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Touching Evil
Greg has a special talent he'd give anything to be rid of. After an accident many years ago that left him in a coma, Greg woke up to find that he could touch things and know what had happened to them. Too bad he can't control the talent enough to keep it from overwhelming him. He's lived with it long enough that it he can make it day by day, but when he starts being stalked, he has to depend on his friends to help him cope. The only good thing his gift has brought him is Artie, an overprotective cop with a psychotic cat and a great bedside manner. Artie is all about helping Greg cope, and about finding out who's threatening his friend. Through grisly gifts and terrifying attacks, Artie stays by Greg's side. Even ordering take-out can be an ordeal for Greg, and Artie is happy to run interference. Greg hasn't touched anyone without pain in years, but with Artie he finds he has someone to lean on, even as the stalker finds new ways to torment him. Can the two of them find a way to solve the mystery of Greg's tormenter before one of them gets hurt?
224 pages, Paperback
First published June 1, 2006
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281 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 36 reviews
September 4, 2012
4.5 stars
A very good creepy thriller. So be prepared its a bit gruesome, I'm not joking there were a few queasy moments, the bad guy is truly evil. This wasn't your average run of the mill murder investigation either, pretty nerve racking and gets under your skin. Greg and Artie are working together to solve a case, Greg suffers horribly with visions, they are not fun and are pretty tormenting. He's lucky that Artie is his rock and keeps him sane and grounded, because I can tell you he needs all the help he can get. They have an odd relationship with food too, always eating, it's used as a source of comfort to them both. Duke the cat was amazing I loved him, even if he was a vengeful psycho at times. Where I had some difficulty was with the writing style, it was hard to get my head around it and like another reviewer mentioned it was confusing and hard work at times, not a fan of this style! But If nothing else you should read it because you need to experience the delights and joy of Duke........
A very good creepy thriller. So be prepared its a bit gruesome, I'm not joking there were a few queasy moments, the bad guy is truly evil. This wasn't your average run of the mill murder investigation either, pretty nerve racking and gets under your skin. Greg and Artie are working together to solve a case, Greg suffers horribly with visions, they are not fun and are pretty tormenting. He's lucky that Artie is his rock and keeps him sane and grounded, because I can tell you he needs all the help he can get. They have an odd relationship with food too, always eating, it's used as a source of comfort to them both. Duke the cat was amazing I loved him, even if he was a vengeful psycho at times. Where I had some difficulty was with the writing style, it was hard to get my head around it and like another reviewer mentioned it was confusing and hard work at times, not a fan of this style! But If nothing else you should read it because you need to experience the delights and joy of Duke........
September 4, 2012
Ok paranormal m/m romance about a psychic who can basically read minds when he touches someone or touches an object someone else touched. This makes him very useful to the police... until a serial killer starts working to get his attention. I found this a frustrating read - too many sex scenes, too many food descriptions, and too many sentence fragments (reminding me that "Rob Knight" is just a "Sean Michael" pseudonym).
August 25, 2017
I need Knight to make this into a series. I loved this book. I just can't say enough. I can't stop thinking about it and comparing other books to it. The thriller part was excellent: intense, unpredictable, frightening. The romance part was beautiful: sweet, believable, tender, and very hot sex. The paranormal part was handled really well. I like how he thought of what it would really be like for someone with this ability to live: how he's treated as an invalid, as fragile, as someone who can't fend for himself but this is not who he was before this happened, a brilliant if arrogant professor. Knight showed how hard it was for him function and still fight for his independence and respect. I want so much more of the story and more about what happens next. I compared this to the Adrien English mysteries which I love, and this one was better.
March 11, 2010
Reading this story was kind of like watching a very thrilling movie on a tv with bad reception. There were so many things I liked about this book. I cared very much about the main characters. There were moments when I flapped my hands and squealed “Eeeeek!” There was humor, horror, and hotness. There’s a cat. There’s food – lots of it, in fact. The villain was truly, madly, deeply villainous. I am extremely appreciative of authors who are willing to go that far to make the monsters that scary, that… well, monstrous.
