Red Fish, Dead Fish by Amy Lane
Will
* I loved the interplay between Jackson and Ellery, with the feelings between them deepening in a slow, but progressive way. Plus, they have a tendency to get on each other's nerves.
“What—why am I here?”
“You fell asleep because you’re sick. You’ve slept for about two hours. We’re just about to start a big mapping project so we can put pins in it and see if we can find Tess Dakin.”
Jackson scowled and stood up, stretching more on purpose this time and less on flail.
Then he glared at Ellery. “You drugged me!”
Ellery nodded. “I got your cat fixed while you were in surgery, fighting for your life. Why does this surprise you?”
* Amy showed characters from Racing for the Sun, which also happens to feature one of my favorite characters. A Russian bear named Jai. Why do I like him? Lemme show you.
To his surprise, Man-mountain—Jai?—slumped a little, looking defeated. “I would fuck you until you sobbed. I like the yellow hair.”
Jackson’s eyeballs were going to pop out of his head. “That’s, uh, flattering. And terrifying. And flattering. But I really do need to use the john.”
Jai waved his hand expansively behind him. “Do you? There is much desert that needs water.” He smiled, and his white teeth looked as big as roof tiles. “It is even the same color.”
Oh God—he couldn’t even stop it from coming out of his mouth. “Piss yellow is a coward’s color,” he said, lowering his head and getting ready to get beaten back into the ground.
But the giant just cocked his head. “Which is why it is a good place for burying cowards,” he said, flashing more roof tiles at him. Then he stepped sideways out of the way. “Enjoy your piss, yellow-haired man.”
* The return of Lucy Satan
Not her real name, of course, but Jackson decided on the name in the first book when he was in the hospital. She's....just wow. You can't help but love this woman.
The only real negative I have is that she's just now writing book three, which means it's going to be MONTHS before we get a chance to read it. However, this could also be viewed as a positive, since it'll give you time to read the first two books.
Fish Out of Water: Book Two
They must work together to stop a psychopath—and save each other.
Two months ago Jackson Rivers got shot while trying to save Ellery Cramer’s life. Not only is Jackson still suffering from his wounds, the triggerman remains at large—and the body count is mounting.
Jackson and Ellery have been trying to track down Tim Owens since Jackson got out of the hospital, but Owens’s time as a member of the department makes the DA reluctant to turn over any stones. When Owens starts going after people Jackson knows, Ellery’s instincts hit red alert. Hurt in a scuffle with drug-dealing squatters and trying damned hard not to grieve for a childhood spent in hell, Jackson is weak and vulnerable when Owens strikes.
Jackson gets away, but the fallout from the encounter might kill him. It’s not doing Ellery any favors either. When a police detective is abducted—and Jackson and Ellery hold the key to finding her—Ellery finds out exactly what he’s made of. He’s not the corporate shark who believes in winning at all costs; he’s the frightened lover trying to keep the man he cares for from self-destructing in his own valor.
Oy, I have such a book hangover. Sadly, due to real life, I wasn’t able to read this in one go. Damned if it didn’t keep taunting me to sneak a few minutes so I could get a couple pages in. In a word, it’s fabulous.
Jackson is back, his snarky, funny, bitchy self has to put up with Mr. Stick-Up-His-Ass, Ellery. There is no reason in the world that these two men should work, but there is no force in the world that can keep them apart. Except…
Yeah, Amy goes there when Jackson has to deal with loss, betrayal, death, and coming face-to-face with a nightmare, that leaves him reeling. The thing about Amy’s writing is that no one is safe from her knife. (You can even see the blood on it in the book cover!) And Jackson’s losses keep mounting as a psychopath wants to prove himself worthy of Jackson’s attentions.
Then we have Ellery. Solid, sturdy, but more than willing to get his hands dirty if it will save Jackson. He’s got a soft spot for the cantankerous and crusty PI and his three-legged cat, Billy Bob (who I have to admit, I have a fondness for).
There is so much that goes on in this book, you can’t help but be sucked into it as Amy takes you on a whirlwind ride of epic proportions. No one is safe (though I have a few people on my list that I hope she overlooks, because I really do like them), and even her heroes are flawed and can be vulnerable when a killer strikes.
Who lives? Who dies? Pick up book two of this series and find out.
Amy Lane’s ‘A Few Good Fish’
Everything looks great sweetie!!