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Borealis Investigations #2
Triangulation
After a recent case with a treacherous client, North and Shaw are ready to go back to work building Borealis Investigations. They’re also ready to go back to dodging their feelings for each other, with neither man ready to deal with the powerful emotions the Matty Fennmore case stirred up. Everything is getting back to normal when their secretary asks for help: her girlfriend’s boss has gone missing.
Shep Collins runs a halfway house for LGBTQ kids and is a prominent figure in St. Louis’s gay community. When he disappears, however, dark truths begin to emerge about Shep’s past: his string of failed relationships, a problem with disappearing money, and his work, years before, as one of the foremost proponents of conversion therapy.
When Shep’s body turns up at the halfway house, the search for a missing person becomes the search for a murderer.
As North and Shaw probe for answers, they find that they are not the only ones who have come looking for the truth about Shep Collins. Their investigation puts them at odds with the police who are working the same case, and in that conflict, North and Shaw find threads leading back to the West End Slasher—the serial killer who almost took Shaw’s life in an alley seven years before. As the web of an ancient conspiracy comes to light, Shaw is driven to find answers, and North faces what might be his last chance to tell Shaw how he really feels.
Shep Collins runs a halfway house for LGBTQ kids and is a prominent figure in St. Louis’s gay community. When he disappears, however, dark truths begin to emerge about Shep’s past: his string of failed relationships, a problem with disappearing money, and his work, years before, as one of the foremost proponents of conversion therapy.
When Shep’s body turns up at the halfway house, the search for a missing person becomes the search for a murderer.
As North and Shaw probe for answers, they find that they are not the only ones who have come looking for the truth about Shep Collins. Their investigation puts them at odds with the police who are working the same case, and in that conflict, North and Shaw find threads leading back to the West End Slasher—the serial killer who almost took Shaw’s life in an alley seven years before. As the web of an ancient conspiracy comes to light, Shaw is driven to find answers, and North faces what might be his last chance to tell Shaw how he really feels.
327 pages, Kindle Edition
First published August 9, 2019
125 people are currently reading
381 people want to read
About the author
Gregory Ashe
132 books1,769 followersI'm a long-time Midwesterner. I've lived in Chicago, Bloomington (IN), and Saint Louis, my current home. Aside from reading and writing (which take up a lot of my time), I'm an educator.
While I enjoy reading across many genres, my two main loves are mystery and speculative fiction. I used to keep a list of favorite books, but it changes so frequently that I've given up. I'm always looking for recommendations, though, so please drop me a line if you have something in mind!
My big goal right now is one day to be responsible enough to get a dog.
While I enjoy reading across many genres, my two main loves are mystery and speculative fiction. I used to keep a list of favorite books, but it changes so frequently that I've given up. I'm always looking for recommendations, though, so please drop me a line if you have something in mind!
My big goal right now is one day to be responsible enough to get a dog.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 244 reviews
August 5, 2019
LOVED IT.
I'm gushing and twirling big time here.I absolutely ADORE Shaw & North.
Move over men because these two are firmly holding number two place in my favourite MM couples.And that's saying a lot because I've got a lot of favourites.
A new case to solve finds North and Shaw once more skirting around their feelings for each other...
I've read loads but the sexual tension between these two is some of the most delicious I've read.It's not obvious to them but to the reader it is and that just makes it even hotter.Talk about hanging on every damn word of this book waiting for things to happen....
And it's totally worth it,let me tell you...
-talk about swooning BIG time!!
But their story is just beginning,in a way.To say they both have emotional baggage is a bit of an understatement to say the least.Shaw is trying to cope with their recent assignment and that emotional fall out and dealing with intimacy issues which date back years.
North is trying to deal with the demise of his marriage and his acknowledgment of his feelings for Shaw.
The mystery element worked hand in hand here with the relationship development and it's a clever Author who can make that work without one overshadowing the other.
I honestly cannot fault this.The plot,the hugely complex but adorable characters,the writing that completely drew me in.
Highly recommended.
Release date 09 August/2019.Available on KU.
Book one currently available on KU.
Review copy.
I'm gushing and twirling big time here.I absolutely ADORE Shaw & North.
Move over men because these two are firmly holding number two place in my favourite MM couples.And that's saying a lot because I've got a lot of favourites.
A new case to solve finds North and Shaw once more skirting around their feelings for each other...
I've read loads but the sexual tension between these two is some of the most delicious I've read.It's not obvious to them but to the reader it is and that just makes it even hotter.Talk about hanging on every damn word of this book waiting for things to happen....
And it's totally worth it,let me tell you...
-talk about swooning BIG time!!
But their story is just beginning,in a way.To say they both have emotional baggage is a bit of an understatement to say the least.Shaw is trying to cope with their recent assignment and that emotional fall out and dealing with intimacy issues which date back years.
North is trying to deal with the demise of his marriage and his acknowledgment of his feelings for Shaw.
The mystery element worked hand in hand here with the relationship development and it's a clever Author who can make that work without one overshadowing the other.
I honestly cannot fault this.The plot,the hugely complex but adorable characters,the writing that completely drew me in.
Highly recommended.
Release date 09 August/2019.Available on KU.
Book one currently available on KU.
Review copy.
March 18, 2020
5++++++ Stars
I can't even.
Not really a review.
GAAAAAAAAAHHHH!
- I Love the writing.
-I Love the mystery and Love every single word.
- I Love Shaw, I Love North.
- My heart was broken, I was mushy, i cried, i laughed, i was angry, i was hot.
-This book got the feels, it is so emotional.
- This book is hot! hot! hot! The UST! The Chemistry is to die for.
Hazard and Somers appear in this book. I died! I screamed like i was cray cray, of-course i am cray cray for Hazard, my Hazard.
GAAAAAAAHHH!!!!
I can't even.
Not really a review.
GAAAAAAAAAHHHH!
- I Love the writing.
-I Love the mystery and Love every single word.
- I Love Shaw, I Love North.
- My heart was broken, I was mushy, i cried, i laughed, i was angry, i was hot.
-This book got the feels, it is so emotional.
- This book is hot! hot! hot! The UST! The Chemistry is to die for.
Hazard and Somers appear in this book. I died! I screamed like i was cray cray, of-course i am cray cray for Hazard, my Hazard.
GAAAAAAAHHH!!!!
August 10, 2019
5 Stars!!!!
North and Shaw.... all the feels for these two. They have officially made it to my favorite couple list.
I love how this author writes his stories. He gives us enough of everything. Steam, mystery, humor, and great writing. I'm a fan.
The men:
In this book we have Shaw who is still dealing with the aftermath of the Matty Fennmore case. He's having some intimacy issues and is trying to deal with them on his own. He's also dating the hunky detective, Jadon who is very kind and patient with him. But even the hunky detective can't squash his strong feelings that he's harboring for his PI partner and best friend, North.
North is going through a lot in this book when it comes to his relationships. We get a deeper look into the relationship with his father, the destruction of his marriage with his husband, and the internal clock he feels ticking down quickly when it comes to him finally revealing his feelings for Shaw. That last one being the most important, lol.
The mystery:
Shaw and North's secretary brings them a new case that North is reluctant to take. Her girlfriends boss, Shep Collins, has gone missing and she wants to hire them to find him. But what was a missing persons case soon becomes a murder case when Shep is found in the trunk of their secretaries girlfriends trunk. While investigating the case they unveil a lot of shady behavior Shep had been up to before his death; Drugs, missing money, and cheating. He's left behind an angry husband and an ex wife who comes back trying to cash in on his death. The suspects are plenty as the plot thickens and with it comes some heat from the dirty detectives investigating the same case. But they are more interested in Shaw's past with The West End Slasher and his recent attempt to find answers then they are in solving the murder of Shep.
The emotions are high all around in the second book of the Borealis Investigations series and I can't wait for more.
I'm so excited about how this book ended and all I can think is: I NEED BOOK #3 LIKE, YESTERDAY!!!
I don't want to give anymore away. Just know it's sooooooooo good and you won't be disappointed. Pick this one up!
Happy reading dolls! xx
I received an ARC from the author in exchange for an honest review.
North and Shaw.... all the feels for these two. They have officially made it to my favorite couple list.
I love how this author writes his stories. He gives us enough of everything. Steam, mystery, humor, and great writing. I'm a fan.
The men:
In this book we have Shaw who is still dealing with the aftermath of the Matty Fennmore case. He's having some intimacy issues and is trying to deal with them on his own. He's also dating the hunky detective, Jadon who is very kind and patient with him. But even the hunky detective can't squash his strong feelings that he's harboring for his PI partner and best friend, North.
North is going through a lot in this book when it comes to his relationships. We get a deeper look into the relationship with his father, the destruction of his marriage with his husband, and the internal clock he feels ticking down quickly when it comes to him finally revealing his feelings for Shaw. That last one being the most important, lol.
The mystery:
Shaw and North's secretary brings them a new case that North is reluctant to take. Her girlfriends boss, Shep Collins, has gone missing and she wants to hire them to find him. But what was a missing persons case soon becomes a murder case when Shep is found in the trunk of their secretaries girlfriends trunk. While investigating the case they unveil a lot of shady behavior Shep had been up to before his death; Drugs, missing money, and cheating. He's left behind an angry husband and an ex wife who comes back trying to cash in on his death. The suspects are plenty as the plot thickens and with it comes some heat from the dirty detectives investigating the same case. But they are more interested in Shaw's past with The West End Slasher and his recent attempt to find answers then they are in solving the murder of Shep.
The emotions are high all around in the second book of the Borealis Investigations series and I can't wait for more.
I'm so excited about how this book ended and all I can think is: I NEED BOOK #3 LIKE, YESTERDAY!!!
I don't want to give anymore away. Just know it's sooooooooo good and you won't be disappointed. Pick this one up!
Happy reading dolls! xx
I received an ARC from the author in exchange for an honest review.
March 21, 2021
*5 stars +++*
Reread March 2021
Totally floored all over again. Maybe I should up that rating to 6 or 7 or 10?
Two things to add to my previous review:
1. North and Shaw are both so messed up! The psychological anguish ripped my heart out again and again. Fantastic writing! This is a brilliant character study of two very flawed men. I loved every word of it!
2. Despite all their self-doubts and emotional confusion, they are communicating like an ’old, married couple’ in many ways. The teasing, the ribbing (the chocolate cake scene really made me grin.), the way they KNOW and help each other, and yet, talking about their feelings remains a blooming nightmare.
