Murder and Mayhem

Second Read 5/30/2018 Because I got the paperbacks and felt like a refresher before starting Bk.2 [b:Tramps and Thieves 35491732 Tramps and Thieves (Murder and Mayhem, #2) Rhys Ford https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1501514650s/35491732.jpg 56892395]. Totally worth it and if anything I liked it more than the first time around. Knowing the why & who of the mystery I was able to just concentrate on Rook & Dante. ***************Happy Dance 4.5 only because my heart beats true blue for ColeThe combined forces of [a:Rhys Ford 4968409 Rhys Ford https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1308678470p2/4968409.jpg] & [a:Greg Tremblay 8108759 Greg Tremblay https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1484561919p2/8108759.jpg] can only make me jump for joy. Couple that with one of my favorite tropes, cops & robbers, and I'm putty in your hands. We're in the familiar territory of reformed bad boys getting banged up and being rescued & put back together by stoic and maybe not so perfect heroes. Rook Stevens is a “reformed” B&E guy who had a peripatetic childhood mostly spent with carnies because of the whims of a flighty and less than competent mother. He owns Potter's Field, a shop that deals in pop memorabilia and is basically the wet dream of any film or tv geek. Rook is also out and proud and with a hard shell. That that shell protects a heart of gold is no one's business. In spite of having gone legit he keeps a few cards up his sleeve for times of trouble and trouble comes in the shape of the dead body of a former associate in the middle of his shop and all evidence pointing towards Rook as the culprit. As luck would have it the case falls to one Det. Dante Montoya, a delicious Mexican-Cuban walking Adonis, with whom Rook shares history and not all of it particularly good.To say that that I liked everything about this would be an understatement. First accept that you're in Rhys Ford territory and the heroes will get banged good almost to the point that I suspect she's a bit of a sadist but the tender care of their SO's is always worth it. Once it becomes clear to Dante and everyone else that Rook is being framed Dante is there to help in any way that Rook will allow him. Rook struggles to accept help and even at the end he's still a work in progress but the way he gives himself to Dante, once he does, is complete and beautiful. And what can I say about Dante but that I'd be his Cuervoany day of the week. Book 2 is coming out soon and I'm guessing we'll get to dive deeper into both of our MCs parental histories which so far ain't pretty but they've got each other to face the future.“Lying next to Rook Stevens was akin to trying to take a nap on a bed of nails. A lot of practice, a seemingly futile exercise, but once accomplished, a sliver of nirvana from its mastery.”I loved Rook's grand gesture at the end. I loved Rook's grandfather and the members of his extended community that we get to meet. I liked Dante's partner and his Uncle Manny, who needs his own book. The villain wasn't immediately obvious but even when you realize who it is it just serves to reveal more about who Rook truly is. And then we have scenes like this that just make me swoon:“Can you do that for me, Dante? Will you just take me home and ... stay there with me? For a little bit?” “I can do that, cuervo.” Dante caught the waitress's attention, motioning her over. “And babe, I'll hold you for however long you want me to. And even then, I might not let you go.”I'm getting my First-Aid kit ready in preparation for book 2 because the odds of Rook not getting at least a paper cut are nil. This is Rhys Ford and I don't want her any other way.