Review: Red Fish, Dead Fish by Amy Lane (Fish Out of Water #2)
Note: This ARC was provided by Dreamspinner Press in exchange for an honest review.
“Stubborn fucker.” His voice sounded clogged beyond the towel he was holding to his nose.“Yeah. I am. And I’m going to say the words. Are you ready?” Ellery could feel the fine trembling that emotion and hunger and horror had started in Jackson’s body and that hadn’t stopped, not once, since Ellery had first crawled into bed with him.“No.”“Tough. I love you. I’ve never loved another man like I love you. This thing that just happened to you, it feels like the end of the world. But the man in my arms?” Ellery squeezed him tighter, knowing that even if it hurt, Jackson could take it. “He’s still strong. Still good inside. It hasn’t stopped how I feel about him. It doesn’t change how I feel about you.”
Oh. Wow. If Fish Out of Water was a hit, this sequel was a home run, and if I could give it double the five-plus stars maximum rating I have, I would. Hell, it's MY blog, so I'll do what I want, right? So, we shall wait until the end of this review to hand out this stars because Red Fish, Dead Fish has absolutely earned them. I stayed up till the wee hours of the morn, but that's what happens when you start a book past midnight and then get sucked into the romance, action, suspense, and mystery that surrounded the duo that is cop turned private investigator Jackson Rivers and defense attorney Ellery Cramer, both working for Pfeist, Langdon, Harrelson & Cooper. Author Amy Lane has kicked things up a notch or ten and there are more revelations here, and with those come much more intrigue.
This second novel in the Fish Out of Water series takes place about a month and a half after the events in the first one, but that's only in the prologue. The first chapter takes place six weeks after that and we've got Jackson and Ellery trying to find more information on their serial killer of "dirty pretty" victims, Tim Owens. With Jackson's recurring injuries, however, as well as the lack of assistance they're getting from the Sacramento PD, gathering enough evidence on their one and only suspect is slow-going. That is, until it begins to look like the killer is trying to get the attention--and morbidly enough, the affection--of one person and one person only: Jackson. With time running out and bodies racking up, Jackson and Ellery will have to get past their fears and doubts in order to stop Owens before he kills again, especially with him targeting those who are connected to the man he's obsessed over.
I wasn't necessarily looking for "more", but goodness gracious, I'm excited with the "more" that I got. Maybe it took Jackson being confronted with certain ghosts from his pasts or having to face the loss of far more than he was ever prepared to give up, but hello, the feels got to me here, to the point of tears, people! Then there was the fact that the perp that Jackson and Ellery were after was getting too close for comfort, so trying to stay one step ahead--if they were lucky--had them taking more risks. Okay, it had Jackson taking more risks and probably giving Ellery a grey hair or two each and every time. We also get a closer look at the family dynamic--to a certain extent--on both Ellery's and Jackson's ends and how their somewhat still new relationship plays out as they earn either acceptance or rejection. I was half afraid that this was going to be the end of the series, but I had a huge smile on my face when I realized that our guys had more sleuthing to do. YES!!! Five-plus stars times five go to Red Fish, Dead Fish. ♥
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Read my reviews for the Fish Out of Water series:
Fish Out of Water (book one) - five-plus stars - My Review
Red Fish, Dead Fish (book two) - five-plus stars - My Review (posted above)
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Release Date: 04 August 2017
Date Read: 03 August 2017
Learn more about Amy Lane.
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