An easy, light, adorable read that was exactly what I needed right now.

(Catching up on the short stories I missed reading before Season 5 starts.)

I knew this story because it’s shown in the TV series, but it was still a nice melancholy piece of Expanse world building to read.

The idea of Solomon still out there on the burn, long dead as civilization moved forward and colonized the system because of his work...woof. Terrifying, and poignant all at once.

Just can't do it. Can't go through a book where I hate almost every single character involved. Even after reading a summary of the book, it appears people (see: Heathcliff) get even worse, and I'm not down for that.

It's been so long since I stayed up until 5am to finish a book, but Hench got me there again.

Full review to come, I really enjoyed this one and want to talk about it more, but I need to think about it more.

Plus, I need to figure out just how to talk about that fucking ending. Holy shit.

This was such a weird read for me, because on one hand, I devoured this in one sitting on the couch, by the fireplace, with a dog occasionally demanding head scritches and cuddles. I didn't even fall asleep! It was great. Good pacing, good writing, pretty good characterization of our main girl Avery.

On the other hand, were the Hawthorne boys. Oh my god, what an insufferable lot they were - and to have the romance lead into some sort of weird love triangle that didn't feel organic AT ALL just made it all so much weirder and hard to swallow. I don't even want to get started on the insertion of the mystery about some girl who died before Avery arrives and we're supposed to care about it all of a sudden? Like it's suddenly THE mystery along with the inheritance??

So. Great pacing, good hook, good story overall. I liked Avery, when she wasn't thinking of the Hawthorne boys romantically. I liked her figuring out the mystery of why she got the inheritance, I liked seeing her adjust, I liked her.

I just could not stand Jameson and Grayson Hawthorne. Xander was okay. Nash was the best, but only because he barely got any focus. I couldn't stand the "cliffhanger" moments where a character drops a bombshell on Avery, but then the book just MOVES ON to the next scene or the next day and we have to wait a few pages or chapters to figure out what the bombshell meant. It's infuriating but it also kept me going, so good job, I guess?

Part of me wants to check out book 2 because I like Avery and I hope the ending of this book means more of a Xander focus, but if it starts to look like it's going to be Jameson and Grayson making their angst the center of attention again, I'm out.

First off, I have to say that this book is definitely not for everyone. There are some heavy themes involved, and it reminds me a lot of the Dexter series by Jeff Lindsay, simply because we focus on Archer, who is something very close to a sociopath, but so sympathetic that it makes the book work.

What makes Hushed work so well is how Kelley York works through not only Archer dealing with being a monster and a killer, but explaining how his extremely toxic, co-dependent relationship with Vivian works. Everything Archer does or has done is explained and while it's never justified, we still understand.

Then Evan comes along just as Archer's relationship with Vivian (who jumps from bad boyfriend to bad boyfriend) starts to unravel, and the addition of someone new in his life brings a whole new level to the novel. The romance here is fantastic, as we see it entirely from Archer's perspective; Archer, who's never known someone who simply wants to be with him, wants to know him, doesn't want anything but his company. The development of the relationship juxtaposed with the pain of his and Vivian's friendship coming apart is fantastic.

I recommend Hushed for anyone who might find it interesting, but with the warning that it's a very either/or sort of novel.