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Borealis Investigations #1
Orientation
Shaw and North are best friends, private detectives, and in danger of losing their agency. A single bad case, followed by crippling lawsuits, has put them on the brink of closing shop. Until, that is, a client walks into their Benton Park office.
Matty Fennmore is young, blond, and beautiful, and he’s in danger. When he asks for Shaw and North’s help foiling a blackmail scheme, the detectives are quick to accept.
The conspiracy surrounding Matty runs deeper than Shaw and North expect. As they dig into the identity of Matty’s blackmailer, they are caught in a web that touches politicians, the local LGBT community, and the city’s police.
An attack on Matty drives home the rising stakes of the case, and Shaw and North must race to find the blackmailer before he can silence Matty. But a budding romance lays bare long-buried feelings between Shaw and North, and as their relationship splinters, solving the case may come at the cost of their friendship.
Matty Fennmore is young, blond, and beautiful, and he’s in danger. When he asks for Shaw and North’s help foiling a blackmail scheme, the detectives are quick to accept.
The conspiracy surrounding Matty runs deeper than Shaw and North expect. As they dig into the identity of Matty’s blackmailer, they are caught in a web that touches politicians, the local LGBT community, and the city’s police.
An attack on Matty drives home the rising stakes of the case, and Shaw and North must race to find the blackmailer before he can silence Matty. But a budding romance lays bare long-buried feelings between Shaw and North, and as their relationship splinters, solving the case may come at the cost of their friendship.
12 pages, Audible Audio
First published May 24, 2019
288 people are currently reading
1779 people want to read
About the author
Gregory Ashe
135 books1,783 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 367 reviews
June 26, 2019
4.5
Not sure why I haven't read anything by this Author before because I really like his writing AND, I'm putting it out there .....Shaw+ North might be one of my favourite couples and they aren't even a proper couple yet!
There's no romance between them(yet),
There's no sex between them(yet),
BUT.....
It's a sexy book if that makes sense because,hello,UST!!!! And it's downright delicious watching them skirt around each other suppressing their feelings.I can only imagine how seriously HOT they're going to be together.
This isn't a fluffy romance where boy meets boy and they sail off into the sunset at all.But,it's just the kind of book I love.They've been best friends for years and Shaw pretty much fell in love with North at first sight.....
That was seven years ago and now North's married to someone else.Don't go running for the hills here because there's a lot you discover about North's marriage as the story progresses and it was difficult to read at times.
The mystery element went hand in hand with Shaw and North's relationship....because even though they aren't romantically involved at this stage they most definitely have a relationship.The Author had created two fantastic characters here.The banter between them is great,so funny at times and I loved the way they looked out for each other,especially North getting all protective over Shaw.
I'm seriously counting down the days for the next one-not helped by the fact you get the first three chapters of it at the end......just made me even more impatient
This ticked so many boxes for me and I would definitely recommend it.
Available on KU.
Not sure why I haven't read anything by this Author before because I really like his writing AND, I'm putting it out there .....Shaw+ North might be one of my favourite couples and they aren't even a proper couple yet!
There's no romance between them(yet),
There's no sex between them(yet),
BUT.....
It's a sexy book if that makes sense because,hello,UST!!!! And it's downright delicious watching them skirt around each other suppressing their feelings.I can only imagine how seriously HOT they're going to be together.
This isn't a fluffy romance where boy meets boy and they sail off into the sunset at all.But,it's just the kind of book I love.They've been best friends for years and Shaw pretty much fell in love with North at first sight.....
That was seven years ago and now North's married to someone else.Don't go running for the hills here because there's a lot you discover about North's marriage as the story progresses and it was difficult to read at times.
The mystery element went hand in hand with Shaw and North's relationship....because even though they aren't romantically involved at this stage they most definitely have a relationship.The Author had created two fantastic characters here.The banter between them is great,so funny at times and I loved the way they looked out for each other,especially North getting all protective over Shaw.
I'm seriously counting down the days for the next one-not helped by the fact you get the first three chapters of it at the end......just made me even more impatient
This ticked so many boxes for me and I would definitely recommend it.
Available on KU.
March 15, 2020
Story and the Audiobook - 4.5 stars
I am so happy Charlie David is the one narrating this series. I was afraid it was going to be TJ. Charlie gives the characters distinct voices. Phew! Thank the book gods. I have found another series to obsess over.
I have been a GA Stan, ever since i picked up Pretty Pretty Boys. This book delivered. I loved it from the get go.
The writing is amazing and the story easy to follow. If you enjoyed PPB, you might end up enjoying this one too. Hazard is still one of my favorite characters.
Our MCs, North and Shaw are best friends, they first met in College and are now Private Detectives. They got chemistry to top all chemistry. They just ooze sexiness. I love these guys.
Shaw
North
The UST between North and Shaw was enough to keep me going. Ashe knows how to build some tension. Their work dynamic and the banter between them is so entertaining, and Charlie David made it better with his narration. I laughed, i teared up a little bit, i was angry and i fell in love.
I love the way Shaw and North are protective of each other. North's home life? GAAAAHH! that better be resolved soon, i don't want to riot. These guys have issues that got ISSUES.... I am here for all that. I didn't like how everything was handled, but i do get it, to each their own and all that Jazz. Tucker needs to burn in eternal hell.
The mystery was engaging, although i wanted to slap these two fools for not seeing what i was seeing, but the entertainment factor got the best of me. I let it slide.
The burn is scorching slow, I can't wait for all of it to explode.
A Overall, this is what my doctor ordered. I loved it! Hard!
I am so happy Charlie David is the one narrating this series. I was afraid it was going to be TJ. Charlie gives the characters distinct voices. Phew! Thank the book gods. I have found another series to obsess over.
I have been a GA Stan, ever since i picked up Pretty Pretty Boys. This book delivered. I loved it from the get go.
The writing is amazing and the story easy to follow. If you enjoyed PPB, you might end up enjoying this one too. Hazard is still one of my favorite characters.
Our MCs, North and Shaw are best friends, they first met in College and are now Private Detectives. They got chemistry to top all chemistry. They just ooze sexiness. I love these guys.
Shaw
North
The UST between North and Shaw was enough to keep me going. Ashe knows how to build some tension. Their work dynamic and the banter between them is so entertaining, and Charlie David made it better with his narration. I laughed, i teared up a little bit, i was angry and i fell in love.
I love the way Shaw and North are protective of each other. North's home life? GAAAAHH! that better be resolved soon, i don't want to riot. These guys have issues that got ISSUES.... I am here for all that. I didn't like how everything was handled, but i do get it, to each their own and all that Jazz. Tucker needs to burn in eternal hell.
The mystery was engaging, although i wanted to slap these two fools for not seeing what i was seeing, but the entertainment factor got the best of me. I let it slide.
The burn is scorching slow, I can't wait for all of it to explode.
A Overall, this is what my doctor ordered. I loved it! Hard!
August 2, 2019
5 Stars!
I love finding a new series. But what I love more is when that series brings me a new couple to obsess over. OK, so they're not a couple... Yet. Shaw and North are nothing like Hazard and Somerset. But they do have something in common. They all have had strong romantic feelings for their professional partner. Hazard and Somerset had a past that included a lot hurt that they had to overcome. North and Shaw don't have a hurtful past. What they do have is a friendship that has grew stronger since their freshman year of college. Things have happened though that have brought them closer and had brought them to their career path.
Together Shaw and North run their private detective business from Shaw's house. Shaw comes from money where North has a more blue collard background. But getting to know Shaw you wouldn't think he comes from money because he doesn't throw it around. The only flashy thing about him is his vehicle. North is rugged where Shaw is more of a free spirit. They really are opposites in every way. The only thing that they have in common is that they both have strong romantic feelings for one another. Only they don't know that about each other. Plus it doesn't help that North is married.
Yep, he's married and I couldn't dislike his husband Asher more. I won't spoil it and say why. But I highly doubt anyone will come away from this story with anything good to say about him.
The story is good and I really enjoyed the case they were working on. It involves a slew of interesting characters with some twists and turns. And the banter between Shaw and North just flows like a well oiled machine. They have great chemistry.
I can't wait to see where the story goes. The wait kills.
Happy reading dolls! xx
I love finding a new series. But what I love more is when that series brings me a new couple to obsess over. OK, so they're not a couple... Yet. Shaw and North are nothing like Hazard and Somerset. But they do have something in common. They all have had strong romantic feelings for their professional partner. Hazard and Somerset had a past that included a lot hurt that they had to overcome. North and Shaw don't have a hurtful past. What they do have is a friendship that has grew stronger since their freshman year of college. Things have happened though that have brought them closer and had brought them to their career path.
Together Shaw and North run their private detective business from Shaw's house. Shaw comes from money where North has a more blue collard background. But getting to know Shaw you wouldn't think he comes from money because he doesn't throw it around. The only flashy thing about him is his vehicle. North is rugged where Shaw is more of a free spirit. They really are opposites in every way. The only thing that they have in common is that they both have strong romantic feelings for one another. Only they don't know that about each other. Plus it doesn't help that North is married.
Yep, he's married and I couldn't dislike his husband Asher more. I won't spoil it and say why. But I highly doubt anyone will come away from this story with anything good to say about him.
The story is good and I really enjoyed the case they were working on. It involves a slew of interesting characters with some twists and turns. And the banter between Shaw and North just flows like a well oiled machine. They have great chemistry.
I can't wait to see where the story goes. The wait kills.
Happy reading dolls! xx
May 3, 2021
I know this author likes to torture his characters, but I feel like he got carried away and decided to just torture everyone, including readers.
The angst!!!!
rude
The OTT behaviors by the alpha MC.
Although, if he looked like this I would have allowed it.
It was painful to read about a couple of dumbasses that angst over each other for 8 years in secret while spending every day together. And, just one conversation would have prevented it. And what about the alphahole being married to another man?
yeah, you better hold me back! I'm gonna smack the shit out of those bitches.
Sigh
I feel victimized by this book. It was just too much angst and stupidity for me to handle. Am I supposed to cry? Over idiots? What are you trying to get out of me here? Cuz I don't have it - whatever it is.
True dat, Indy
The angst!!!!
rude
The OTT behaviors by the alpha MC.
Although, if he looked like this I would have allowed it.
It was painful to read about a couple of dumbasses that angst over each other for 8 years in secret while spending every day together. And, just one conversation would have prevented it. And what about the alphahole being married to another man?
yeah, you better hold me back! I'm gonna smack the shit out of those bitches.
Sigh
I feel victimized by this book. It was just too much angst and stupidity for me to handle. Am I supposed to cry? Over idiots? What are you trying to get out of me here? Cuz I don't have it - whatever it is.
True dat, Indy
dnf
May 28, 2019DNF @ 43%
I guess I have to accept that this is not the right author for me.
I guess I have to accept that this is not the right author for me.
March 21, 2021
Reread March 2021
4,5 stars
Still as powerful as the first time round. The strange thing is, this time I understood Shaw's reaction to Tucker better. What I wrote in my spoiler still stands to some extent, but paying more attention to Shaw's frame of mind, what he is feeling and saying(and what's said about him) gave me a better idea why he goes to such an extreme and doesn't do what maybe any other person would have done. And boy, oh boy, even in book 1 Shaw's mental health is so fragile!
