Downtime by Tamara Allen (235 pages)
Ummm. Well, you can buy paper on Amazon, I can't find a place to buy e-book anymore
Morgan is a workaholic FBI agent on assignment in London. He's hating it, and his boyfriend just left him because of his work habits. As there is a bit show-down in the museum he is shot and .... wakes up in 1888. Seems museum worker Ezra and some of his friends were playing around with a spell-book and the result is Morgan. Ooops. Once Morgan accepts he's really in the past, he goes home with the men who live in a boarding house. He's not thrilled when he discovers Ezra communes with ghosts and conducts seances which he thinks are hooey and that Ezra is a con-man, however eventually he believes in Ezra's powers. However the book of spells to send him home is missing and he is suddenly intrigured by the Jack the Ripper case which is now happening and he's determined to find the killer, dragging Ezra along with him on his investigations. This was a fun read as Morgan adapts to 1888 with a fair bit of humour and he and Ezra gradually grow closer. While I'm not usually a fan of historicals, I did love the detail here, what they ate, how the house looked, what they wore. It was really interesting. :-) Also while gay sex is technically illegal, and everyone was careful, there wasn't an overly done paranoia and there seemed to be a fair number of swishy gay men around that everyone just ignored. So the burning quesitons are, does Morgan catch Jack the Ripper and does Morgan stay with Ezra, or does he head back to the present to keep his work commitments and solve the crime he was involved in before his transport? Can he even get back? I won't say. :-) I really like the other characters at the rooming house, especially Derry and even grew to appreciate his SIL who was like the house-mother. This was a really great read and I hope for e-book fans you can find it on-line or splurge for the paper version.
Eye Spy by Drew Zachary (75 pages)
DB is a private investigator who has a rather intrusive partner Jesse. I say intrusive because Jesse is a ghost and DB doesn't particularly want him around, but he is handy. There are sort of two parallel stories. They take on a case of suspected cheating and find out the husband is having an affair with a man. When the husband is shot and the wife blames the lover, DB and Jesse are determined to prove that the lover is innocent. As well, despite DB telling Jesse to get lost, he's kind of starting to like him and when Jesse touches him he gets extreme tingles (if you get my drift). Part of the story is DB and Jesse figuring out their relationship and Jesse's upset if you will that he can't "feel" anything, that no one can touch him. However he starts to find out that now and then he can touch things, especially if he's experiencing high emotions and even sometimes after sex with DB (Jesse can masturbate), he can touch DB properly and DB can touch him but it usually doesn't last very long and he wasn't to find a way to make it permanent. I really liked both guys and how despite Jesse hanging around so much they didn't really know each other and they started to grow closer. Yes, DB was a bit freaked out by the fact that he was having sex with a ghost but he liked Jesse and it felt good so he just kind of went with it. There are sequels to this which I will definitely read because I want to know if Jesse can find a way to REALLY have sex with DB. :-) They mystery part was okay as well, not really a mystery but kind of a crime solving part. A cute read for sure and quite old I think. 2007 published.
14 comments:
Seems museum worker Ezra and some of his friends were playing around with a spell-book and the result is Morgan. Ooops.
Ha, ha! Ooops, indeed. I think I have this in ebook from awhile back, but still need to read it, especially since she has a new one out. Thanks for reminding me about it!
I think it was Jen who just posted that Downtime's going to be rereleased through Dreamspinner soonishly... I liked that one quite a bit. :) Haven't read the Eye Spy books. The ghost theme isn't a favorite.
It's a great read Val. Very well done in weaving the past with Morgan's modern-day sensibilities. They didn't seem to swear rather so much back then. LOL
That's good to hear Chris. I think it will get a bigger audience as it's not avilable at Smashwords anymore.
I'm not usually a fan of ghost stories either, but Jesse was like a normal guy, he just happened to be able to walk through walls. :-) I also felt badly for his frustration at being around things like food and people but unable to experience them himself.
Yep it was me. I contacted Tamara and she told me it's out in May at DSP. Good news that.
Hmmm, not keen on ghost stories, so I think I'll give the second one a miss.
I'm not usually either, but as I said to Chris, the fact that he was a ghost seemed rather secondary but it won't be for everyone.
Glad to hear that Downtime is being rereleased. It's definitely a worth people's time.
I like a ghost story every now and again, and I think I have bought this one because of the ghost element.
I've heard many good things about Downtime. It's one that's on my radar and it's a good thing that it'll be rereleased, I guess.
Have a good weekend, Tam! :)
I think you'll like Downtime Janna. It's really well written. I did like the ghost story. Have a great weekend.
So glad you liked Downtime as well. I'm not a fan of m/m historicals either but this one was really good.
I did enjoy it a lot Tracy and I'm glad it's going to be reissued so that others can have the chance to read it.
I'll have to get Downtime, but probably in paper (if/when I can justify the expenditure). The late 19th century is a period that's always fascinated me. And Tamara Allen? Pure win!
It was really interesting from a sociological point of view KZ. That makes it sound boring but it certainly wasn't. I really enjoyed all the small details and maybe it was the fact they came from the eyes of a modern man that made it work so well for me. Not sure but it's certainly worth getting when you have the chance.
I really liked Downtime. Great story!
It was a good one Lily.
Post a Comment