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4.39 AVERAGE
4.39 AVERAGE
Following the events of the previous two novels, Nick Nowak's life has fallen to pieces. Hiding from his friends, his life, and the world, Nick is subsumed by grief and numbness until Bert's mother comes to ask for his help in investigating a suspicious death.
This instalment of the Boystown Mysteries is quite emotionally complex because it's not the grief/vengeance book, and it's not the healing book, it's the stage that comes in between. It's the awkward stage, where numbness has settled into every aspect of Nick's existence, and he isn't ready yet to pick himself back up, but he's past the initial despair and anger over everything that went down. In some ways it's a quiet book, introducing a new potential love interest that I can actually see working well for Nick, as well as developing Brian into an adoptive father figure and such a good friend. There are some incredibly sad moments involving Nick and Bert's mother quietly grieving together over photo albums, and Nick's old friend Ross fading in more ways than one from AIDS. Then there are moving moments like Bert's mother somehow becoming a maternal figure for Nick, even after everything they've gone through. This series has got under my skin and it's so powerful.
cw: rape of a minor; religious abuse; familial rejection; homophobia
absolutely nothing *~*researchy*~* to see here; an ongoing reading list
1. A Study in Scarlet 2.5/5
2. The Hound of the Baskervilles 5/5
3. The Adventure of the Final Problem 4/5
4. Bath Haus 4.5/5
5. The Forest of Stolen Girls 4/5
6. The Red Palace 2/5
7. The Silence of Bones 1/5
8. Lay Your Sleeping Head 4/5
9. Carved in Bone 5/5
10. Lies with Man 3/5
11. Howtown 2/5
12. The Hidden Law 2/5
13. The Death of Friends 3/5
14. The Burning Plain 3.5/5
15. Rag and Bone 4/5
16. Pretty Pretty Boys 2/5
17. Three Nick Nowak Mysteries 5/5
18. Three More Nick Nowak Mysteries 3/5
19. Two Nick Nowak Novellas 4/5
20. A Time For Secrets 5/5
21. Murder Book 5/5
22. From the Ashes 4/5
This instalment of the Boystown Mysteries is quite emotionally complex because it's not the grief/vengeance book, and it's not the healing book, it's the stage that comes in between. It's the awkward stage, where numbness has settled into every aspect of Nick's existence, and he isn't ready yet to pick himself back up, but he's past the initial despair and anger over everything that went down. In some ways it's a quiet book, introducing a new potential love interest that I can actually see working well for Nick, as well as developing Brian into an adoptive father figure and such a good friend. There are some incredibly sad moments involving Nick and Bert's mother quietly grieving together over photo albums, and Nick's old friend Ross fading in more ways than one from AIDS. Then there are moving moments like Bert's mother somehow becoming a maternal figure for Nick, even after everything they've gone through. This series has got under my skin and it's so powerful.
cw: rape of a minor; religious abuse; familial rejection; homophobia
absolutely nothing *~*researchy*~* to see here; an ongoing reading list
1. A Study in Scarlet 2.5/5
2. The Hound of the Baskervilles 5/5
3. The Adventure of the Final Problem 4/5
4. Bath Haus 4.5/5
5. The Forest of Stolen Girls 4/5
6. The Red Palace 2/5
7. The Silence of Bones 1/5
8. Lay Your Sleeping Head 4/5
9. Carved in Bone 5/5
10. Lies with Man 3/5
11. Howtown 2/5
12. The Hidden Law 2/5
13. The Death of Friends 3/5
14. The Burning Plain 3.5/5
15. Rag and Bone 4/5
16. Pretty Pretty Boys 2/5
17. Three Nick Nowak Mysteries 5/5
18. Three More Nick Nowak Mysteries 3/5
19. Two Nick Nowak Novellas 4/5
20. A Time For Secrets 5/5
21. Murder Book 5/5
22. From the Ashes 4/5
5++++++ stars
Some people are like orchids: delicate, easily bruised, wilted by a chill breeze. Others are more like weeds: stubborn, hard to dig out, impossible to kill. Most people don’t know which they are until life starts to kick them around. Early in 1984, I found out which I am. I’m a weed.
And now i need some fluff.
"I went back to watching the videos. A boy, who sang like a girl, told me not to stop believing—though what I wasn’t supposed to stop believing was a bit elusive."
Some people are like orchids: delicate, easily bruised, wilted by a chill breeze. Others are more like weeds: stubborn, hard to dig out, impossible to kill. Most people don’t know which they are until life starts to kick them around. Early in 1984, I found out which I am. I’m a weed.