In parts this was a tough read all over (and yes, I did cringe again when these two fight and say the most awful things), but it grabbed me just as much the second time.
Original review
Emotional carnage.
Anger.
Frustration.
And so much blooming hurt.
I had a funny feeling Gregory Ashe was going to kill me … again.
And he does.
In his brilliant, inimitable style.
This may well start out on a lighter note than the glorious Hazard and Somerset series, and I do love the witty and intelligent banter between Shaw and North, but the lightness doesn't last too long.
I got sucker punched at 8% for the first time.
I mean ... what? One of the MCs is actually
Don’t run for the hills yet!!! Admittedly …
my heart virtually flopped to the ground in a gooey splash and thousands little drops of heartblood. Knowing how long it took Hazard and Somers to get their act together, I immediately realized what I let myself in for here – another case of endless, painful tension between two guys who simply can’t or won’t express their feelings.
We all know that Mr. Ashe is a master of UST. I think he may have re-invented it as a form of torture, actually.
As we get a dual POV, WE know that both men have mega feelings for each other. But the way this comes across it feels like a festering wound, something neither man can help nor get rid off. Not that they want to!
As a result, their emotions tend to come to light in different ways:
North’s (sometimes overbearing) protectiveness of Shaw, for example: some might call it extreme jealousy, and I couldn’t blame them. He goes caveman virtually every time another guy as much as looks at Shaw.
Shaw has been in love with North his whole life. The feeling that North will never see him past being a best friend, is slowly killing him. And yet, he can’t imagine a life without him and would give anything for him.
And as if this turmoil isn’t enough, the next punch comes at 44%, when we find out what goes down in North’s marriage. My heart virtually stopped. And my cry of rage and frustration must have been heard (at least) across Europe. WTH!!!
To make things worse, everything happening between 50 and 56% just floored me. I cried. I hated everyone. I had to take a break and a breather (something that doesn’t happen very often). All that stuff is super intense, and it blooming hurt! I have no idea how North goes on from there, and I’m not surprised when he totally blows his top later in the book.
And boy, these guys are good at throwing painful truths at each other!
Believe it or not – there is more: Shaw’s backstory, his PTSD after a severely traumatic event and intimacy issues, all the events relating to his sexual experiences, added a further element of tension and anguish to the already over-brimming, angsty plot.
The mystery itself is well done, although it wasn’t too difficult to work out who the villain is. The question was why and how.
So why ‘only’ 4 stars?
This has to do with what goes on with North and his husband, Tucker. I simply didn’t get a couple of things here.
No doubt, Mr. Ashe has created two multi-dimensional, deeply flawed and likeable characters here, and with this being a beginning (does anybody know how many books are planned?) there is lots left to be resolved, in both Shaw and North’s private lives and professionally. I am looking forward to it.
At the end of book 1 we are left with a situation cracked wide open, emotions raw and ready to burst from beyond the surface, and me in need of therapy after severe exposure to some unbearable UST and anguish.
Just read it.
4,5 stars
Still as powerful as the first time round. The strange thing is, this time I understood Shaw's reaction to Tucker better. What I wrote in my spoiler still stands to some extent, but paying more attention to Shaw's frame of mind, what he is feeling and saying(and what's said about him) gave me a better idea why he goes to such an extreme and doesn't do what maybe any other person would have done. And boy, oh boy, even in book 1 Shaw's mental health is so fragile!
In parts this was a tough read all over (and yes, I did cringe again when these two fight and say the most awful things), but it grabbed me just as much the second time.
Original review
Emotional carnage.
Anger.
Frustration.
And so much blooming hurt.
I had a funny feeling Gregory Ashe was going to kill me … again.
And he does.
In his brilliant, inimitable style.
This may well start out on a lighter note than the glorious Hazard and Somerset series, and I do love the witty and intelligent banter between Shaw and North, but the lightness doesn't last too long.
I got sucker punched at 8% for the first time.
I mean ... what? One of the MCs is actually
Don’t run for the hills yet!!! Admittedly …
my heart virtually flopped to the ground in a gooey splash and thousands little drops of heartblood. Knowing how long it took Hazard and Somers to get their act together, I immediately realized what I let myself in for here – another case of endless, painful tension between two guys who simply can’t or won’t express their feelings.
We all know that Mr. Ashe is a master of UST. I think he may have re-invented it as a form of torture, actually.
As we get a dual POV, WE know that both men have mega feelings for each other. But the way this comes across it feels like a festering wound, something neither man can help nor get rid off. Not that they want to!
As a result, their emotions tend to come to light in different ways:
North’s (sometimes overbearing) protectiveness of Shaw, for example: some might call it extreme jealousy, and I couldn’t blame them. He goes caveman virtually every time another guy as much as looks at Shaw.
Shaw has been in love with North his whole life. The feeling that North will never see him past being a best friend, is slowly killing him. And yet, he can’t imagine a life without him and would give anything for him.
And as if this turmoil isn’t enough, the next punch comes at 44%, when we find out what goes down in North’s marriage. My heart virtually stopped. And my cry of rage and frustration must have been heard (at least) across Europe. WTH!!!
To make things worse, everything happening between 50 and 56% just floored me. I cried. I hated everyone. I had to take a break and a breather (something that doesn’t happen very often). All that stuff is super intense, and it blooming hurt! I have no idea how North goes on from there, and I’m not surprised when he totally blows his top later in the book.
And boy, these guys are good at throwing painful truths at each other!
Believe it or not – there is more: Shaw’s backstory, his PTSD after a severely traumatic event and intimacy issues, all the events relating to his sexual experiences, added a further element of tension and anguish to the already over-brimming, angsty plot.
The mystery itself is well done, although it wasn’t too difficult to work out who the villain is. The question was why and how.
So why ‘only’ 4 stars?
This has to do with what goes on with North and his husband, Tucker. I simply didn’t get a couple of things here.
No doubt, Mr. Ashe has created two multi-dimensional, deeply flawed and likeable characters here, and with this being a beginning (does anybody know how many books are planned?) there is lots left to be resolved, in both Shaw and North’s private lives and professionally. I am looking forward to it.
At the end of book 1 we are left with a situation cracked wide open, emotions raw and ready to burst from beyond the surface, and me in need of therapy after severe exposure to some unbearable UST and anguish.
Just read it.
July 23, 2020
Y'all. 😳 I thought, having cut my teeth on Gregory Ashe's stories with Hazard and Somers, that I was ready. Spoiler: I was not ready. Gaaaah! 😩
North and Shaw run Borealis Investigations. They're polar opposites and best friends, since they met in college. They've been through a lot of traumatic, painful events in all those years but there's also a LOT they've kept hidden from each other. And at a difficult time with their business, all kinds of complications they already didn't need come in the form of a new case.
If you read any of Ashe's books, you know one of the hallmarks of his stories are knotty, complicated relationships, and oh man, North and Shaw are about as complicated as it's possible to get. They're funny, the best friend banter is unparalleled and they hilariously bicker like only people who know you inside & out can. They're both super protective of each other and they take care of each other. Shaw is as organic-hipster as he can be, and his efforts to "healthy" North up make me laugh. North is a huge, rough guy that grew up on construction sites and whose relentless, amused teasing of Shaw can bring on a sputter worthy of Gustavo Tiberius. ❤️ They're both very good at their jobs. And they're also both hiding what they really feel for each other, and always have.
I'm not going to lie, as this started, I did like North and Shaw and they absolutely did crack me up. But they also frustrated me so, SO badly that a couple of times I might have given up, had I not learned my lesson with GA's other stories. Shaw has had it so rough for many reasons for the last few years, and he wants so badly to see the good in everyone, and have something good for himself. In that effort, he makes some of the worst decisions ever. North believes his life ruined, for reasons that he won't share with anyone. He's trapped in a way he can never be happy, but he wants to make sure Shaw is and he just about tortures himself *AND ME!!* with it. 😭😭
Parts of this were honestly so very hard to read and my Lord, GA can bring the feels like nobody's business. Let me clarify that by no means are those feels necessarily good. And I learned many books ago that I do love his writing but this time? He wrapped me up so tight I literally forgot what was going on around me. I sat down about 6:00 to finish the book with my headphones on, intending to get up shortly to make dinner and feed my dog. When the book ended, it was 9:45, I hadn't eaten, drank anything or fed the dog *who was very unhappy with me, I finally noticed, LOL*. The world outside of this book had literally disappeared. It was worth it.
The chemistry between these men, the UST, is so bloody intense it burns. The emotion sometimes takes over from where they keep it tightly hidden and they both do & say some things that are hard to take. Also as usual for Ashe's stories, there was a LOT where I was unhappy with how things played out. Though there was lots of teeth-grinding going on *again, as usual* I did understand why things had to happen the way they did. They were realistic to the story and felt true, if maddening, for the North & Shaw. The story was utterly compelling and I'm once more, annoyingly, hooked on GA's infuriating men.
I also have to add that I very much enjoyed Charlie David's narration, and I loved the voices he gave to North & Shaw. 🥰
You better believe that when I finished this *and fed the dog*, I jumped right into Triangulation!
Disclaimer: A copy of the audiobook was provided by the author in exchange for an honest review.
North and Shaw run Borealis Investigations. They're polar opposites and best friends, since they met in college. They've been through a lot of traumatic, painful events in all those years but there's also a LOT they've kept hidden from each other. And at a difficult time with their business, all kinds of complications they already didn't need come in the form of a new case.
If you read any of Ashe's books, you know one of the hallmarks of his stories are knotty, complicated relationships, and oh man, North and Shaw are about as complicated as it's possible to get. They're funny, the best friend banter is unparalleled and they hilariously bicker like only people who know you inside & out can. They're both super protective of each other and they take care of each other. Shaw is as organic-hipster as he can be, and his efforts to "healthy" North up make me laugh. North is a huge, rough guy that grew up on construction sites and whose relentless, amused teasing of Shaw can bring on a sputter worthy of Gustavo Tiberius. ❤️ They're both very good at their jobs. And they're also both hiding what they really feel for each other, and always have.
I'm not going to lie, as this started, I did like North and Shaw and they absolutely did crack me up. But they also frustrated me so, SO badly that a couple of times I might have given up, had I not learned my lesson with GA's other stories. Shaw has had it so rough for many reasons for the last few years, and he wants so badly to see the good in everyone, and have something good for himself. In that effort, he makes some of the worst decisions ever. North believes his life ruined, for reasons that he won't share with anyone. He's trapped in a way he can never be happy, but he wants to make sure Shaw is and he just about tortures himself *AND ME!!* with it. 😭😭
Parts of this were honestly so very hard to read and my Lord, GA can bring the feels like nobody's business. Let me clarify that by no means are those feels necessarily good. And I learned many books ago that I do love his writing but this time? He wrapped me up so tight I literally forgot what was going on around me. I sat down about 6:00 to finish the book with my headphones on, intending to get up shortly to make dinner and feed my dog. When the book ended, it was 9:45, I hadn't eaten, drank anything or fed the dog *who was very unhappy with me, I finally noticed, LOL*. The world outside of this book had literally disappeared. It was worth it.
