Black In White

Quentin Black Mystery #1

by J.C. Andrijeski

Older cover edition of ASIN B01554ZHH6


"My name is Black. Quentin Black..."

Gifted with an uncanny sense about people, psychologist Miri Fox works as an off and on profiler for the police. So when they think they've finally nailed the "Wedding Killer," she agrees to check him out, using her gift to discover the truth.

But the suspect, Quentin Black, isn't anything like Miri expects. He claims to be hunting the killer too and the longer Miri talks to him, the more determined she becomes to uncover his secrets.

When he confronts her about the nature of her peculiar "insight," Miri gets pulled into Black's bizarre world and embroiled in a game of cat and mouse with a deadly killer--who still might be Black himself. Worse, she finds herself irresistibly drawn to Black, a complication she doesn't need with a best friend who's a homicide cop and a boyfriend in intelligence.

Can Miriam see a way out or is her future covered in Black?

A paranormal mystery romance, introducing brilliant, dangerous, and otherworldly psychic detective, Quentin Black.

Genres: Mystery, Paranormal, Urban Fantasy, Fantasy, Romance, Paranormal Romance, Fiction

238 pages, ebook

First published September 8, 2015

About the author

Also publishes under the name Julie Light


JC Andrijeski is a USA TODAY bestselling author who writes sexy, apocalyptic and cyberpunk-y science fiction romance and mystery books, often with a metaphysical bent. Current works include the gritty, epic, psychic warfare romance, ALLIE'S WAR, which follows Allie Taylor and her antihero partner, Revik, in their attempts to save the world from a dark, psychic force. Her dystopian science fiction romance series, ALIEN APOCALYPSE, features Jet Tetsuo, survivor and slave under alien conquerors, and her GATE SHIFTER series is about a shape-shifting alien and a tough-girl PI from Seattle. Her newest launch is QUENTIN BLACK, a science fiction romance and mystery series that’s a spin-off from Allie’s War but set in our own version of Earth.

JC has a background in journalism, history and politics, travels extensively and has lived abroad in Europe, Australia and Asia, and from coast to coast in the continental United States. She currently lives in Bangkok, Thailand.

To learn more about me and my writing, please visit http://jcandrijeski.com. For more about the Allie's War series, visit http://allieswarseries.com

If you want to get an automatic email when JC's next book is released, join THE REBEL ARMY at tinyurl.com/JCAndrijeski.

Reviews

[Steph · Rating 3 out of 5]

For me, the concept of the world and characters in Black in White was better than the execution of the story itself. I'm obviously sittin' in the minority though, as shown by the majority of 4-5 star reviews. This is the first book I've read by J.C. Andrijeski and a few of her writing quirks quickly became pet peeves for me¹. Additionally, I found it a bit hard to swallow the idea that Miri, someone who's "gifted with an uncanny sense about people" with a "peculiar insight", was unable to recognize the bad guy who happened to be her fiancé whom she'd been dating for over a year.

I liked most of the characters, the idea of dimensional travel, the push/pull romantic aspects between the two main characters, but the writing ... ah, the writing ... sadly, I'm not a fan. So, I don't think I'll be jumping to buy the next installments. This one, however, was an Amazon freebie earlier this month and continues to be free on Kindle Unlimited, for those interested in checking it out.

Concept: ✮✮✮☆☆
Writing: ✮✮☆☆☆
Full Rating: ✮✮½

¹My Pet Peeves
(1) [Loc 473 of 3824/13%]
For instance, she repeated certain phrases, such as "I found myself", which was used three times to start four paragraphs in a row.

(2) [Loc 508 of 3824/14%]
She also appears to be a big fan of ellipsis (...), which by definition is "the omission from speech or writing of a word or words that are superfluous or able to be understood from contextual clues." I am too, but I'm not writing a book.

Ellipses are used throughout. For example, "Perhaps you'll accept a raincheck on that particular discussion, doc?" he said. "... After I've finished my business here?" I'm not saying it's an incorrect way to write dialogue because I have no idea either way. But, I am saying it bugged me ... a lot.