Original review:
Absolutely mind-blowing.
I really loved the first book in a painful kind of way, and, tbh, this has the same amount of emotional exhaustion and tension in it. Past secrets are revealed, some truths are uncovered, BUT most importantly, Mr. Ashe takes pity on us heart-torn readers and gives us a momentous move forward in North and Shaw’s relationship.
I am talking mega huge stuff, guys. Mega! Which equals serious book heaven.
I almost wept tears of joy and even though I know there’s tons to be resolved, particularly on Shaw’s end, I had to reread that part towards the end of the book three times to believe what’s going on.
And Gregory Ashe just knows how to express the desire and love and all those suppressed feelings when they finally erupt after 8 long years. It’s moving and beautiful and very touching. And hot.
The way to that point is (of course) long, windy and full of ups and downs.
The two main hick-ups come in the form of Tucker (that b******! Could I despise that guy more?) and Jadon who I feel a bit sorry for (we know he really likes Shaw) while hating him at the same time because … well, he keeps these guys apart, doesn’t he?
Reading through Shaw and Jadon’s on page intimate times was super frustrating and my twinging heart could hardly bear it. And poor North has to … well you’ll see what I mean when you get there!
Although I am moaning about this, I do get why we need to be part of it. Because Shaw is on a huge journey – facing up to his serious issues. And I’m pretty sure that we are going to hear more about that in book 3 (at least I hope so!)
I also need to say a word about Pari, their assistant, particularly as she is closely involved in the case North and Shaw are working this time. I loved all her historical references to every-day events in book 1 and her snark is funny most of the time, but sometimes her character is a bit too OTT for me, even if I liked her much better this time.
Honestly there’s so much going on all levels (there is also the relationship development between North and his dad I haven’t even mentioned AND we get a priceless cameo by Hazard and Somers!), my head is still spinning – and - I apologize for being utterly repetitive here, but it has to be said … again - Gregor Ashe’s writing just does it for me. It’s clever, intelligent, full of beautiful imagery and draws the most intense feelings!
Brilliant book!
Book 3 can’t be here soon enough!
Reread March 2021
Totally floored all over again. Maybe I should up that rating to 6 or 7 or 10?
Two things to add to my previous review:
1. North and Shaw are both so messed up! The psychological anguish ripped my heart out again and again. Fantastic writing! This is a brilliant character study of two very flawed men. I loved every word of it!
2. Despite all their self-doubts and emotional confusion, they are communicating like an ’old, married couple’ in many ways. The teasing, the ribbing (the chocolate cake scene really made me grin.), the way they KNOW and help each other, and yet, talking about their feelings remains a blooming nightmare.
Original review:
Absolutely mind-blowing.
I really loved the first book in a painful kind of way, and, tbh, this has the same amount of emotional exhaustion and tension in it. Past secrets are revealed, some truths are uncovered, BUT most importantly, Mr. Ashe takes pity on us heart-torn readers and gives us a momentous move forward in North and Shaw’s relationship.
I am talking mega huge stuff, guys. Mega! Which equals serious book heaven.
I almost wept tears of joy and even though I know there’s tons to be resolved, particularly on Shaw’s end, I had to reread that part towards the end of the book three times to believe what’s going on.
And Gregory Ashe just knows how to express the desire and love and all those suppressed feelings when they finally erupt after 8 long years. It’s moving and beautiful and very touching. And hot.
The way to that point is (of course) long, windy and full of ups and downs.
The two main hick-ups come in the form of Tucker (that b******! Could I despise that guy more?) and Jadon who I feel a bit sorry for (we know he really likes Shaw) while hating him at the same time because … well, he keeps these guys apart, doesn’t he?
Reading through Shaw and Jadon’s on page intimate times was super frustrating and my twinging heart could hardly bear it. And poor North has to … well you’ll see what I mean when you get there!
Although I am moaning about this, I do get why we need to be part of it. Because Shaw is on a huge journey – facing up to his serious issues. And I’m pretty sure that we are going to hear more about that in book 3 (at least I hope so!)
I also need to say a word about Pari, their assistant, particularly as she is closely involved in the case North and Shaw are working this time. I loved all her historical references to every-day events in book 1 and her snark is funny most of the time, but sometimes her character is a bit too OTT for me, even if I liked her much better this time.
Honestly there’s so much going on all levels (there is also the relationship development between North and his dad I haven’t even mentioned AND we get a priceless cameo by Hazard and Somers!), my head is still spinning – and - I apologize for being utterly repetitive here, but it has to be said … again - Gregor Ashe’s writing just does it for me. It’s clever, intelligent, full of beautiful imagery and draws the most intense feelings!
Brilliant book!
Book 3 can’t be here soon enough!
August 9, 2019
Great entertainment.
Loved both MCs. 🧡
Loved both MCs. 🧡
July 23, 2020
Come on, Ashe! Can I not be happy for 5 freaking minutes before the next complication?? 😤 *grumbles* Even though it was worth it, in the end. Well, except for the very end.
I completely ignored real life to read this entire book yesterday. Except for work, as I can't slap headphones on there, unfortunately. *rude*
North & Shaw both broke my heart here, even while they frustrated me so badly I thought they'd break me. Shaw is suffering badly from PTSD relating to his attack by the West End slasher. For someone who is so damn smart and believes so strongly in therapy, Shaw is trying to force himself to "get over" his trauma instead of actually addressing it. His method, in my opinion, is actually the worst thing he could possibly do. And this has nothing *mostly* to do with the fact that I can't stand Jadon *more teeth-grinding* 😬. It's not reasonable on my part, as he really seems to care for Shaw. He's just not North.
For his part, I was so proud of North for staying resolute against Tucker, that bastard. Not that I'd expect anything else from him but in that situation, especially given his hopelessness over Shaw, many men would choose the familiar over loneliness, even if it didn't make them happy. However, the fact that he let Tucker get in his head about Shaw, that Shaw would never want him, just killed me.
It's no secret that Gregory Ashe's writing is capable of twisting your whole self into impossible, tortuous knots over his characters but his mystery can be equally harrowing. The case our guys are on here starts with a missing boss, and all they need to do is locate him. But of course, he turns up dead. The case spirals into several different directions, and one of those directions has Shaw increasingly convinced this somehow ties back to the slasher, who supposedly died in prison recently. The other main direction seems to point to dirty cops, and North and Shaw's investigation has put them into the direct path of those same cops. There were several places in the story that were honestly chilling and I was genuinely afraid for North and Shaw. As much as I love the times these guys are focused on each other, I'm usually just as wrapped up in the crime. That's a balancing act that's damn well done by GA.
And my God, thank you, finally. 🥰🥰 Finally North and Shaw admit to each other how they feel. But of course it's not as easy as that. I was so proud of Shaw for fighting for North, for saying !! If you don't think I was absolutely gleeful at that, then you give me too much credit LOL! :) When they finally pull their heads out of their asses *I swear I love them BUT....* and talk to each other, it's everything I've wanted for them, and it's tender and sweet and I was completely melted. 😍
Only to have GA rudely yank me out of my happy relationship bliss for more threats to North and Shaw. And this evil cliffhanger sent me, again, directly to download Declination and thank all the gods I didn't read this until all (?) the books were available.
Charlie David once more did a great job with the narration and allowed me to get lost in the story.
Another stunningly emotional, excellently done story for two of my very favorite guys. *swoon* At this point, Gregory Ashe has definitely made it to my auto-buy list, I'll read anything he writes.
I completely ignored real life to read this entire book yesterday. Except for work, as I can't slap headphones on there, unfortunately. *rude*
North & Shaw both broke my heart here, even while they frustrated me so badly I thought they'd break me. Shaw is suffering badly from PTSD relating to his attack by the West End slasher. For someone who is so damn smart and believes so strongly in therapy, Shaw is trying to force himself to "get over" his trauma instead of actually addressing it. His method, in my opinion, is actually the worst thing he could possibly do. And this has nothing *mostly* to do with the fact that I can't stand Jadon *more teeth-grinding* 😬. It's not reasonable on my part, as he really seems to care for Shaw. He's just not North.
For his part, I was so proud of North for staying resolute against Tucker, that bastard. Not that I'd expect anything else from him but in that situation, especially given his hopelessness over Shaw, many men would choose the familiar over loneliness, even if it didn't make them happy. However, the fact that he let Tucker get in his head about Shaw, that Shaw would never want him, just killed me.
It's no secret that Gregory Ashe's writing is capable of twisting your whole self into impossible, tortuous knots over his characters but his mystery can be equally harrowing. The case our guys are on here starts with a missing boss, and all they need to do is locate him. But of course, he turns up dead. The case spirals into several different directions, and one of those directions has Shaw increasingly convinced this somehow ties back to the slasher, who supposedly died in prison recently. The other main direction seems to point to dirty cops, and North and Shaw's investigation has put them into the direct path of those same cops. There were several places in the story that were honestly chilling and I was genuinely afraid for North and Shaw. As much as I love the times these guys are focused on each other, I'm usually just as wrapped up in the crime. That's a balancing act that's damn well done by GA.
And my God, thank you, finally. 🥰🥰 Finally North and Shaw admit to each other how they feel. But of course it's not as easy as that. I was so proud of Shaw for fighting for North, for saying !! If you don't think I was absolutely gleeful at that, then you give me too much credit LOL! :) When they finally pull their heads out of their asses *I swear I love them BUT....* and talk to each other, it's everything I've wanted for them, and it's tender and sweet and I was completely melted. 😍
Only to have GA rudely yank me out of my happy relationship bliss for more threats to North and Shaw. And this evil cliffhanger sent me, again, directly to download Declination and thank all the gods I didn't read this until all (?) the books were available.
Charlie David once more did a great job with the narration and allowed me to get lost in the story.
Another stunningly emotional, excellently done story for two of my very favorite guys. *swoon* At this point, Gregory Ashe has definitely made it to my auto-buy list, I'll read anything he writes.
dnf
April 2, 2021Time of death: @34%
Lord, this is like giving birth to sextuplets... 🙄 I have a feeling it doesn't get anywhere and the MC's are slowly but surely getting on my last nerve with their "banter".