And now i need some fluff.
"I went back to watching the videos. A boy, who sang like a girl, told me not to stop believing—though what I wasn’t supposed to stop believing was a bit elusive."
dark
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
As this book opens, Nick is seen coping, or not coping, with the realities of what he did and what happened in the last installment. This is a shaken Nick, changed, searching. But as time goes by, you see a hint of the old, intelligent and curious PI emerging. The title is apt, and the positive arc of this story is welcome.
One of the most poignant parts of this is reading about the varying reactions of the gay men around Nick to the still-perplexing onslaught of AIDS. At that time, no one really knew what caused the disease. Theories ran from kissing to sex to poppers, to poisoning and conspiracy, to a judgment by the Almighty. Men who became ill reacted in various different ways, and watching Ross, Daniel and other familiar friends try to find their path is painful in a myriad of ways. But despite that, this book ends positively for Nick, as he rises from his own ashes to reach for a little of the confident, diligent investigator he once was. Much of his life path still remains in doubt, waiting for the next installment. As I am...
One of the most poignant parts of this is reading about the varying reactions of the gay men around Nick to the still-perplexing onslaught of AIDS. At that time, no one really knew what caused the disease. Theories ran from kissing to sex to poppers, to poisoning and conspiracy, to a judgment by the Almighty. Men who became ill reacted in various different ways, and watching Ross, Daniel and other familiar friends try to find their path is painful in a myriad of ways. But despite that, this book ends positively for Nick, as he rises from his own ashes to reach for a little of the confident, diligent investigator he once was. Much of his life path still remains in doubt, waiting for the next installment. As I am...
adventurous
emotional
mysterious
sad
medium-paced
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
The following is the reason I picked up the ebook version of Boystown 6: From the Ashes for review:
I had just finished listening to the first Boystown mystery on audio. I really enjoyed the first three short stories and thought, why not skip books 2, 3, 4, and 5? (I didn’t own them…yet…by the way.) Since the first three mysteries were considered standalones, I could read the others later, right? I thought I’d be lucky and find out Boystown 6: From the Ashes also was a standalone. Um. Not. By the time I hit the second chapter of From the Ashes, I realized, that yes, I was going to have to go back and read books 2, 3, 4, and 5 to figure out what the heck I just got myself involved in. After spending some time at All Romance (hey, I hit it lucky. There was a half price rebate sale going on), I bought the books in the series I didn’t already own, then proceeded to read the series in the order it was written.
Man, oh man, what an adventure that led up to From the Ashes! See, something happened while reading all these stories. I developed a love/hate relationship with Nick Nowak. The man is definitely into sex. I mean every chance he gets, but let’s not go there for now.
This mystery takes place a year after Bert Harker’s murder and as the blurb states, Nick has really let himself go in his grief. He’s crossed over the threshold into alcoholism, though is a functional alcoholic, and he bartends in exchange for money and alcohol.
After visiting the Catholic school, something just isn’t right when one of the priests objects to Nick poking around in Father Maniatis’s death. Nick relays this information to Mrs. Harker and then decides to investigate further. They come to the agreement that instead of being paid, Mrs. Harker will show him the family photo album. Mrs. Harker is kind of cute with how she doles out in increments Bert’s childhood photos, but it’s also these times that I found rather sad and bittersweet, as Nick and Mrs. Harker sat together looking through this album. Even though these two started off disliking each other, I think these little moments of looking back at Bert’s early life helped with their grieving. I know I had a few tears in my eyes at the final picture.
As usual, Mr. Thornton weaves a very tangible mystery that keeps one guessing until the very end, and it’s also a chance to look back at the 80s, to a time when a little known virus was hitting the gay community. I’m giving Boystown 6: From the Ashes a high 5 Star rating and would also highly recommend reading all the previous Boystown mysteries, in their given order, to really appreciate this latest installment.
And yes, Mr. Thornton, I want more Nick!
I had just finished listening to the first Boystown mystery on audio. I really enjoyed the first three short stories and thought, why not skip books 2, 3, 4, and 5? (I didn’t own them…yet…by the way.) Since the first three mysteries were considered standalones, I could read the others later, right? I thought I’d be lucky and find out Boystown 6: From the Ashes also was a standalone. Um. Not. By the time I hit the second chapter of From the Ashes, I realized, that yes, I was going to have to go back and read books 2, 3, 4, and 5 to figure out what the heck I just got myself involved in. After spending some time at All Romance (hey, I hit it lucky. There was a half price rebate sale going on), I bought the books in the series I didn’t already own, then proceeded to read the series in the order it was written.
