Police Brutality

Hazard and Somerset: A Union of Swords, Book 2

By: Gregory Ashe

Narrated by: Tristan James

For the first time in a long while, Emery Hazard’s life is good. His new business as a private detective is taking off. Things are good at home. He loves his boyfriend, John-Henry Somerset; he loves their daughter. He might even love the new friends they’ve found. There’s only one problem: Somers has been talking about marriage.

When a former colleague, Walter Hoffmeister, comes to Hazard and hires him to look into a series of anonymous death threats, Hazard eagerly jumps on the distraction. Hoffmeister might be a jerk, but he’s a paying jerk, and Hazard isn’t convinced the threats are serious.

Until, that is, Hoffmeister is almost gunned down on Hazard’s doorstep. As Hazard investigates more deeply, he learns that more than one person in Wahredua has a reason to wish Hoffmeister dead. His search takes him to the Ozark Volunteers, reincarnated as the Bright Lights movement, but it also leads him into a sanctuary of radical Christianity. Meanwhile, an antifa activist has arrived in town, calling for Hoffmeister’s death and threatening total war with the Bright Lights.

As Hazard continues to look for answers, he becomes a target, too - and not just because he’s helping Hoffmeister. The Keeper of Bees is still at large, and the killer hasn’t lost interest in Emery Hazard. Not yet. Not, Hazard begins to suspect, until the Keeper has taken everything Hazard holds dear.

©2020 Gregory Ashe (P)2020 Gregory Ashe

Highly recommended

it's getting better and better with each new book! Cannot recommend highly enough. New mystery to solve and finally the M proposal at the end.

A series that really reflects the real world!

For as emotionally heavy as the last story was, this one felt like a fresh breath of air. That is to say, as much of a fresh breath of air trying to figure out who is trying to scare/hurt a police officer is; as much of a fresh breath of air is for a couple ready to move on to the next level while one seems commitment-phobic.

Hazard and Somerset definitely made strides into the problems they were having as a couple and individually in the last book. Hazard is continuing to work as a private investigator and the work definitely seems to help him with his depression. He has an added sense of guilt in regards to a former client who had been held by a serial killer. The mysterious entity calling himself the Keeper of Bees doesn't seem to be actively trying to terrorize Hazard in this book, but his guilt over his client and worry over what the killer might do over the future is affecting Hazard in a big way. His feelings for Somerset are strong but can Hazard risk making him a possible future target? I definitely can understand how he feels, but again with the men and their dislike for talking about feelings. Overall, I feel like the two men are at a good place in their relationship and on the precipice of being even closer even with their worries.

The cases that Hazard and Somerset and his new partner are investigating in this book aren't as tense to me as the previous book either. Though to be perfectly honest, Hazard's new client and the title of the book should make it feel like it is. The police officer that hired Hazard to look into threats into his life has engaged in excessive force while on duty. The things that are happening in these books are very relevant to what is happening in the world now. I know this book was written months ago, but really the issues of systemic racism and police brutality have been going on forever and thanks to social media have really been brought to light the last few years. It isn't quite a light subject, but the anti-facist protesters and the white supremacist hate group Bright Lights seem to be taking a little break in this book and it notched down the tension for me.

There are plenty of suspicious characters in this book though. Somerset's new partner comes off as young and kind of shallow. I was concerned about some of his behavior in this book, but I am waiting to see how things proceed with him before judging to harshly. The new pastor of the local church is also acting in strange ways and has a lot of hostility for Hazard and for the police department. I do believe we will see more drama from the situation in the future.

I thought this was a really good mystery and I did enjoy that the tension was a little less in this book. Not that I am against the angst and pressure and worry that I felt listening to the first book, but I am positive that there will be more in the future books, perhaps even the next one. I needed a moment to breathe between the strained situations so I don't feel on edge the whole time. I would definitely recommend listening to the books in order because so much of what these characters have been through have made them who they are in this book. However if you picked up this book without listening or reading any of the previous ones, I feel like the author does a good job of explaining their history while telling their new story. Either way, I definitely recommend the story and the narrator. Tristan James does a great job with this series.

Interesting developments

So, by the time I’m writing this review, I’ve already read this book 3 times this year – first by e-book, and twice now by audio, and it just doesn’t get old? I wanted to say I have a short attention span, but maybe that’s not right. The ending is for sure very memorable and sweet, after a lot of angst and heartache in this book, but.

The mystery aspect. The deduction happens quickly and the arrest is from the sidelines so we’re not really IN the action as say, what happened in the other books. The mystery piece, whatever it was going to be, could be counted on to take a step back from the horrors of The Rational Faculty. That book introduces the events that will define this story’s arc, so that’s only logical. And yet, I still feel like I missed something important.

This is still a solid book, with a great ending for Hazard and Somers that makes it feel enough of a HFN that makes me wonder if this series can be called a mystery or a romance (I like to say it’s both).