I'm sorry, but I'm out. Well, at least, I've tried. 🤷♀️
Lord, this is like giving birth to sextuplets... 🙄 I have a feeling it doesn't get anywhere and the MC's are slowly but surely getting on my last nerve with their "banter".
I'm sorry, but I'm out. Well, at least, I've tried. 🤷♀️
October 8, 2019
4.5 stars rounded up.
Gregory Ashe has become one of my favourite authors over the last year or so, and I’ve been longing to dive into Triangulation, the second book in his Borealis Investigations series ever since I turned the last page on the first book, Orientation, earlier this year. I’m addicted to the blend of well-constructed mystery, complex, dysfunctional characters and angsty, slow-burn romance I’ve found in his novels; the plotting is tight and full of twists and turns, the romantic chemistry is combustible and his writing is wonderfully assured, ranging from the vividly descriptive to the lyrical, from grin-inducing humour to the pointedly insightful.
Although the mystery central to Orientation (which should be read first) was wrapped up by the end, events contained therein continue to have repercussions throughout Triangulation, so there will be spoilers in this review.
Triangulation picks up a few months after the previous book ended, and sees Borealis Investigations on a much firmer footing than it was when we first met North and Shaw, thanks to an upturn in business following their recent success in apprehending a blackmailer and murderer. But the Fennmore case threw a ticking time-bomb into the middle the long-standing friendship between the two men, and the resulting wounds are still raw. Neither of them is ready to admit to the shift in their relationship or work out what it means, even Shaw, who normally loves to talk things through; and North… well he most definitely doesn’t want to go there.
So on the surface at least, things are pretty much back to normal. North grumbles and snarks his way through the days and Shaw is as upbeat and endearingly enthusiastic as ever. When their assistant, Pari, asks them to look into the disappearance of her girlfriend’s boss, an LGBTQ youth worker and prominent figure in the St. Louis gay community, North isn’t wild about taking the case, especially when he learns that the man in question, Shep Collins, used to administer conversion therapy to gay teenaged boys. But Pari’s girlfriend Chuck is distraught, and insists that Collins is a completely different man now; he’s out and married, the kids he works with love him and he sees his work now as a way of atoning for what he did in the past. North doesn’t want to take the case… but as a result of one of those typical North-and-Shaw roundabout not-conversations, ends up ungraciously agreeing to do so.
North and Shaw start digging for information, and from the outset, they’re confronted with differing accounts of who Collins was and conflicting stories about his last known movements. Nobody is telling the truth, even Chuck, who was worried enough about the man’s disappearance to hire Borealis to find him in the first place. But when Collins’ body is found in the trunk of her car, things escalate quickly and Chuck is arrested for murder. Determined to find out the truth, North and Shaw’s investigation leads them into direct conflict with members of St. Louis P.D.’s LGBT task force, and specifically with two of its detectives, whose interest in the case seems more focused on North and Shaw than on actually finding out who killed Shep Collins.
Running alongside the very cleverly plotted murder mystery are a number of other storylines which the author gradually pulls together with seemingly effortless skill. In Orientation, readers learned of the brutal attack which almost killed Shaw over seven years earlier, and of the fact that Shaw has never really believed the right man was convicted and imprisoned. In a surprise twist at the end, Shaw discovered some video footage of the attack which showed the licence plate of the car used by the so-called ‘West End Slasher’ and since then Shaw has been doing some investigating of his own. He has just received permission to visit the convicted man in prison – but when he goes to meet with him, Shaw is too late. The ‘Slasher’ died the previous night, and nobody is saying how.
And while all this is going on, North and Shaw are still dancing around their feelings for each other. They’ve been friends since college, and it was North who pulled Shaw back from the brink after the attack; they know each other inside out and backwards, they finish each other’s sentences, they know how to push each other’s buttons like nobody else, and they’ve spent practically every day together for the last eight years:
They were honest with each other—honest in ways that only people who have known each other for a long time, loved each other for a long time, can be. But what Shaw wanted to say, what he couldn’t quite put into words, was that the honesty between them was, in its own way, also a kind of lie. He wanted to tell North that their honesty glided across smooth water, but that there was an ocean of things below the surface, things they never said. He wanted to tell North that their honesty never went to the things they cared about most: each other.
The tangle of emotions that enmeshes North, Shaw and their complicated relationship is superbly written; their longing for one another is palpable and had my insides tied up in knots on several occasions. Shaw’s experiences have – unsurprisingly – left him with issues around trust and intimacy; North has finally taken steps to end his crumbling, abusive marriage, and is battling all sorts of inner demons he’s desperate to keep hidden. But with North newly single, the delicate balance in his and Shaw’s relationship is off kilter. Neither man has allowed themselves to think about the other in terms of anything other than friendship, but after eight years, their true feelings are starting to spill out and won’t be put back in the bottle.
There’s little I didn’t enjoy about this book. North and Shaw are compelling characters who, on the surface are opposites, but beneath the layers of smartass and snark, are wonderfully in tune, which makes for some truly fantastic banter. I liked the glimpses we were given of how their friendship began back in their college days, and I thoroughly enjoyed the cameo appearances by Wahredua’s finest (Hazard and Somerset) which drops some hints about where they might be headed in their next series. The one false note struck in the book – and I found this to be the case in Orientation as well – is the character of Pari, who is aggressive, rude and never seems to do any work. I’d have fired her if she worked for me!
I was completely engrossed by Triangulation from the first word to the last and raced through it in a couple of sittings. I should mention here that the novel ends on one doozy of a cliffhanger, although book three – Declination – is due out in October, so there’s not too long to wait. Fans of clever, gritty mysteries featuring complex characters and relationships should check out Borealis Investigations as soon as possible. I can’t imagine you’ll be sorry you did.
Gregory Ashe has become one of my favourite authors over the last year or so, and I’ve been longing to dive into Triangulation, the second book in his Borealis Investigations series ever since I turned the last page on the first book, Orientation, earlier this year. I’m addicted to the blend of well-constructed mystery, complex, dysfunctional characters and angsty, slow-burn romance I’ve found in his novels; the plotting is tight and full of twists and turns, the romantic chemistry is combustible and his writing is wonderfully assured, ranging from the vividly descriptive to the lyrical, from grin-inducing humour to the pointedly insightful.
Although the mystery central to Orientation (which should be read first) was wrapped up by the end, events contained therein continue to have repercussions throughout Triangulation, so there will be spoilers in this review.
Triangulation picks up a few months after the previous book ended, and sees Borealis Investigations on a much firmer footing than it was when we first met North and Shaw, thanks to an upturn in business following their recent success in apprehending a blackmailer and murderer. But the Fennmore case threw a ticking time-bomb into the middle the long-standing friendship between the two men, and the resulting wounds are still raw. Neither of them is ready to admit to the shift in their relationship or work out what it means, even Shaw, who normally loves to talk things through; and North… well he most definitely doesn’t want to go there.
So on the surface at least, things are pretty much back to normal. North grumbles and snarks his way through the days and Shaw is as upbeat and endearingly enthusiastic as ever. When their assistant, Pari, asks them to look into the disappearance of her girlfriend’s boss, an LGBTQ youth worker and prominent figure in the St. Louis gay community, North isn’t wild about taking the case, especially when he learns that the man in question, Shep Collins, used to administer conversion therapy to gay teenaged boys. But Pari’s girlfriend Chuck is distraught, and insists that Collins is a completely different man now; he’s out and married, the kids he works with love him and he sees his work now as a way of atoning for what he did in the past. North doesn’t want to take the case… but as a result of one of those typical North-and-Shaw roundabout not-conversations, ends up ungraciously agreeing to do so.
North and Shaw start digging for information, and from the outset, they’re confronted with differing accounts of who Collins was and conflicting stories about his last known movements. Nobody is telling the truth, even Chuck, who was worried enough about the man’s disappearance to hire Borealis to find him in the first place. But when Collins’ body is found in the trunk of her car, things escalate quickly and Chuck is arrested for murder. Determined to find out the truth, North and Shaw’s investigation leads them into direct conflict with members of St. Louis P.D.’s LGBT task force, and specifically with two of its detectives, whose interest in the case seems more focused on North and Shaw than on actually finding out who killed Shep Collins.
Running alongside the very cleverly plotted murder mystery are a number of other storylines which the author gradually pulls together with seemingly effortless skill. In Orientation, readers learned of the brutal attack which almost killed Shaw over seven years earlier, and of the fact that Shaw has never really believed the right man was convicted and imprisoned. In a surprise twist at the end, Shaw discovered some video footage of the attack which showed the licence plate of the car used by the so-called ‘West End Slasher’ and since then Shaw has been doing some investigating of his own. He has just received permission to visit the convicted man in prison – but when he goes to meet with him, Shaw is too late. The ‘Slasher’ died the previous night, and nobody is saying how.
And while all this is going on, North and Shaw are still dancing around their feelings for each other. They’ve been friends since college, and it was North who pulled Shaw back from the brink after the attack; they know each other inside out and backwards, they finish each other’s sentences, they know how to push each other’s buttons like nobody else, and they’ve spent practically every day together for the last eight years:
They were honest with each other—honest in ways that only people who have known each other for a long time, loved each other for a long time, can be. But what Shaw wanted to say, what he couldn’t quite put into words, was that the honesty between them was, in its own way, also a kind of lie. He wanted to tell North that their honesty glided across smooth water, but that there was an ocean of things below the surface, things they never said. He wanted to tell North that their honesty never went to the things they cared about most: each other.
The tangle of emotions that enmeshes North, Shaw and their complicated relationship is superbly written; their longing for one another is palpable and had my insides tied up in knots on several occasions. Shaw’s experiences have – unsurprisingly – left him with issues around trust and intimacy; North has finally taken steps to end his crumbling, abusive marriage, and is battling all sorts of inner demons he’s desperate to keep hidden. But with North newly single, the delicate balance in his and Shaw’s relationship is off kilter. Neither man has allowed themselves to think about the other in terms of anything other than friendship, but after eight years, their true feelings are starting to spill out and won’t be put back in the bottle.
There’s little I didn’t enjoy about this book. North and Shaw are compelling characters who, on the surface are opposites, but beneath the layers of smartass and snark, are wonderfully in tune, which makes for some truly fantastic banter. I liked the glimpses we were given of how their friendship began back in their college days, and I thoroughly enjoyed the cameo appearances by Wahredua’s finest (Hazard and Somerset) which drops some hints about where they might be headed in their next series. The one false note struck in the book – and I found this to be the case in Orientation as well – is the character of Pari, who is aggressive, rude and never seems to do any work. I’d have fired her if she worked for me!