In particular, I was quite impressed with Greg. I’ve never seen a character as unique as Greg. For instance, he’s the first main character I’ve seen with his body-type: very tall and very thin. I’ve seen this body type a few times on the street, but never in a romance… not in a man, at least. Also, Greg is far from perfect in his personality. He does extremely stupid things, he has difficulty coping, he flips out into hysteria – nothing that’s really too ridiculously over-the-top, just more extreme than usual. A lot of this is the result of being a psychic, but a lot of this is just Greg’s personality; I got the distinct impression that he was high-maintenance even before he became psychic.
To only a very slightly-lesser extent, I was also impressed with Artie, another atypical character. The most extraordinary thing about both of these men is how ordinary they seem to be. There’s nothing particularly eye-catching about them, they’re not “OMG hot!” You could probably find an Artie in any precinct in the country, you could probably have found a pre-psychic Greg at almost any elite cocktail party. You wouldn’t likely find a post-psychic Greg anywhere, that’s how well Rob Knight managed to convey how excluding and scary and horrible it must be, to be that sensitive.
I loved Duke the cat. Partly because he is as unique as the humans, partly because I was impressed with how well Rob Knight caught the perplexed/amused/infatuated spirit of a cat-lover in Artie. Every cat-owned person in the world would easily identify with the relationship between Artie and Duke, and it adds yet another facet to the realism of the characters.
The villain is revealed in increments to the reader, although we see more of him than Greg and Artie do. He’s truly creepy, crazy, frightening, and bloody. Like everyone else, he’s recognizably human. He’s evil in the way that only real people can be evil.
And yet, despite how impressed I was with the story and the characters, I had a great deal of trouble reading this book. I almost concluded that I didn’t like it. I almost don’t like it. The narrative style that Rob Knight used in writing this book is a turn-off. It’s confusing and distracting. This is why I compare it to the TV with bad reception: who really wants to work that hard to get through the fuzz and static just to watch a movie? And who wants to wade through confusing prose in order to find a good story? I didn’t appreciate the writing style at all.
In particular, I was quite impressed with Greg. I’ve never seen a character as unique as Greg. For instance, he’s the first main character I’ve seen with his body-type: very tall and very thin. I’ve seen this body type a few times on the street, but never in a romance… not in a man, at least. Also, Greg is far from perfect in his personality. He does extremely stupid things, he has difficulty coping, he flips out into hysteria – nothing that’s really too ridiculously over-the-top, just more extreme than usual. A lot of this is the result of being a psychic, but a lot of this is just Greg’s personality; I got the distinct impression that he was high-maintenance even before he became psychic.
To only a very slightly-lesser extent, I was also impressed with Artie, another atypical character. The most extraordinary thing about both of these men is how ordinary they seem to be. There’s nothing particularly eye-catching about them, they’re not “OMG hot!” You could probably find an Artie in any precinct in the country, you could probably have found a pre-psychic Greg at almost any elite cocktail party. You wouldn’t likely find a post-psychic Greg anywhere, that’s how well Rob Knight managed to convey how excluding and scary and horrible it must be, to be that sensitive.
I loved Duke the cat. Partly because he is as unique as the humans, partly because I was impressed with how well Rob Knight caught the perplexed/amused/infatuated spirit of a cat-lover in Artie. Every cat-owned person in the world would easily identify with the relationship between Artie and Duke, and it adds yet another facet to the realism of the characters.
The villain is revealed in increments to the reader, although we see more of him than Greg and Artie do. He’s truly creepy, crazy, frightening, and bloody. Like everyone else, he’s recognizably human. He’s evil in the way that only real people can be evil.
And yet, despite how impressed I was with the story and the characters, I had a great deal of trouble reading this book. I almost concluded that I didn’t like it. I almost don’t like it. The narrative style that Rob Knight used in writing this book is a turn-off. It’s confusing and distracting. This is why I compare it to the TV with bad reception: who really wants to work that hard to get through the fuzz and static just to watch a movie? And who wants to wade through confusing prose in order to find a good story? I didn’t appreciate the writing style at all.
August 28, 2007
The idea of this book is quite interesting, the characters very likable... and in the hands of a better author or at least someone with a better editor/beta it could have been an amazing piece of fiction. But as it is, I give it only two stars. Why?