The chemistry between these men, the UST, is so bloody intense it burns. The emotion sometimes takes over from where they keep it tightly hidden and they both do & say some things that are hard to take. Also as usual for Ashe's stories, there was a LOT where I was unhappy with how things played out. Though there was lots of teeth-grinding going on *again, as usual* I did understand why things had to happen the way they did. They were realistic to the story and felt true, if maddening, for the North & Shaw. The story was utterly compelling and I'm once more, annoyingly, hooked on GA's infuriating men.
I also have to add that I very much enjoyed Charlie David's narration, and I loved the voices he gave to North & Shaw. 🥰
You better believe that when I finished this *and fed the dog*, I jumped right into Triangulation!
Disclaimer: A copy of the audiobook was provided by the author in exchange for an honest review.
February 19, 2022
Loved it! Fabulous start to a new Gregory Ashe series!!!
I adored the push/pull tension between our two best friends. I also loved their complete polarity—the two couldn’t be more different nor more right for each other.
The mystery here was one I thought I had figured out, but the ending had a few extra twists and turns I didn’t foresee!
Lots of hurt for both characters although they try to hide it from each other.
The audiobook kicked ass!
I adored the push/pull tension between our two best friends. I also loved their complete polarity—the two couldn’t be more different nor more right for each other.
The mystery here was one I thought I had figured out, but the ending had a few extra twists and turns I didn’t foresee!
Lots of hurt for both characters although they try to hide it from each other.
The audiobook kicked ass!
January 10, 2021
P R O C E S I N G
If you wanted to start the year having your heart crushed in a vise grip, huddling in a corner to metaphorically protect your tender bits (and really, who didn't?) you've come to the right place. Of course I can just say you're in Gregory Ashe territory and you'll get the picture.
This is the first in the Borealis Investigations Series dealing with the tangled and complicated relationship between Shaw Aldrich and North McKinney, the cases they handle (mostly dealing with the LGBTQ community) and in true GA style an overarching case/mystery. The series isn't an off shoot of the original Hazard & Somerset but exists in the same universe, starts sometime after Hazard left his St. Louis stomping grounds for the hell/haven of his hometown of Wahredua. We even get to see Billy, the snake! There are other parallels with H & S but North & Shaw are their own beast and have their own dynamic.
North and Shaw are both twenty six (26) and have been friends since college (maybe before?). Though they're distinctly different, come from dissimilar backgrounds, and have gone in almost opposite directions when it comes to their post college personal lives, they share a history, a business, and a sensibility that makes them closer than close. There's also the inconvenient fact that each separately and secretly has been pining for the other. Men 🤦🏻♀️. Of course not talking about things isn't the only issue either. This doesn't end in anything that would resemble a HEA or even a HFN but I'll zip it. I'll just say that GA doesn't write romances per se, so you've been warned.
The mystery isn't too abstruse and IMO mostly serves as primer for the reader to get to know who these guys are, their stories, how they relate to the world and each other. I was charmed and seduced. Certain things reminded me of H & S and while their worlds may share an overall sensibility North and Shaw have issues that are very much their own and I'm eager to wade through their deep and troubled waters. I was particularly gratified by Shaw in Ch.36. My black heart was full of glee.
I had the paperback for this and also got the audio by Charlie David and I am so happy that I did. He really performs this rather than read it, bringing a level of emotion that heightens the story in all the best ways.
If you wanted to start the year having your heart crushed in a vise grip, huddling in a corner to metaphorically protect your tender bits (and really, who didn't?) you've come to the right place. Of course I can just say you're in Gregory Ashe territory and you'll get the picture.
This is the first in the Borealis Investigations Series dealing with the tangled and complicated relationship between Shaw Aldrich and North McKinney, the cases they handle (mostly dealing with the LGBTQ community) and in true GA style an overarching case/mystery. The series isn't an off shoot of the original Hazard & Somerset but exists in the same universe, starts sometime after Hazard left his St. Louis stomping grounds for the hell/haven of his hometown of Wahredua. We even get to see Billy, the snake! There are other parallels with H & S but North & Shaw are their own beast and have their own dynamic.
North and Shaw are both twenty six (26) and have been friends since college (maybe before?). Though they're distinctly different, come from dissimilar backgrounds, and have gone in almost opposite directions when it comes to their post college personal lives, they share a history, a business, and a sensibility that makes them closer than close. There's also the inconvenient fact that each separately and secretly has been pining for the other. Men 🤦🏻♀️. Of course not talking about things isn't the only issue either. This doesn't end in anything that would resemble a HEA or even a HFN but I'll zip it. I'll just say that GA doesn't write romances per se, so you've been warned.
The mystery isn't too abstruse and IMO mostly serves as primer for the reader to get to know who these guys are, their stories, how they relate to the world and each other. I was charmed and seduced. Certain things reminded me of H & S and while their worlds may share an overall sensibility North and Shaw have issues that are very much their own and I'm eager to wade through their deep and troubled waters. I was particularly gratified by Shaw in Ch.36. My black heart was full of glee.
I had the paperback for this and also got the audio by Charlie David and I am so happy that I did. He really performs this rather than read it, bringing a level of emotion that heightens the story in all the best ways.
November 26, 2025
✧･ﾟ: *✧･ﾟ: 2023 N&S Rereadathon :･ﾟ✧*:･ﾟ✧ (spoilers littered throughout)
[4.5] these two are absolutely bonkers, chaotic to the nth degree, and i was riding that wave like i’ve been surfing since the day i awoke from my fetal slumber. my chakra lines are unblocked, my chi is centered, and the gates to my mind are open to the wonders of the psychic world. this is why i reread, because tolerances can shift around like tectonic plates have in the last billion years, and soon enough, my heart's doing 180s.
what sets them apart is they have mutual pining and yearning down to an art form of peak masochism. 7+ years of practice in their pocket, what’s another day without being in each other’s arms?
North. as the gruff, unapproachable macho man with scathing remarks leaking out of every orifice, North claims to be emotionally stable and unbothered on paper, but his pov delivers undeniable evidence that he’s so far gone with Shaw, he’s lost. he pokes fun. he roasts outfit choices. he puts not one, not two, but a triple dose of Miralax in a guy’s coffee because his territory (*insert Shaw's instant objection to this phrasing*) is being infringed on. he becomes Mr. Too-Big Smiles, super chummy, super chill, in no way overcorrecting to hide the murderous intent and echoes of mine, mine, mine in his gut. the sheer willpower it takes for North to not drag the guy he walks in on Shaw with and make his body disappear into the night is outright impressive.
but he's also surprisingly gentle, prizing every fleeting touch he’s allowed, equating them to catching fireflies. this can get lost in translation during cameos, so i loved coming back to this reminder.
Shaw. repeat after me: nothing beats arc 1 Shaw 🗣️👏
i love Shaw’s ability to read the room (and then purposely ignore the tension to work his Shaw magic and turn frowns upside down) when he’s with the rest of the Hazardverse gang. but he and North are also the type of characters that you can only truly see when you’re literally in their heads. there is something conversely fresh to watching people get under Shaw’s skin when i'm so accustomed to his antics as King Troller 2000. in these earlier days, he's uncomfortable and ill-prepared to move forward, saddled with Slasher trauma, and i'm obsessed.
the cage scene reigns supreme as one of my favorite glimpses into Shaw's depth as an individual. it wasn’t even that Shaw was able to free himself before North, but that he had the presence of mind to recall and think through the schematics of a dog cage, in complete darkness, after nearly having his windpipe crushed, while teasing and playing along to set up the grand surprise. the perfect foil to North’s brute forcing, while simultaneously setting the stage for Shaw as the potent opponent he is. the switch from unassuming and innocent to delivering cutthroat insights into the heart of the matter is bound to throw anybody off their game. there's a wild strength in unpredictability (the scene with Tucker? absolute power play), and that gap is what makes him so alluring and frightening to me.
Jadon. MY BIAS RECK-ER. when he tied up Shaw’s hair with a scrunchie he had on hand, that was it for me. the defining moment.
miscellaneous:
- i can't say it was necessary for Shaw to hit North so soon after learning the truth behind Tucker, but that's just my take 😅
- Detective Hazmat! you ever think about the similarities between North and Hazard and find yourself envisioning their pasts as the "what if?" of the other?
- directing everyone to chapter 16 to discover why i find N&S so scary
- i had forgotten Shaw was a sketcher (and a talented one at that!) as he thinks through things. next time GA opens up reader requests, remind me to ask for a story where he draws with Theo. i’m a softie; i want hand drawn Hazardverse family portraits
--------
[3.7] me trying to picture Shaw's OOTDs while frantically googling each piece of clothing:
look, you will either find me rocking sweats or the classic t-shirt plus jeans combo. i thought for the longest time Lululemon was a beverage company much to the amusement of my brother who informed me otherwise a mere month ago. Fashionista Shaw? please do not perceive me. you are light years out of my league, and my plebeian fashion sense is quaking at the knees 😩
ever since North & Shaw's *memorable* cameos in H&S, i knew i had to read up on their backstory. i had the vague idea it was going to be friends-to-lovers, but somehow i wasn't expecting the full "bestest friends stuck at the hip under the mistaken impression that their feelings are unreciprocated because of unfortunate misunderstandings and other nefarious factors at work, missing their opportunity to be together as a couple years ago like two ships passing in the night" emotional take on the trope. add on the small detail that North is married to the worst scummy trash demon who deserves to get tossed into a meat grinder, and you got drama and angst in spades.
i went in fully expecting the endless manzai-style comedy shticks because these two, especially Shaw, are off their rockers, but it can be too much without a grounding presence like Hazard's personality to play off of. this is one of those reads where i have to be in the right mood to welcome the jokes so they land strong. in many ways, this was reminiscent of crackfic lol.
we all know frustration with the mcs is par for the course with GA's books. been there, done that—multiple times 😂 so lots of reminders to self that these two are still mid-twenties babies with loads of trauma to work through. i can only hope the communication bits that need working on will progress in a positive direction sooner rather than later.
despite not having the same urge to gush over them like the ones i’ve come across so far, i am most intrigued by Shaw. he is an overexcited, happy-dappy doggo galloping through a field of flowers, doing his own thing with endearing optimism, but in truth, is a ticking time bomb in disguise. with animal protective instincts lying in wait to activate as need be, he is the loosest of cannons. vague spoilers but
as for Pari, don't even get me started 🤣
Cute, North thought. Cute. That was like saying the Titanic was a boat. It was like saying the Empire State Building was tall.
[4.5] these two are absolutely bonkers, chaotic to the nth degree, and i was riding that wave like i’ve been surfing since the day i awoke from my fetal slumber. my chakra lines are unblocked, my chi is centered, and the gates to my mind are open to the wonders of the psychic world. this is why i reread, because tolerances can shift around like tectonic plates have in the last billion years, and soon enough, my heart's doing 180s.
what sets them apart is they have mutual pining and yearning down to an art form of peak masochism. 7+ years of practice in their pocket, what’s another day without being in each other’s arms?
