SPOILER ALERT!
Sparks & Drops (Susan Laine)
2.5 rounded up
This started likeable enough -- I thought when they first met, Gus (the pagan owner and shopkeeper) and Niall (the private detective) had a nice chemistry. Gus' tendency to look down on religions and the way he quickly defended his belief during their initial conversation irked me a little bit, but not so much that I was annoyed by it. I thought this was a nice set-up to a cozy mystery -- I have my share or reading some cozy mystery series in the past, and having one with M/M couple is nice.
Unfortunately, as the story went along, especially after they (Gus) stumbled into the first body, I became increasingly irritated by Gus. He dismissed Niall's warning and put himself in the investigation, being totally stubborn and aggravating about it. I was also miffed when he disregard the fact that Niall was the PI and might have reasons in his way of solving the case.
The lowest point for me that made me totally dislike Gus was when the investigation directly impact Gus (when his shop was set on fire), and he lashed out to Niall saying that it was Niall's fault. I mean, "Hello, Gus, you are the one who is determined to be part of the investigation!! Nial already told you that it would be dangerous and maybe you should back down". Seriously!! It was disappointing because I thought Niall was a darling and pretty solid as a character. At that point I wish Niall would just cut ties with Gus because he could do so much better in choosing a boyfriend.
It was difficult afterwards for me to care for the mystery (although apparently neither Gus nor Niall actually SOLVED the mystery), when I really dislike one of the MCs. I'm NOT looking forward to read the sequel *shrugs*
This started likeable enough -- I thought when they first met, Gus (the pagan owner and shopkeeper) and Niall (the private detective) had a nice chemistry. Gus' tendency to look down on religions and the way he quickly defended his belief during their initial conversation irked me a little bit, but not so much that I was annoyed by it. I thought this was a nice set-up to a cozy mystery -- I have my share or reading some cozy mystery series in the past, and having one with M/M couple is nice.
Unfortunately, as the story went along, especially after they (Gus) stumbled into the first body, I became increasingly irritated by Gus. He dismissed Niall's warning and put himself in the investigation, being totally stubborn and aggravating about it. I was also miffed when he disregard the fact that Niall was the PI and might have reasons in his way of solving the case.
The lowest point for me that made me totally dislike Gus was when the investigation directly impact Gus (when his shop was set on fire), and he lashed out to Niall saying that it was Niall's fault. I mean, "Hello, Gus, you are the one who is determined to be part of the investigation!! Nial already told you that it would be dangerous and maybe you should back down". Seriously!! It was disappointing because I thought Niall was a darling and pretty solid as a character. At that point I wish Niall would just cut ties with Gus because he could do so much better in choosing a boyfriend.
It was difficult afterwards for me to care for the mystery (although apparently neither Gus nor Niall actually SOLVED the mystery), when I really dislike one of the MCs. I'm NOT looking forward to read the sequel *shrugs*
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