Mostly because of the way it's written. Don't get me wrong, I'm not talking about spelling errors. I'm talking about the words and phrases the author chose. Like for example "There is milk at the house" instead of "I have milk at home". Or "Artie loved on him". Or words like "jonessing"... The book simply didn't flow. Rather often, you screeched to a halt, stumbling over a very weird phrase. It felt like it was written by someone whose first language wasn't English. And it's too bad.
Mostly because of the way it's written. Don't get me wrong, I'm not talking about spelling errors. I'm talking about the words and phrases the author chose. Like for example "There is milk at the house" instead of "I have milk at home". Or "Artie loved on him". Or words like "jonessing"... The book simply didn't flow. Rather often, you screeched to a halt, stumbling over a very weird phrase. It felt like it was written by someone whose first language wasn't English. And it's too bad.
March 5, 2008
I really, really enjoyed this book. Not just because it had lovely, hot scenes of men screwing madly, though that always is a plus. No, the enjoyment came because I'm severely addicted to books that have characters who can use more than their five senses. There's no good reason for this addiction, it's just something that I've always liked.
Throw in a cat with a bad attitude and I'm hooked.
There's so much to enjoy in this book. I keep hoping that the author is going to write more with these two characters, but until then I'm going to keep reading my copy until the pages are ready to fall out.
Throw in a cat with a bad attitude and I'm hooked.
There's so much to enjoy in this book. I keep hoping that the author is going to write more with these two characters, but until then I'm going to keep reading my copy until the pages are ready to fall out.
August 15, 2022
One and a half stars, where a half is for Duke, half for the characters who miraculously came off as adorable and the last half for that fact that though I didn't like the book I didn't hate it either.
February 7, 2008
Let me tell you, this book is very hard to review. This is my first brush with Knight so I can’t say whether this was an experimental piece for the author or not.
The characters were definitely engaging enough. Greg’s “gift” is played pretty realistically, except for one major flaw. One of those “the story couldn’t have been told if we took care of it” type flaws: Greg could have just worn gloves to avoid a lot of fallout. But then, you know, there wouldn’t be a story, so we’ll just leave that under the rug.
Both Artie and Greg are extremely likable characters. And they fit really well together right from the get-go. The growth of their relationship was really well done, very realistically portrayed, and emotionally satisfying for this reader.
Now here is where I try to explain what went… off. I can’t say it was wrong, because it wasn’t quite that. The book opens with Greg having touched something and seeing something really bad. Like, “It puts the lotion on its skin” feeling bad. It immediately caught my attention, had me immediately in the moment. It was written in a stream of consciousness style that was really engrossing because it kept you off-balance and guessing.
The problem was that this style of writing never stopped. There was no break from it. The entire book is written from either Greg’s, Artie’s, or briefly, the killer’s point of view. Not just their point of view, so much as we are in their heads. It’s at its worse when we are in Greg’s head because Greg is also in Artie’s head. I was never quite sure who was thinking what or feeling what. Add to this a distressing lack of the word “said”. There were nearly zero dialogue indicators. In short bursts of dialogue this is fine. But an entire book? A four-page conversation with actions in between? I spent most of my time counting back lines of dialogue to figure out whose turn it was to be speaking.
Reading this book was a chore. I have never seen a greater collection of fragmented sentences in my life. I am sure it was done for effect, but it got old and tiresome very, very quickly.
The murder mystery aspect to it was exciting in that it was pretty freaking creepy. Unfortunately, the author didn’t showcase this to its best because the reader only got flashes of the exciting creepiness in between dinners, breakfasts, snacks, and sex. They had sex nearly as much as they ate. It would have been great if I could have figured out who was feeling what, who was doing what, or who was saying what.
The climax was very exciting from Artie’s point of view. When it came to the final confrontation with Mr. Psycho, I felt like the author chickened out and we only get the very fragmented view from Greg, which was damn near nothing. It was exciting, but I really wish Knight would have pulled back a bit, let me out of Greg’s head, and allowed me to see what the hell was going on.
