Read Online Criminal Past Hazard and Somerset Gregory Ashe 9781796469554 Books

Product details Series Hazard and Somerset (Book 6) Paperback 503 pages Publisher Independently published (February 23, 2019) Language English ISBN-10 1796469556

Criminal Past Hazard and Somerset Gregory Ashe 9781796469554 Books Reviews

• Gregory Ashe is very successful at making me like, care deeply about and even love Emery and Somers. That is an accomplishment. I've read the previous 5 in this series and retain all the backstory which was revealed so far. I looked forward to the new installment BUT I strongly disliked and speed-skimmed to avoid large swathes of the narrative due to the overdose of sadistic torture, violence, bullying and intense physical suffering. EG the bully entering his injured quarry's hospital room. The victim has a serious road-burn facial injuries plus severe concussion. Bully locks them inside and then violently punches him about the head and face over and over. Each blow causing massive pain, and bleeding of the face, including puncturing the cheek.
  
  That same night he captures the injured man, ties him to a chair and beats him, then knifes and razors his skin, forces him to drink urine, to eat yellow phlegm the bully's coughed up, cut him with a drill. Chapter 36 begins The tip of the pliers slipped deeper under (victim's) fingernail. Then with a twist the nail popped free. (this happens to all the fingernails) In order to get finish the book, I had to simply skip chapters of unending torture. And this didn't just apply to the man above. Flashbacks of a victim, and bragging by different bullies describe beatings, knife cuttings, gang rapes, sexual trafficking, betrayals of the weak when they are in need, etc.
  
  Too much of the story was physically impossible. EG, the captive mentioned above is suddenly free after extensive torture, beating, being shot, all this 1 day after serious concussion...nevertheless he can climb a ladder, then climb from a 2nd floor window to look for something on the house's roof. Healthy people are not normally that strong and agile, but for someone who's been tortured and beaten to this level, it is impossible-- unless he's Superman.
  
  Police and city governmental corruption is so extensive as to also be unbelievable. Can 1/4 of the cops in town really be murderous, on the take and involved in crime themselves? Would good cops in charge of the station really sit back and let this happen, when they know very well what is going on?
  
  My request of the author for his next novel in the series is to avoid gruesome violence, avoid repeated flashback description of how the protagonist was severely tortured by classmates, make your world more believable and less disgusting to read. These 2 protagonists are beautiful people whose love and lives are worth showing to the world. Please don't fill the story with ugly and to my mind unnecessary horror.
• As with other authors whose characters I've come to be attached to, I didn't want to start this book ... I knew, from the other reviews, that it was going to be tough. I also thought it might be the last in the series and I was hesitant to let Hazard and Somers go. But it drew me ... as all the others in this series have. I read the first 25% over two days, after work. At 29% , the book picked up so quickly and so intensely that I found myself putting off 'date night' so I could get through the 'issues'. Be aware once hooked, you won't want to put it down until 90% and even then, when I actually completed the book this morning, there were resolutions. Not sure everything was resolved. You have to read all the books I wouldn't recommend this as a stand-alone since the 'issues' start from book one. And yes, Hazard and Somers have a turbulent relationship (I would believe two alpha males would) and yes, they are opposites in many ways. Some of the angst yeah ... I just wanted to slap them upside the heads. It was a tough read the author has a great command of action sequences, which I can tell you, are difficult to write and get across to the reader. I was there ... in the scenes ... holding my breath at times and reading way too fast. When I read the author's blog, I found this isn't the last we'll see of Hazard and Somers (the sign at the end leads to many more 'issues') but was sorry to see it won't be until 2019. But I can see why the author needs a break this book was that intense and if it was for me, I'm sure it was for the author to write. Plus, it will give me the chance to read these books again ... as I most definitely will! The series is fantastic ... this book is the best so far. I'm very curious to see where Hazard goes ... SPOILER ALERT ... PI?
• I have enjoyed the books in this series. I like Hazard and Somerset as characters. All characters in this series are interesting, the author knows how to develop characters while also keeping the action going. I didn't like this book as much as the previous books. First, Mikey Grames was in my mind being portrayed as a broken down crackhead in previous books. So how did he suddenly become so lethal in this book? He repeatedly owned two macho super cops who made boneheaded, emotional decisions, and were both outsmarted and overpowered by Grames. At every turn. Even the resolution with Mikey seemed more luck than skill. Disappointing. The extensive kidnapping torture scenes were over the top. If I wasn't a fan of this series, I would have stopped reading. Just way too much. The end was also disappointing. Assuming there is another book in the series, I hope the author does not rhapsodize about how good Hazard looks in an apron. Also, a small issue. But the author has this habit of writing back and forth conversations that go on for pages, with no breaks for "Hazard said..." or a reflection on how one of the characters is reacting to something that was said. As a result, there were times when I had to page back to try and figure out who started the conversation, so I could keep on track with which character was speaking. Come on, this is writing 101.