Between the Devil and the Pacific Blue

March 12, 2019February 25, 2019 ~ Ofelia Gränd ~ Leave a comment

I’m off work today, so when I’d put two of the kids on the bus to school, I poured myself a cup of coffee and relaxed with Between the Devil and the Pacific Blue by Charlie Cochet.

I’ve read, I think, the four first stories in Cochet’s Thirds series and one of her DRitC stories, but compared to many others I can’t say that I’ve read a lot by her.

Between the Devil and the Pacific Blue isn’t a book I’ve seen around, but I scrolled through Cochet’s backlist, thinking perhaps I should read something she’d written since it’s been a long time since I last did and saw the cover. There was something with the dark blue tones and the pink armchair that made me pause.

James is a Detective working cold cases as well as working the night shift as a security guard at an old hotel. There is no wi-fi or other technology that works, but there is a room with a radio. Every night at 2 a.m. James goes into that room to find Franklin listening to waltzes.

I liked how the story went from me thinking an old cop was gonna help a guy hiding from an abusive partner to becoming a ghost story. The signs were there all the way, and I suspected it all along, but somehow I saw things from Jame’s perspective despite knowing he didn’t see the entire story.

I enjoyed it – it has love, ghosts, mobsters, shootings, and a great mix of present day and history.

books2read.com/BetweentheDevilandthePacificBlue *

Looking for more ghost stories? Check out some of the ones I’ve read.

Between the Devil and the Pacific Blue For the last six months, Detective James Ralston has worked the nightshift as security for the Pacific Blue Hotel, and every night at 2 a.m. his rounds lead him to the radio room where the handsome and mysterious Franklin Fairchild sits listening to waltzes as old as the hotel itself. James is drawn to Franklin, but Franklin is a man at the end of his rope, and James has no intention of getting caught up in whatever trouble Franklin is in. A heated encounter late one night sends James down a disturbing path and has him questioning everything around him, including his very sanity.

* By clicking the Books2Read link you’ll be taken to an external page. Links to Smashwords, Kobo U.S and Amazon contain affiliate links that earn me a small commission at no additional cost to you. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

Throwback Thursday | Once Around Seven

March 7, 2019March 6, 2019 ~ Ofelia Gränd ~ Leave a comment

I was walking the dog along the river just a stone’s throw from our house and thought of Once Around Seven. It was published in July 2018, so not very old, but I thought I’d give it a post now anyway.

About the only thing you can do around here is to go down the river by canoe – I live in the middle of nowhere – so when I was trying to come up with something anyone who was visiting Nortown for the first time could do, canoeing seemed like a good idea.

When Oz is taking a dip, it’s autumn and not early March as the pictures below, but you get the idea. I also included a photo of my companion on the walk, our dog, who’s the inspiration behind Tristan’s dog Og.

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As Joshua looked out over the river again he thought something moved on a rock just a little bit above where the currents really sped up.

“Hey!”

The form moved again, and a moan travelled in the wind. Fuck. He’d hoped he’d imagined it. “Are you all right?” Stupid question.

“Splendid. Thanks for asking.”

Josh smiled. A man judging from the voice and probably not in danger of dying on him. “Well, then, are you planning on sleeping out there tonight or could I perhaps persuade you to join me up here where it’s a little dryer?”

The silence lasted too long for Joshua’s liking. “You still with me?” The man groaned, and Josh’s stomach knotted. Perhaps he was more hurt than he’d assumed. “Wait there. I’m coming to get you.”

He ran back to the branch he’d tripped over and grabbed it. It was long enough for him to test the ground before stepping into the stream. He hoped it wouldn’t be deeper than his waders. “You still with me?”

Poking with the stick, he tested the uneven ground and slipped first one then the other foot into the water. He held on to the grass on the riverbank for a few seconds while trying to determine if it was safe to let go. The current was strong, not enough to pull him down, but if he slipped…

Moving one foot, then the stick, then the other foot, and all the while the tug of the current intensified… The man on the rock was crawling towards him, still out of the water but seemingly prepared to take another dip.

“Wait for me, okay?” Joshua looked at him, blond hair clinging to his forehead and the closer he came the clearer he could hear his teeth chattering. “Oswald?”

The man narrowed his eyes, but the chatter of his teeth didn’t stop. “Great, of course, it’s someone who knows who I am.”

Joshua chuckled. “Sorry, man. May I ask, though, why the late-night swim?”

Oswald groaned, one foot slipping in the black river. “Late night? What time is it?”

“I’m guessing around seven.”

books2read.com/OnceAroundSeven *

Once Around Seven Oswald Sattle has been sleeping in his Toyota Camry for the last two hundred and seventy-three days, the exact number of days since he discovered his fiancé cheating on him. Now, out of money and out of options, he’s on his way to Nortown. Aiden, an acquaintance from his past, has offered him a job opportunity he can’t turn down, no matter how much he’d like to.

Joshua Roth moved to Nortown four years ago and he has everything he needs—a job, friends, peace and quiet. He’s not looking for a boyfriend; no one even knows he’s gay, and he’d like it to stay that way. But a stranger in town has Joshua rethinking his decision.

Oswald looks like he wants to hide from the world, and Josh finds himself wanting to get him to smile, to feed him, and make everything better.

In a small town, where everyone knows everyone else’s business, reaching for what you want can feel like a risk. But some risks are worth taking.

Part of Seasons of Love Anthology

* By clicking the Books2Read link you’ll be taken to an external page. Links to Smashwords, Kobo U.S and Amazon contain affiliate links that earn me a small commission at no additional cost to you. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

Caught Running

February 26, 2019February 25, 2019 ~ Ofelia Gränd ~ Leave a comment

Caught Running by Madeleine Urban and Abigail Roux.

I’ve just re-read this. It’s been many years since I read it the first time and I wasn’t quite sure if it was the one I remembered or if the one I was thinking of actually was Mary Calmes’s Steamroller. It was Caught Running that flitted around in my mind.

This is an old book, at least if we’re talking books in the M/M genre. It was published by Dreamspinner back in 2007, and if I’m not wrong, I think Dreampsinner started 2007, so we’re back in the cradle here LOL.

I still like this story, though the epithets drive me a little crazy, but it’s fun to see that even the ‘big names’ develop their writing style.

This is a story about how the role you had in high school follows you into your adult life. Both Brandon and Jake went to the school they’re now teaching in, and they’re still expected to be the nerd and the jock, only the roles don’t fit anymore, and the attraction between them grows as they’re working together.

It’s sweet, and I’m glad I read it again.

books2read.com/CaughtRunning *

Ten years after graduation, Jake “the jock” Campbell and Brandon “the nerd” Bartlett are teaching at their old high school and still living in separate worlds. When Brandon is thrown into a coaching job on Jake’s baseball team, they find themselves learning more about each other than they’d ever expected.

High school is all about image, even for the teachers. Brandon and Jake have to get past their preconceived notions to find the friendship needed to work together. And somewhere along the way, they discover that perceptions can always change for the better.

* By clicking the Books2Read link you’ll be taken to an external page. Links to Smashwords, Kobo U.S and Amazon contain affiliate links that earn me a small commission at no additional cost to you. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.