The conclusion, though, was very well put together, very realistic, and very believable. And yes, it ended with them eating.
So, do I recommend this book? I think I do. The story was good. It just got lost in the fragmented writing style. But it was there. I think someone who is perhaps more accustomed to, or who enjoys, more experimental writing would enjoy this book. Heck, maybe a lot more people would enjoy this book.
Read the entire review at Top & Bottom Bok Review
The characters were definitely engaging enough. Greg’s “gift” is played pretty realistically, except for one major flaw. One of those “the story couldn’t have been told if we took care of it” type flaws: Greg could have just worn gloves to avoid a lot of fallout. But then, you know, there wouldn’t be a story, so we’ll just leave that under the rug.
Both Artie and Greg are extremely likable characters. And they fit really well together right from the get-go. The growth of their relationship was really well done, very realistically portrayed, and emotionally satisfying for this reader.
Now here is where I try to explain what went… off. I can’t say it was wrong, because it wasn’t quite that. The book opens with Greg having touched something and seeing something really bad. Like, “It puts the lotion on its skin” feeling bad. It immediately caught my attention, had me immediately in the moment. It was written in a stream of consciousness style that was really engrossing because it kept you off-balance and guessing.
The problem was that this style of writing never stopped. There was no break from it. The entire book is written from either Greg’s, Artie’s, or briefly, the killer’s point of view. Not just their point of view, so much as we are in their heads. It’s at its worse when we are in Greg’s head because Greg is also in Artie’s head. I was never quite sure who was thinking what or feeling what. Add to this a distressing lack of the word “said”. There were nearly zero dialogue indicators. In short bursts of dialogue this is fine. But an entire book? A four-page conversation with actions in between? I spent most of my time counting back lines of dialogue to figure out whose turn it was to be speaking.
Reading this book was a chore. I have never seen a greater collection of fragmented sentences in my life. I am sure it was done for effect, but it got old and tiresome very, very quickly.
The murder mystery aspect to it was exciting in that it was pretty freaking creepy. Unfortunately, the author didn’t showcase this to its best because the reader only got flashes of the exciting creepiness in between dinners, breakfasts, snacks, and sex. They had sex nearly as much as they ate. It would have been great if I could have figured out who was feeling what, who was doing what, or who was saying what.
The climax was very exciting from Artie’s point of view. When it came to the final confrontation with Mr. Psycho, I felt like the author chickened out and we only get the very fragmented view from Greg, which was damn near nothing. It was exciting, but I really wish Knight would have pulled back a bit, let me out of Greg’s head, and allowed me to see what the hell was going on.
The conclusion, though, was very well put together, very realistic, and very believable. And yes, it ended with them eating.
So, do I recommend this book? I think I do. The story was good. It just got lost in the fragmented writing style. But it was there. I think someone who is perhaps more accustomed to, or who enjoys, more experimental writing would enjoy this book. Heck, maybe a lot more people would enjoy this book.
Read the entire review at Top & Bottom Bok Review
December 18, 2012
I found this book to be weirdly mild, considering it's about a deranged serial killer. Well, not about him so much as he provides the mystery half of this mystery/romance. The other half is Greg, understandably neurotic psychic, and Artie, big blond cop. Now, see, those last three words are what motivated me to read this book in the first place. I can't resist a book about big blond cops. But as for the rest of it, the romance felt sort of unfulfilling (even if the sex was hot), and the writing style was weird. Very monosyllabic. Lots of: "Yeah. That is. Just. God."Sucked me right out of the narrative. The serial killer, who was horrible and interesting, was never fleshed out particularly well. And also, the honey-babe-ing Artie was doing with his female partner really started to grate after a while. I mean, I did enjoy it, but in a lackluster way which I think had a lot to do with the writing style. But don't let my petty complaints deter you, it's not a bad novel.
September 28, 2012
I loved this book, Greg and Artie were such a cute couple. And Duke was just so funny in it. I laughed so hard when he would hiss or bite Artie. The plot was interesting and the characters were fun characters, there was a lot to this book not just romance. It made for a very fun read that kept me engrossed until the end. :)
May 27, 2013
2.5 stars
If I had to use one word to describe this book it would be 'weird'.