North. as the gruff, unapproachable macho man with scathing remarks leaking out of every orifice, North claims to be emotionally stable and unbothered on paper, but his pov delivers undeniable evidence that he’s so far gone with Shaw, he’s lost. he pokes fun. he roasts outfit choices. he puts not one, not two, but a triple dose of Miralax in a guy’s coffee because his territory (*insert Shaw's instant objection to this phrasing*) is being infringed on. he becomes Mr. Too-Big Smiles, super chummy, super chill, in no way overcorrecting to hide the murderous intent and echoes of mine, mine, mine in his gut. the sheer willpower it takes for North to not drag the guy he walks in on Shaw with and make his body disappear into the night is outright impressive.
but he's also surprisingly gentle, prizing every fleeting touch he’s allowed, equating them to catching fireflies. this can get lost in translation during cameos, so i loved coming back to this reminder.
Shaw. repeat after me: nothing beats arc 1 Shaw 🗣️👏
i love Shaw’s ability to read the room (and then purposely ignore the tension to work his Shaw magic and turn frowns upside down) when he’s with the rest of the Hazardverse gang. but he and North are also the type of characters that you can only truly see when you’re literally in their heads. there is something conversely fresh to watching people get under Shaw’s skin when i'm so accustomed to his antics as King Troller 2000. in these earlier days, he's uncomfortable and ill-prepared to move forward, saddled with Slasher trauma, and i'm obsessed.
the cage scene reigns supreme as one of my favorite glimpses into Shaw's depth as an individual. it wasn’t even that Shaw was able to free himself before North, but that he had the presence of mind to recall and think through the schematics of a dog cage, in complete darkness, after nearly having his windpipe crushed, while teasing and playing along to set up the grand surprise. the perfect foil to North’s brute forcing, while simultaneously setting the stage for Shaw as the potent opponent he is. the switch from unassuming and innocent to delivering cutthroat insights into the heart of the matter is bound to throw anybody off their game. there's a wild strength in unpredictability (the scene with Tucker? absolute power play), and that gap is what makes him so alluring and frightening to me.
Jadon. MY BIAS RECK-ER. when he tied up Shaw’s hair with a scrunchie he had on hand, that was it for me. the defining moment.
miscellaneous:
- i can't say it was necessary for Shaw to hit North so soon after learning the truth behind Tucker, but that's just my take 😅
- Detective Hazmat! you ever think about the similarities between North and Hazard and find yourself envisioning their pasts as the "what if?" of the other?
- directing everyone to chapter 16 to discover why i find N&S so scary
- i had forgotten Shaw was a sketcher (and a talented one at that!) as he thinks through things. next time GA opens up reader requests, remind me to ask for a story where he draws with Theo. i’m a softie; i want hand drawn Hazardverse family portraits
--------
[3.7] me trying to picture Shaw's OOTDs while frantically googling each piece of clothing:
look, you will either find me rocking sweats or the classic t-shirt plus jeans combo. i thought for the longest time Lululemon was a beverage company much to the amusement of my brother who informed me otherwise a mere month ago. Fashionista Shaw? please do not perceive me. you are light years out of my league, and my plebeian fashion sense is quaking at the knees 😩
ever since North & Shaw's *memorable* cameos in H&S, i knew i had to read up on their backstory. i had the vague idea it was going to be friends-to-lovers, but somehow i wasn't expecting the full "bestest friends stuck at the hip under the mistaken impression that their feelings are unreciprocated because of unfortunate misunderstandings and other nefarious factors at work, missing their opportunity to be together as a couple years ago like two ships passing in the night" emotional take on the trope. add on the small detail that North is married to the worst scummy trash demon who deserves to get tossed into a meat grinder, and you got drama and angst in spades.
i went in fully expecting the endless manzai-style comedy shticks because these two, especially Shaw, are off their rockers, but it can be too much without a grounding presence like Hazard's personality to play off of. this is one of those reads where i have to be in the right mood to welcome the jokes so they land strong. in many ways, this was reminiscent of crackfic lol.
we all know frustration with the mcs is par for the course with GA's books. been there, done that—multiple times 😂 so lots of reminders to self that these two are still mid-twenties babies with loads of trauma to work through. i can only hope the communication bits that need working on will progress in a positive direction sooner rather than later.
despite not having the same urge to gush over them like the ones i’ve come across so far, i am most intrigued by Shaw. he is an overexcited, happy-dappy doggo galloping through a field of flowers, doing his own thing with endearing optimism, but in truth, is a ticking time bomb in disguise. with animal protective instincts lying in wait to activate as need be, he is the loosest of cannons. vague spoilers but
as for Pari, don't even get me started 🤣
July 14, 2019
I've given this a B+ at AAR, so that's 4.5 stars.
Orientation is the first book in a new series of mysteries by Gregory Ashe, and in it, he introduces us to North McKinney and Kingsley Shaw Wilder Aldrich, who own and run a detective agency in St. Louis. They’ve been friends – best friends – since college even though they couldn’t be more different. North is from a blue collar family – his father was a construction worker and North himself worked on a fair few building sites before college – while Shaw was born with a whole set of silver spoons in his mouth, and dropped out of college after he was the victim of a hate crime that left him badly injured and killed his then (and first ever) boyfriend. Even though the perpetrator was subsequently arrested and imprisoned, Shaw has never been sure the right man was convicted, and that – and his experience as a victim of crime - is one of the things that prompted him to become a private investigator.
The author very quickly establishes the nature and strength of the relationship between the two men. North is gruff, down to earth and often treats Shaw with the kind of affectionate exasperation usually afforded to siblings, while Shaw is inquisitive, bright and enthusiastic with a kind of wide-eyed innocence about him unusual for a man in his mid-twenties. They’ve got a bit of an odd-couple dynamic going on (Shaw is the ridiculously messy one while North likes things just so), and when they’re working or in a tight spot their banter is so smooth that they practically finish each other’s sentences. They may be opposites in many ways, but they’re on the same mental wavelength and it’s clear that there’s nothing they wouldn’t do for one another. It’s also clear they’ve got it pretty bad for each other and have spent years hiding it; North is married (not too happily as becomes apparent as the story progresses) and thinks Shaw only sees him as an obnoxious brother, while Shaw is still struggling, almost eight years after the attack, to trust a man enough to go out on a date with him; and even were that not the case, North is off-limits and doesn’t think of him that way anyway.
The firm they run together, Borealis Investigations, hit a rough patch a few months earlier following a case which saw North shooting a suspect in order to save Shaw’s life. Not only has North’s PI license has been suspended pending appeal, the suspect then dragged him into a costly lawsuit. They haven’t had a case in months, but things start to take an upturn when an attractive, nervous young man makes his way into the office looking for Shaw and asks for help. North is immediately on his guard, and not just because he sees straight away that the guy has the sort of lost-puppy thing going on that will appeal to Shaw’s protective instincts - and doesn't like it. When Matty Fennmore haltingly explains he’s sought them out because he’s being blackmailed, North - quite sensibly - doesn’t want to go near the case and suggests Matty should go to the police. But when Matty goes into detail – telling them how he’s been so scared of coming out because of his ultra-religious family and how he can’t go to the police because that will make everything public and his parents will find out - North knows he’s lost the battle. Shaw is clearly smitten as well as outraged on Matty’s behalf and reminds North that they need clients and that people like Matty are why they started Borealis in the first place, to help people nobody else can or will help. North is forced to admit that Shaw is right about one thing – they do need the work. But he doesn’t have to like it.
As their investigation progresses, North and Shaw gradually realise that there’s more going on than a single act of blackmail, and that the recordings are being used to control and manipulate important people across the city. When Matty is attacked and their main suspect turns up dead it’s clear that the blackmailer is becoming desperate and is willing to do whatever it takes to protect their ‘investment’. But potentially damning information from an unexpected quarter suddenly turns everything on its head and throws a live grenade into the middle of Shaw and North’s friendship which leaves them both devastated. Will they be able to solve the case, repair their tattered relationship… and come out of it alive?
Mr. Ashe has penned an intriguing, gritty mystery which progresses at a good pace and features some colourful and intriguing supporting characters. But as with his earlier Detectives Hazard and Somerset series, the big draw is the likeable, complex but flawed leads and the complicated relationship between them that runs a true gamut of emotion and oozes UST like there’s no tomorrow. There’s obviously a great deal of affection there and the guys know each other extremely well, but there are some things about each other they’ve got completely wrong – and I don’t just mean because neither of them has twigged how the other feels about him. Although the story is told in dual PoVs, Orientation focuses a little more on Shaw than on North, on showing readers who he is, how the trauma he suffered has affected him and on exploring his feelings for North and their relationship. We get similar insights from North’s perspective, too, although we don’t learn as much about his life outside of his work; up until a certain point, we only know he’s married, he’s not happy and that he’s keeping something – something big – from Shaw. The author drip feeds various pieces of information about their lives together – the attack Shaw barely survived, the shooting that may have sunk North’s career, and their friendship over the years – but I don’t think he’s given us the full picture yet and I can’t wait to find out more.
The blackmailer plot is wrapped up by the end of the novel, so it works as a standalone although the final chapter sets up what I suspect may be an overarching plotline. I continue to be impressed with the quality of Mr. Ashe’s writing, his insight into character and motivation, and his ability to create memorable characters you can’t help but want to spend time with while at the same time wanting to bang their heads together! North and Shaw have just the sort of angsty, screwed-up relationship that I can’t resist and I’m eagerly awaiting the next instalment of their story. Orientation is an absorbing start to a promising new series and a great place to jump in with this author if you’ve never read his work before.
Orientation is the first book in a new series of mysteries by Gregory Ashe, and in it, he introduces us to North McKinney and Kingsley Shaw Wilder Aldrich, who own and run a detective agency in St. Louis. They’ve been friends – best friends – since college even though they couldn’t be more different. North is from a blue collar family – his father was a construction worker and North himself worked on a fair few building sites before college – while Shaw was born with a whole set of silver spoons in his mouth, and dropped out of college after he was the victim of a hate crime that left him badly injured and killed his then (and first ever) boyfriend. Even though the perpetrator was subsequently arrested and imprisoned, Shaw has never been sure the right man was convicted, and that – and his experience as a victim of crime - is one of the things that prompted him to become a private investigator.
The author very quickly establishes the nature and strength of the relationship between the two men. North is gruff, down to earth and often treats Shaw with the kind of affectionate exasperation usually afforded to siblings, while Shaw is inquisitive, bright and enthusiastic with a kind of wide-eyed innocence about him unusual for a man in his mid-twenties. They’ve got a bit of an odd-couple dynamic going on (Shaw is the ridiculously messy one while North likes things just so), and when they’re working or in a tight spot their banter is so smooth that they practically finish each other’s sentences. They may be opposites in many ways, but they’re on the same mental wavelength and it’s clear that there’s nothing they wouldn’t do for one another. It’s also clear they’ve got it pretty bad for each other and have spent years hiding it; North is married (not too happily as becomes apparent as the story progresses) and thinks Shaw only sees him as an obnoxious brother, while Shaw is still struggling, almost eight years after the attack, to trust a man enough to go out on a date with him; and even were that not the case, North is off-limits and doesn’t think of him that way anyway.