I was completely engrossed by Triangulation from the first word to the last and raced through it in a couple of sittings. I should mention here that the novel ends on one doozy of a cliffhanger, although book three – Declination – is due out in October, so there’s not too long to wait. Fans of clever, gritty mysteries featuring complex characters and relationships should check out Borealis Investigations as soon as possible. I can’t imagine you’ll be sorry you did.
January 26, 2025
Ahhhhh... it's so nice finally connecting with North & Shaw the way I'd hoped 😌 After not feeling things as much as I'd wanted in Orientation, I'm so glad that everything clicked for me here. When I started the series, I was sad that I didn't love North & Shaw right off the bat. With Ashe's other characters, I'd been on board right from the start, but it took me some time with these guys. I'm happy to report I'm now fully on board the North & Shaw train of chaos and mayhem, and I plan to ride it to the end of the line 🚂
Everything about this installment worked for me so much better than the first book. The story in the Orientation felt a bit all over the place, and I had a hard time getting into it. Here though, North & Shaw found their footing (and I embraced the chaos). The mystery had me engaged the entire time and the progress in the relationship department was everything I'd hoped for. I know everything that happened is only the tip of the iceberg for all that's to come for North & Shaw, but I'm glad progress is being made. There's still so much they need to work through, but I'm here for it. I can't wait to see what's in store for them as they navigate their evolving relationship while dealing with the Slasher mystery that's looming large above their heads 😅
Last but not least, the unexpected star here was Jadon. I did not anticipate loving him as much as I did in this book! Wow was he super boyfriend material or what 😮💨 Of course North & Shaw are endgame, but I still want nothing but the best for Jadon, especially after that ending 😭 Uggggghhh. Talk about breaking my heart! I'm so glad I'm reading this now and not when it came out in 2019 because knowing he has his own book (with Nico of all people) blunts the pain. I'm very curious how all of that is going to play out! I have lots more reading to do before I get there, but just knowing it's already written and ready when I am is beyond exciting! But for now, I need to see what lies ahead for North & Shaw in Declination 👀
Everything about this installment worked for me so much better than the first book. The story in the Orientation felt a bit all over the place, and I had a hard time getting into it. Here though, North & Shaw found their footing (and I embraced the chaos). The mystery had me engaged the entire time and the progress in the relationship department was everything I'd hoped for. I know everything that happened is only the tip of the iceberg for all that's to come for North & Shaw, but I'm glad progress is being made. There's still so much they need to work through, but I'm here for it. I can't wait to see what's in store for them as they navigate their evolving relationship while dealing with the Slasher mystery that's looming large above their heads 😅
Last but not least, the unexpected star here was Jadon. I did not anticipate loving him as much as I did in this book! Wow was he super boyfriend material or what 😮💨 Of course North & Shaw are endgame, but I still want nothing but the best for Jadon, especially after that ending 😭 Uggggghhh. Talk about breaking my heart! I'm so glad I'm reading this now and not when it came out in 2019 because knowing he has his own book (with Nico of all people) blunts the pain. I'm very curious how all of that is going to play out! I have lots more reading to do before I get there, but just knowing it's already written and ready when I am is beyond exciting! But for now, I need to see what lies ahead for North & Shaw in Declination 👀
February 4, 2025
3.5
I'm still struggling to truly like either of these characters unfortunately.
The crime mystery wasn't the best and became so convoluted. The brunch war was actually the most entertaining part of the plot, especially seeing Billy meet Karma 😂 Loved Emery and JH's cameo though.
The best part about North and Shaw is their banter; the way they tease each other is genuinely funny. I don't have much else good to say about them though. They frustrate me because they harp on and on about talking, processing and knowing each other so well, yet neither has ever confessed their feelings and expects the other to be a bloody mind reader?! They aren't even frustrating in an endearing way, it's just really annoying because all they have to do is have a conversation!
I didn't like Jadon at all - he knows about Shaw's past yet he gives him no empathy or understanding when it comes to the sexual side of their relationship and Shaw's need to go slow or even abstain. It read to me that he had some kind of fetish about Shaw's scars from when he was almost murdered and he really didn't seem to care that Shaw was clearly not into doing anything physical unless he was completely lost in his own mind... I did see that Jadon ends up with Nico, and seeing as how they're both selfish and self-centred I think that works, although I can't imagine them having a healthy relationship. I still don't get why anyone liked Nico after he showed his colours and tried to manipulate Emery under the illusion of his rules meaning their relationship was mature and healthy 😂😂
Also I think it's very telling that these books are significantly shorter than the H&S books, yet I read two of them (H&S) in a day easily but struggled to get through this one in a day... I even put my kindle down to go do housework voluntarily 😱😂
One more book to go, and then thankfully I'm back to H&S!!
I'm still struggling to truly like either of these characters unfortunately.
The crime mystery wasn't the best and became so convoluted. The brunch war was actually the most entertaining part of the plot, especially seeing Billy meet Karma 😂 Loved Emery and JH's cameo though.
The best part about North and Shaw is their banter; the way they tease each other is genuinely funny. I don't have much else good to say about them though. They frustrate me because they harp on and on about talking, processing and knowing each other so well, yet neither has ever confessed their feelings and expects the other to be a bloody mind reader?! They aren't even frustrating in an endearing way, it's just really annoying because all they have to do is have a conversation!
I didn't like Jadon at all - he knows about Shaw's past yet he gives him no empathy or understanding when it comes to the sexual side of their relationship and Shaw's need to go slow or even abstain. It read to me that he had some kind of fetish about Shaw's scars from when he was almost murdered and he really didn't seem to care that Shaw was clearly not into doing anything physical unless he was completely lost in his own mind... I did see that Jadon ends up with Nico, and seeing as how they're both selfish and self-centred I think that works, although I can't imagine them having a healthy relationship. I still don't get why anyone liked Nico after he showed his colours and tried to manipulate Emery under the illusion of his rules meaning their relationship was mature and healthy 😂😂
Also I think it's very telling that these books are significantly shorter than the H&S books, yet I read two of them (H&S) in a day easily but struggled to get through this one in a day... I even put my kindle down to go do housework voluntarily 😱😂
One more book to go, and then thankfully I'm back to H&S!!
March 3, 2021
... and this is why though I always intend to read the next book in the series immediately I end up exercising self preservation and pace these out. My emotions need a rest. Gregory Ashe and Charlie David put me through my paces. Thanks.
What can I say that hasn't been said without devolving into gibberish? I'll just say I loved everything about it. The way the relationship between Shaw & North continues to evolve without cutting corners, how their world is populated by recognizable people of every type, how magic sex doesn't cure wounds that run deep, the humor laced banter between the MC which serves as a bridge and form of communication. I had a ball imagining Shaw's outfits and his continuous tries at guessing North's middle name.
The mystery was good. I wasn't necessarily surprised but I liked how the investigation played out. I loved the cameo by my faves! Though I kind of hoped that Shep would've been a different person, I'm also glad to see "marginalized" characters portrayed in all iterations. And of course I'm heartbroken about . I'll take a couple of days and continue with this journey.
What can I say that hasn't been said without devolving into gibberish? I'll just say I loved everything about it. The way the relationship between Shaw & North continues to evolve without cutting corners, how their world is populated by recognizable people of every type, how magic sex doesn't cure wounds that run deep, the humor laced banter between the MC which serves as a bridge and form of communication. I had a ball imagining Shaw's outfits and his continuous tries at guessing North's middle name.
The mystery was good. I wasn't necessarily surprised but I liked how the investigation played out. I loved the cameo by my faves! Though I kind of hoped that Shep would've been a different person, I'm also glad to see "marginalized" characters portrayed in all iterations. And of course I'm heartbroken about . I'll take a couple of days and continue with this journey.
January 5, 2024
Non-communication, my old nemesis. We meet again.
This series is good, crime-wise, but nowhere near the level of Tean and Jem, relationship-wise. I'm simply not yet as invested in these two and their dynamic, and I worry about the effects that all the trauma they've both suffered will have on their relationship going forward. While Tean and Jem definitely ribbed each other, they were ultimately very soft. With North and Shaw, there is always an edge to the teasing, sometimes a very sharp one. Much more Hazard and Somerset, with all the baggage that implies.
That said -- I was spamming the live-read thread with a lot of spoiler-tagged ranty rants, all CAN YOU TELL WHEN TUCK IS LYING, NORTH??? CAN YOU?????, so clearly I'm not as sanguine as I like to think I am.
(Seriously, though, that revelation made my jaw drop. What were you thinking, North, you dumb dumb man????? And it really did explain a lot of the questions I had from the first book around how the whole North-Tuck thing happened in the first place (and North-Shaw didn't).)
Pari -- still sucks, and a seriously missed opportunity!
I'm definitely invested enough to churn through these, but I don't have the same full-hearted devotion to these two as to Tean and Jem (beep beep boop [sob]). And I hope that there is less mis/ non-communication going forward. Use your words, bros!
This series is good, crime-wise, but nowhere near the level of Tean and Jem, relationship-wise. I'm simply not yet as invested in these two and their dynamic, and I worry about the effects that all the trauma they've both suffered will have on their relationship going forward. While Tean and Jem definitely ribbed each other, they were ultimately very soft. With North and Shaw, there is always an edge to the teasing, sometimes a very sharp one. Much more Hazard and Somerset, with all the baggage that implies.
That said -- I was spamming the live-read thread with a lot of spoiler-tagged ranty rants, all CAN YOU TELL WHEN TUCK IS LYING, NORTH??? CAN YOU?????, so clearly I'm not as sanguine as I like to think I am.
(Seriously, though, that revelation made my jaw drop. What were you thinking, North, you dumb dumb man????? And it really did explain a lot of the questions I had from the first book around how the whole North-Tuck thing happened in the first place (and North-Shaw didn't).)
Pari -- still sucks, and a seriously missed opportunity!
I'm definitely invested enough to churn through these, but I don't have the same full-hearted devotion to these two as to Tean and Jem (beep beep boop [sob]). And I hope that there is less mis/ non-communication going forward. Use your words, bros!