(3) [Loc 1609 of 3824/42%]
The final issue I had was similar to the first - repetition. This time, instead of repeating the same phrase, she'd rephrase the same sentence in the same paragraph. I stared at the symbol for a few seconds more, maybe just to burn it into my memory. [...] I stared at the spirals long enough to memorize every particular, including the direction of each whorl. Yeah, I got it, you stared and stared some more.

[Marta Cox · Rating 4 out of 5]

My first book by this author but I admit it's been on my tbr pile for quite a while now. I honestly wasn't sure what to expect but it's an intriguing beginning that introduces Mira to the somewhat mysterious Quentin Black. Essentially Mira is helping police to profile a suspected serial killer when Mira discovers that Quentin is like her and can communicate telepathically. Obviously Mira is freaked out by this as its a gift she's kept hidden and she hasn't even confided in her fiance. Things quickly escalate though and Mira finds herself lying to those she cares about and all because of the enigmatic Quentin.
I really liked this although I confess I'd started to put things together. I found the premise quite interesting and would love to know more about Miras antecedents as this ends with one mystery solved and obviously much more to come. It was well written and if you enjoy something a bit different well worth a read

[Julia Wesley · Rating 2 out of 5]

I felt like this entire book revolved around promising the reader world building, but then never actually delivering on it. By the end of it we get the vague sense that some people are Not From Here, and have some sort of quasi-religious/political aspirations for world domination. Or something.
Not to mention that our heroine, Miriam, was maddeningly sanguine about working with a suspected spree killer who only gave her bread crumbs for answers.

(Every time Quentin said “Obviously” to an inference Miriam had to make—you know, because he wouldn’t give her a straight answer, like, ever—I wanted to grab him by the ear and put him in time out.)

Regardless, I would have continued on with this series (because I don’t like being denied answers), but reviews for future books tell me that rape becomes a common theme. So maybe I don’t need them that bad.

[Books on Stereo · Rating 2 out of 5]

Black in White is subpar murder mystery that leaves the readers in the dark for far too long.

[Jennifer · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interesting premise that kept me wanting to know what was going on and to keep reading to find out. Quentin Black is a hard to resist character even though he feels dangerous and so mysterious. I will gladly read the next in the series.

[Jeannie Zelos · Rating 5 out of 5]

 
Black In White,  A Quentin Black Paranormal Mystery, (Quentin Black Mystery Book 1), JC Andrijeski

Review from Jeannie Zelos book reviews

Genre:  Romance, Fantasy & Paranormal, Mystery

If you read my reviews regularly you’ll know it’s no secret I adore JCA’s writing style, and the Allie’s War books are one of my all time favourite series. When an author starts a new series I wonder if I’ll like it as much, if it will pull me in. Well, this series ( or trilogy – I need to check that) is another winner for me, though a much lighter feeling read than the AW ones.
I feel that Quentin Black really is a mysterious man, and it’s easy to see why the police, particularly Miri’s friend Nick, are convinced he’s connected in some way. Miri though doesn’t feel he’s the killer, he doesn’t fit the profile she has drawn up in her psychologist role, though he does share some similarities. She can’t tell Nick the real reason she thinks he’s innocent though – that she has other talents that have helped her gain her reputation for reliability. It’s something most people wouldn’t understand, that she has a special insight into people’s minds, and when she meets Black, he talked to her mind to mind. That scared her as its never happened before, and he seems to be suggesting they share some characteristics, as well as telling her he’s not human and talking about other dimensions. Is he just a Psycho/weirdo or is there a nugget of truth in what he says? Miri needs to know more. Its the first time she’s met anyone who can do what she can, and Black seems far advanced. There’s a lot of mystery behind him though, he seems to head a team, have almost limitless wealth and to be able to get his way out of situations such as the one he’s currently in. Nicks determined to pin him for the murders, and yet Black confidently tells Miri he’ll soon be released. Then he is...Nick’s angry and suspicious and Miri – she has to know more.
She can’t let the chance to know more about her gift/talent go – its something she’s always had to hide, as no one would understand and yet Black talks about it as being normal. He can’t believe she knows so little. They’re both a puzzle to the other and want to know more. It  brings her into danger though, going along with him while trying to uncover secrets he’s holding. He’s one of those irritating people who answer a question with a question, and plays her usual psychologist tricks to get answers back on her. She finds an irresistible attraction to him too – despite being engaged, and with her marriage planned for five months time.
Its a fun read, I enjoyed the parallels to the AW series, the way Black talks about sex and shocks Miri, they way I could feel the sensuality between them. ( Though I got horribly hung up on trying to work out how this book could fit into that timeline – I couldn’t make it work :- ) so finally just forced myself to ignore that) For much of the book Miri’s boyfriend is away working so I couldn’t really asses their relationship, but it didn’t seem to have anywhere near the attraction as between Black and Miri.
Its a simpler book, but with the same tight writing as AW, the same sensuality brought in and wrapped up with a solid believable story. Its got a kind of natural break ending, but leaving a huge question I need answering. Its not a complete story but one that clearly continues into further books. Fortunately JCA is a prolific writer and doesn't keep us waiting years for the next part. This has follow up books planned for October and December this year – hurrah, and I definitely  want to read them. I know already this is one for the back to back reading fest once all the books are out.
Stars: A solid five :-)
ARC supplied by Netgalley and publishers
If you enjoyed my review I'd love it if you would please click “Like” and if you didn't I'd love to know why, so I can make future reviews more helpful.