The firm they run together, Borealis Investigations, hit a rough patch a few months earlier following a case which saw North shooting a suspect in order to save Shaw’s life. Not only has North’s PI license has been suspended pending appeal, the suspect then dragged him into a costly lawsuit. They haven’t had a case in months, but things start to take an upturn when an attractive, nervous young man makes his way into the office looking for Shaw and asks for help. North is immediately on his guard, and not just because he sees straight away that the guy has the sort of lost-puppy thing going on that will appeal to Shaw’s protective instincts - and doesn't like it. When Matty Fennmore haltingly explains he’s sought them out because he’s being blackmailed, North - quite sensibly - doesn’t want to go near the case and suggests Matty should go to the police. But when Matty goes into detail – telling them how he’s been so scared of coming out because of his ultra-religious family and how he can’t go to the police because that will make everything public and his parents will find out - North knows he’s lost the battle. Shaw is clearly smitten as well as outraged on Matty’s behalf and reminds North that they need clients and that people like Matty are why they started Borealis in the first place, to help people nobody else can or will help. North is forced to admit that Shaw is right about one thing – they do need the work. But he doesn’t have to like it.
As their investigation progresses, North and Shaw gradually realise that there’s more going on than a single act of blackmail, and that the recordings are being used to control and manipulate important people across the city. When Matty is attacked and their main suspect turns up dead it’s clear that the blackmailer is becoming desperate and is willing to do whatever it takes to protect their ‘investment’. But potentially damning information from an unexpected quarter suddenly turns everything on its head and throws a live grenade into the middle of Shaw and North’s friendship which leaves them both devastated. Will they be able to solve the case, repair their tattered relationship… and come out of it alive?
Mr. Ashe has penned an intriguing, gritty mystery which progresses at a good pace and features some colourful and intriguing supporting characters. But as with his earlier Detectives Hazard and Somerset series, the big draw is the likeable, complex but flawed leads and the complicated relationship between them that runs a true gamut of emotion and oozes UST like there’s no tomorrow. There’s obviously a great deal of affection there and the guys know each other extremely well, but there are some things about each other they’ve got completely wrong – and I don’t just mean because neither of them has twigged how the other feels about him. Although the story is told in dual PoVs, Orientation focuses a little more on Shaw than on North, on showing readers who he is, how the trauma he suffered has affected him and on exploring his feelings for North and their relationship. We get similar insights from North’s perspective, too, although we don’t learn as much about his life outside of his work; up until a certain point, we only know he’s married, he’s not happy and that he’s keeping something – something big – from Shaw. The author drip feeds various pieces of information about their lives together – the attack Shaw barely survived, the shooting that may have sunk North’s career, and their friendship over the years – but I don’t think he’s given us the full picture yet and I can’t wait to find out more.
The blackmailer plot is wrapped up by the end of the novel, so it works as a standalone although the final chapter sets up what I suspect may be an overarching plotline. I continue to be impressed with the quality of Mr. Ashe’s writing, his insight into character and motivation, and his ability to create memorable characters you can’t help but want to spend time with while at the same time wanting to bang their heads together! North and Shaw have just the sort of angsty, screwed-up relationship that I can’t resist and I’m eagerly awaiting the next instalment of their story. Orientation is an absorbing start to a promising new series and a great place to jump in with this author if you’ve never read his work before.
September 4, 2024
I am having a lot of conflicting feelings about this series, it’s worth noting however that I have come away from this book having enjoyed the experience as a whole and will ultimately be continuing on with it (please don’t be mad at me 😂). So like 3.5 stars?
To start with, the things about this book I enjoyed! I find Ashe to be a great writer, his books are easily bingeable, the mysteries are dark but entertaining and his characters always feel robust, real and flawed. The overarching plot is super intriguing to me (more so than probably the mystery of this book itself) and I’m keen to see it unravel over the next two installments. I also really enjoyed the best friends to lovers dynamic that’s setting up with North and Shaw (this isn’t a go to trope for me so it’s been a bit fun and fresh) and their banter made me laugh out loud sometimes.
A special note for the quality of the voice acting in the narration of this book though cause I thought it was phenomenal. The emotion that was put into one specific scene about 3/4 of the way through (iykyk) had me literally holding my breath it was so well done.
Now for the things I didn’t care for. This was probably one of the weaker mysteries of Ashes I’ve read. I picked up on some suspicions early on and I wasn’t able to shake them the whole time and it meant the punch at the end kind of fell a bit flat.
I’ve also read enough of Ashes books to feel that most of the interpersonal tension and barriers to his protagonists getting together comes in the forms of them being in relationships with other people. I often don’t enjoy this (I’ll actively avoid love triangles) and my line for if it works for me is quite fine (I still haven’t gone back to Tean and Jem cause I am so annoyed with it still). I would love to see Ashe write something where the challenges to the characters getting together didn’t have to involve one of them dating or being married to someone else.
I also have complicated feelings about Shaw as a protagonist and I’m choosing to trust that he’ll grow on me (like fungus), but fuck me, it was two steps forward one step back with him as a character. I would genuinely want to throttle someone like him in real life, with the constant fad diets and the random health and wellness hyperfixations. And every time they described his clothing I could not handle it. The fact that as a private detective he spent the first third of this book running around in hemp pants and a Lulu lemon shirt made me irrationally annoyed.
But then he would have to go and be ✨traumatized✨ and have ✨depth✨ and actually be interesting and I would get sucked in only for him to immediately do something that made me want to throttle him again. Fucking kudos to him for the end of this book with the golf club though, he earnt a lot of brownies points with that one.
Also I understand that the story was trying to highlight that the dynamic between Shaw and Matty as meaning to emphasize Shaws protectiveness and his desire to feel needed but there was something that just gave me such an ick factor with how often Mattys youth and boyishness was mentioned when discussing how attractive he was, and coupled with the fact that he was a client… just felt a super icky.
And North was also there.
Also content warning for people (cause I didn’t know about it and it was pretty explicit and a major plot theme of the book and I think it’s important for people to be aware of it) but there is pretty extensive domestic violence featured on page in this as well as the internal monologue of justification and minimization that can come with the complicated territory of a victim living with and navigating the experience of abuse.
I’m realising I had a lot of feelings about this. If you’re still with me the take away is that I still had a good time and I’m suckered in to see it through and I hope my trust in the process will be rewarded.
To start with, the things about this book I enjoyed! I find Ashe to be a great writer, his books are easily bingeable, the mysteries are dark but entertaining and his characters always feel robust, real and flawed. The overarching plot is super intriguing to me (more so than probably the mystery of this book itself) and I’m keen to see it unravel over the next two installments. I also really enjoyed the best friends to lovers dynamic that’s setting up with North and Shaw (this isn’t a go to trope for me so it’s been a bit fun and fresh) and their banter made me laugh out loud sometimes.
A special note for the quality of the voice acting in the narration of this book though cause I thought it was phenomenal. The emotion that was put into one specific scene about 3/4 of the way through (iykyk) had me literally holding my breath it was so well done.
Now for the things I didn’t care for. This was probably one of the weaker mysteries of Ashes I’ve read. I picked up on some suspicions early on and I wasn’t able to shake them the whole time and it meant the punch at the end kind of fell a bit flat.
I’ve also read enough of Ashes books to feel that most of the interpersonal tension and barriers to his protagonists getting together comes in the forms of them being in relationships with other people. I often don’t enjoy this (I’ll actively avoid love triangles) and my line for if it works for me is quite fine (I still haven’t gone back to Tean and Jem cause I am so annoyed with it still). I would love to see Ashe write something where the challenges to the characters getting together didn’t have to involve one of them dating or being married to someone else.
I also have complicated feelings about Shaw as a protagonist and I’m choosing to trust that he’ll grow on me (like fungus), but fuck me, it was two steps forward one step back with him as a character. I would genuinely want to throttle someone like him in real life, with the constant fad diets and the random health and wellness hyperfixations. And every time they described his clothing I could not handle it. The fact that as a private detective he spent the first third of this book running around in hemp pants and a Lulu lemon shirt made me irrationally annoyed.
But then he would have to go and be ✨traumatized✨ and have ✨depth✨ and actually be interesting and I would get sucked in only for him to immediately do something that made me want to throttle him again. Fucking kudos to him for the end of this book with the golf club though, he earnt a lot of brownies points with that one.
Also I understand that the story was trying to highlight that the dynamic between Shaw and Matty as meaning to emphasize Shaws protectiveness and his desire to feel needed but there was something that just gave me such an ick factor with how often Mattys youth and boyishness was mentioned when discussing how attractive he was, and coupled with the fact that he was a client… just felt a super icky.
And North was also there.
Also content warning for people (cause I didn’t know about it and it was pretty explicit and a major plot theme of the book and I think it’s important for people to be aware of it) but there is pretty extensive domestic violence featured on page in this as well as the internal monologue of justification and minimization that can come with the complicated territory of a victim living with and navigating the experience of abuse.
I’m realising I had a lot of feelings about this. If you’re still with me the take away is that I still had a good time and I’m suckered in to see it through and I hope my trust in the process will be rewarded.
Read
March 20, 2020It took me 10 days to read, then this fucker ended on a cliffhanger.
😠😡🤬
😠😡🤬
February 3, 2025
Well, these guys are definitely not Hazard and Somerset! It's a good job I read H&S first though because otherwise I may never have gotten to those books if I'd started here, because although it was an entertaining story, it never quite felt like the book really got out of the starting blocks.
It took me a really long time to warm up to both of these characters. Shaw is probably my favourite and I really like his fixations on various health kicks, and his general hippy personality, but my favourite side of him was when he got the golf stick... That's when I knew I liked his character 😂 Although I could have done with less of his wardrobe descriptions - I don't think I've ever had such a comprehensive rundown of what a character is wearing in every scene!
I don't really understand North's character at all.
I did love the banter between North and Shaw though - the construction working toddler and the soy-boy comments definitely made me laugh a lot. I'm unsure on Pari as a side character but she might grow on me.
My biggest issue with this book though is that there's a lot of backstory that isn't really revealed, we're just given glimpses, and I don't know if these event happened in other books because I'm following the reading order that makes the most out of cameos. It felt like I was missing a lot of their history and like I was never going to know what had happened to get them to this point. I also found the behaviour of the police detectives to be really unprofessional and kinda weird...
Speaking of cameos, fucking Billy and Tom.... I dislike them even more now that they popped their weasly little heads up again. #teamhazardforever
The crime/mystery aspect was definitely weaker than in the H&S books because I had it figured out fairly early on, whereas I don't think I guessed a single H&S crime correctly! I am curious to read more and see what happens next, but I don't have that same rabid interest that I had for H&S and I can't wait to get back to their stories.
It took me a really long time to warm up to both of these characters. Shaw is probably my favourite and I really like his fixations on various health kicks, and his general hippy personality, but my favourite side of him was when he got the golf stick... That's when I knew I liked his character 😂 Although I could have done with less of his wardrobe descriptions - I don't think I've ever had such a comprehensive rundown of what a character is wearing in every scene!
I don't really understand North's character at all.
I did love the banter between North and Shaw though - the construction working toddler and the soy-boy comments definitely made me laugh a lot. I'm unsure on Pari as a side character but she might grow on me.
My biggest issue with this book though is that there's a lot of backstory that isn't really revealed, we're just given glimpses, and I don't know if these event happened in other books because I'm following the reading order that makes the most out of cameos. It felt like I was missing a lot of their history and like I was never going to know what had happened to get them to this point. I also found the behaviour of the police detectives to be really unprofessional and kinda weird...