I was worried about this book the first time I read it, because while I adore Hazard and Somers, the book’s title was a bit worrisome. Because I wondered how a white author could possibly do right by writing about police brutality? Well, there certainly aren’t many POC characters in this series to begin with, and some parts in this book were definitely OH WHY *facepalm* moments. However, if you’ve already made it this far into the series, none of this would be particularly shocking, at this point, but I think they’re still worth pointing out.

I’m sure I missed something, but I would say that the trigger warnings for this book include blackmail, threats, violence, homomisia, transmisia, racism, misogyny, ableism, mentions of suicide, abuse, revenge, fatmisia, PTSD, mentions of rape and underage sexual abuse, and codependency.

The Bright Lights movement is a menace and just a new name with a new face for a white supremacist group in Wadhredua. They’re up to no good, but when you combine that with dirty cops who like to get revenge on people off the books? It’s a bad combination and two white gay detectives, Somers and Dulac, are guaranteed to run into the worst of them.

Hazard now has his own office for his private investigator business…but he doesn’t really have a name for his business yet and his first paying client winded up kidnapped and almost murdered, so, Hazard doesn’t have a great track record with his new business. The PI business grows by word of mouth, though, so who better to show up on his door than a former colleague – Walter Hoffmeister.

Hoffmeister has always been nasty, a very particular kind of nasty you never want to get on the wrong side of. And this book proves that tenfold. It’s hard to sympathize with him being worried for his life and hiring Hazard to investigate what’s going on. And I guess I don’t really feel anything for him at all except for disgust.

Because this is a top notch Hazard and Somerset book, we can’t just have one mystery going on, but expect multiple plots happening at once. I love seeing how the story weaves all of these together. Hazard and Somers have to find what’s right for them going forward in both their professional and personal lives. Hazard not only with his PI work, but also that side of him that can’t back down for a mystery and the small town of Wahreda never seems to fail to deliver. Somers and Dulac have their jobs to do, but when Hazard starts getting tangled into all of it? Well, let’s just say Dulac’s very presence doesn’t make anything better.

And what’s with Dulac anyways? There’s just fishy about him. Is he really just some frat boy who likes sleeping around, or is there something more? Upon my re-reads I’m just not convinced Dulac is as innocent as he seems. His first appearance in The Rational Faculty was a hardass on his first day of work, but the suspect thing was the coffee he got for Somers. Doing research on his partner and knowing the exact way Somers takes his coffee? There’s also the constant descriptions of Dulac looking all innocent until the last moment when you think he might not be. And also the way he treats his partners is a bit…ridiculous. To put it kindly. Would it be too easy to suggest he’s the Keeper of Bees? Sure. Am I ruling him out though? NOPE.

Anyways, with Hazard and Somers, they’re still in their honeymoon phase of their relationship, as their neighbor Rebeca says. They haven’t really shown the bad parts of themselves to each other yet. Or at least not as grown-ups. We know how they were as kids and how awful Somers USED to be. But now is brand new territory.

Hazard is still depressed and hasn’t gotten to see a therapist for the events in July from the book, Criminal Past. Somers is dealing with going to work and not seeing Hazard everyday, and only just finally starting to not worry about how he’ll find Hazard once he returns home from work.

It’s a lot of growing pains for Hazard and Somers. But good ones. Necessary ones. And that makes the ending of this book pay off spectacularly.

And talking about that ending, I do love that Cora isn’t some evil ex-wife stereotype, but is actually really lovely and I love all her interactions with Hazard and Somers now that things have settled between all of them. I couldn’t have imagined Cora’s had it easy either when caught in the whirling romance of Hazard and Somers, so do I hope she gets her HEA too? Of course! I wish her only the best. Evie remains adorable and the best child.

The audiobooks are narrated by the great Tristan James. I’ve listened to his narrations before, but considering how many hours combined the Hazard and Somerset books are, I’ve definitely listened to him AS Hazard and Somers the most. And he really embodies who Hazard and Somers are and it’s hard to read these books in text without his voice in my head for all the characters. Is that creepy?

I think one of my all-time favorite parts in his narrations though happens in this book. It’s when a certain someone gets his nose broken and the voice for that character’s broken nose is HILARIOUS. I had to go back and replay it a couple times. And bookmark it, of course.

The ending to the mystery aspect of this story seems a bit…ableist. It doesn’t sit right with me at all. So. Make of that what you will.

I’ve mostly delayed writing a review for this book because of the events happening in the world. And it just didn’t feel right to write a review for this book. I don’t think this book necessarily glorifies the police and makes them some holier than thou entity you should respect out of some misguided sense of justice. This series doesn’t shy away from showing that cops are bad and prone to taking bribes. I mean, that’s how Hazard winded off the force and going into being a private investigator now, right? But I think this series does have moments that takes the side of cops because that’s what Hazard used to be and it’s something that Somers is now. Hazard and Somers are good people just trying to solve murders, but…well. I like thinking of these mystery books as the fiction that they are and something that doesn’t reflect real life. Because at the end of the day in real life? ACAB. I adore Hazard and Somers but I think it’s also important to remember that they’re fictional characters and loving them isn’t an endorsement for the jobs they play.