December 16, 2022
Remember that one time when I wrote a review of book #1 and said I'd be eating my words? Yeah, my stomach is feeling pretty full right now. This book should have been called Collateral Damage because I swear everyone took a turn at being an unwitting victim of someone else's circumstances/trauma. I don't even feel comfortable saying I want to slap or shake these characters because they've already suffered through so much, but I'm not opposed to a stern talking to and maybe some mandated time spent thinking about what they've done.
While this book didn't keep me awake into the wee hours of night drenched in sweat, there was definitely some discomfort experienced, especially during one specific scene. That was...ouch. Had I been in North's position, I probably would have come apart at the seams. I definitely would not have stuck around until the end. Shaw was going through it in this book, but for someone who always wanted to talk about and "process" things, he was internalizing a lot of stuff. And while I liked the bittersweet ending, I got the sense that North and Shaw will have a long road ahead of them. I usually relax a little once the two MC's get together, but not so much this time. Shaw is dealing with so much trauma and there's no way Tucker is just going to let North get away without a fight.
I had fun following these guys as they chased their tails with this mystery. There were lots of moving parts and potential suspects, though I thought the whodunnit was pretty obvious early on. I always have a good laugh when the killer turns into a Scooby Doo villain and starts monologuing about every nuance of their crime. It's like they've never watched TV or read a book. I also loved the underlying tension that the Slasher storyline brought. I can't wait to see how that plays out.
Stray thoughts:
1. Tucker still sucks. If anything, he sucks even more because he's trying to pretend like he doesn't suck and failing miserably.
2. Hazard and Somerset!!!! My reaction to them reminded me of the crowd at a Shawn Mendes concert I went to a few years ago, and once again no one in my house cared as much as I did.
3. Pari was annoying af, but I felt so bad for her.
4. Poor Jadon.
While this book didn't keep me awake into the wee hours of night drenched in sweat, there was definitely some discomfort experienced, especially during one specific scene. That was...ouch. Had I been in North's position, I probably would have come apart at the seams. I definitely would not have stuck around until the end. Shaw was going through it in this book, but for someone who always wanted to talk about and "process" things, he was internalizing a lot of stuff. And while I liked the bittersweet ending, I got the sense that North and Shaw will have a long road ahead of them. I usually relax a little once the two MC's get together, but not so much this time. Shaw is dealing with so much trauma and there's no way Tucker is just going to let North get away without a fight.
I had fun following these guys as they chased their tails with this mystery. There were lots of moving parts and potential suspects, though I thought the whodunnit was pretty obvious early on. I always have a good laugh when the killer turns into a Scooby Doo villain and starts monologuing about every nuance of their crime. It's like they've never watched TV or read a book. I also loved the underlying tension that the Slasher storyline brought. I can't wait to see how that plays out.
Stray thoughts:
1. Tucker still sucks. If anything, he sucks even more because he's trying to pretend like he doesn't suck and failing miserably.
2. Hazard and Somerset!!!! My reaction to them reminded me of the crowd at a Shawn Mendes concert I went to a few years ago, and once again no one in my house cared as much as I did.
3. Pari was annoying af, but I felt so bad for her.
4. Poor Jadon.
August 9, 2019
A Joyfully Jay review.
5 stars
Triangulation is the second book in the Borealis Investigations series and I truly couldn’t put it down. I was blown away after reading Orientation, and I think this one is even better. Gregory Ashe does an amazing job combining a thrilling and twisty mystery with two really well developed characters in Shaw and North. I was at the edge of my seat waiting to see how the investigation would play out, as well as what would happen between the two men. While this one may stand alone from a mystery perspective, I think it is best read after the first book to understand the relationships and the bigger plot arcs.
From the mystery side, I am totally impressed by the way Ashe crafts his stories. Everything layers and builds, threads connect in unexpected ways, and key plot points end up diverging and intersecting all throughout the story.
Read Jay’s review in its entirety here.
5 stars
Triangulation is the second book in the Borealis Investigations series and I truly couldn’t put it down. I was blown away after reading Orientation, and I think this one is even better. Gregory Ashe does an amazing job combining a thrilling and twisty mystery with two really well developed characters in Shaw and North. I was at the edge of my seat waiting to see how the investigation would play out, as well as what would happen between the two men. While this one may stand alone from a mystery perspective, I think it is best read after the first book to understand the relationships and the bigger plot arcs.
From the mystery side, I am totally impressed by the way Ashe crafts his stories. Everything layers and builds, threads connect in unexpected ways, and key plot points end up diverging and intersecting all throughout the story.
Read Jay’s review in its entirety here.
December 3, 2020
OH MY GOSH!!!! I mean really, I don't know what to say about this book, heck this series. I can come up with a million adjectives to describe this book and it still wouldn't do it justice. Author Gregory Ashe is a master storyteller. I fell in love with his writing style the minute I picked up the first Hazard and Somerset book and it only seems to get better with each book and series he writes.
Shawn breaks my heart and I just want to wrap my arms around him and keep him safe. While with North I just want to ring his neck at times then love on him too. I just love these characters so much!
All I can truly say is if you haven't picked up a Gregory Ashe book you have no idea what you're missing!!!
Shawn breaks my heart and I just want to wrap my arms around him and keep him safe. While with North I just want to ring his neck at times then love on him too. I just love these characters so much!
All I can truly say is if you haven't picked up a Gregory Ashe book you have no idea what you're missing!!!
April 11, 2024
I've given this an A- for both narration and content at AudioGals, so that's 4.5 stars rounded up.
Triangulation is book two in Gregory Ashe’s Borealis Investigations series featuring St. Louis based PIs North McKinney and Shaw Aldrich, two guys who have known each other since college and have secretly pined for each other for just as long. The story picks up a couple of months after the events of book one, Orientation, and I’d advise anyone thinking of picking up Triangulation go to back and listen to that first, as it provides context for the relationship between the two leads and kicks off the series’ overarching plotline concerning Shaw’s search for the serial killer dubbed the West End Slasher, who murdered his boyfriend and left him critically injured some eight years before.
(Note: There are spoilers for Orientation in this review.)
Triangulation opens with Pari – North and Shaw’s office assistant (who seems to spend all her time haranguing them and never appears to do a stroke of work) – attempting to persuade them to look into the disappearance of Shep Collins, an LGBTQ youth worker and prominent figure in the St. Louis gay community. Pari’s girlfriend Chuck works with Collins at the local halfway house, and is concerned because he hasn’t been seen for a few days. North isn’t keen on the idea, especially after he learns that Collins used to administer conversion therapy to gay teenaged boys – but Chuck is really worried, and insists that Collins is a changed man; he’s out and married, the kids he works with love him and he sees his work with them as a way of atoning for what he did in the past. North still doesn’t want to take the case, but Shaw does, and after one of those typically North and Shaw circuitous not-conversations, they tell Chuck and Pari they’ll take the case.
Right from the start, the things they’re told about Collins past and present, and about his last known movements don’t add up. His purportedly happy marriage was on the rocks, a large sum of money has gone missing from Iris House, yet he never seemed to have any cash… everybody, even Chuck, who was worried enough about him to hire North and Shaw in the first place, has a different story to tell, and the truth is frustratingly obscure. Things change drastically a day or so later however, when Collins’ body is found in the trunk of Chuck’s car and she is arrested for murder. North and Shaw are determined to find the real killer, but their investigation sees them repeatedly clashing with detectives from St. Louis’ LGBT task force – who seem far more interested in North and Shaw than they do in catching the person responsible for Collins’ murder.
The mystery is clever, well-plotted and full of dangerous twists and turns, and running alongside is the plotline concerning Shaw’s search for the Slasher. He has never been convinced that the right man was convicted, and since the discovery, at the end of Orientation, of a video taken the night of the attack which shows the killer getting into a car (with a visible license plate) he has been doing some digging on his own. Unbeknownst to North, he has applied for permission to visit the convicted man in prison – but when the appointed day arrives, Shaw is too late. He died the previous night, and nobody is saying how.
And at the heart of it all is the relationship between the two leads. Anyone familiar with Gregory Ashe’s work will already know how very good he is at weaving together multiple storylines while also allowing the characters to shine and exploring the complexities of a partnership, whether professional or personal – and in this, as in his wonderful Hazard and Somerset series, the relationship between North and Shaw is a mixture of both. The events of the previous book – when Shaw became romantically involved with a client who betrayed and tried to kill him – almost destroyed his and North’s friendship, and although things may be back to normal on the surface, the delicate balance of deflection and denial they’ve maintained for the past eight years has been upset and things between them can never be the same. These two know each other inside out and ‘get’ each other in ways nobody else does. They finish each other’s sentences, and when they really get going on one of their trademark bantering sessions, it’s like they’re the only two people in the room and you can just feel the confusion radiating off anyone looking on. But even so, even with all that knowledge, and years of friendship there are things they’ve kept from one another and one thing they’re never honest about. Their feelings for each other.
I am a complete sucker for Gregory Ashe’s brand of angsty, slow-burn romance and complex, likeable characters with smart mouths, quick minds and relationships that ooze sexual chemistry like it’s going out of fashion. His insight into what makes his characters tick is always impressive, and he’s not afraid to take them to some dark places. Given Shaw’s experiences, it’s not surprising he has serious trust and intimacy issues, but he’s struggling to deal with them while trying to prevent North from seeing just how bad things are; and North has kept secret the fact that his husband is abusive for a variety of reasons, not least of which is the dread that Shaw will see him as weak and someone to be pitied. It’s deep and twisted and fucked up – and it’s my book catnip.
I said in my review of Orientation that Charlie David’s interpretations of North and Shaw were perfect, and that still holds true; he adopts a gravelly, slightly world-weary tone for North, and a higher, brighter one for Shaw that thoroughly captures his air of wide-eyed innocence. His pacing is generally good (perhaps sometimes it’s a little slow, but not dreadfully so) and his timing in North and Shaw’s back-and-forth exchanges and one-liners is spot on. He has a rich, deep voice which is very easy on the ear, and is a terrific vocal actor; the emotional content of Mr. Ashe’s books is complex and demanding, and Mr. David really delivers, his ability to convey moments of raw emotion giving the author’s words even more impact than they already had. One instance of this that’s stuck with me is the ‘bathtub’ scene in the second half of the book, which is so full of longing, despair, fear and deep, deep love and affection that listening to it was like a real punch to the gut. (In a good way!) I always find it easier to overlook a few minor faults in a performance if the narrator is able to really pull me into the story and make me feel all the emotions the characters are feeling, and Mr. David does that extremely well. I did have the odd issue with the character differentiation; there are quite a few secondary characters in the story, and while most are easy enough to identify, I found it difficult to tell the difference between Pari and Chuck when they appeared together, and the handful of female characters are close in register to the voice he uses for Shaw and can sound a bit similar.