Speaking of cameos, fucking Billy and Tom.... I dislike them even more now that they popped their weasly little heads up again. #teamhazardforever
The crime/mystery aspect was definitely weaker than in the H&S books because I had it figured out fairly early on, whereas I don't think I guessed a single H&S crime correctly! I am curious to read more and see what happens next, but I don't have that same rabid interest that I had for H&S and I can't wait to get back to their stories.
December 9, 2020
Absolutely loved this book. Three principal characters: a hunky detective with a suspended license, a precious beautiful detective who owns the agency and the house where it is located and their no work (I’m busy) receptionist who likes to accuse them of sexual harassment even though they are gay. This first adventure is serious yet you have to laugh at the antics, the sexual tension and the characters these detectives meet along the way to solving the crime (s). Perfect
February 4, 2025
4⭐️ So, I don’t think I’m as big of a fan of North and Shaw as I am Hazard and Somers. But I honestly don’t think any couple could live up to H&S in my mind.
It took me a while to warm up to these guys. Shaw is over-the-top strange and hard for me to picture, with his hippie style that doesn’t really match up to his personality. And North is like a watered-down Hazard.
However, their dynamic really grew on me and I was hooked by their pain and mutual pining—the trauma and secrets between them. This stole the show for me and I’m excited to see how it all unfolds between them.
I don’t like Pari. I think she’s added just for laughs but she’s not funny.
The mystery plot was pretty good. Not GA’s best but not bad either. I’m more interested in finding out who the slasher is…which seems like it will be the overarching plot of the series.
Oh, and I hope Tucker dies a painful death… preferably via nine iron to the grey matter.
It took me a while to warm up to these guys. Shaw is over-the-top strange and hard for me to picture, with his hippie style that doesn’t really match up to his personality. And North is like a watered-down Hazard.
However, their dynamic really grew on me and I was hooked by their pain and mutual pining—the trauma and secrets between them. This stole the show for me and I’m excited to see how it all unfolds between them.
I don’t like Pari. I think she’s added just for laughs but she’s not funny.
The mystery plot was pretty good. Not GA’s best but not bad either. I’m more interested in finding out who the slasher is…which seems like it will be the overarching plot of the series.
Oh, and I hope Tucker dies a painful death… preferably via nine iron to the grey matter.
January 26, 2025
Whew boy... where to start with this one? 😅
It was probably not the best to decision to read this series after just finishing The Lamb and the Lion series, but after starting with OG Hazard & Somerset, I decided to follow the chronological reading order. This meant reading The First Quarto, The Lamb and the Lion, and THEN Borealis Investigations. The problem is, I think I would have connected with this more had I read it after OG Hazard & Somerset because it felt like an extension of that series, not only with the case tie-in, but also in the novel's tone. It had more of that heavy H&S feeling than The First Quarto and The Lion and the Lamb did. I think the swing back to the weight of that after the overwhelming warmth I felt with Auggie & Theo and Jem & Tean was a bit too abrupt for me 😔
Don't get me wrong, I loved North and Shaw, and I enjoyed the mystery even though I did puzzle out more than I'd hoped and wasn't particularly surprised by anything that happened in the end. The story was good and the relationship between North and Shaw has me all kinds of invested in what's to come. And by what's to come I mean Seriously, Ashe can make you hate a character like no one else. I honestly thought I couldn't hate anyone more than Ammon, but he proved me wrong with Tucker. I'm sure it's going to take crawling through a bunch of broken glass to get North and Shaw to a good place, but once I do, I'm sure I'll be happy 😂
I hate giving this book 4* because, let's be real, a 4* Ashe book is easily better than a lot of other author's 5* books. I just can't make myself rate this the same as other 5* Ashe books, so this is only really a rating in comparison to his other works. I fully expect to be rating 5* before the series is over ✌🏻
It was probably not the best to decision to read this series after just finishing The Lamb and the Lion series, but after starting with OG Hazard & Somerset, I decided to follow the chronological reading order. This meant reading The First Quarto, The Lamb and the Lion, and THEN Borealis Investigations. The problem is, I think I would have connected with this more had I read it after OG Hazard & Somerset because it felt like an extension of that series, not only with the case tie-in, but also in the novel's tone. It had more of that heavy H&S feeling than The First Quarto and The Lion and the Lamb did. I think the swing back to the weight of that after the overwhelming warmth I felt with Auggie & Theo and Jem & Tean was a bit too abrupt for me 😔
Don't get me wrong, I loved North and Shaw, and I enjoyed the mystery even though I did puzzle out more than I'd hoped and wasn't particularly surprised by anything that happened in the end. The story was good and the relationship between North and Shaw has me all kinds of invested in what's to come. And by what's to come I mean Seriously, Ashe can make you hate a character like no one else. I honestly thought I couldn't hate anyone more than Ammon, but he proved me wrong with Tucker. I'm sure it's going to take crawling through a bunch of broken glass to get North and Shaw to a good place, but once I do, I'm sure I'll be happy 😂
I hate giving this book 4* because, let's be real, a 4* Ashe book is easily better than a lot of other author's 5* books. I just can't make myself rate this the same as other 5* Ashe books, so this is only really a rating in comparison to his other works. I fully expect to be rating 5* before the series is over ✌🏻
October 24, 2019
This review is also posted on my blog.
I AM NOT OKAY. THIS BOOK? IT KILLED ME.
It also affirms that I love friends-to-lovers SO MUCH. All that history between the love interests and the angst at realizing they love each other? *chef's kiss*
Shaw and North aren’t Hazard and Somerset but I suppose their stories are similar, in a way. Shaw and North don't really carry the baggage between them like Hazard and Somerset do, but their attraction for one another really has gone on unsaid for quite some time.
Shaw and North have known each other since freshman year in college and haven't spent much time apart since they first met. They own a private eye detective agency together and pine for one another like you wouldn’t believe.
The problem though?
North is married.
Trigger warnings for domestic abuse, blackmail, violence, torture, and suicidal ideation.
You might wonder, how can North be married? What does this mean for a series where Shaw and North should get their own HEA? Wellllllll...
There is no HEA or even a HFN for the two in this book. I do believe they'll get together at the end of the series (although how many books are in this series might be a question). Gregory Ashe doesn't write your typical m/m romance where there's a HFN/HEA at the end of each book so I'm hesitant to call his books romances. What he does do is take you on a very long journey to get to the character's HEA so I do believe that we'll get there. Eventually.
Shaw and North work together in perfect, dysfunctional harmony and have the most absurdly ridiculous banter at even the most inappropriate times. And when I say inappropriate times, I mean wildly inappropriate to the point where it might be a bit unrealistic. BUT I LOVE THEM SO MUCH.
Shaw is a rich hippy yoga type of guy who wears lululemons and hemp pants, while North is your blue-collar construction worker type. They are complete opposites and I honestly relate more to North than Shaw's philosophy. But after this book, I feel like I need to give yoga another shot because it seems really handy in tight (i.e. dangerous) situations.
This book certainly starts off innocently enough and I was tricked into thinking this was going to be a sweet m/m story. BUT NO. It’s intense. It goes from 0 to 100 pretty abruptly and I totally was NOT expecting it. It’s not quite on the same level of angst and intensity as the author’s Hazard and Somerset and Hollow Folk series, but it’s more of a slow-moving intensity that builds and builds and builds until it has nowhere to go but by way of an explosion.
The mystery itself is a bit complex but not too hard to follow (unlike the author's other books). It's not very convoluted, but there ARE a lot of things thrown in to throw you off-track.
So, this is a slow burn romance. Like, the slowest. There’s no cheating. Shaw and North don’t hook up in this one. I guess we’re just going to have to wait and see how that turns out. AND I CAN’T WAIT.
However, there are some things I do have reservations about.
And one of them is how domestic abuse is handled in this book. I just KNOW it's not going to sit well with everyone how this plays out. It is violent and for all one of the characters loves his best friend, he witnesses what happens and DOES NOTHING. I do think that a point this book brings up is that this abuse has been going on for a very long time and the character barging in will change nothing if the one getting abused doesn't take the step to get out of that relationship. BUT. I do think that's going to be a very hard pill to swallow as an explanation when the reader witnesses what happens and sees nothing being done. I’ll wait and see what happens in the later books, but really, the domestic abuse scene and what happens after is pretty fucked up.
I also do have some thoughts on how the one black character in this book is treated and just how their entire story is handled. I can’t really say anything without giving everything away, but I definitely think this could have been handled better somehow since this is the only black character in this book and it's not like the author has had many black characters in his stories? So the way this all goes down just rubs me the wrong way.
That said.
This is actually my favorite series by the author. It’s already shocked me and made me tear up for the characters because they break my heart. There’s an excerpt for the next book at the end of this one and I feel like the next book can’t come out fast enough!
I AM NOT OKAY. THIS BOOK? IT KILLED ME.
It also affirms that I love friends-to-lovers SO MUCH. All that history between the love interests and the angst at realizing they love each other? *chef's kiss*
Shaw and North aren’t Hazard and Somerset but I suppose their stories are similar, in a way. Shaw and North don't really carry the baggage between them like Hazard and Somerset do, but their attraction for one another really has gone on unsaid for quite some time.
Shaw and North have known each other since freshman year in college and haven't spent much time apart since they first met. They own a private eye detective agency together and pine for one another like you wouldn’t believe.
The problem though?
North is married.
Trigger warnings for domestic abuse, blackmail, violence, torture, and suicidal ideation.
You might wonder, how can North be married? What does this mean for a series where Shaw and North should get their own HEA? Wellllllll...
There is no HEA or even a HFN for the two in this book. I do believe they'll get together at the end of the series (although how many books are in this series might be a question). Gregory Ashe doesn't write your typical m/m romance where there's a HFN/HEA at the end of each book so I'm hesitant to call his books romances. What he does do is take you on a very long journey to get to the character's HEA so I do believe that we'll get there. Eventually.
Shaw and North work together in perfect, dysfunctional harmony and have the most absurdly ridiculous banter at even the most inappropriate times. And when I say inappropriate times, I mean wildly inappropriate to the point where it might be a bit unrealistic. BUT I LOVE THEM SO MUCH.
Shaw is a rich hippy yoga type of guy who wears lululemons and hemp pants, while North is your blue-collar construction worker type. They are complete opposites and I honestly relate more to North than Shaw's philosophy. But after this book, I feel like I need to give yoga another shot because it seems really handy in tight (i.e. dangerous) situations.
This book certainly starts off innocently enough and I was tricked into thinking this was going to be a sweet m/m story. BUT NO. It’s intense. It goes from 0 to 100 pretty abruptly and I totally was NOT expecting it. It’s not quite on the same level of angst and intensity as the author’s Hazard and Somerset and Hollow Folk series, but it’s more of a slow-moving intensity that builds and builds and builds until it has nowhere to go but by way of an explosion.
The mystery itself is a bit complex but not too hard to follow (unlike the author's other books). It's not very convoluted, but there ARE a lot of things thrown in to throw you off-track.
So, this is a slow burn romance. Like, the slowest. There’s no cheating. Shaw and North don’t hook up in this one. I guess we’re just going to have to wait and see how that turns out. AND I CAN’T WAIT.
However, there are some things I do have reservations about.
