The Lost Weekend

Infected #7.5

by Andrea Speed

An Infected Short Story Roan is hired by Scott to look for a hockey player friend of his. After a long night of celebratory drinking, Scott can’t quite remember what happened to his friend, and he isn’t answering his cell. Roan discovers Scott’s friend was much more troubled than he ever realized, and that some mysteries should remain unsolved.

Genres: M M Romance, Paranormal, Shapeshifters, Mystery, Urban Fantasy, Romance, Short Stories

41 pages, Kindle Edition

First published September 1, 2014

About the author

Super nerd. Former EIC at Cx Pulp. I've won Rainbow Awards, and still can't believe it. A small medicinal horse. The Meryl Streep of stunt corpses. Enby.

Reviews

[Otila · Rating 3 out of 5]

Scott asks Roan to look for a friend who's gone missing after a night of heavy drinking. In the process of solving this case we get a glimpse at Roan and Co's complicated relationships and Roan gets a reminder to appreciate what he has.

This is good in-between-series filler that left me wanting more. Good thing I don't have to wait.

[Rosa, really · Rating 4 out of 5]

If asked to explain why they worked as a duo, Holden couldn't say. They were bad on paper, and they probably didn't seem much better in person. But as a weirdo superhero team, they were pretty damn good. Holden was just glad he never had to try and explain why to anybody.

I should probably give this one a solid 3 or 3.5, but fuck it--FOUR STARS.

It's got everything I like: Roan and Holden's bromance, Batman references, Roan confused as to why someone's flirting with him (dude needs to get a clue), jokes about hockey players and Canadians, Holden in denial over his relationship (another dude who needs a clue), a missing person case and general snarkiness from both characters.

Love it!

[Sofia · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is the quintessential 'Infected', the essence of why I love this series. There is Roan, there is Holden, there is wit and snark and hidden love and Batman and Hugh, enough said....okay.

[* A Reader Obsessed * · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 Stars

As usual, Speed seemlessly blends harsh reality with hilarity and feels. A nice little filler featuring Roan and company.

[Stephanie GooglyEyes · Rating 4 out of 5]

Was this a bad book? no, this authors writing seems to always be great. Was the story necessary? I'm not too sure. It just added more grief to some of these characters. Unless it's leading into something in Book 8, which I'm about to find out. :)

[Ami · Rating 4 out of 5]

As a short story, this one was pretty straight-forward. Roan got a call from Scott (Holden sort-of boyfriend, Holden didn't admit to that, thank you very much) about a missing hockey player. There wasn't any big twist and it ended not happily for the hockey player.

BUT, I would still give this my 4* anyway. Why? Because darn it, this was Roan + (pretty much) Holden story. Plus I loved this world so very much. It offered a very nice glimpse of relationship between Holden and Scott (Holden was still in denial, he was so adorable that way) and a solid one from Roan and his husband, Dylan

Holden's perspective (about Scott)
Holden decided to worry about it later. Right now, comforting Scott was the most important thing. He could lament losing his cool later.

Damn it. If he started to turn into a softie like Roan, he was going to kill himself.

Roan's perspective (About Dylan)
Not for the first time, Roan realized how lucky he was. Not only did he have a thoughtful husband, he had one who would never let him overdose, even if he wanted to. And if he ever tried to have a weekend-long bender, Dyl’d toss his ass into rehab.

Really, he couldn’t ask for more.

... So yes, I loved them so much, I didn't mind getting scrapes of updates from these characters.

[Eepa *mm loving bookworm* · Rating 5 out of 5]

So good! I loved to get back to Roan even if it was really short glimpse. There were lost of great one liners and I had a great time with it. The next book can't come soon enough! =D

[Sadonna · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interesting short interlude that gives us a glimpse in on Roan and company. Damn. Just makes me want the next book more! I can't get enough of Roan and Dylan and Holden and Scott and the rest of this world. Not a happy story, but fitting with this tribe.

[Shelby · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a quick little vignette and of course any time with Roan and Holden is always good. Pretty simple little case, but I really enjoyed this story. These two are always a good balance and play off each other well. But I did miss seeing more of Dylan and Scott. :)

[Em · Rating 4 out of 5]

More Roan is never a bad thing and this little short was enjoyable.

[Emanuela ~plastic duck~ · Rating 5 out of 5]

I like Roan-everything. I'm a Roan-addict.

[Linda ~ they got the mustard out! ~ · Rating 4 out of 5]

Scott hires Roan to look for a missing teammate. Misery ensues. :P

This apparently takes place at some point after Undertow, since Scott's concussion is cleared up and he's living in a hotel for some reason. Holden's working his first official case as a real P.I. It's a quick read, a single case that actually goes somewhere, and Ms. Speed doesn't have time to indulge in her typical writing that drives me crazy. It's a win-win. :D

[Barb ~rede-2-read~ · Rating 3 out of 5]

Finally got around to reading this. Very short. Somewhat depressing case of finding a missing young hockey player. But I liked the dynamic between Roan and Holden.

[Alisa · Rating 3 out of 5]

I'm not really sure what the point of this story was. Very short and very little happens BUT it's free and it's full of my boy Holden so I'm going to be happy about it. His email address alone made it worth the read.

[Tamela · Rating 4 out of 5]

A nice little mystery and a chance to catch up with Roan and Holden to see what's happening.

Recommended.

[Daniel · Rating 3 out of 5]

Teaser

This is pretty much a setup for a series of books. It is a complete story and it was decent. There were certain references made that left me unsure about the characters. "Superhuman" can up a few times but I don't know if it was meant literally or figuratively. Combined with other comments it could go either way.