Man, oh man, what an adventure that led up to From the Ashes! See, something happened while reading all these stories. I developed a love/hate relationship with Nick Nowak. The man is definitely into sex. I mean every chance he gets, but let’s not go there for now.
This mystery takes place a year after Bert Harker’s murder and as the blurb states, Nick has really let himself go in his grief. He’s crossed over the threshold into alcoholism, though is a functional alcoholic, and he bartends in exchange for money and alcohol.
Spoiler
I don’t think I’m revealing too much when I say that it is Mrs. Harker who finds out where Nick is working and asks him to look into the death of Father Maniatis. Mrs. Harker believes that there is more to his sudden heart attack and asks Nick to look into it. Now, the reason Mrs. Harker is considered the most unlikely person to ask for Nicks help is because these two have not liked each other since they met, back when Bert first became sick with AIDS.After visiting the Catholic school, something just isn’t right when one of the priests objects to Nick poking around in Father Maniatis’s death. Nick relays this information to Mrs. Harker and then decides to investigate further. They come to the agreement that instead of being paid, Mrs. Harker will show him the family photo album. Mrs. Harker is kind of cute with how she doles out in increments Bert’s childhood photos, but it’s also these times that I found rather sad and bittersweet, as Nick and Mrs. Harker sat together looking through this album. Even though these two started off disliking each other, I think these little moments of looking back at Bert’s early life helped with their grieving. I know I had a few tears in my eyes at the final picture.
As usual, Mr. Thornton weaves a very tangible mystery that keeps one guessing until the very end, and it’s also a chance to look back at the 80s, to a time when a little known virus was hitting the gay community. I’m giving Boystown 6: From the Ashes a high 5 Star rating and would also highly recommend reading all the previous Boystown mysteries, in their given order, to really appreciate this latest installment.
And yes, Mr. Thornton, I want more Nick!
Somehow this one hurt even more than the last. I never knew I wanted to know so much about the gay scene in 80's Chicago but here I am.
+plus cover being less weird as fuck. I'm thankful.
+plus cover being less weird as fuck. I'm thankful.
I wasn't as thrilled by the mystery storyline in this one as I have been with some of the other books, so while I loved the personal storyline, I'm bumping it down to 4 stars.
“People shouldn't die alone.”
“Because dying in a crowd is so much fun?”
My favorite part of the book was definitely the Harker over the years photo album. The way it started in the beginning broke my heart.
Another great mystery solved by Nick Nowak and I liked that it wasn’t as straight forward – I like that his trips outside of Chicago got him to go and see Ross and of course, may excellent quotes that had me giggling in the middle of all the angst he was going through.
I can’t believe that I started to like Mrs. Harker. Maybe, I was just as shocked as Nick Nowak about that. And Terry, lol, “Did he offer you a blow job?”
“Ross was going to God. Daniel to his fear and Harker to Justice. Each in his way had betrayed me.”
“….Bible study on Wednesday. Someone died – I hoped they were old.”
“Call me a prude but blow jobs should only be traded for blow jobs; and then only between consenting adults.”
Now, I’m definitely feeling a void in my life These are most definitely my favorite series of mystery books ever. A MILLION TIMES better than Adrian English series. GOD – SO MUCH BETTER THAN “JOSH LANYON.”
“Because dying in a crowd is so much fun?”
My favorite part of the book was definitely the Harker over the years photo album. The way it started in the beginning broke my heart.
Another great mystery solved by Nick Nowak and I liked that it wasn’t as straight forward – I like that his trips outside of Chicago got him to go and see Ross and of course, may excellent quotes that had me giggling in the middle of all the angst he was going through.
I can’t believe that I started to like Mrs. Harker. Maybe, I was just as shocked as Nick Nowak about that. And Terry, lol, “Did he offer you a blow job?”
“Ross was going to God. Daniel to his fear and Harker to Justice. Each in his way had betrayed me.”
“….Bible study on Wednesday. Someone died – I hoped they were old.”
“Call me a prude but blow jobs should only be traded for blow jobs; and then only between consenting adults.”
Now, I’m definitely feeling a void in my life These are most definitely my favorite series of mystery books ever. A MILLION TIMES better than Adrian English series. GOD – SO MUCH BETTER THAN “JOSH LANYON.”