Overall, however, it’s a terrific performance that does the book more than justice. Triangulation is clever and gritty and dark and romantic and funny all at the same time; almost thirteen hours of the listen flew by and even though I’ve read book three ( Declination ) already, I can’t wait for it to arrive in audio.
(Note: Triangulation has a cliffhanger ending.)
This review originally appeared at AudioGals .
Triangulation is book two in Gregory Ashe’s Borealis Investigations series featuring St. Louis based PIs North McKinney and Shaw Aldrich, two guys who have known each other since college and have secretly pined for each other for just as long. The story picks up a couple of months after the events of book one, Orientation, and I’d advise anyone thinking of picking up Triangulation go to back and listen to that first, as it provides context for the relationship between the two leads and kicks off the series’ overarching plotline concerning Shaw’s search for the serial killer dubbed the West End Slasher, who murdered his boyfriend and left him critically injured some eight years before.
(Note: There are spoilers for Orientation in this review.)
Triangulation opens with Pari – North and Shaw’s office assistant (who seems to spend all her time haranguing them and never appears to do a stroke of work) – attempting to persuade them to look into the disappearance of Shep Collins, an LGBTQ youth worker and prominent figure in the St. Louis gay community. Pari’s girlfriend Chuck works with Collins at the local halfway house, and is concerned because he hasn’t been seen for a few days. North isn’t keen on the idea, especially after he learns that Collins used to administer conversion therapy to gay teenaged boys – but Chuck is really worried, and insists that Collins is a changed man; he’s out and married, the kids he works with love him and he sees his work with them as a way of atoning for what he did in the past. North still doesn’t want to take the case, but Shaw does, and after one of those typically North and Shaw circuitous not-conversations, they tell Chuck and Pari they’ll take the case.
Right from the start, the things they’re told about Collins past and present, and about his last known movements don’t add up. His purportedly happy marriage was on the rocks, a large sum of money has gone missing from Iris House, yet he never seemed to have any cash… everybody, even Chuck, who was worried enough about him to hire North and Shaw in the first place, has a different story to tell, and the truth is frustratingly obscure. Things change drastically a day or so later however, when Collins’ body is found in the trunk of Chuck’s car and she is arrested for murder. North and Shaw are determined to find the real killer, but their investigation sees them repeatedly clashing with detectives from St. Louis’ LGBT task force – who seem far more interested in North and Shaw than they do in catching the person responsible for Collins’ murder.
The mystery is clever, well-plotted and full of dangerous twists and turns, and running alongside is the plotline concerning Shaw’s search for the Slasher. He has never been convinced that the right man was convicted, and since the discovery, at the end of Orientation, of a video taken the night of the attack which shows the killer getting into a car (with a visible license plate) he has been doing some digging on his own. Unbeknownst to North, he has applied for permission to visit the convicted man in prison – but when the appointed day arrives, Shaw is too late. He died the previous night, and nobody is saying how.
And at the heart of it all is the relationship between the two leads. Anyone familiar with Gregory Ashe’s work will already know how very good he is at weaving together multiple storylines while also allowing the characters to shine and exploring the complexities of a partnership, whether professional or personal – and in this, as in his wonderful Hazard and Somerset series, the relationship between North and Shaw is a mixture of both. The events of the previous book – when Shaw became romantically involved with a client who betrayed and tried to kill him – almost destroyed his and North’s friendship, and although things may be back to normal on the surface, the delicate balance of deflection and denial they’ve maintained for the past eight years has been upset and things between them can never be the same. These two know each other inside out and ‘get’ each other in ways nobody else does. They finish each other’s sentences, and when they really get going on one of their trademark bantering sessions, it’s like they’re the only two people in the room and you can just feel the confusion radiating off anyone looking on. But even so, even with all that knowledge, and years of friendship there are things they’ve kept from one another and one thing they’re never honest about. Their feelings for each other.
I am a complete sucker for Gregory Ashe’s brand of angsty, slow-burn romance and complex, likeable characters with smart mouths, quick minds and relationships that ooze sexual chemistry like it’s going out of fashion. His insight into what makes his characters tick is always impressive, and he’s not afraid to take them to some dark places. Given Shaw’s experiences, it’s not surprising he has serious trust and intimacy issues, but he’s struggling to deal with them while trying to prevent North from seeing just how bad things are; and North has kept secret the fact that his husband is abusive for a variety of reasons, not least of which is the dread that Shaw will see him as weak and someone to be pitied. It’s deep and twisted and fucked up – and it’s my book catnip.
I said in my review of Orientation that Charlie David’s interpretations of North and Shaw were perfect, and that still holds true; he adopts a gravelly, slightly world-weary tone for North, and a higher, brighter one for Shaw that thoroughly captures his air of wide-eyed innocence. His pacing is generally good (perhaps sometimes it’s a little slow, but not dreadfully so) and his timing in North and Shaw’s back-and-forth exchanges and one-liners is spot on. He has a rich, deep voice which is very easy on the ear, and is a terrific vocal actor; the emotional content of Mr. Ashe’s books is complex and demanding, and Mr. David really delivers, his ability to convey moments of raw emotion giving the author’s words even more impact than they already had. One instance of this that’s stuck with me is the ‘bathtub’ scene in the second half of the book, which is so full of longing, despair, fear and deep, deep love and affection that listening to it was like a real punch to the gut. (In a good way!) I always find it easier to overlook a few minor faults in a performance if the narrator is able to really pull me into the story and make me feel all the emotions the characters are feeling, and Mr. David does that extremely well. I did have the odd issue with the character differentiation; there are quite a few secondary characters in the story, and while most are easy enough to identify, I found it difficult to tell the difference between Pari and Chuck when they appeared together, and the handful of female characters are close in register to the voice he uses for Shaw and can sound a bit similar.
Overall, however, it’s a terrific performance that does the book more than justice. Triangulation is clever and gritty and dark and romantic and funny all at the same time; almost thirteen hours of the listen flew by and even though I’ve read book three ( Declination ) already, I can’t wait for it to arrive in audio.
(Note: Triangulation has a cliffhanger ending.)
This review originally appeared at AudioGals .
June 9, 2021
4.25 ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
This book stressed me the f-ck out. North and Shaw were testing my patience at every turn, and I honestly wanted to scream "COMMUNICATE IDIOTS" several times. That said....with the frustration comes very nuanced characterization. Have you ever known someone who can't seem to get out of their own way? Someone who refuses to let people in? Someone who is so blind to what is in front of them? Better yet, have you been this person? I personally have both been and known this person, and while viewing from the outside makes you want to pull your hair out, it is also very realistic behavior. Tack on years of unresolved trauma, abuse, PTSD, low self-esteem, secrecy, and fear and well...the non-communication makes sense.
The book follows Shaw and North as they take on a case for their receptionist Pari's girlfriend, Chuck. Chuck's boss has disappeared, and with a particularly f-cked up past, Shaw and North (mostly North) begrudgingly take the case on. So the reason this was a 4 and not 5 star read for me was primarily because of the case. It was still good and I was still entertained, but I wasn't as gripped by it as I was by the case in book 1. Outside of the suspense though, the personal lives of North and Shaw were very enthralling. I appreciated the background into North and his feelings for Shaw. In book 1 the reader is only really given insight into Shaw, but this book finally revealed how deep rooted and longstanding North's feelings are. Another thing Ashe does very well is write in extraneous relationships that don't feel like annoying plot devices. I usually hate this in romances because it almost always feels contrived, but that wasn't the vibe I got in this story. I liked Jadon and even could appreciate the relationship he had with Shaw. It was written in such a way that for me, I was able to understand the importance of their relationship at this specific point in time while still 100% rooting for North and Shaw. Ashe wrote a kind, compassionate character while still not taking away from the reader what the true match was meant to be. It's easy to write an outside partner who is a villain (paging: Tucker), but a lot harder to write someone likable without creating an unnecessary love triangle for the reader. The payoff for North and Shaw though was so HEART EYES all the pain felt worth it.
I am now on to book 3 and am excited to see how this series wraps up.
This book stressed me the f-ck out. North and Shaw were testing my patience at every turn, and I honestly wanted to scream "COMMUNICATE IDIOTS" several times. That said....with the frustration comes very nuanced characterization. Have you ever known someone who can't seem to get out of their own way? Someone who refuses to let people in? Someone who is so blind to what is in front of them? Better yet, have you been this person? I personally have both been and known this person, and while viewing from the outside makes you want to pull your hair out, it is also very realistic behavior. Tack on years of unresolved trauma, abuse, PTSD, low self-esteem, secrecy, and fear and well...the non-communication makes sense.
The book follows Shaw and North as they take on a case for their receptionist Pari's girlfriend, Chuck. Chuck's boss has disappeared, and with a particularly f-cked up past, Shaw and North (mostly North) begrudgingly take the case on. So the reason this was a 4 and not 5 star read for me was primarily because of the case. It was still good and I was still entertained, but I wasn't as gripped by it as I was by the case in book 1. Outside of the suspense though, the personal lives of North and Shaw were very enthralling. I appreciated the background into North and his feelings for Shaw. In book 1 the reader is only really given insight into Shaw, but this book finally revealed how deep rooted and longstanding North's feelings are. Another thing Ashe does very well is write in extraneous relationships that don't feel like annoying plot devices. I usually hate this in romances because it almost always feels contrived, but that wasn't the vibe I got in this story. I liked Jadon and even could appreciate the relationship he had with Shaw. It was written in such a way that for me, I was able to understand the importance of their relationship at this specific point in time while still 100% rooting for North and Shaw. Ashe wrote a kind, compassionate character while still not taking away from the reader what the true match was meant to be. It's easy to write an outside partner who is a villain (paging: Tucker), but a lot harder to write someone likable without creating an unnecessary love triangle for the reader. The payoff for North and Shaw though was so HEART EYES all the pain felt worth it.
I am now on to book 3 and am excited to see how this series wraps up.
