What a treat for the readers ❤️

This book was everything I was hoping for and more!
The satisfying feeling after reading almost 30 books to arrive to this place where you know this characters so well and love them so much. GA is a genius and one of the best writers I’ve ever read. How he managed to write a book having (several times together) 8 characters with such defined and strong personalities and making it look fluid, consistent and true to their self’s is beyond words. This series is a treat for the fans, I laughed so many times, hurt for them, rooted for them, I’m in awe.
The mystery was very engaging and to see all 8 working together and contributing with their strongest assets was chefs kiss.
Team and Jem as always showing us how to treat the person you love, they’re the kinder couple, they are adorable together and they always talk everything out with the utmost respect and love. 💕 I love them so much.
It was a joy to see their interactions with all the other characters. Particularly Hazard and Tean, Jem and Auggie, Shaw and North, John-Henry and Tean, Shaw and Jem, just precious… To see characters we know so well through Tean and Jem’s eyes was mesmerizing.
One of the things I most admire about GA writing is the way he portrays relationships in an extremely realistic way (It’s also very frustrating at times 😅) we see all their flaws, fears, insecurities and how it affects their relationships romantic or not.
Highly recommended! And the narration was perfection as always

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

Action, Humor and Romance

Exceptional!! That's the word for this book. Gregory Ashe did it again surprising us with another book, bringing together the characters from the previous four series, and delighting the readers who wanted more from each couple.
This book proved to be an exhilarating ride, filled with peril, suspense, humor, and a storyline that allowed us to reunite with these characters that we, readers, love so much. It featured touching moments of personal growth and vulnerability, not just between Tean and Jem, but also in Tean's interactions with both Hazard and Sommers.
I am thrilled to have listened to this book.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

A great start to a new series.

I actually backed this on kickstarter as I was so excited to get a series featuring my favourite men.

This was a fab start, with enough mystery and plot to keep it interesting but my favourite part was all of the couples interacting with each other. (North and Shaw are my faves so waiting with baited breath for their book.).

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

J.F. Harding & Gregory Ashe=a match made in Heaven

🎧🎧 Audio Review 🎧🎧🎧

Terrific stuff once again from the awesome Mr J.F. Harding. I SO hope he does the final 2 stories in the series too.

📚📚📚 Book Review 📚📚📚

Wonderful. Plenty of laughs, the banter is full of snark, the murders are complicated and everyone is clueless...until Tean and Jem do their thing. LOVED catching up with everyone [well, except maybe Shaw 🥴, who was as irritating as ever but quite funny too], and the next story The Girl in the Wind [which I think might have Theo and Auggie front and centre] takes place back in good old Wahredua. Great to be a part of Greg's Kickstarter project. Ooh, and for you audiophiles 🎧 out there, J.F. Harding is behind the mic 🎤 for this particular instalment I understand and also I would assume The Girl in the Wind.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

Yes!!!

I received this audiobook as an advanced listener.

What can I say? I loved it. We asked and Gregory Ashe delivered. It pays to be patient
For the first time, we have four couples from Ashe's four discrete series' fully together in one book, instead of the occasional cameo in one another series.

Listening to Hazard and Somerset, Shaw and North, Auggie and Theo, and Tean and Jem, jointly trying to solve an unpleasant crime is highly entertaining on both the humour and mystery levels.
I laughed at Shaw's continued bro love for Hazard. I was stressed at the continued impulsiveness of Augie, Shaw, Jem and even Hazard. I was sympathetic to their long-suffering partners. Yet, somehow the dynamics both within the couple's individual relationships bring many strengths to the team, as they try to solve the mystery. This is even when as individuals they questioned whether they should be involved or see themselves as working as a team.

The book is really Tean and Jem's story and opens with Tean attending a professional conference and taking his partner Jem along. Before we know we have death and mayhem, not helped by Jem being tempted back into some of his old ways. Hazard, now a private investigator is attending the conference owing to a birthday gift that supports his wide-ranging interests, along with his partner, police chief Somerset, along with their friends Augie, a social media expert and Theo, a teacher the latter feeling uncomfortable being away from his daughter who has health problems. Shaw and North, private investigators end up at the same venue following their case.

I like that the storyline is intriguing and that facts are not forced into place. The ending is a great cliff hanger and you feel that despite their differences the couples leave one another with a grudging respect. This book is also a useful reflection on relationships, both intimate and family.

Luckily, I have book 2 in Kindle format that I am currently reading to see where things go!

Lastly, we must not forget the great narration of J, F.Harding, I enjoyed the Kindle edition of the book but hearing Jeff Harding read out aloud heightens both the tension and the humour. He also is able to keep the main characters distinct. Ashe always seems to find the right narrator for his books.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

Wonderful start to a new series

So much has already been said regarding the plot of The Face in the Water so I won’t go there. Instead I’ll just add my voice to the many fans of Gregory Ashe’s fabulous writing. Just read, or preferably listen, because you won’t be disappointed.

How he managed it I can’t imagine… keeping each of his four couples from previous books/series straight in his head is quite a feat. And then to bring them all together to solve a crime… mind blowing. No one could accuse this author of writing boring characters - each one is different and each couple dynamic is unique and nothing like the others. All are loveable/endearing in one way or another but they’re all flawed and very human.

