Showing posts with label Scott Sherman. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Scott Sherman. Show all posts

Saturday, November 3, 2012

Second You Sin by Scott Sherman




Reviewer: Alan Chin
Publisher: Kensington Books
Pages: 314


This is the second book of the Kevin Connor Mystery series. Kevin Connor is a New York City callboy, who also spends his off hours volunteering at the local daycare center. He’s drop-dead gorgeous, has a heart of gold, and his circle of friends/family are all rather wacky and entertaining.  His only problem is that, one by one, his circle of friends is shrinking. Someone is killing off Big-Apple hustlers. Kevin decides to investigate these strange deaths, only to end up a target himself.

Let me state up front, this is a comedy. It’s meant to tickle your funny bone, and nothing more. It’s what I call ‘a beach read.’ The kind of book where 1) everybody is gay, 2) everybody is buff and beautiful, and 3) the plot is as paper thin as the characters. That said, it is hilarious and will keep you turning pages.

This is a light-hearted, speedy read that has something amusing on almost every page. People who enjoy gay comedies will undoubtedly love this story. It’s funny, often witty, and sexy.

I don’t normally read comedies, because I personally start off enjoying the humorous banter, but after fifty pages or so I begin to tire of it. This book was no exception. I found that the author often went off on long, sometimes chapter long, tangents where he blathered on about something unrelated to the story, simply to amuse the reader.

The last thing I’ll mention is that Kensington is a large and respected publisher, yet I found numerous grammatical/spelling errors. My opinion of this publisher has plummeted.

For readers who like a frivolous and funny gay romp, I can highly recommend this book. For readers who prefer a more serious and complex look at life, I suggest you pass on this one.

Sunday, August 26, 2012

THIRD YOU DIE (Kevin Connor Mysteries) by Scott Sherman






Reviewer: Bob Lind, Echo Magazine 
Publisher: Kensington, Sept 2012
Pages: 288

Compromise is part of any relationship, and Kevin Connor gave up his lucrative (but dangerous) work as an in-demand Manhattan call-boy, in order to appease his lover Tony, a New York City police detective. Ironically, Kevin ends up working for his mother, Sophie, who parlayed a memorable debacle on a daytime talk show into her own such show. 

When "Sophie's Voice" does an episode about sex trade workers, Kevin meets Brent, a gay porn star who looks enough like him to startle both of them, and they have a nice conversation. When Kevin tries to contact Brent later, there is no answer, and he finds out that nobody has seen him since a few days after the TV appearance, he remembers Brent mentioned he wanted to leave the business, but worried about angering those who had set him up in it. As the weeks pass, and the young man is still missing, Kevin looks into his disappearance, and finds out the kind of hold the studio might have had on him. 

Kevin is also dealing with Tony's remaining closeted to his co-workers, friends and young son, which forces Kevin into "Best Friend" mode when anyone else is around. Kevin wonders if Tony is as committed to the relationship as he is. 

This is (obviously) the third in the series, and perhaps the best so far. Sherman crafts an engaging mystery, tempered with colorful characters and his quick wit throughout. While not absolutely necessary to read the series in order (since enough back-story is given), I recommend you catch up on the previous books as well. This is probably my favorite current mystery series, and seems to get better with each new book. Five stars out of five!

http://www.scottshermanonline.com/