Every book is a rollercoaster

With each successive book in this series, I keep waiting for Hazard and Somerset to settle into their stride. Both professionally and personally, they're both still struggling here, but the amount of work that goes into every step forward makes the success that much sweeter. As always, the core mystery is so well laid out that the "aha" moment at the reveal is completely satisfying.

Tristan James provides a superb performance. If he can make me want to adopt Gray Dulac rather than strangle him, his talent knows no bounds!

Love love love

I don't know where to begin I love this series I love the Arthur and I especially loved Tristan James for making this feel so real. this is a must-read series

It’s totally possible for ears to be beautiful

So our Hazard has found his new calling in life, being a private investigator and quite frankly, it suits him perfectly. After all, Hazard has always been a bit of a bad boy. And Ree is finally in a good place. The relationship between him and Somer is better than ever, he has found some new friends that he might like (more likely like he can tolerate .. lol 🤣) and his daughter is getting lovelier. However Somer has to disturb the calm water in his heart by mentioning about marriage so Hazard is in desperate need of a distraction. And he found it in Hoffmeister. Apparently, in the tiny town of Wahredua, more than one person wants Hoffmeister dead. Although they are no longer official partners, Hazard and Somerset have to once again unite to solve the trouble behind Hoffmeister.

You know why I love Gregory Ashe’s books? It’s because he can make me fall in love with the flawed, imperfect and very human characters. Neither Hazard nor Somerest are saints, they are flawed, they have their own shortcomings but they are so imperfectly perfect for each other. And Hazard’s stubbornness has driven me nuts plenty a times but at the same time, I love how unapologetically himself he is. And I’m also happy that Somers is being better at handling his drinks. I’m also super happy to see Hazard eating jelly (being jealous 😂😛) seeing Somers together with his new work partner who happens to be younger, handsome and very gay. And boy, these two are at each other’s throat for like 99% of the book. Talk about miscommunication! Idiots! 😂🤦‍♀️ But hooray for some angry sex! Lol 😋 Overall, this book truly ties up the loose ends perfectly and the ending was just perfect. I also like when Ree and Somers end up at. I mean it’s not there yet but these two will get a place of white picket fences, a minivan and 2.5 kids. Lol 😂 I’m also hoping for a book for a certain supporting character where he will get his happily ever after. Riveting, intriguing and as always enthralling. Looking forward to next audio in the series. 🥰


4.5 It’s totally possible for ears to be beautiful stars
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️💫




Audio rating

Story - 4.5 stars ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️💫
Narration - 4.5 stars ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️💫
Performance - 5 stars ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Overall - 4.5 stars ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️💫

I love it …. Except…

I have two issues so far. 1- is the author claimed the Xmas tree as Christian in origin. It’s not. It’s Pagan in origin. It technically predates Christianity.
2- the reader, Tristan, while he does do a great job with the other characters- often mixes up the “voices” of Summers and Hazard. I have been through the entire 1st series of Hazard and Sommers and I freaking LOVE it. Great world building, character building. Sometimes a touch angsty but I get it. Great stories and relationships woven through the series.
I can identify with Hazard and his rage that he holds in.

Great Story

I loved this book just like all the rest of the series.I felt like I was in the same room, the interactions were realistic. Another great addition to the series

Loved this book!

I absolutely love Hazard and Somerset! If you haven’t listen to them you should. Every book just gets better! As always the narrator is wonderful!

Another winner

I was given a free copy of this audiobook in return for an honest review.

I love that this series has such complicated characters and multi levels of drama and intrigue. It has a great balance of mystery and romance. In this book Hazard’ latest client is a nightmare, racist, homophobe. But he needs help and Hazard steps up. I also love the way GA weaves in relevant social issues within the cast of characters; including a “holier than thou” trans pastor.

This story is a rollercoaster ride and focuses more on the relationship than the first book in this series. It is of course woven around a mystery and I think some clues to the over arching mystery. But of course I can’t really tell because GA is a tricky guy. To say Hazard starts his new PI business with unresolved issues is an understatement. The events in the first series keep cropping up. He goes from treating Somerset like crap to confessing undying love; it gives me whiplash. Somerset wants more from the relationship, but Hazard is resistant for Hazard-like reasons. So of course Somerset does stupid things to push Hazard’s buttons.

Like I said, a roller coaster. But in the end, I enjoyed the ride and the “surprise” ending that just makes me anxious for the next book, job well done! As a side note, before this book I hated Somerset’s new partner; he just isn’t right on so many levels. But he grows a little in this book and really made me laugh on several occasions. However, at this point I don’t trust GA not to spring some kind of surprise about him, so I’m keeping my eye on him.

Part of my change of heart about Somerset’s partner is the masterful job Tristan James does in performing his character. He does a great job with all the guys, but he does particularly well with that guy. He gets all the inflections dead on. The conversation about “threesomes” and “foursomes” had me laughing out loud. He can just convey so much feeling through his voice that I just got wrapped up in the story. On to Book Three!