As a lover of crime fiction and all things paranormal I was looking forward to this, hoping it would be more than glorified porn unlike most of mm romance books. (I come for the plot, not for the sex... and I'm hugely disappointed most of the time. But let me get back to this particular book.) It is not. Well, not really.
There is the main plot of psycho killer obsessed with Greg and his ability, which could have been brilliant had it been fleshed out more, but instead it takes backseat because of Greg's and Artie's raging libidos. I really liked those two and the chemistry was good, but it's like Rob Knight couldn't decide if he wanted crime thriller with a touch of romance or sex and romance with a vague thread of psycho killer (Qi described it perfectly in her review).
I had a slight problem with the narrative, too. I got used to it, but fist few pages I couldn't really tell who was who.
And random fact: I found Artie's cat Duke oddly endearing, maybe because he reminded me of my friend's hellcat.
(I'm gradually finding out that this review business is kinda difficult because my train of thought is totally random :D so I hope I'm making at least an ounce of sense)
If I had to use one word to describe this book it would be 'weird'.
As a lover of crime fiction and all things paranormal I was looking forward to this, hoping it would be more than glorified porn unlike most of mm romance books. (I come for the plot, not for the sex... and I'm hugely disappointed most of the time. But let me get back to this particular book.) It is not. Well, not really.
There is the main plot of psycho killer obsessed with Greg and his ability, which could have been brilliant had it been fleshed out more, but instead it takes backseat because of Greg's and Artie's raging libidos. I really liked those two and the chemistry was good, but it's like Rob Knight couldn't decide if he wanted crime thriller with a touch of romance or sex and romance with a vague thread of psycho killer (Qi described it perfectly in her review).
I had a slight problem with the narrative, too. I got used to it, but fist few pages I couldn't really tell who was who.
And random fact: I found Artie's cat Duke oddly endearing, maybe because he reminded me of my friend's hellcat.
(I'm gradually finding out that this review business is kinda difficult because my train of thought is totally random :D so I hope I'm making at least an ounce of sense)
June 29, 2013
This is a nice story about a man, Greg, who has a unique ability though he, rightfully so, considers it to be a curse. A curse that has completely taken over his life. Only one person is allowed close to him and that's Artie, a police detective and friend/protector. A serial killer has his sights on Greg and is using his ability to get to him in the worst possible way. As the killings are being investigated by Artie, the killer has upped the ante and is slowly bringing Greg into his dangerous world.
Artie and Greg are perfect together. They go from being long-time friends to lovers and the way this is done is nice. The star of the book, however, is Duke. Duke is Artie's psychotic cat and I smiled every time his name was mentioned.
Overall, I enjoyed this. However, I did have some issues with the dialogue and sentence structure that were entirely too similar to another book that I DNF'd awhile back. Also, there are minor editing issues throughout.
Full review can be found at On Top Down Under Book Reviews.
Artie and Greg are perfect together. They go from being long-time friends to lovers and the way this is done is nice. The star of the book, however, is Duke. Duke is Artie's psychotic cat and I smiled every time his name was mentioned.
Overall, I enjoyed this. However, I did have some issues with the dialogue and sentence structure that were entirely too similar to another book that I DNF'd awhile back. Also, there are minor editing issues throughout.
Full review can be found at On Top Down Under Book Reviews.
November 11, 2011
This book was strange. It was mostly very well written, and the concept was strong. The characters were all well developed, the psychic ability well developed, the serial killer was well developed (er, or something along those lines). But then there's the pacing, where all of a sudden, SEX! SEX! SEX! Which is fine, I suppose (it is a bit of a romance novel, after all, even if it reads like mainly a thriller and the serial killer is one of three main points of view and the fourth is a victim). It wouldn't have been a big deal, but the actual story was very compelling and flipping through pages of smut made it that much less enjoyable.
May 21, 2013
I started skimming through it at about 60% of the way through. It started out okay, but the dialogue just got nauseating after a while. "Want. Need. Now. Oh." ugh. I agree with others that this plot and the characters in the hands of a better writer could have been really good. Maybe the author would do better as an ideas person in collaboration with another writer, because there are some great tidbits in this story.