October 18, 2019
"Shaw’s mind kept turning over the last few minutes. North was right, of course. They were honest with each other—honest in ways that only people who have known each other for a long time, loved each other for a long time, can be. But what Shaw wanted to say, what he couldn’t quite put into words, was that the honesty between them was, in its own way, also a kind of lie. He wanted to tell North that their honesty glided across smooth water, but that there was an ocean of things below the surface, things they never said. He wanted to tell North that their honesty never went to the things they cared about most: each other."
Things that move faster than North & Shaw do towards each other and a relationship.
-Sloths
-Snails
-The Dwarf Syngnathidas Seahorse
-Lichen
-My Dad's computer that I'm pretty sure is from the early 90's.
Things I love more than North & Shaw.
Right now, not many.
North & Shaw are back with a new case and new ways to hide how much they love each other. Except every interaction proves just that. To us, not to them. That would be too easy. North is still very much married and Shaw is dating Jadon, the detective from the last book. So, let the pining and sexual tension continue.
And I loved it. I've never read such a slow burn. It's torture but it wouldn't have worked any other way with these two. Two men with so many issues and so many years of friendship. It was never going to be easy.
I said this about the first one and I'll say it again for this one. It's hard to mix genres like mystery and romance. One side generally suffers. It doesn't do that here. The mystery kept me engaged and made sense. The feels kept me flipping pages. And some of the banter did have me laughing out loud.
“You can’t have any of my cake.” “What?” “We’re going to go in there. And you’re starving and need something to eat, so we’ll order something. And you’re going to order something stupid like the grilled fish tacos or a side salad or maybe just a cup of soup, and I’ll get that special, and when the cake comes, you’re going to want some. You can’t have any.” “I don’t want any.” “If you want cake, you better order your own damn cake, because you can’t have any of mine.” “I said I don’t want any.” “Don’t even ask.” “I won’t.” “Don’t look at my cake and sigh and spin your fork.” “I never do stuff like that.” “Don’t talk on and on about how good dark chocolate is for you and the antioxidants and all that shit.” “That doesn’t even sound like me.”
A few things to note: The book ends with a possible happily for now and a cliffhanger. There seems to be a long road ahead for a happily ever after. Book is high on tension, low on actual steamy parts. However what there is, is hot! I think these definitely have a higher ratio of mystery to romance. So if that puts you off, you may want to skip it. I enjoyed it though. The relationship building is top notch and that, with all of the other above mentioned things, made it well worth it for me. Dark topics such as abuse and assault still present.
Things that move faster than North & Shaw do towards each other and a relationship.
-Sloths
-Snails
-The Dwarf Syngnathidas Seahorse
-Lichen
-My Dad's computer that I'm pretty sure is from the early 90's.
Things I love more than North & Shaw.
Right now, not many.
North & Shaw are back with a new case and new ways to hide how much they love each other. Except every interaction proves just that. To us, not to them. That would be too easy. North is still very much married and Shaw is dating Jadon, the detective from the last book. So, let the pining and sexual tension continue.
And I loved it. I've never read such a slow burn. It's torture but it wouldn't have worked any other way with these two. Two men with so many issues and so many years of friendship. It was never going to be easy.
I said this about the first one and I'll say it again for this one. It's hard to mix genres like mystery and romance. One side generally suffers. It doesn't do that here. The mystery kept me engaged and made sense. The feels kept me flipping pages. And some of the banter did have me laughing out loud.
“You can’t have any of my cake.” “What?” “We’re going to go in there. And you’re starving and need something to eat, so we’ll order something. And you’re going to order something stupid like the grilled fish tacos or a side salad or maybe just a cup of soup, and I’ll get that special, and when the cake comes, you’re going to want some. You can’t have any.” “I don’t want any.” “If you want cake, you better order your own damn cake, because you can’t have any of mine.” “I said I don’t want any.” “Don’t even ask.” “I won’t.” “Don’t look at my cake and sigh and spin your fork.” “I never do stuff like that.” “Don’t talk on and on about how good dark chocolate is for you and the antioxidants and all that shit.” “That doesn’t even sound like me.”
A few things to note: The book ends with a possible happily for now and a cliffhanger. There seems to be a long road ahead for a happily ever after. Book is high on tension, low on actual steamy parts. However what there is, is hot! I think these definitely have a higher ratio of mystery to romance. So if that puts you off, you may want to skip it. I enjoyed it though. The relationship building is top notch and that, with all of the other above mentioned things, made it well worth it for me. Dark topics such as abuse and assault still present.
September 17, 2019
Good lord - outstanding !!! This series has all the angst, all the twists and all the need 😬😬😬 I adore these characters- Shaw & North are brilliant, revolving around each other as best friends but desperately in love with each other ❤️ finally, finally - I need book 3
June 24, 2022
[3.5] i officially have a new anthem, say it with me: Tucker the F*cker deserves to get run over by a trucker! again, louder for the people in the back! 🗣️🗣️
listing out my thoughts in no particular order: Hazard & Somers *squeals*, Shaw be kinkyyyy (but it was also kinda awks 😳), North's portrayal as an abuse victim was done painfully well, Jadon deserved better, that final scene 😲
i do think i've read my fill of sex scenes of the mcs with other people though, at least for the time being 🤣
listing out my thoughts in no particular order: Hazard & Somers *squeals*, Shaw be kinkyyyy (but it was also kinda awks 😳), North's portrayal as an abuse victim was done painfully well, Jadon deserved better, that final scene 😲
i do think i've read my fill of sex scenes of the mcs with other people though, at least for the time being 🤣
Read
December 13, 2019Again, wow. After slowly savoring the first book, I dove into this one, racing to get to the resolution of the murder / mystery, but more importantly Shaw and North and their weird, sad, wonderful relationship. Full review to come shortly.
July 23, 2019
review to come!
GOD WHERE THE FUCK IS BOOK 3 YO!!!!!!!!
GOD WHERE THE FUCK IS BOOK 3 YO!!!!!!!!
February 21, 2022
Well, against everything, this is working quite well. I still think Pari is a waste of time and space and . Why North and Shaw put up with her and her actitude is a mystery. And I want to bash Shaw and North heads into each other, because of REASONS... OMG! I can't believe I'm putting up with all this nonsense, can you talk to each other? But really talk, not doing that thing that you do that pass as talking...
About the mystery, I had many theories and I didn't get what was going on until the very end.
About the mystery, I had many theories and I didn't get what was going on until the very end.
February 20, 2020
Audiobook reviewNow that wasn't nice.... I mean that cliffhanger... I might go bald from ripping out all of my hair waiting for the next book.. So… after finishing this book you might have guessed I'm not in the best of moods, and I blame it all on that bloody cliffhanger… But you know what, to save us all from insanity (and my major ranting), I think I'll just go away and write this review another day - when I've had the chance to calm down.
………..
It’s been a few days since finishing this book, and I’m still not happy about that ending. Calmer, but not happy. So I’m going to try to tell you about my feelings for the rest of the book. It did take me a while to get into this story, but once I did I couldn't stop listening. Before I knew it the book had ended, leaving me wanting, no needing, to know more. More about what happened next, but also more about Shaw and North.
There were many raw moments, charged ones in this book. To be honest they were stockpiled as if expecting a major sale somewhere. For me, Shaw especially touched me this time around. I don’t know why, but I had this idea that he was the stable one of the two. Sure he had hangups and issues, but with his past how could he not still be affected by it? But for some for some reason, in my mind, he’d found a way to deal with it, to function and not only on the surface. So it seems that I too fell for that act, that surface. My heart broke for him and I really wish he’d accept help to get better, because he really needs it. His facade is fraying at the edges and I fear what will happen to him when it crumbles.
Both North and Shaw are, for a lack of a better term, messed up. And majorly so. They have so many huge issues that sometimes I feel it was a wonder they even functioned. Then again, they didn’t really. They are both so good at hiding everything they feel. Hide it from each other but also from themselves.
Triangulation is not a book you pick up if you are looking for something pink and fluffy. Contrary to what the cover might suggest this book is mentally draining. It’s filled with emotions, angst and horrors and many that you’ll feel deeply. Wishing to know more at the same time you are wishing for it to stop.
The bath tub scene and the events leading up to it were the most raw moments I’ve come across in books for a long while. The feelings were just oozing from North and Shaw and Charlie David. In those moments there were so many emotions I don’t think I could name them all, the horror, despair and fear, the hopelessness, love, longing, want and need. It was all jumbled and Charlie David made you feel them all – and then some. He will have your head spinning in the best and worst ways.
After finishing this book you might want to look for something pink and fluffy to recover. Because this ride is insane.
A copy of this book was generously provided by the author in exchange for an honest review
October 29, 2022
I am catching up on my reviews because I just went right through this first series. It’s no secret GA is a favorite for me. It’s been a while since I had read his books and now I just can’t stop, for me he keeps surprising me. I honestly don’t know how he does it, the suspense and mystery he always manages to keep me entertained and throw me off - LOVEIT!!!
I started this series when I only have one book left in the Hazard/Somers series and I am like hanging on to it for dear life. BUT Father Complex has so much North and Shaw I just needed to understand who these two were. This second book wow they are nothing like I expects and I almost want to go back and re-read all the parts to see their interactions now I know what their backstory is.
I started this series when I only have one book left in the Hazard/Somers series and I am like hanging on to it for dear life. BUT Father Complex has so much North and Shaw I just needed to understand who these two were. This second book wow they are nothing like I expects and I almost want to go back and re-read all the parts to see their interactions now I know what their backstory is.
July 11, 2020
4.5 stars
December 17, 2020
Here we are again... another Gregory Ashe story... another Borealis Investigations... and I'm an emotional mess in all of the ways that an author can only hope to achieve with their readership! So, I put several newer Ashe releases in between Orientation and Triangulation, not because I didn't love this series, but actually the opposite—these characters and their highs and lows touch me so profoundly that I had to delay between books because 1. I needed to draw North and Shaw out and 2. I needed to gather my strength to continue.