And one of them is how domestic abuse is handled in this book. I just KNOW it's not going to sit well with everyone how this plays out. It is violent and for all one of the characters loves his best friend, he witnesses what happens and DOES NOTHING. I do think that a point this book brings up is that this abuse has been going on for a very long time and the character barging in will change nothing if the one getting abused doesn't take the step to get out of that relationship. BUT. I do think that's going to be a very hard pill to swallow as an explanation when the reader witnesses what happens and sees nothing being done. I’ll wait and see what happens in the later books, but really, the domestic abuse scene and what happens after is pretty fucked up.
I also do have some thoughts on how the one black character in this book is treated and just how their entire story is handled. I can’t really say anything without giving everything away, but I definitely think this could have been handled better somehow since this is the only black character in this book and it's not like the author has had many black characters in his stories? So the way this all goes down just rubs me the wrong way.
That said.
This is actually my favorite series by the author. It’s already shocked me and made me tear up for the characters because they break my heart. There’s an excerpt for the next book at the end of this one and I feel like the next book can’t come out fast enough!
January 5, 2020
DNF at 50%.
Well, that escalated quickly.
I had to stop reading this book, because it was making me so goddamned mad and frustrated, I was actually getting angry at fictional characters. And not the good kind of angry, where I can see their actions making some sort of sense, even if I don't agree with their decisions. Both MCs were so emotionally stunted, it made me want to tear out my hair, there was absolutely no - meaningful! - communication between them, and that's saying something, given that the book was dialogue heavy.
The writing was actually pretty solid and I was willing to give it a little bit more time, but then something especially crazy and OTT happened to North, and Shaw's reaction to that was absolutely baffling and I just couldn't deal with it anymore.
A few powerful lines and some especially well written action scenes don't make up for the fact that I didn't like our characters, and I wasn't even convinced they liked each other that much. I could see where all this was going and I'm so not here for that.
Well, that escalated quickly.
I had to stop reading this book, because it was making me so goddamned mad and frustrated, I was actually getting angry at fictional characters. And not the good kind of angry, where I can see their actions making some sort of sense, even if I don't agree with their decisions. Both MCs were so emotionally stunted, it made me want to tear out my hair, there was absolutely no - meaningful! - communication between them, and that's saying something, given that the book was dialogue heavy.
The writing was actually pretty solid and I was willing to give it a little bit more time, but then something especially crazy and OTT happened to North, and Shaw's reaction to that was absolutely baffling and I just couldn't deal with it anymore.
A few powerful lines and some especially well written action scenes don't make up for the fact that I didn't like our characters, and I wasn't even convinced they liked each other that much. I could see where all this was going and I'm so not here for that.
June 24, 2019
OK, I’m in a very small minority opinion on this one. I’ve enjoyed every single one of this author’s books up until this one. Without spoilers, I didn’t care for one single character, found the two main characters highly unlikely to be in their profession, had major issues with actions and emotional reactions from them & many, many issues with the plot & flow of the story. 😢
December 13, 2024
Orientation by Gregory Ashe
Borealis Investigations series #1. Police procedural, M-M romance.
Shaw Aldridge and North McKinney have been friends since school. They own a detective agency together and business has been slow. When a new client walks into the office asking for Shaw to help with a blackmailing scheme, the two jump into action. The case runs deep into politics, the local LGBT community and the city police.
When the client is threatened, the tension is ramped up. It’s clear the client is interested sexually in Shaw, which puts a strain on North and Shaw’s relationship that is already poised on a hair trigger. The threat, politics and pressure may be too much for them to continue working together.
A lot of sexual tension throughout, some detective work, a disturbing domestic situation, an escape into passion, an ending to the case, but clearly the start of much more to come.
I’m intrigued by this intro of the relationship and series that clearly has more to say but it’s darker in tone than my preferred humor escape. It’s hard not to like the two and I do like the tension and banter so I will have to read more of this series.
Borealis Investigations series #1. Police procedural, M-M romance.
Shaw Aldridge and North McKinney have been friends since school. They own a detective agency together and business has been slow. When a new client walks into the office asking for Shaw to help with a blackmailing scheme, the two jump into action. The case runs deep into politics, the local LGBT community and the city police.
When the client is threatened, the tension is ramped up. It’s clear the client is interested sexually in Shaw, which puts a strain on North and Shaw’s relationship that is already poised on a hair trigger. The threat, politics and pressure may be too much for them to continue working together.
A lot of sexual tension throughout, some detective work, a disturbing domestic situation, an escape into passion, an ending to the case, but clearly the start of much more to come.
I’m intrigued by this intro of the relationship and series that clearly has more to say but it’s darker in tone than my preferred humor escape. It’s hard not to like the two and I do like the tension and banter so I will have to read more of this series.
March 29, 2021
First of all, thanks to Greg for the ARC of this audio. As I said to him, Charlie David is not my fave narrator - Hot Head I absolutely love...although not too many others unfortunately, but I was very willing to give this audio a try as we're talking about North and Shaw here 💜🧡💙💛💚. As far as Charlie's narration is concerned, well we all know that he doesn't really do voices for each character, but he did at least have a fairly distinct voice for both of the MC's, and really, who cares about the other characters anyhoo 😉. There were a few little niggles, but on the whole, it wasn't bad at all so I would leave my book review at 5 stars and this audio at maybe 4.25 stars. I will definitely listen to the rest of the series on audio.
***Book Review May 2019***
5 outstanding stars 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟 Gregory Ashe...you've done it again. Another fantastic series in the offing, and you're already making the MC's work very hard to a) stay alive and b) actually see each other instead of looking straight through and dismissing everything as 'just friends'. A Gay Fiction whodunit at it's finest, with wonderful banter, this is NOT a friends to lovers romance...yet...she says hopefully 🤞🤞🤞.
Yes, Shaw and North will do anything for each other but North won't admit that [heads up for domestic abuse] and Shaw certainly won't admit that he's been love with North since college...and that the awful attack he suffered at college, which killed his then boyfriend and left him badly scarred, has also understandably left him with intimacy, trust and flashback issues.
Blackmail, drag queens, hustlers and violence...this story had it all. I liked Pari too, and yes North said some pretty dreadful things to Shaw that he wished he could've taken back the second they left his mouth and which he now sincerely regrets, but I think he's mainly ashamed of how much he feels for Shaw, given the fact that he's married to Tucker. As for Shaw...well, we'll see what happens as the series progresses. He clearly deserves some happiness.
February 11, 2022
it was free at least.
I felt dropped into the middle of a story, there was history and quirks that didn't make sense. Also brand names, the oft repeated shirt name and shoes name.. seemed to have big significance that was lost on me.
Not sure if the intent was humour but the vibe of the book sat wrong with me. There's dark content, backstory and relationship issues that are hinted at until revealed more to taunt the reader than add anything. Plus their office building goes beyond a shabby, downtrodden noir detective vibe, it sounds disgusting.
Really didn't like either main character or understand their relationship. Finding out North was married threw me when they both seem to harbour huge crushes on the other. Their working relationship was also odd. And come on, you're working from a filthy building, detective license suspended for questionable use of force, a young client of means walks in and ..you drug their coffee? I had to google what he added - another brand name.
I didn't get far before deciding who the murderer was. I mean noone had even been murderered yet and I was certain. A flick forward confirmed I was 100% correct, which makes me wonder about the gullibility of the great detecting duo.
Very popular but not an author for me.
I felt dropped into the middle of a story, there was history and quirks that didn't make sense. Also brand names, the oft repeated shirt name and shoes name.. seemed to have big significance that was lost on me.
Not sure if the intent was humour but the vibe of the book sat wrong with me. There's dark content, backstory and relationship issues that are hinted at until revealed more to taunt the reader than add anything. Plus their office building goes beyond a shabby, downtrodden noir detective vibe, it sounds disgusting.
Really didn't like either main character or understand their relationship. Finding out North was married threw me when they both seem to harbour huge crushes on the other. Their working relationship was also odd. And come on, you're working from a filthy building, detective license suspended for questionable use of force, a young client of means walks in and ..you drug their coffee? I had to google what he added - another brand name.
I didn't get far before deciding who the murderer was. I mean noone had even been murderered yet and I was certain. A flick forward confirmed I was 100% correct, which makes me wonder about the gullibility of the great detecting duo.
Very popular but not an author for me.
December 7, 2019
Wow. Just ... wow. So, this is not so much a review but more of a stream of consciousness commentary.
First of all, Pari is perhaps the most obnoxious character I've encountered - she has no redeeming characteristics. I wonder if there's any particular reason that Pari rhymes with hari kari? EDIT: Okay, okay, you can check out the Cambridge English dictionary online pronouncation and it doesn't really rhyme, but you know what I mean.
Now on the other hand, North and Shaw are .... amazing. Their banter, honed after years of friendship, is hilarious and their barely repressed love for one another is pretty much heartbreaking. I love - and equally hate - how Gregory Ashe doles out tiny bits of details about their pasts and every last detail makes you reevaluate everything that has gone before.
And, finally just let me say, Tuck is a horrible, horrible person.
First of all, Pari is perhaps the most obnoxious character I've encountered - she has no redeeming characteristics. I wonder if there's any particular reason that Pari rhymes with hari kari? EDIT: Okay, okay, you can check out the Cambridge English dictionary online pronouncation and it doesn't really rhyme, but you know what I mean.
Now on the other hand, North and Shaw are .... amazing. Their banter, honed after years of friendship, is hilarious and their barely repressed love for one another is pretty much heartbreaking. I love - and equally hate - how Gregory Ashe doles out tiny bits of details about their pasts and every last detail makes you reevaluate everything that has gone before.
And, finally just let me say, Tuck is a horrible, horrible person.
July 4, 2019
3.5 stars.
I'm still not sure how I feel about this new series though. I sometimes didn't get the humour and I guess that's why the banter felt off a bit. I also didn't get the MCs behavior most of the time. With Hazard and Sommers it was more subtle but these two I don't know why they're reacting to situations in such ways, maybe it's because they're much younger? Besides that, the mystery was Okey but I felt like less would have made the story a lot mot intriguing. Too much was happening and it wasn't needed. Also, I truly hated their assistant Pari, she's awful. I hope book 2 will show the MCs growing up and making more sense.
I'm still not sure how I feel about this new series though. I sometimes didn't get the humour and I guess that's why the banter felt off a bit. I also didn't get the MCs behavior most of the time. With Hazard and Sommers it was more subtle but these two I don't know why they're reacting to situations in such ways, maybe it's because they're much younger? Besides that, the mystery was Okey but I felt like less would have made the story a lot mot intriguing. Too much was happening and it wasn't needed. Also, I truly hated their assistant Pari, she's awful. I hope book 2 will show the MCs growing up and making more sense.
Want to read
December 1, 2019Price drop to $0.99 at Amazon US today, 12/1/19!
December 14, 2022
Benign masochism - refers to enjoying initially negative experiences that the body (brain) falsely interprets as threatening. This realization that the body has been fooled, and that there is no real danger, leads to pleasure derived from “mind over body.”