I really can’t recommend this author’s work highly enough, and JF Harding - superb performance. How he has given eight distinct and difference characters a different voice is quite astonishing. A thoroughly enjoyable experience.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

AMAZING 😍

What a masterstroke of Gregory Ashe to create a series with four of his couples. Alone, each couple has difficult pyschology and gained a hard won relationship by the end of their series. In the first book in this new series we meet them all again after their hea's. It's like catching up with old friends.
The series title 'Iron on Iron' is perfect because my goodness, sparks fly. And when these guys are all in the same place the banter is hilarious.
I adore the budding bromance between info nerds Tean and Hazard, both of whom had difficulty finding and keeping friendship outside of their relationship.
I could wax lyrical about how entertaining this book is, but I suggest you listen to the other series first to get the most enjoyment out of this series. I loved it, and the narration. Bravo!

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

1 person found this helpful

An excellent start!

When Gregory Ashe announced the Iron on Iron crossover series, I knew it was going to be good. However, I don’t think I was quite prepared for just how good it was going to be.

The Face In The Water hits the ground running — sprinting — as the first in this series. It was beyond wonderful to dive back into the lives of Tean and Jem once more. Instead of coming across like a sequel, The Face In The Water feels more like catching up with old friends. In typical Gregory Ashe fashion, the characters are allowed to live and breathe off the page, so it was lovely to see how far they’ve come.

The thing that makes a Tean & Jem novel so special is the abundance of heart and soul in these books. Every chapter is obviously written with so much care and love. It comes through in the attention to detail in Tean’s job as a wildlife veterinarian and in his deep love for animals, and it shows in the way Jem is trying every day to be a better person for the family he’s created. Mostly it’s evident in the love between the two characters that, after everything we went through with them in the Lion and The Lamb trilogy, feels wonderfully nostalgic.

The story is, of course, flawless. I never feel any trace of trepidation when starting a new Gregory Ashe book, because I know it’s going to be, to its core, remarkable storytelling. Considering this book has eight main characters on the stage at almost all times, each one is masterfully interwoven into the story, each of them bringing their own strength. Nothing felt like it had been shoehorned in, the plot flowing perfectly.

To say I am excited for the next in the series would be an understatement. I adored this book, and it was an incredible start to the Iron on Iron series.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

Perfection!

This book was everything I wanted and more!! Ashe is one of my favorite authors, the characters he creates are just so incredibly rich that you feel like you know them in real life, and the mysteries are always intriguing and keep you on your toes. It was especially special this time around as this book brings all our favorite characters from other series together and it worked so seamlessly! I was worried it would feel forced, but it didn't at all and just worked so well. I did not know I needed Tean and Hazard or Shaw and Jem to meet until this book, but now that that I've read it I know that I need more. There is still some tension between each individual couple, which works well to keep you interested in the individual story, rather than this feeling like "reunion" story that fits better as novella. I could have read hundreds of pages more in this one! It was the ultimate crossover and I'm absolutely stoked that we get three more stories!

And OF COURSE JF Harding nailed the audio. It's always a little hard when there is crossovers where the main characters of different stories usually have different narrators, but I thought Harding did a great job with all the voices so that even though they were different than what I'm used to, they still fit the characters.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

1 person found this helpful

All my favorite couples

I was so excited to pick up this audio to start out this new series. I’m a huge Gregory Ashe fan and have followed all four couples through their trials, tribulations and “Oh my God, did they just do that????” moments. I love them. When I saw how this new series was structured, I got super excited because each of the four couples gets their own book, but the other couples help (or hinder – with Shaw, it can go either way).
This book had the humor I love, the mystery I wanted solved, and enough shenanigans to carry my interest.

It’s hard to believe Tean and Jem are parents of two little girls. Sometimes Jem feels like he’s still a kid, and yet he’s stepped up and works with Tean so they’re fun parents who can also be strict when necessary. I wish I’d seen more of them interacting as a family, but the mystery had to be in the deep south – far away from Utah.

Soon, Tean and Jem are caught up in stuff they don’t necessarily understand. Then, of course, North and Shaw, John Henry and Emery, and Augie and Theo all wind up being pulled in. I think my favorite scenes were the ones with all eight men. Holy crap. Crowd scenes are brutal to write, and Gregory did a fantastic job.

I enjoyed this story and as the men are all headed back to Wahredua, I’m expecting more hijinks and chaos.

I will say I understood why Gregory chose J.F. Harding for this first book – he’s the narrator for Tean and Jem’s books as well as Theo and Augie’s. I’m curious to see whether he’ll have Charlie David do North and Shaw as well as Tristan James do Emery and John Henry. I’d love that, but if J.F. does the entire series, I’m fine with that as well. He’s a talented narrator. It’s always a bit of an adjustment for me when the characters appear in each others’ books – I hear Charlie David and I always think North and Shaw, for example. Regardless of how Gregory organizes this, I can’t wait for what comes next.

(oh, and if you want to know what a pyromancer is, you’ll have to ask Shaw – I’d never heard of it…)

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!