[Rebecca · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book was just OK, it isn't particularly original as there are now a few mystical detective series and to be honest this one was no different.

The main character is Quentin Blake, a mystical detective with an ability to sense of people. He gets dragged into a mystery story. I didn't feel all that connected to the main character.

There are some secondary characters but none I found particularly noteworthy.

I am slightly annoyed with myself as I have just now learned this is a spin-off and had I known I might have been more gripped by the setting or the other characters. I will probably read the original series before rereading this book and then continuing with the rest of the series.

The storyline didn't grip me at all but it did hold a lot of potential and I didn't feel that it lived up to it.

2 stars but subject to change after I read the original series.

[Terri · Rating 1 out of 5]

Well, no. I got 28% in riding some intermittent interest in the plot, but the immature writing style just sucks the life out of any action. The author's publisher completely dropped the editing ball.

This free novel taught me not to bother reading Andrijeski's other work. Don't believe the five star reviews. There are elements of potential here, but the reader has to work to pull them together since neither writer nor editor managed to. Some readers won't mind that. But you have to be terribly un-critical to give this five genuinely-felt stars.

[Jess the Romanceaholic · Rating 4 out of 5]

I honestly don't remember where the heck I got this book, but boy howdy was I hooked. If there's such a thing as Death By UST, this book would be guilty. I enjoyed the premise, the characters, and of course the INSANELY hot sexual tension.

I ended up buying the next two books immediately because I was hooked. A solid 4/5

[Sara Smolarek · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read a lot, and I enjoy a wide variety of genres. Probably my favorite though, is a really good mystery. Maybe that's because I cut my teeth on classic writers like Sir Arthur Conan Doyle and Agatha Christie, or maybe it's because of the mental challenge of trying to figure out whodunit. At any rate, I get excited when I trip across a new writer who challenges my mind and gives me something with a new twist. JC Andrijeski has done that with this book.

Not strictly a mystery, it includes a touch of steamy romance, and a twist of paranormal thrown in for good measure. If not done well, multiple styles could have resulted in a muddying of the water, a blurring of the storyline I am very happy to say that did not happen with Black In White.

Characters are well-developed, likeable and interesting enough for me to want to find out more - so I was happy to discover that this is the first in a series. Actually, my first impression of them reminded me of Sherlock Holmes and Joan Watson on the tv series Elementary, but I soon found myself enjoying the mysterious Quentin Black and Miriam more than those characcters. The location, San Francisco, was well-described and brought back the feel of the city I experienced when I visited there many years ago.

I have already picked up the next in the series, Black As Night, and will likely try others of this author's work.

[Micka22 · Rating 1 out of 5]

Couldn't finish. Lots of reasons I guess.
I listened to the Audiobook, I kept feeling something wasn't right or missing.

At first, I liked Miri and Black, Nick was cool, but then it went down hell.

Starting with the scene with Nick and Miri where he was so rude and a jerk to her, they were supposed to be friends, who know and trust each other, who worked together on lots of cases. Suddenly he questions her judgment and her credibility!
He questions her loyalty towards her fiance, he even accuses her that she knows black from before and that she slept with him! (If I were her, I would've slapped him several times for what he said, no matter how good of friends we were) but she just stood there and took it.
He threatened her with prison, questioned her loyalty, judgment, work ethics & credibility, these are several lines that shouldn't be crossed no matter what.

