Isabelle Adler

Matt Spears is a captain of a small ship; with a crew of two. He takes jobs of questionable origin and legality, often transporting illegal goods through space. Of course, these jobs do not come without risk, but that’s the price he pays in order to make money. Then a job comes along that seems too good to be true...a job that he knows he shouldn’t take, but his crew needs the money...and it is a LOT of money. So, of course he takes it...especially when he discovers it comes with an experienced pilot who will be commandeering his ship. Enter Ryce. Not only an expert pilot but he's good looking, and intelligent...seemingly perfect. In spite of his attributes, Matt is not pleased to have this cocky hunk on his ship, but he doesn’t have a choice if he wants the money. Instead, he decides to do the best he can and just…well, sleep with him. What should be a quick, fairly easy job turns out to be something else entirely. Danger is around every corner, there's modern space pirates, ancient alien weaponry and who knows if they are even going to make it out alive...and to make matters even worse...Matt hasn't yet even had a chance to sleep with Ryce!!! Matt is such a great character. He seems completely sure of himself, but he does have a soft spot in his heart for his ship and his crew. He also has a fairly complicated past that he tries to ignore, but throughout the story it comes back to haunt and actually, sometimes to help him. Ryce is a fascinating character. His backstory is intriguing, and although he comes across as close to perfect, he makes some rather poor decisions, but in spite of that he does learn to care about the people around him. Danger is everywhere in this story, and that does make it exciting. Just when things seemed to calm down, there was always trouble again in a new form. Somehow everything that happened made sense in the context of the world the events the story is based on. In the end, there were very real consequences for the men that will make you worry about their safety. I understand that there is a second book in the series but even though I didn't dislike the story, I wasn't a raging fan either. I would like to see if Matt ever figures out a way to sleep with Ryce though...so maybe. Fans of sci-fi, space pirates, and aliens, should enjoy this. It's a lot of everything crammed into a short, quick read.… (altro)

I'm no romance fan. I don't object to there being a romance subplot in a book, so long as it doesn't get in the way of either the story or the character development.

In this case, I thought the romance story line tried to hard to take the place of genuine character development. I have to compare this to John Wilker's latest novel, Any Job Will Do – another space opera with a bi male main character and a male love interest. The difference, for me at least, was that AJWD put character development at the forefront and the romance took a back seat. I found this to be the reverse.

Romance lovers may love this one. Sadly, I didn't. But I do think that says more about me than it does about the book.… (altro)

In the Winter Woods by Isabelle Adler was quite a fun book to enjoy during this season. I received this e-ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

This book tells the story of Declan Kensington, who used to be a bestseller author, but whose books are selling less and less and money is getting tight, so he decides to move temporarily to his late parents' cabin in the woods up on Lake Champlain, in Vermont - the only place he could afford.

Once settled, he meets Maplewood's people, including the handsome Public Safety Commissioner, Curtis Monroe. On his first night, Declan receives a note with a threat for him to leave town, and a day later a dead body appears outside his neighbor's cabin.

I usually don't read cozy mysteries, but maybe I should. This was so warm and loving (even with the dead bodies?), keeping me slightly on the edge of my seat. I LOVED getting to know Maplewood's citizens and I came to really like Declan and shipping his developing connection with Monroe. The plot twists, although some a bit predictable, had just the right timing and added A LOT to the history.

I really really enjoyed reading this and I'll definitely keep an eye out for Isabelle Adler's work. I really loved her characters in this book and her writing!… (altro)

This is a murder mystery taking place in small town Vermont in the middle of winter. Declan, a well-known but declining writer running from NYC to try to get his next best seller out, is a bit of a snob. He spent his summers with his family at this cabin but now that both his parents have passed, the cabin is left to him and his sister and is Declan's last place to go with his money and fame running low.
Declan wasn't a character I really cared for and couldn't relate with. The central relationship was also a bit of an insta-romance with a small town cop-not-cop (with the writer jumping on recent anti-police rhetoric that hardly felt realistic for a small Vermont town). I found myself much more interested in solving the murder and felt Declan's self-insert into the investigation and the town's business was more annoying than helpful. I think Adler was going for a "Castle" (the TV show) type set-up but it fell flat.
There's also no more than a few stolen kisses in the entire book which made Declan's constant knobslobbering frustrating in the end.
This book might be interesting to readers just dipping their toe into M/M and interested in murder mystery plots, but those looking for a more intense experience will be disappointed.… (altro)