alyssa
and with this short story collection's official release, that's a wrap! Gregory Ashe is the definition of “i see it, i like it, i want it, i write it” - i don't know any other author who's taken the hard-won cumulation of 37 books to write a 4+1 part love letter to his 8 brainchildren. the fact that he only began publicly speaking on the project in 2022 and actively wrote these books over the past year to get ‘er done will never cease to blow my mind.
hopefully he can finally give his braincells a proper rest after all the juggling he's had to do. in the meantime, i'm off to celebrate by listening to the latest BGFP episode where he talks about his patron platform! https://jeffandwill.com/biggayfictionpodcast/2024/02/12/episode-447-gregory-ashe-creates-the-advanced-ashochism-reader-community/
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*my sole piece of advice: no sneaking a peek at the blurb until you've finished book 2, The Girl in the Wind. place your trust in me, your most loyal street peddler
*CWs here: https://www.crystaldbudy.com/content-warnings
IT'S GOODREADS OFFICIAL, Y'ALL!! i had the pleasure of beta-reading this delight after subsisting off short snippet after tantalizing snippet, and to know the story in its Final Form is about to fall into these grubby hands, i'm over the moon!
if hilarious banter; adorably snarky brats and their exasperated, protective hero (lovingly) losing hairs thanks to their antics; and amateur investigators with ✨trauma✨ are your cup of tea, look no further - Max and Carter reporting for duty
"Tell me something real."
[4.4~4.5] approaching follow-ups in any book universe is invariably laced with some hesitancy, but particularly after what i'd consider one of my favorite reads from this year, Until You, well, i was hesitant in more ways than one to say the very least.
the relief when i realized that fear was wholly unwarranted.
dislike to love (appreciate the distinction!) + fake dating (those who are not a fan of the trope can rest assured; it's more of an impetus for that initial shift in their relationship rather than their dynamic throughout the entire story) + a frivolous jokester hiding his well of trauma + a deceptively stony-faced, inquisitive enigma = me as a happy camper
"Rossi warned me you'd be a smart ass."I shrugged. "He told me you were a good cop. I guess he was wrong about both of us."
Henry's steadily claiming a permanent seat as one of my favorite protagonists of all time.
when the layers of legalese wrapped around this story could've very well turned me off, the courtroom scenes proved to more engaging and frenzied than a bloody battle between two kingdoms. my legal knowledge consists of the unrealistic, fantastical depictions in Ace Attorney (you get a bazillion points in my book if you've played the games) - in other words, nonexistent - but this book cast a spell with every verbal lunge and parry, every complex maneuvering. my eyes played their own game of ping-pong, jumping back and forth across the page. in all my restlessness, i wore out the poor, abused fabric on the edge of my seat. i love Henry at his every stage, in his every form, but he ripens into an absolute showstopper when he's flexing those glorious wings of competence.
Michael Nava's prose is brilliant and tackles critical themes with a smooth elegance rarely seen. the exploration of the ways HIV status can affect relationships, laying bare the wall between infected and non-infected populations, upheaving false conflations made in the public eye - i can't look away in spite of, or maybe because of, the underlying anguish that accompanied life in a way i'll never truly know in my own.
on a side note, i wouldn't be surprised in the slightest if Gregory Ashe spent time studying some of this author's expressive descriptions. they felt reminiscent of one another, at least at their core and feeling, though i hope my assumption doesn't come across presumptuous. regardless, i do love when writers paint settings more vividly in my mental landscape than what i could possibly see with the naked eye.
[3.75] hockey meets HGTV?? i'm in heaven.
down-on-his-luck interior decorator Carter grabs hold of a much-needed lifeline in Tommaso, a new trade to the Cougars who decides to put his trust in a virtual stranger to get his condo furnished in time for the holidays.
now that it's officially hockey season, i'm finding even more joy with my hockey reads, and i think Sarina Bowen did a great job putting the sport on-page and incorporating Tommaso's team members for a lusher cast of characters.
despite SB's written relationships often losing momentum in the transition from physical attraction to a true spark, i'm in the minority of book friends who still enjoyed the first book and could seek out the feels and fun in the grumpy/sunshine dynamic of this one. if i had to point out my main niggles, i had hoped for a more satisfactory resolution on the abusive uncle/cousin front, and a deeper self-reflection from Carter regarding his part in the situation that got him into the biggest pickle to ever pickle. there were also a sprinkling of scene inclusions that i found to be...interesting choices, but good times overall :D
No one ever could, until they did. We all woke up each morning, unprepared, unable, the world against us. And then we did; moment by moment, we did. And when the heart of someone we loved was on the line, there was never a question. We did. No matter what.
here we are at the end of the beaten path, the curtains officially closing on Nick's journey after 13 books that slowly but surely made me their captive. reflecting on Nick's resilience and compassionate heart in the face of so much fear, uncertainty, and unfairness, i spent the last few pages crying over a bowl of noodles. needless to say, today's broth was extra flavorful
Life feels so permanent. It just keeps going day after day. Yeah, we know that someday it will end. And yet we don't know. Not really. We're lulled into a false sense of safety. The idea that we'll wake up tomorrow morning seems reasonable because we've done it so many times. But then one day we'll wake for the last time. And on that day something will stop us; an illness, a heart attack, a speeding car, a bullet. We will stop and never wake again.
while i don't consider these books as emotionally traumatizing as Henry Rios, that doesn't mean the heavily matter-of-fact & somber atmosphere hasn't been draining my reserves in its own right. Nick keeps running in circles, and i keep fighting back the nerves. i‘m somewhat in disbelief that there are only two books left of Nick's journey for me to read.
for future Alyssa's reference, i have a feeling the end result of this case won't sit well with some, but as i admittedly have a favorite book that took a similar, in a very tangential sense, route, i can only suggest balancing it out with other mysteries
"Our minds want to take us to dark places, but we don't have to go. We can stay right here. And if we are going to fantasize about the future, why not fantasize about a happy one?"
[4.5] i wouldn't dare classify these books as romances, but Henry is a romantic in every sense of the word, in how he sees the world, in how he sees his relationships. he falls so hard and so fast. his heart bleeds.
this book is comparatively more out-there in the final stages and resolution with that neat & tidy bowtie when forced to stand amongst the others i've read, but it doesn't come close to changing the fact that i would pick up another hundred - so long as Michael Nava was at the helm penning the story. i simply can't get enough.