As with any Gregory Ashe book, the mystery is absolutely fantastic and the growth of the characters in between the greater plot, is both heartbreaking and so utterly uplifting that you completely forget the 300 pages of glass and fire you walked through to reach the end with one perfectly and eloquently phrased line of love and understanding. In Triangulation, we have the return of private detectives, North and Shaw, and another LGBTQ situation. Namely, their secretary, Pari—her girlfriend's boss has gone missing. Shep Collins, who runs Iris, an LGBTQ youth house in St. Louis, has vanished, and his disappearance has alarmed the staff enough to hire someone to look into the situation. But when his personal life begins to suggest issues of money, cheating, and complicated relationships stemming from his time running a conversion therapy camp in Arkansas—this is anything but an open and shut case. From old loves to new, enemies, dirty cops, and everything in between—North and Shaw are against the odds.
I just loved this book so much. I know that this statement seems silly, given I've probably said something similar for most of Ashe's books, but honestly, this is probably one of my favorites he's ever written, even compared to Hazard & Somerset, The First Quarto, and more. North and Shaw are such incredible characters—North especially. He has a particular brand of vulnerability, relatable-ness, and utter realness that makes him a character all authors wish they could write. He's such a savvy investigator, so damn funny in his back-and-forth with Shaw, but underneath the bravado and snark, is a very romantic and scared man. He's utterly terrified of taking a step away from his husband, of exploring the love he deserves, and most importantly, of handling Shaw being in trouble while they investigate their newest case. I feel like my message to Gregory on the daily is: How's my baby, North? lol
But speaking of the case, I have to commend Ashe time and again for his ability to tell a story that is both tight and expansive. He's one of few authors in the genre that I feel can cast a wide net across multiple suspects and those people's personal relationships (quite often important in the dirty details) but are not lost on the reader with too many names and connections. Speaking as an author, that's very hard to do, but as a reader, I was personally never overwhelmed.
From beginning to end, this is just an incredible exploration of mystery, romance, studying the setting as a character, and not being afraid to make North and Shaw get dirty to learn a thing or two about themselves and each other. What a fabulous read.
As with any Gregory Ashe book, the mystery is absolutely fantastic and the growth of the characters in between the greater plot, is both heartbreaking and so utterly uplifting that you completely forget the 300 pages of glass and fire you walked through to reach the end with one perfectly and eloquently phrased line of love and understanding. In Triangulation, we have the return of private detectives, North and Shaw, and another LGBTQ situation. Namely, their secretary, Pari—her girlfriend's boss has gone missing. Shep Collins, who runs Iris, an LGBTQ youth house in St. Louis, has vanished, and his disappearance has alarmed the staff enough to hire someone to look into the situation. But when his personal life begins to suggest issues of money, cheating, and complicated relationships stemming from his time running a conversion therapy camp in Arkansas—this is anything but an open and shut case. From old loves to new, enemies, dirty cops, and everything in between—North and Shaw are against the odds.
I just loved this book so much. I know that this statement seems silly, given I've probably said something similar for most of Ashe's books, but honestly, this is probably one of my favorites he's ever written, even compared to Hazard & Somerset, The First Quarto, and more. North and Shaw are such incredible characters—North especially. He has a particular brand of vulnerability, relatable-ness, and utter realness that makes him a character all authors wish they could write. He's such a savvy investigator, so damn funny in his back-and-forth with Shaw, but underneath the bravado and snark, is a very romantic and scared man. He's utterly terrified of taking a step away from his husband, of exploring the love he deserves, and most importantly, of handling Shaw being in trouble while they investigate their newest case. I feel like my message to Gregory on the daily is: How's my baby, North? lol
But speaking of the case, I have to commend Ashe time and again for his ability to tell a story that is both tight and expansive. He's one of few authors in the genre that I feel can cast a wide net across multiple suspects and those people's personal relationships (quite often important in the dirty details) but are not lost on the reader with too many names and connections. Speaking as an author, that's very hard to do, but as a reader, I was personally never overwhelmed.
From beginning to end, this is just an incredible exploration of mystery, romance, studying the setting as a character, and not being afraid to make North and Shaw get dirty to learn a thing or two about themselves and each other. What a fabulous read.
July 16, 2021
Welp, this took a turn. And I peeked at my flist's ratings and I'm clearly in the minority on this one so, sorry, friends.
I wouldn't say book one was my favourite of any of my recent Ashe binge reads but I'd had a good time. And yet I lost so much (almost all?) of that love after only one additional book. Listen, I'm more than prepared to deal and dodge some stupid behaviour from this author's characters and couples but this one seemed to take the cake, I think. Sure, maybe that's because for once this seemed to be happening faster than the usj coming together but like.. we had two (three? four? maybe more) scenes to have conversations or deal with things, in perfectly appropriately emotional moments, and we just passed them all on by. And when they finally do come together and have said conversation it's so.. lackluster. No emotion behind it. Totally uninteresting. So run of the mill, this could be any other day. It just.. maybe it was done on purpose, I don't know, but it missed the mark with me. It immediately knocked these two down to the bottom of my favourite Ashe couples list because meh.
The murder mystery of the week was sort've interesting but I was more interested in what was revealed through the course of said investigation (I knew that task force was weird; Barr has been a flashing light to me since his first appearance on page) but.. that end scene? Too dramatic. I know it was supposed to be a big "g a s p oh NOES" moment but, again, fell flat for me.
Don't even get me started on Pari. I didn't like her antics in book one but it was worse here. Not funny, not endearing, not anything but annoying.
Really hope to find some love for this series in book three. The silly banter between these two, even as friends, was charming in book one, but I think my overall disappointment in this one even took the shine off that. Yikes. At this rate the highlight of the series might be the Hazard and Somers cameo. Maybe I just miss their dumb butts.
I wouldn't say book one was my favourite of any of my recent Ashe binge reads but I'd had a good time. And yet I lost so much (almost all?) of that love after only one additional book. Listen, I'm more than prepared to deal and dodge some stupid behaviour from this author's characters and couples but this one seemed to take the cake, I think. Sure, maybe that's because for once this seemed to be happening faster than the usj coming together but like.. we had two (three? four? maybe more) scenes to have conversations or deal with things, in perfectly appropriately emotional moments, and we just passed them all on by. And when they finally do come together and have said conversation it's so.. lackluster. No emotion behind it. Totally uninteresting. So run of the mill, this could be any other day. It just.. maybe it was done on purpose, I don't know, but it missed the mark with me. It immediately knocked these two down to the bottom of my favourite Ashe couples list because meh.
The murder mystery of the week was sort've interesting but I was more interested in what was revealed through the course of said investigation (I knew that task force was weird; Barr has been a flashing light to me since his first appearance on page) but.. that end scene? Too dramatic. I know it was supposed to be a big "g a s p oh NOES" moment but, again, fell flat for me.
Don't even get me started on Pari. I didn't like her antics in book one but it was worse here. Not funny, not endearing, not anything but annoying.
Really hope to find some love for this series in book three. The silly banter between these two, even as friends, was charming in book one, but I think my overall disappointment in this one even took the shine off that. Yikes. At this rate the highlight of the series might be the Hazard and Somers cameo. Maybe I just miss their dumb butts.
February 1, 2020
The depth of these characters just increases exponentially with each interchange. The true level of the how deep the damage goes, how desperately these two need each other, and the whole mystery surrounding the slasher comes out in Triangulation. Or maybe Gregory Ashe is just scratching the surface.
Mr. Ashe is building something incredibly intense along with the wonderful mysteries in the Borealis Investigations. Shaw and North have so much history. It’s everything they’ve brought along with them over the past eight years, plus everything (and everyone) getting caught in their wake… I don’t know if I can wait to find out what happens next in Declination!
But wait I will, because I’ve so thoroughly enjoyed listening to Charlie David read these books to me and it wouldn’t be the same without him. So *fingers crossed* the audio version of Declination comes out soon!
Fans of Charlie David know what he brings to his performances, and if you’ve not had the opportunity to enjoy him yet the Borealis Investigations series is a great place to start. He definitely gets these guys and I love how he handles their banter (as well as all the drama and tension between them).
An excellent mystery, interesting characters, and a hearty dose of delicious angst, Gregory Ashe’s Borealis Investigations series is amazing.
an audiobook copy of Triangulation was provided to me for the purpose of my honest review
Mr. Ashe is building something incredibly intense along with the wonderful mysteries in the Borealis Investigations. Shaw and North have so much history. It’s everything they’ve brought along with them over the past eight years, plus everything (and everyone) getting caught in their wake… I don’t know if I can wait to find out what happens next in Declination!
But wait I will, because I’ve so thoroughly enjoyed listening to Charlie David read these books to me and it wouldn’t be the same without him. So *fingers crossed* the audio version of Declination comes out soon!
Fans of Charlie David know what he brings to his performances, and if you’ve not had the opportunity to enjoy him yet the Borealis Investigations series is a great place to start. He definitely gets these guys and I love how he handles their banter (as well as all the drama and tension between them).
An excellent mystery, interesting characters, and a hearty dose of delicious angst, Gregory Ashe’s Borealis Investigations series is amazing.
an audiobook copy of Triangulation was provided to me for the purpose of my honest review
November 1, 2020
So, yeah, apparently I am going to keep reading the series even though I think the MCs are huge idiots and I honestly don't care for them that much. I can't stand the receptionist, she is not endearing in the slightest. I mean the only one I really like is Jaydon and that poor guy is treated like dirt.
I can't even begin to explain the stupidity of how North and Shaw dance around each other and use other people to try to get over their feelings for each other. The only one who deserved worse was Tucker who was beyond a piece of shit. North is ridiculously indulgent of Shaw and I get that Shaw has been through a lot but he needed real help and it didn't seem like he was actually getting it.
Realistically, I can't imagine it would get any better between the two of them if they didn't seek professional help because that kind of dysfunction would only get worse in my opinion, because although they are together every day as friends and colleagues, they still hold each other up to ridiculous ideals.
I guess I'll be moving on to the next one because I just can't help myself and I guess Gregory Ashe can really hook me in.
I can't even begin to explain the stupidity of how North and Shaw dance around each other and use other people to try to get over their feelings for each other. The only one who deserved worse was Tucker who was beyond a piece of shit. North is ridiculously indulgent of Shaw and I get that Shaw has been through a lot but he needed real help and it didn't seem like he was actually getting it.
Realistically, I can't imagine it would get any better between the two of them if they didn't seek professional help because that kind of dysfunction would only get worse in my opinion, because although they are together every day as friends and colleagues, they still hold each other up to ridiculous ideals.
I guess I'll be moving on to the next one because I just can't help myself and I guess Gregory Ashe can really hook me in.
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