I learned that term while listening to a podcast about why people like horror movies and it really resonated with me. I mean, why else would I put myself through yet another gut wrenching series of events orchestrated by Gregory Ashe? I have to admit, though, this book didn't hurt as much as I expected it to. The situation between North and Shaw was primed and ready to go for absolute heartache, but I think their long history as friends softened the blow. I'm also pretty sure I'll be eating those words later.
North and Shaw weren't exactly what I expected after their cameos in H&S. In those abbreviated on-page moments, they came across as young, flippant jokesters who hadn't had their cages rattled by life yet. Shaw seemed perpetually hopped up on sugar and caffeine and I couldn't tell if North thought his antics were endearing or annoying. Maybe both. There was one time when North showed a more vulnerable side to his relationship with Shaw, but the rest of the time the two men were pretty hard to take seriously. I would never have guessed how much trauma they carried around with them. I found it interesting that they had been best friends for so long, but there still seemed to be so much they kept from each other. It would have been easy to look at the events in this story and ask, why now? After 8 years of friendship, why were all of those secrets bubbling up to the surface now? Knowing the way this author likes to take a hammer to our hearts, the answer would probably be "because this was when it would hurt the most".
As usual, the majority of my focus was on the characters, but I really liked the mystery too. I have no clue how GA comes up with all of these complicated crimes and nuanced villains, but I hope he never runs out of ideas. There were times when I wondered if North and Shaw were actually good at their jobs, but they did a much better job than the police did, so there's that. The underlying mystery is what really has my attention, though. I hope that Shaw gets the closure he so desperately needs.
A few stray thoughts:
1. Tucker sucks. He's somehow worse than Ammon, who I loathe.
2. Shaw should probably look for both a new therapist and a new spiritual advisor.
3. North and Shaw need to fire Pari and find a Nico clone.
4. I bet I'm going to want to hate Jadon but won't be able to make it stick.
I learned that term while listening to a podcast about why people like horror movies and it really resonated with me. I mean, why else would I put myself through yet another gut wrenching series of events orchestrated by Gregory Ashe? I have to admit, though, this book didn't hurt as much as I expected it to. The situation between North and Shaw was primed and ready to go for absolute heartache, but I think their long history as friends softened the blow. I'm also pretty sure I'll be eating those words later.
North and Shaw weren't exactly what I expected after their cameos in H&S. In those abbreviated on-page moments, they came across as young, flippant jokesters who hadn't had their cages rattled by life yet. Shaw seemed perpetually hopped up on sugar and caffeine and I couldn't tell if North thought his antics were endearing or annoying. Maybe both. There was one time when North showed a more vulnerable side to his relationship with Shaw, but the rest of the time the two men were pretty hard to take seriously. I would never have guessed how much trauma they carried around with them. I found it interesting that they had been best friends for so long, but there still seemed to be so much they kept from each other. It would have been easy to look at the events in this story and ask, why now? After 8 years of friendship, why were all of those secrets bubbling up to the surface now? Knowing the way this author likes to take a hammer to our hearts, the answer would probably be "because this was when it would hurt the most".
As usual, the majority of my focus was on the characters, but I really liked the mystery too. I have no clue how GA comes up with all of these complicated crimes and nuanced villains, but I hope he never runs out of ideas. There were times when I wondered if North and Shaw were actually good at their jobs, but they did a much better job than the police did, so there's that. The underlying mystery is what really has my attention, though. I hope that Shaw gets the closure he so desperately needs.
A few stray thoughts:
1. Tucker sucks. He's somehow worse than Ammon, who I loathe.
2. Shaw should probably look for both a new therapist and a new spiritual advisor.
3. North and Shaw need to fire Pari and find a Nico clone.
4. I bet I'm going to want to hate Jadon but won't be able to make it stick.
June 7, 2021
4.50 ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Pain, pain, and more pain. How does someone fit so many f-cked up situations into one story? Ashe is truly a master sadist, but guess what? He’s also a brilliant writer who writes nuanced characters so. g-ddamn. well.
The story follows private detectives and best friends, North and Shaw, as they work together to uncover a blackmailing scheme targeting gay men. And that my friends is the tip of the iceberg. The mystery in this book was excellent and kept me engrossed all the way through. All of the plots worked together so well. I don’t want to get too in the plot details otherwise I’ll start writing a dissertation and never shut up. What I do want to talk about is the characters, because that is where Ashe truly excels. He writes people that are so real, so tangible that you as the reader feel like you know them. You understand their pain as if it’s your own. They frustrate you, they anger you, they make you laugh, you hurt when they hurt, and above all else, no matter what they do, you continually root for them. I cannot wait to see the rest of North and Shaw’s story unfold.
As I said at the beginning, this story is painful. There is trauma, abuse, violence, just to name a few. The MCs have so many personal demons they are practically living in hell. If you’ve read Ashe’s books you know the romance is slowwww moving, and the road getting there is filled with landmines. These stories are often uncomfortable at times, but nothing is ever exaggerated. Albeit hard to swallow, every action makes sense to the story being told.
Needless to say I’m hooked and running to book #2.
Pain, pain, and more pain. How does someone fit so many f-cked up situations into one story? Ashe is truly a master sadist, but guess what? He’s also a brilliant writer who writes nuanced characters so. g-ddamn. well.
The story follows private detectives and best friends, North and Shaw, as they work together to uncover a blackmailing scheme targeting gay men. And that my friends is the tip of the iceberg. The mystery in this book was excellent and kept me engrossed all the way through. All of the plots worked together so well. I don’t want to get too in the plot details otherwise I’ll start writing a dissertation and never shut up. What I do want to talk about is the characters, because that is where Ashe truly excels. He writes people that are so real, so tangible that you as the reader feel like you know them. You understand their pain as if it’s your own. They frustrate you, they anger you, they make you laugh, you hurt when they hurt, and above all else, no matter what they do, you continually root for them. I cannot wait to see the rest of North and Shaw’s story unfold.
As I said at the beginning, this story is painful. There is trauma, abuse, violence, just to name a few. The MCs have so many personal demons they are practically living in hell. If you’ve read Ashe’s books you know the romance is slowwww moving, and the road getting there is filled with landmines. These stories are often uncomfortable at times, but nothing is ever exaggerated. Albeit hard to swallow, every action makes sense to the story being told.
Needless to say I’m hooked and running to book #2.
dnf-for-good
July 23, 2020DnF!!!!
GA books aren't for me! Too fucking annoying.
GA books aren't for me! Too fucking annoying.
January 29, 2021
This is going to be a slightly unusual review. Mostly because I hated this book, hadn't wanted to write a longer review until I suddenly changed my mind, and I'm now annoyed with myself. Quick synopsis first.
The protagonists are North and Shaw (I hate that I remember their names), and they have a PI firm—though North recently got his licence suspended. Shaw has been in love with North for years. North also has feelings, I think, but they're repressed, and he's married (to a monster of a person). Supposedly, North and Shaw are best friends. Emphasis on the supposedly because they treat each other horribly. In fact, everyone treats each other horribly in this book, and I wanted them all to drop dead. Well, everyone except North, but I'll get back to that.
I think I mentioned this before, but other than a few bookmarks or highlights here and there, I don't really take notes while reading. But this time, when I was about a quarter of the way in (give or take), I paused and wrote some stuff down. It's a list of everything I didn't like, and this is what it contains:
1. The monotone writing
2. North is kinda douchy
3. The over-description of EVERY travel route
4. Pari: A Bitch
5. The office is gross
6. Shaw and his flirting
7. Shaw not doing his job
8. Shaw too flustered or mad or something-personal to accomplish anything
9. Shaw dating a fucking client
10. Too much focus on Shaw’s personal drama
So yeah, it's safe to say that anything to do with Shaw sucked. And he actually got worse. There's a scene in which he discovers something about North, and it's a moment in which he should've been there for his friend. Instead, he couldn't stop whinging about North not telling him beforehand—it's not about you, asshole!
I swear, if I could've reached into the book and stabbed him, I would've.
Additionally, here are a couple of comments I made previously, one from my buddy read, the second my mini, place-holder review (I warned you this was going to be a weird review).
The attitude of both the protagonists was also highly unprofessional. And when I said their office was gross, I meant that it was cluttered, dusty and had days-old food lying all over the place. Partially because Pari, their receptionist (office assistant?), got mad and threw shit around when asked to clean her desk or do her job.
Finally, getting back to why North shouldn't drop dead. I fucking hate everyone else in this book. North, I think, could be a good person if he got away from everyone around him. I suggest he move to Canada, get a new job, make new friends (people in Montreal are very nice), and see a therapist once a week (for at least three years). It would make his life so much better.
Overall, I think I've given a satisfactory explanation of why I hated this fucking book. I don't plan on reading anything by this author ever again. And in case this last part got lost in the disjointed nature of the review... not a book I recommend.
The protagonists are North and Shaw (I hate that I remember their names), and they have a PI firm—though North recently got his licence suspended. Shaw has been in love with North for years. North also has feelings, I think, but they're repressed, and he's married (to a monster of a person). Supposedly, North and Shaw are best friends. Emphasis on the supposedly because they treat each other horribly. In fact, everyone treats each other horribly in this book, and I wanted them all to drop dead. Well, everyone except North, but I'll get back to that.
I think I mentioned this before, but other than a few bookmarks or highlights here and there, I don't really take notes while reading. But this time, when I was about a quarter of the way in (give or take), I paused and wrote some stuff down. It's a list of everything I didn't like, and this is what it contains:
1. The monotone writing
2. North is kinda douchy
3. The over-description of EVERY travel route
4. Pari: A Bitch
5. The office is gross
6. Shaw and his flirting
7. Shaw not doing his job
8. Shaw too flustered or mad or something-personal to accomplish anything
9. Shaw dating a fucking client
10. Too much focus on Shaw’s personal drama
So yeah, it's safe to say that anything to do with Shaw sucked. And he actually got worse. There's a scene in which he discovers something about North, and it's a moment in which he should've been there for his friend. Instead, he couldn't stop whinging about North not telling him beforehand—it's not about you, asshole!
I swear, if I could've reached into the book and stabbed him, I would've.
Additionally, here are a couple of comments I made previously, one from my buddy read, the second my mini, place-holder review (I warned you this was going to be a weird review).
"The author seems to put all-dialogue scenes in which we have no idea what the characters are thinking or feeling, and then later have a huge inner monologue basically recapping what happened with some of what the character felt thrown in."
"The one-star seems really harsh but I can't think of a single thing about this book that I liked...the book put me in a bad mood whenever I tried to read it. Not to mention the suffocating levels of angst that asphyxiated anything I'd thought was interesting. I only kept going by skimming the second half. So this is the only rating that made sense."
The attitude of both the protagonists was also highly unprofessional. And when I said their office was gross, I meant that it was cluttered, dusty and had days-old food lying all over the place. Partially because Pari, their receptionist (office assistant?), got mad and threw shit around when asked to clean her desk or do her job.
Finally, getting back to why North shouldn't drop dead. I fucking hate everyone else in this book. North, I think, could be a good person if he got away from everyone around him. I suggest he move to Canada, get a new job, make new friends (people in Montreal are very nice), and see a therapist once a week (for at least three years). It would make his life so much better.
Overall, I think I've given a satisfactory explanation of why I hated this fucking book. I don't plan on reading anything by this author ever again. And in case this last part got lost in the disjointed nature of the review... not a book I recommend.
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