November 2, 2020
I liked some parts of this story and did not like other parts. I thought it started kinda abrupt. It seem liked it was missing the beginning. I have read other books like that and I am not a big fan so I looked at that as a personal issue and not an overall issue. I did have some confusion about who the author's actually were. The original issue apparently have three author's and this one only had two. That did not affect how I felt about the story. I did have an issue with the kind of jerky effect it got when things would happen and then suddenly it felt like time must of passed without any explanation. Also I was kinda confused exactly how much time passed. It would be going along and it just seem to just to a later time frame. Maybe that was just me. I really liked the premise of the story. I am a big fan of psychics. I would read more if they ever decide to turn this into a series.
December 5, 2019
This book was intense yet funny. It had a lot of serious tones, yet the crazy Siamese Duke and lovable strong, hot detective Artie made what could have been an extremely dark book much lighter. I had this book in queue for quite some time, but only now read it and am so glad I did. The love story was strong, the conflict intensified with just enough of the paranormal to make it more than a murder mystery. I really enjoyed this book and will definitely REREAD it sooner than later.
December 12, 2020
I wanted a story with emphasis on the psycic and the crime solving but ended up with mostly sexy times with a little of the other sprinkled in.
The story wasn't bad, it just wasn't what I expected and wanted.
The story wasn't bad, it just wasn't what I expected and wanted.
December 8, 2019
3.75 stars.
May 28, 2015
2015 Re-read:
Ah, I love this book. I think this is only the second time I’ve read it but it stayed in my mind all those years. And it hasn’t lost any of its appeal.
Sure, the psychopathic killer is a cliché. Sure, the cuddling and sex and loving does take over once it begins.
And sure, the style sounds so much like Sean Michael of the same period that I am quite positive they’re the same person after all.
The thing is? It all works. It’s an endlessly sweet, intense story, a beautiful take on the old “psychic and cop vs. serial killer” trope.
And we must never forget Duke, the one-eyed hell cat.
2010 Review:
Oh. This was just so fine. The most vivid prose. Vivid and immediate and powerful. Sometimes almost fragmented, yet still fully descriptive in its own deceptively simplistic way.
Just damn. <3
It was a pretty long book too, maybe longer even than it actually was. It certainly felt long, in the best way. Loved the way things built up, the way this relationship played out. Here they’d been working up to finally getting together for five years. And oh, it worked so well.
Again the same style as in the short story (Amethyst in the Key of D) I read by this author. Similar to the In The Strangest Places series by Willa Okati and Trouble by Mike Shade. But this here was possibly better because it also had the feel of a real book, a solid groundwork, just… Ah, it was great. I loved every second.
And it was very funny too. Funny and tragic (although not in a heartbreaking way, thank god) and creepy and passionate and loving.
That cat was just hilarious.
Seriously, the basic plot – psychic, who is stalked by a psycho serial killer, gets together with cop – has been done to death, and yet this version is utterly its own. Somehow the familiar ingredients mixed together differently.
The psychic aspect was truly crippling, the entire concept being followed through far more seriously than in any other version I have read or watched. They tend to ooh and ah about how hard it is on the psychic character but they don’t ever go as far as this, never make it this all-encompassing.
Just wow. I loved it.
Happy, happy. I wish there was more by this author. I really do. So very good. <3
I’ll just plop down the sweet quotations I collected.
Ah, I love this book. I think this is only the second time I’ve read it but it stayed in my mind all those years. And it hasn’t lost any of its appeal.
Sure, the psychopathic killer is a cliché. Sure, the cuddling and sex and loving does take over once it begins.
And sure, the style sounds so much like Sean Michael of the same period that I am quite positive they’re the same person after all.
The thing is? It all works. It’s an endlessly sweet, intense story, a beautiful take on the old “psychic and cop vs. serial killer” trope.
And we must never forget Duke, the one-eyed hell cat.
2010 Review:
Oh. This was just so fine. The most vivid prose. Vivid and immediate and powerful. Sometimes almost fragmented, yet still fully descriptive in its own deceptively simplistic way.
