hell by Ernie—but Ernie’s not changing his mind and Burton can’t stay away. Psychics, assassins, and bad guys—throw them into the desert with a forbidden love affair and what could possibly go wrong?

I was lucky enough to read this immediately after ‘A Few Good Fish’, book three in the series. Let me start by saying WOW!

All our lives we’ve been told there are two sides to every story. Hiding the Moon proves that in the most glorious of ways. When you read ‘A Few Good Fish’, you’re going to meet Ernie and Burton (laugh now!) who feature prominently into the story, but you’re left wondering what happens with them. I’m here to tell you, you’re going to want to find out!

Now don’t think this is just a retelling of A Few Good Fish’s story, because it’s not. Yes, there are elements that are threaded through both, but this is Burt and Ernie’s story, and it’s a doozy.

Ernie, you see, is a psychic. He was used by a madman to tell him which soldiers would make more good madmen. When it didn’t seem as though things were working out, they cut him loose. Of course, then they wise up and realize that he’s a loose end, and needs to be removed–permanently–from the board. To do that, they send in someone whose very job description is to handle things like that. Only…

See, Burton isn’t just a killing machine. He’s got a brain, and he’s not afraid to use it. What he discovers is that someone is trying to use him to cover up their dirty little huge ass secret! Instead of following the kill command, Burton rushes in to save Ernie, which leads them down the rabbit hole and into the shark’s tale (that would be Jackson & Ellery).

I can’t say enough about this book. It’s tightly woven, with sprinklings from A Few Good Fish thrown in, but seen from Burton and Ernie’s point of view.

Along the way, the other characters aren’t forgotten. We get to see Alba, and Jai (who we learn has a sense of humor, but also a secret!), Sonny and Ace (who need to figure out how to deal with the newest member of their dysfunctional little family), and are also introduced to Burton’s handler, who is as standup a guy as Burton.

I’m amazed at how these two books slot seamlessly together, taking us on a rollercoaster ride of epic proportions.

Once again, I strongly recommend this series. It’s got humor, love, blood & guts, more blood & guts, a three-legged cat who’ll fuck anything that it can get hold of (including the neighbor’s dog), death, more love, and lots of shit blown up. Yeah bubba, this series has it all!

FAVORITE LINE: Jai

“You want to help?” Jai asked, as though considering something.

“No, Jai, I just defied my sort-of boyfriend and risked my life to drive out to a military base and watch you blow shit up.

Jai held out his hands in placation. “Yes, yes, you’re very fierce. Hiss, kitten, hiss. And when you are done ruling your fur, look through the car you are driving. I need a detonator.”