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a book (series) rec
Aug. 10th, 2021 12:16 pm...gonna need you all to go read Cole McCade’s Criminal Intentions series AND THEN COME BACK AND FLAIL INCOHERENTLY WITH ME, OKAY, THANKS
(seriously, though, I literally finished reading...went back...and started again from the beginning. that’s how much I wanted to spend more time with these characters.) (no, look, I...wrote mental fanfic. I have thoughts in my head. if that’s not some sort of recommendation...)
I mean, it’s got everything: m/m romance, action (I’m always so in awe of people who can write action; I can’t), reluctant partners to lovers, intricate detective work and plots (it’s sort of like...if a detective/CSI type show, with someone with Will Graham’s empathy, had a baby with luscious gay romance), main characters that are Iranian-American and Korean-American and swear at each other and then learn each other’s languages, lots of distracting shirtlessness and “oops I was staring kind of a lot”, and briefly fake relationship (undercover at a nightclub, which...clearly...requires that they dance together and then make out, you know...to maintain the...cover...)
...AND SO MUCH HURT/COMFORT and “leave me, save yourself!” moments *SCREAMS LOUDLY ABOUT THAT ONE SCENE*, and bisexual and demisexual and trans and aromantic and lesbian representation, meeting the parents (eventually), and a lot of social commentary and context, and SHOULD I MENTION THE “CHARACTER IS ASKED TO PUT DOWN WEAPONS AND KEEPS REMOVING AN IMPROBABLE NUMBER OF WEAPONS FROM THEIR PERSON” TROPE, OH MY GOD.
(...man, there really are a lot of tropes in this series. But they ARE ALL THE TROPES WE LOVE, AND DONE SO WELL, AND I HAVE THE FEELINGS.)
Fair warning, there are also a LOT of trigger warnings, mostly for the cases they’re solving, but the author’s very very good about listing those at the beginning! And I also always appreciate a good Author’s Note commentary at the end. :-)