And don't let me talk about her willingly following Black in wherever he wants her to go or asks her to do! without asking questions, accepting when he tells her that she doesn't need to know more now, that this is all that he's going to tell her and she's ok with it!!

Anyhow, I was very disappointed, I really was looking forward to this series.
Not gonna continue, especially when I found that there will be a horrible Rape scene on next book and that's a big No No for me.

[Michelle Schroeder · Rating 3 out of 5]

Despite the connection between Black and Fox the conversations between the two of them would have tried my patience and just plain pissed me off. He was evasive, condescending and dismissive. So typical alfa male. I had a hard time believing Black's unnatural behavior and mannerisms considering all the time he's been in this dimention. I would think he would have assimilated better especially with his seer abilities and high intelligence. The seduction scene had a weird creep factor and I don't just mean the physical part. Black was angry Fox's friends took advantage while she was vulnerable and then turned around and did the same.

[Mel Schutz · Rating 1 out of 5]

I’m really, really tired of authors pretending their books are about mystery when they just want to write about stupid romance. Seriously, I thought this would be a paranormal mystery, only to be blindsided by the author as this book turned into one of those stupid “woman falls in love with paranormal alpha male” bullshit books.

[Debra Johnson · Rating 3 out of 5]

Purch Amazon May 12, 2017
Liked it.
Has possibilities.
A few problems, but worth reading book 2.

Shared to Amazon, Facebook

[Sally · Rating 5 out of 5]

Oh!!! This is good! I don't read a lot of urban fantasy because I usually have a hard time getting into them! But this book was amazing! ... and Mr. Black is HOT! **swoooooon**

So, moving on to the next book !!!

[Andrea · Rating 3 out of 5]

I liked the story for the most part- but that almost sex scene was weird and disorienting. I kept getting the feeling like he was trying to talk her into more than just sex (a strange 'mate' situation going on here maybe? W/o telling her thats what it was) And why would it hurt...she obviously doesn't know whats going on and to just jump into that with no explanation on why he penis is strange and different is jarring. Also the fact that she felt his need to be with one of his own kind...and maybe the fact that it was less about being with her than just being with someone like him.. I didn't like that. Also the prostitute comment right after he tried to sleep w/ her was yuck.

[Brittany · Rating 2 out of 5]

This was in a bunch I received this in a big bunch to stuff my kindle for the holidays. I just did not like this at all. My problem was that I hated every single guy in this book. I could not find any redeeming qualities in anyone of the guys. The story was okay but just didn't like the stories.

[Marvelous Morgan · Rating 2 out of 5]

Confusing book, that I didn't particularly enjoy reading. Lots of questions were left unanswered and the whole plot seemed sort of random, which was disappointing because the beginning of the book was really good.

[☆Liv☆ · Rating 2 out of 5]

When I read the plot I thought that this sounded very promising, but it did not rise to my expectations..Most because I did not care much for the writing and I actually saw thrue who the culprit was very early in the book.

[Yvonne]

DNF-not sure I'll try again.

I had high hopes, but there seems to be a lot of dialoguing and not much doing.
I think I'm finally going to start the Bosch series I've been putting off.

[Caz · Rating 1 out of 5]

1.5 stars.

The book started alright, I liked Miri and then it got weird fast.

Quentin is a really weird guy, like he made me uncomfortable through the pages.

[Stormi (StormReads) · Rating 3 out of 5]

Miri Fox has an uncanny ability to read people which comes in handy in her line of work but when a suspect turns up who is different it throughs her whole world upside down.

Quentin Black, the suspect in a series of murders is not anything Miri has known before because he seems be be able to talk to her in her mind. He also keeps claiming that she is like him, but what exactly is that and then they end up working together to figure things out. This is all against the police that are very unhappy with what is going on. Black says the killer is one of their kind but Miri is still not sure what he is talking about, she knows she is different but what does he mean by their kind. More curious than anything is the reason she somewhat teams up with him.

I thought this was a pretty decent start to a series and I am curious to see where it goes. I liked both Miri and Black and I am curious to see what happens with them and their working together.

