Pretty Pretty Boys (Hazard and Somerset Book 1)

I was listening to the audio book and switched to the kindle version. Hazard and Somerset are complex characters with a difficult past. Gregory Ashe develops them slowly for us, revealing little by little who they are and what their flaws are. It is also a well-paced mystery. Something I appreciate in this series is the way Hazard grows to understand his weaknesses and how they hold him back. This is done very thoughtfully. It is relatable. Particularly in the second book we see how he perceives himself as off, queer, unloveable. The relationship between the two is realistic in a lot of ways. I like that the timing is always off, they’re not sure if the other likes him enough to try anything serious. They also have to come to terms with the legacy of their adolescence—Somers acted really badly, and it left Hazard scarred. Hazard hasn’t really recovered from that and lacks Somers’ social abilities. The book seems to have been billed as a romance, which it’s not. It’s a traditional mystery where the detectives happen to be gay and bi, and that represents the love story we are watching. It’s one of the best I’ve read and I also love Marshall Thornton’s mysteries and his noir Boystown series. I am on book 3 of this series and recommend it. A side note—I also like seeing Somers’ struggles with alcohol depicted. This is an unusual but realistic depiction of someone who may or may not be alcoholic but is definitely dependent on alcohol. Ashe is a gifted writer who touches me with…

I bought this book for my 82-year-old mother who likes mysteries→and she bounced it back to me (the language was too vulgar for her tastes). What a treat! I read the novel in one sitting. I experienced this book as a hot gay romance with a side of mystery, though the romance doesn't turn out the way you might expect. The characters are the heart of this novel and they’re three-dimensional and compelling. The main character, Emery, returns to his hometown in the Missouri Ozarks after losing his job with the St. Louis Police. He was brutalized by a group of bullies as a teen, so his decision to join the hometown police force is fraught with conflicting emotions. Especially when he discovers he'll be partnered with one of his former bullies, the golden-boy Somers, who is hoping to make amends for his part in torturing Emery. Both men are described in evocative terms: Emery is muscular (stacked) and brooding, with dark hair and amber eyes. Somers is a handsome, charming, blue-eyed blond with a drinking problem. Both men are harboring secrets that complicate their lives and their relationship with each other. The two main characters are white, however the police captain is a black woman, and a gorgeous hispanic man plays a critical role in the story. I enjoyed the author’s craftsmanship--the way he linked the chapters so I couldn’t stop reading. The characters are flawed, yet compliment each other. I wasn't surprised by the identity of the villain, but the last four chapters…

***RE-READ 6/2021*** I'm reading & rereading GA's books set in the Wahredua/St. Louis 'verse in the author's suggested chronological order. Some of the characters timelines overlap, sometimes inadvertently or sometimes interact. It's a hoot. However I would recommend, if you're a first time reader, to enter this world precisely with this book. Hazard & Somers are the perfect intro to this world and to the author's tone and style. ABOUT THE RE-READ: I loved it. I loved seeing situations and characters again from the vantage of knowing all that has come later, not only in the this book, but in this arc and the subsequent in the series. I loved watching Emery confront the painful past and have to recalibrate what he thinks he knows, how he perceived things, because ultimately that's all any of us really knows. What things looked like to us. How we saw things. How it affected us. John-Henry trying to drown so much pain in alcohol but also a fighter, unfailingly generous, and kind. Shrewdly self-aware despite the image the world sees. I appreciated how the author sets up the rest of the players, limning their characters with small details to which he'll add over time. I still hunched my shoulders when I saw some of them and found myself being a smidge more generous of thought to others (looking at you Nico) and overall admiring of how GA brings a whole fictional town to life, full of quirks and history, to the point that I'm looking for it on a map. I'm also starting a…

Great story, lots of twists and turns. The author weaves a story of the past of this town into the present while interconnecting the characters lives. Hazard comes back to his hometown to seek answers and justice for the past. Partnering with Somers was an exercise in patience but with Hazard’s abrupt way with people, Somers takes the lead and begins to show Hazard a different, grown up side of Somers. The two find a way to work together with some tension remaining. Their story is definitely not over and I’m looking forward to reading the next installment of Hazard and Somers.

Where to start...I’ll make it short. I love detective series, and this one for that bill. It had build-up, character development, background story, surprise, not a lot of angst but enough that the plot was engaging. Needs and editor!! I wanted more MC romance, what I feel like I got was both MC’s extremely attracted to everyone else in town, including each other, but as just this passing notion. Like well he’s hot and she’s hot, and oh yeah he’s hot too but I’m so busy that sex or intimacy is like a fleeting feeling I have no interest in taking part of. So meh on that point. And it was a buzz kill for me. But overall it was a decent novel but I won’t go any further,