Just damn. <3
It was a pretty long book too, maybe longer even than it actually was. It certainly felt long, in the best way. Loved the way things built up, the way this relationship played out. Here they’d been working up to finally getting together for five years. And oh, it worked so well.
Again the same style as in the short story (Amethyst in the Key of D) I read by this author. Similar to the In The Strangest Places series by Willa Okati and Trouble by Mike Shade. But this here was possibly better because it also had the feel of a real book, a solid groundwork, just… Ah, it was great. I loved every second.
And it was very funny too. Funny and tragic (although not in a heartbreaking way, thank god) and creepy and passionate and loving.
That cat was just hilarious.
Seriously, the basic plot – psychic, who is stalked by a psycho serial killer, gets together with cop – has been done to death, and yet this version is utterly its own. Somehow the familiar ingredients mixed together differently.
The psychic aspect was truly crippling, the entire concept being followed through far more seriously than in any other version I have read or watched. They tend to ooh and ah about how hard it is on the psychic character but they don’t ever go as far as this, never make it this all-encompassing.
Just wow. I loved it.
Happy, happy. I wish there was more by this author. I really do. So very good. <3
I’ll just plop down the sweet quotations I collected.
Duke could wait for his tuna for sure. He was an independent thinker. Hell, Artie figured Duke could open tuna cans on his own; he just liked for Artie to feel useful. Greg was more important..
Lord. Sometimes he wondered what Greg would pick up from his head if they had sex. Not that he thought about it. Late at night with his hand on his dick and Duke locked in the bathroom. The best way to deflate a stiffie was a Siamese cat letting you know he’d seen better..
He felt it, that unbelievable sink-ache-pull-fall deep inside him, and then it was too big to hold, and it poured from him, entire body jerking and clenching.
August 5, 2013
After reading this book a second time I have to take two stars back. Although the killer/psychic-plot is great and suitably creepy, as soon as Greg and Artie become a couple the tension decreases. There is suddenly a lot of sex with single words and "Damn. Short. Sentences." It got on my nerves to read only "Yes. So Good. More." I know it is something new for Greg to finally be able to touch someone and for all I care they can fuck like bunnys but I don't want to read every single time. Why not fade out and bring some plot back? The characters had more in them and there could have been a really good thriller with a romance like in the beginning but instead you get romance/erotica with a little thriller in the mix.
And the long description of how they eat were not really necessary IMO. The writing style of the book was exhausting after a while. You have mainly very short sentences, sometimes only words and that gives it all a chopped-off kind of feeling.
Still it's a good book and I love the way the killer gets to Greg and makes him miserable (yes, I'm mean like that).
And the long description of how they eat were not really necessary IMO. The writing style of the book was exhausting after a while. You have mainly very short sentences, sometimes only words and that gives it all a chopped-off kind of feeling.
Still it's a good book and I love the way the killer gets to Greg and makes him miserable (yes, I'm mean like that).
October 11, 2013
5 Stars for the story. 1 Star for the writing style. 4 Stars for Duke. 2 stars for them CONSTANTLY eating. I am going to call that a solid 3 Stars.
Let me start off by saying this was REALLY hard for me to finish and read. The. Sentences were. The sentences were short. Short. Yes. It grated on my nerves to the point where I wanted to put it down but the actual story kept me going.
I liked how Greg's gift was neurological so just putting on gloves wouldn't help. It was in their heads.
I really liked both Artie and Greg. I think I would have liked them more though if they weren't always eating, drinking coffee, or having sex.
What I wanted at the end though was more about the killer.
Overall, the story was great, but the writing style was horrid.
Let me start off by saying this was REALLY hard for me to finish and read. The. Sentences were. The sentences were short. Short. Yes. It grated on my nerves to the point where I wanted to put it down but the actual story kept me going.
I liked how Greg's gift was neurological so just putting on gloves wouldn't help. It was in their heads.
I really liked both Artie and Greg. I think I would have liked them more though if they weren't always eating, drinking coffee, or having sex.
What I wanted at the end though was more about the killer.
Overall, the story was great, but the writing style was horrid.