Overall, I thought it was a decent read.

[MelMon Sanchez · Rating 3 out of 5]

When is comes to relationships and career choices, Miriam is at the top of the list for a confusing outcome. From a young age she knew there was something different about her. Having to deal with the loss of both her parents and her beloved sister, she is forced to live a closed off life.

Then she met Ian and everything send to be falling into place. She learned to control herself and her emotions and gained some close friends.

Being brought in to consult on the wedding killer case brings new confusion and turns her life upside down. Quentin Black is not what she expected and she can't quite get a read on him.

But their paths are entwined and they will have to figure out where it all comes to.

[Sam Domingo · Rating 3 out of 5]

Mystery romance with a mix of paranormal

I enjoyed the book well enough but I did find myself skipping a lot of parts where Miri kept on rambling about details, descriptions, and memories. All in all, this was a quick enjoyable read.

[Teri · Rating 5 out of 5]

4.4- ish stars!

[Felicia · Rating 3 out of 5]

2.5/5

I like the premise of the story (the clairaudience part) and the broad story itself (but I hated the "alien thing". You can definitely do an interesting clairvoyance story without bringing in inter-dimensional beings.) , although it was predictable about a third of the way in. That sex scene was unnecessary. It took the flow and ground it to a screeching halt. I understand why something like this occurred to advance the plot, but I feel like the same could have been accomplished another way. Like, seriously, find your killer who is hunting the both of you down before you have sexy time. Additionally, the description of his penis was totally unwarranted. A lot of the text in this scene left me saying WTF and even laughing at times. I really don't think that was the intention of the author.

Also, if Ian was whatever Black is and since Black has a different looking penis, why didn't Ian or why didn't Miri notice?

The writing style feels off to me. I think it is too many complex sentences (dependent, independent clause). Too many "meaning"s. I don't feel that the dialogue is true to how people actually talk. It felt fake. Too many pauses and not enough answers. It left me feeling frustrated with the author.

[a_tiffyfit · Rating 5 out of 5]

I bought this book after reading the summary on New Adult Addiction (blog). I really enjoyed it. I like the ongoing mystery of Quentin Black and the way J.C. Andrijeski spun the tale, revealing a little bit here and there. I definitely enjoy a story that is "shown" as opposed to "told" to you.

And I bought the next in the series immediately because Miriam and Quentin are fascinating to me. I want to know more about their backgrounds: more about where he comes from, more about her parents and late sister and herself, I want to see them fall for one another, I want to see them work together, I want to see this bit by bit. Given their professions, I can see this series going on and on much like Nora Roberts as JD Robb's "In Death" series. Endless cases, endless pursuits, all while the relationships and friendships are constantly changing, growing, bonding, etc.

For the first read of 2016, I am definitely NOT disappointed. MUST READ ON.

[Bec · Rating 4 out of 5]

Black In White is a sci fi mystery set in San Francisco that is pretty contemporary with the expectation that our main characters are from a different Earth dimension. Even though the series is call the Quentin Black Mystery the story is mostly told through Miriam’s point of view, someone that is half of this Earth and probably half of another.

The mystery part of the story was fairly good with Miriam and Quentin both trying to solve a serial killer case that Miriam’s SFPD detective friend really wants to pin on Quentin. There are some romantic elements of the story that I think could probably use some work. Quentin can read minds but he really seems clueless on how to court Miriam. The almost sex scene was a bit rough around the writing edges.

Over all this was entertaining and with a decent pace, and not a bad start to a new series.

[S M Ryan · Rating 5 out of 5]

I enjoyed this very much. I did guess who the killer was, although I then thought 'No, can't be!'. This does have tie-ins with a couple of other JCA series' but is totally a standalone novel. Well, other than the next book but it is not a cliffhanger. I did have a really hard time stopping, even though I had a very early morning appointment! 8^(
Try a sample. If you like mystery and/or science fiction, you'll probably like it.

[Aviar Savijon · Rating 5 out of 5]

Black & White

This is a brilliantly written mystery. The level of character twists, emotion and feelings expressed during the hunt for what is perceived as a serial killed amazed me and hopefully you. As this is one of the best books that I have read this year. Don't miss it