The names of some of the characters were unusual. A couple of pet names came out of nowhere near the end, including one that was only spoken by the narrator. Early on, I couldn't keep track of who was who but it cleared up.

Will I read more of the series? Perhaps. It has left me curious about a few questions I have and the characters show signs of being interesting when given more pages.

[Kelly (Maybedog) · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed this just like I do all of the author’s books, especially this series (except for book 2). This was well-written and interesting, sad and funny. There was a sweet scene between Roan and Dylan which was nice. Sometimes I don’t feel a very strong bond between them. The mystery was solved with very simple detective work, no conflict to speak of which was the one thing I didn’t like. It ended kind of suddenly. There wasn’t a clear explanation either. But I enjoyed it as kind of a slice of Roan and Holden’s jobs.

[P.S. Winn · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good short story, could have been longer and the ending was a bit abrupt. Saying that, I think the mystery of a missing person was a good story line and the author added in some other topics that make the book up to date. I don't know about the title, kind of thought the book might be about a biological weapon or something, but after thinking about the story, I see that infection can come in many forms, all had to deal with.

[Kurtis Mcdowell · Rating 4 out of 5]

A quiet gay novella

Good organized story line, developed characters etc. At 45 pages a quick read. No overtly heavy sex. Disappointed the story didn't at least give me a desire for another book in the series it just ended.

[Kevin · Rating 4 out of 5]

Short story with no HEA. It is more enjoyable if you have read another book in this series. The MC has a different partner than the one in the other book I read.
Typo: when searching the lost man's possessions, it was stated that he had no prescription medicines, but this is later contradicted.

[Gerald Sessions · Rating 3 out of 5]

Just lost

For me the best part was the last page. Short 4 chapters, shifter angle but way in the background. Title just didn't seem to go with story. Did not really connect with characters

[H.M. · Rating 1 out of 5]

Meh

Too much swearing, and no real character development...it's not a story that I care for. Good thing it was free.

[Toofan · Rating 2 out of 5]

A not so engaging short story. There was not much of a mystery or anything else. Still it is worth reading as long as it remains free.

[Chrystal Roe · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good

This was a nice short story. It has a little mystery and a bit of romance. I would have liked to get a little more detail on the characters, but it wasn't bad.

[Kay March · Rating 1 out of 5]

these characters needs a thousand reasons to go into the closet and solve their issues...
please step out with washed underwear!!!

[Sadie Forsythe · Rating 3 out of 5]

It's been years since I read the beginning of this series. So, I don't remember much beyond crying my eyes out. But I liked this little short.

[Christy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Is it possible to have active withdrawals from missing your favorite characters? I think it is. I fell in love with Andrea Speed's 'Infected' series from the moment I read the first book. The second book had me sobbing my heart out. The third book helped me pull myself out of grief. And the fourth through seventh books have giving me back hope. I'm a huge fan of shifter books, but the world this author has created is so different from what I've ever seen before and it sucked me in and I couldn't put any of these books down. I read through the night, often with a box of tissues, but, more often, having to go into the guest bedroom because I'd start yelling back at the book and waking up the hubs. Oops. Anyway, the point I'm trying to make is that I love this series and I've been waiting a long time for the next book, so thank you, Andrea, for giving me this short story to tide me over. But, just between us…could you hurry up on book eight? I'm really suffering here. *big grin*

Roan gets woken up from a dream where he's playing strip chess with Hugh Jackman (I know, right?), by Scott who needs to hire him to find a hockey friend who's missing. This guy has been recently traded back to the Falcons, but he suffered a bad concussion the previous year, and, according to Scott, has had some significant depression issues. So, Roan does what he does, and goes looking for him. With his sidekick, Robin the Boy Wonder, otherwise known as Holden.

This was a tantalizing glimpse into one of my favorite worlds. I'm mad about Roan, Holden, Scott, the hockey team, and, yes, even Dylan. Thank you, Andrea, for this little taste. It whet my whistle!

[Melanie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Rating: 4 stars out of 5


A Infected Side Story. For the full review, visit http://wp.me/p220KL-33M

Review Excerpt: "The investigation into the events of a drunken weekend and a missing hockey player are given a fairly realistic treatment. It is a short examination of a person's ability to hide their true personality and issues behind a facade and the ease with which others assume that who they see is the real persona. It makes you think about how many assumptions you might make in a day about people you think you know but really don't know anything about. Scott knows just enough about the missing player to know that he's in trouble but nothing more. It's up to Roan to solve the puzzle to the man's personality and find the solution to the case…"



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[Donna · Rating 4 out of 5]

Well, I suppose you can only fit so much Roan, Dylan, Holden and Scott into 40 little pages... Why do I always walk away wanting more? *sniff*

Ms. Speed has a way of throwing these little tidbits at us and we just gobble them up and then demand more! So, I am re-reading Infected: Epitaph because I have totally NO recall of it at all... *headdesk* And then I am moving on to Infected: Holden... FINALLY, Holden's story and there had better be a Holden and Scott HEA or I am going to throw a conniption fit! Seriously! *grin*

[Molli B. · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'm not entirely sure what the impetus was to write this little short--I don't quite know where it fits in the timeline, some stuff doesn't quite line up with book 8, and it doesn't elucidate anything that happens in 8 (from what I've read so far of 8)--but whatever the case, I liked it. It features Roan, Holden, and Scott (with a little Dylan), so it would have been hard to go wrong. :)

[My thoughts on the series in general. (I love it! :)]