Rainbow Reviews

BOOK BLURB:
Alex Klein, professional photographer, leads a blessed life with a supportive family and longtime lover Harley Scott, a successful PI. However, everything is about to unravel. He found peace in the arms of Harley after suffering from night terrors most of his life. Now the night terrors are back and his new assignment in Seattle may be the cause. While he struggles to control his fears, back in St. Louis, Harley unravels a secret that could destroy the life they've created together. Maggie Reynolds is a convicted murderer, former member of a violent, gang that terrorized the West Coast in the 1980's. She may also be Alex's birth mother, finally free after 25 years in prison. Positive his lover is in danger Harley heads to Seattle to save him from a mysterious stalker not beyond murder to get what she wants. Are Maggie and the stalker one and the same? Sometimes no matter how many lies you weave the past will come back to bite you in the ass. An intricate web of blood and deception discovered, over two decades in the making, and Alex begins to question his entire identity in the wake of fear. Can he free himself from his past before it claims everyone he loves?

BOOK REVIEW:
I had to contemplate whether to review this book or not, mainly because the cover of the book threw me. I freely admit that I do judge a book by its cover ~ I tried to understand why a publisher would use a woman as the forefront in a gay fiction story. However, as I began reading the story, the cover and title came into focus, and I began to appreciate the publisher's unique outlook and originality in not conforming to the usual naked chests, and actually having the cover and title mean something to the story within. Even more so, the cover is actually both classy and eloquent.

The e-industry is a risky place where new e-publishers are opening their virtual doors every day. So I doubt I would have given this publisher or author a chance if it weren’t for a chance to review. I am glad to say after sampling this book, I’ll definitely be checking out the other authors this publisher offers.

“Blood Noir” follows the mystery genre in gay fiction that I adore completely. Jesse Fox has done a great job with this book, and I anticipate many more books to come. The great thing about the mystery aspect of this story, is the fact that the author puts the killer in plain sight, and right at the end switches it up to catch you off guard. I loved how she kept the suspense rolling till the very end. The structure of the story was solid, and the prose and editing were also smooth.

The main heroes, Alex and Harley, are very interesting characters but with the danger that was besought on these two from the very beginning, we saw so little of them together as a couple. Alex is a photographer who gets commissioned by a notorious crime reporter to be the eyes of her new book, but from the beginning there seems to something evil lurking in the background. Harley is a private investigator and an overprotective boyfriend to boot. The characters have been together for ten years and the author really teases you about their history together. I have to say, I’d love to read a prequel about Harley and Alex getting together, not only are they great together but they’re both such cute and fascinating characters on their own, and that’s probably the highest compliment I could give to fictional characters.

“Blood Noir” is a very exiting story, and one that focuses on the plot at hand. The story is more about the romance of the protagonists and the story delves into a group of interesting secondary characters and an intense story about a dark past. I would definitely give this story a go as the writing is clever, the characters are real gems, and it’s a story that I will definitely remember in the long run.

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