Great Follow up

Great follow up to the first book. Intrigued mystery with lovable and compelling characters. Top notch narration. Highly recommended.

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A great mystery with the odd moment of irk

*Possible spoilers in paragraph five*
The Mystery of the Curiosities see Sebastian Snow pulled back into another case as he’s left notes at crime scenes, that actually start at his own shop with a brick thrown through the window with the first note attached, and being Sebastian with his never-ending need to investigate and know more, he follows where they lead, often getting himself in dangerous situations.
What starts out as property damage soon turns to murder as he stumbles across bodies at several different scenes with nothing in common it seems apart from the clues and setup of the curiosities of P.T. Barnum. His new boyfriend, homicide detective Calvin Winter, does his best to keep him safe and implores Sebastian to stay away but his sleuthing ways just won’t stay at rest. Everything he uncovers leads him closer to danger until it’s possibly too late to save him at all.
I really enjoyed the plot of this one. The mysteries and links that it all has to a person and business that actually existed I think makes it slightly more real and easier to become invested in the outcome. The way that it keeps coming back to Sebastian doesn’t look good but then he also can’t help himself from following the clues that he’s left by the unknown assailant. Everything develops at a good pace, allowing the reader time to think on everything that’s happening and what it could possibly mean whilst also following Sebastian’s line of thinking. He does get himself into trouble on a number of occasions, more physically than anything but Calvin’s worry for him stands out as he implores that he keep out of the investigation, to at least stay safe. It took me a while but I had an idea on the suspect but red herrings pop up throughout to keep you guessing.
Sebastian and Calvin’s relationship has moved forward since book one. It’s a couple of months later and for Valentine’s Day, Sebastian would like, for once, to be romantic and go all out for their date. Things of course don’t go to plan with the current case on-going but it shows how much he wants to do for and to his boyfriend. Show how much he loves and appreciates him. They’ve definitely grown closer and that’s shown with the trust that they’ve built with each other. Along with their romance is the support that Sebastian offers for the times that Calvin suffers with his PTSD. As he won’t see anyone about it, it’s hard to know what to do but whatever he can do, he is all in for it. Sebastian’s dad and Calvin’s partner are again a huge support to both men, both on and off the case.
Whilst I really enjoyed the book overall, there are a couple of things that didn’t really work out for me. I get the Sebastian is extremely knowledgeable and is actually really good at putting all of the details of an investigation together but he is actually not a cop. There is no way he would be allowed so close to a case and definitely not with his boyfriend investigating it. Taking notes from scenes and having no fallout from it didn’t sit right. Maybe if he got some kind of fallout for it but no. Then Calvin’s worry over him being in such danger with a suspect sending him notes is definite concern with Sebastian promising several times to either stay away or call but he actually does the opposite, even lying straight to Calvin about his actions. Again, if he got some backlash but Calvin didn’t react in a way that I thought he would or should. Overall, Sebastian having to deal with consequences for his actions I think could have pushed this book to be better.
Overall, I’d recommend reading/listening to this one. I let myself enjoy the mystery of everything that went on and just let slide some of Sebastian’s “quirks”. It’s definitely something that can make you think about who the culprit could be and made me interested in P.T. Barnum and his curiosities. Fingers crossed the next book brings another great plot with a bit of repercussion for Sebastian if he continues to get underfoot.
Derrick McClain’s narration is again really enjoyable to listen to. There’s variation on his character’s voices and depth provided that gives you a sense of the emotions that the characters are feeling across the story. With things going from highs to lows and back again, it’s a lot to follow but Derrick holds everything together really well and I look forward to listening to him again.

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enjoyable series

I'm enjoying this series I like the storyline and the characters although Sebastian is frustrating at times but I think that's just who he is.
I will be buying the rest of the series,
overall I give it 5 stars.

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Enjoyable Story

A well written story with and interesting  concept.  The characters are likeable and the narration is very good.

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DNF

Serious problems with the first book that continued in this. Ran out of patience.

Sebastian has learned nothing from his previous experiences and immediately and consistently makes the stupidest decisions possible despite even having the self awareness of what a bad idea something is and how badly it's going to affect his relationships.

Gave the series a second chance because I don't like unsolved mysteries. biggest mystery turns out to be how this series is so highly rated. Everything else this author has done is better.

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1 person found this helpful