Guilt by Association

Guilt by Association (2018) Gregory Ashe

Wow.

Lots of things that irritated me in the previous book were fixed here with a vengeance.

(H)e’d suffered from periods of severe headaches. Over the last six weeks, bruises and abrasions had healed; the gunshot wound to his shoulder and the deep slice across his palm had closed; but the headaches, although they had grown less frequent, persisted. And tonight, they were persisting like a bitch.

And as much as I like Nico, he actually did an excellent job with the issues that Nico and Hazard had–issues that were NOT mentioned in the previous books, even if they were there.

I meant he’s not the kind that likes jealousy.”

“I’m not jealous.”

“You beat up a guy for kissing your boyfriend.”

“I didn’t beat him up. You make it sound like I’m in eighth grade.”
…
“Not everybody likes jealousy. Some people get off on it. Some don’t mind— they might appreciate it, but they aren’t looking for it. And some people don’t like it. Hate it, even.”

And take this bit.

“You want to know why I like Nico? Because he’s nice to me. Because he cares about me.”

It’s why I like Nico, but that’s is not enough for a lasting relationship.

I was worried that the relationship between Nico and Hazard was just going to end, conveniently, but the story pointed out the deep-seated issues between the two–nevermind the fact that both were coming out of relationships that ended badly.

The mystery was also good. The sheriff has been murdered, and a lot of people were happy to see him dead–including Hazard. But a special prosecutor has been brought in, and he seems to have his own agenda.

As I said, the editing of this book was MUCH better, which made it a much stronger read. The relationships between Hazard and Somers has been interesting and compelling from the beginning, as have the mysteries. But the editing kept pulling me out of the story as I tried to figure out what was happening. That didn’t happen in this story.

There is boinking in this book, so take that into consideration.
Rating: 7.5/10

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