I often found myself laughing out loud at their antics, wanting to kick them in the arse for not sharing their feelings with one another, and give them a hug for the difficulties they experience with their families. ~ Slick, Guilty Pleasures
Description:
“If you dig up the past, be prepared to get dirty.”
It hasn’t been all smooth sailing since plumber Tom Paretski and P.I. Phil Morrison became connected at the heart, if not always at Tom’s dodgy hip. Neither of their families has been shy about voicing their disapproval, which hasn’t helped Tom’s uneasy relationship with his prickly older sister, Cherry.
But when Cherry is poisoned at her own engagement party, the horror of her near death has Tom’s head spinning with possible culprits. Is it her fiance Gregory, a cathedral canon with an unfortunate manner and an alarming taste for taxidermy? Someone from her old writers’ circle, which she left after a row? Or could the attack be connected to her work as a barrister?
Phil is just as desperate to solve the case before someone ends up dead-and he fears it could be Tom. At least one of their suspects has a dark secret to hide, which makes Tom’s sixth sense for finding things like a target painted on his back…
Warning: Contains a strong, silent, macho PI; a cheeky, chirpy, cat-owning plumber; and a gag gift from beyond the grave that’ll put the cat firmly among the pigeons.
Review copy provided for an honest review
Relief Valve is the continuation of the lives and relationship between plumber Tom Paretski and P.I. Phil Morrison from the first book in this series, Pressure Head. I love these two men who seem so opposite yet have this amazing connection. When Tom’s sister is poisoned at her engagement party, the guys once again find themselves embroiled in a mystery with loads of suspects.
While they try to catch a criminal, their relationship blossoms as they discover more about each other and their prior lives. I appreciated the mystery aspect of this book however, I felt like it overshadowed their relationship and I would have loved more alone time between Tom and Phil. Despite that, I often found myself laughing out loud at their antics, wanting to kick them in the arse for not sharing their feelings with one another, and give them a hug for the difficulties they experience with their families. These men make me smile and drive me a wee bit crazy, but with each story I become more invested in their lives and I’m already looking forward to their next book.
J.L. Merrow is a British author so be aware that you will be thrown head first into the use of British terms and slang. Personally, I love it and the characters in my head have the loveliest accents and I always learn some new term while reading her books.
I enjoy that in each book, we see this couple’s relationship growing and changing and the men figuring out how to incorporate the other into their lives and their very different career paths. In this book, we meet several interesting characters one I’m sure we’ll see again in the next book. Tom’s gift of finding things with his mind leads him to make an interesting discovery about his own life; one that I’m sure will rock his world and make book three a wild ride.
I enjoyed spending time with these characters again and while I would have liked more relationship building and less mystery, this was still a very good story.
Thanks for the review Slick.