February 22, 2015
There are things that I really loved about this book - the characterizations of the MCs, the way they cared about each other, the use of food to express love (because yay!), well written sex scenes (which means very little one-two-three fingers - GO! but the actual description of intimacy), strong female secondary characters - all that was great!
Niggles are that the thriller plot was not really elaborated on (it is very gruesome but I didn't buy the obsession thing), too many sex scenes (they were well written but yeah, well, I could have done with less but that might be just me) and the extensive use of sentence fragments grated on my nerves after a while. As with the sex scenes - there is something like too much of a good thing. All in all I found this book highly enjoyable and lament the fact that the author seemingly has not published anything since - what? 2006? because I would definitely would buy another book by this author.
Niggles are that the thriller plot was not really elaborated on (it is very gruesome but I didn't buy the obsession thing), too many sex scenes (they were well written but yeah, well, I could have done with less but that might be just me) and the extensive use of sentence fragments grated on my nerves after a while. As with the sex scenes - there is something like too much of a good thing. All in all I found this book highly enjoyable and lament the fact that the author seemingly has not published anything since - what? 2006? because I would definitely would buy another book by this author.
May 22, 2013
The premise of this book was really good. However...and this may so totally be my fault. I had a hard time following who's point of view was who's and who was talking when. Like I said, it could have been my fault as I couldn't seem to fully engage. Although there was a definite creep factor that had my full attention.
I've seen several really good reviews on this. So, I don't want to sway people away from reading it. I'll do a re-read in a couple of months and see if it isn't a bit smoother for me. I do realize for some readers your head has to be in the right place to fully enjoy a book. From other reviews, I'm thinking mine was not, but I will give it another shot down the road.
I've seen several really good reviews on this. So, I don't want to sway people away from reading it. I'll do a re-read in a couple of months and see if it isn't a bit smoother for me. I do realize for some readers your head has to be in the right place to fully enjoy a book. From other reviews, I'm thinking mine was not, but I will give it another shot down the road.
April 12, 2015
I've read this book before, but I couldn't remember anything about it so I decided to give it another try. It turns out to be a nice book, but it basically composed of:
- 50% food - talking about food, ordering it, cooking it and eating it - I get the "love goes through the stomach" thing, but there's a bit too much bonding over food in a story where it shouldn't be of any particular importance
- 10% Duke, the cat - a spoiled, slightly annoying siamese cat
- 20% smut
- 20% interesting serial killer that knows about the main characters' psychic powers and wants to mess with him. This part of the story is what actually made me read it till the end.
- 50% food - talking about food, ordering it, cooking it and eating it - I get the "love goes through the stomach" thing, but there's a bit too much bonding over food in a story where it shouldn't be of any particular importance
- 10% Duke, the cat - a spoiled, slightly annoying siamese cat
- 20% smut
- 20% interesting serial killer that knows about the main characters' psychic powers and wants to mess with him. This part of the story is what actually made me read it till the end.
November 19, 2012
This story was a lot darker than I thought it was going to be. I liked the relationship between Greg and Archie. They are already friends at the start of the story and very close to being more than that. The mystery part was pretty gruesome but I liked that the book didn't end as soon as the mystery was solved. Life didn't instantly go back to normal and it was good to watch the two men work their way back to a good place.
September 15, 2013
This could have been really good, I'm not saying that I didn't like the book as it is but it could have been so much more. I think the characters are well written, and the killer is creepy and in the beginning ther's some sweet chemistry between Artie and Greg but then for a while all they do is to have sex and eat, sort of like they have some food fetish.
May 31, 2019
A very entertaining read. The powers the MC has are very creepy but the author does not dwell on them too much. Enough so the reader understands how horrible his "gift" is but not enough to give me nightmares. Otherwise it was an interesting mystery/drama/romance. I highly recommend this story and really enjoy this author.
October 21, 2011
Difficult read. Not because it is poorly written, but because it is darn grim. Loved the characters, loved the slow revealing of back history as the plot unveils. Well timed story thread. And loved the cranky cat.
November 30, 2009
Loved Duke the cat!
October 22, 2010
Nicely done serial-killer crime without too many gory details - just enough to set the imagination off. Great characters and wonderful Siamese cat sub-plot.
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