A Cole McGinnis Mystery Cole Kenjiro McGinnis, ex-cop and PI, is trying to get over the shooting death of his lover when a supposedly routine investigation lands in his lap. Investigating the apparent suicide of a prominent Korean businessman’s son proves to be anything but ordinary, especially when it introduces Cole to the dead man’s handsome cousin, Kim Jae-Min. Jae-Min’s cousin had a dirty … cousin had a dirty little secret, the kind that Cole has been familiar with all his life and that Jae-Min is still hiding from his family. The investigation leads Cole from tasteful mansions to seedy lover’s trysts to Dirty Kiss, the place where the rich and discreet go to indulge in desires their traditional-minded families would rather know nothing about.
It also leads Cole McGinnis into Jae-Min’s arms, and that could be a problem. Jae-Min’s cousin’s death is looking less and less like a suicide, and Jae-Min is looking more and more like a target. Cole has already lost one lover to violence—he’s not about to lose Jae-Min too.
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The Cole McGinnis Mysteries is one of my favorite gay romance mystery series. Following Cole McGinnis throughout this series was such a joy. His character is so complex, tragic, yet witty, and so much fun to be around. Watching him and Jae-Min fall in love was such a treat. Often heartbreaking with laugh out loud moments, each book is even better than the last.
Holy crap. This plot is relentless! There’s a lot that isn’t spelled out because that is not how the main character rolls, and it definitely adds to the tension.
I loved Cole’s humor; it is a sharp and poignant contrast to the damage he’s taken and how he struggles to live with his experiences. It fascinated me that in the sex scenes, his sentences became very long and complex, sometimes nonsensical, but extremely sensual. And Jae, his humor and his emotional strength, and in particular how his culture (Korean) colors his life choices, challenged Cole at every turn. It is an unsteady but heady dance as compelling as the murder Cole is trying to solve.
Highly recommended
Cole McGinnis is an ex-cop, private investigator who is approached by his brother Mike to solve the murder of his client’s son. After interviewing the client, Cole goes to the client’s home to interview the rest of the family. That’s were he meets Kim Jae-Min, the deceased’s cousin. Jae is a photographer, and is trying to deal with being a traditional Korean man who’s also gay. Cole and Jae are immediately attracted to each other. Jae’s fighting the attraction because he’s not out and doesn’t want to lose his family, while Cole’s doing his best to get Jae to be with him. There’s people that don’t want Cole to solve the murder, so there’s multiple attempts on his life. Next thing you know someone is after Jae as well.
I really loved this book and the whole series. Cole is your basic good guy who wants to do the right thing. We get to meet his brother Mike and his sister-in-law Maddie. His best friend, ex-cop Bobby, who likes to kick his butt in the boxing ring. Claudia, his office manager, is the tough love mother he never had. Then there’s Scarlet, Jae’s Nuna, who is an amazing woman that opens her arms to Cole. Cole gets into one calamity after another and it’s funny and gripping all in one.
The chemistry Rhys spins with all these characters is amazing. No matter who’s interacting, the chemistry is heard and felt. The cultural aspects that Rhys puts into her books is authentic and refreshing to me. I love learning new things and I’m never disappointed with Rhys books. This is a mystery-romance that ends in a HFN but continues in the series, so don’t stop with this one book.
I definitely recommend this book. There were parts that were so funny I was laughing until my stomach hurt and there’s parts that are so gripping that it kept me engaged. I literally could not put this book down.
This was fantastic! The immersion into Korean culture, the secrets hidden behind the veil of false respectability and cast of singular characters made for fun reading for me! As always Ms Ford brought Los Angeles to life with the melding of flavorful foods and people. Two main characters, Cole and Jae, were as beautiful together as they were difficult. I enjoyed their volley back and forth while trying to figure out how or if they fit. Both men have baggage that is not so easily discarded, and I liked that despite that fact they tried to see where it could lead between them.
The mystery was well written. I enjoyed delving into tangled ties between rich Korean families – the how and the why of the events that happened were really fascinating considering their uncommon mind set. All the secondary characters made this that more vivid. Ms Ford’s way with words created sassy vibrant group of people that surrounded Cole and Jae and became their defacto family. I really enjoyed Cole’s snooping around, his penchant for getting into trouble and his snarky at times irreverent attitude. By the way, I so didn’t get the culprit till the very end! I thought it was totally different person! Love when that happens!
The book is fast-paced, suspenseful and just awesome! I loved everything about it. Then again, it’s Rhys Ford, so every book of hers is a winner for me! Fantabulous and highly recommended by me!
I love this series! Cole McGinnis and Bobby are so much fun and completely crazy, throwing themselves head first into danger even when they are trying to avoid it.