There was quite a lot of casual biphobia towards one of the characters. It was used very casually and it did not sit well with me. There were other problems with the writing and characters as well, but honestly as a bisexual, I was not pleased with how casually biphobic this book was at times.

Thank you very much to Netgalley & Bold Strokes Books for giving me an E-Arc in exchange for an honest review!


CW: Biohobia, Murder/Death


3.5 / 5 Stars

I struggled with the first 20% of this book, mainly because the writing felt a bit rough around the edges. The opening chapters feature two characters in a bar, just talking. There's no description of their expressions, gestures, or even thoughts—just pure dialogue like this:

"A"
"B"
"A"
"B"
"A"
"B"

It wasn't just the bare-bones writing style that threw me off, but the dialogue itself. It was clear that the characters were speaking more for the reader’s benefit than for each other, creating a disconnect that took me out of the story. The worst offender? Chapter one, with Mark and Milo. These are the two we’re supposed to root for, but honestly? I didn’t feel any spark between them. Given the story's direction, I knew they’d end up together, but they had so little chemistry that I found myself almost wishing we'd give Brick a second chance, even though he was kind of a jerk.

Actually, they were all kind of jerks at times. I couldn’t figure out how these people even became friends, given how intense their interactions were. It felt like a friend group that came together in school or college and stayed together out of habit rather than genuine connection. The kind of friendship that’s more about shared history than present feelings. It would’ve been interesting to explore this dynamic, but there wasn’t really time between all the childish pettiness and playground-level behavior.

That said, I did grow to like Vaughn and Tim a lot. I was relieved that we didn’t fall into the cliché "I just want your money" plotline. Honestly, by the end, I was wishing Vaughn could’ve called Tim "Timothy" one more time—ready to apologize—only for Tim to say, “No, I ... I actually like it when you say it.” Would have been the cherry on top of an already great established couple. Because, out of the three and a half couples we got—sorry, Brick—Vaughn and Tim were by far the best. I can't tell you how relieved I was when Vaughn survived the death flags.

Speaking of death, the book promises a murder mystery, but no one actually dies until we’re almost 80% in. And then the "mystery" is wrapped up in just two chapters. The senator’s murder felt completely unnecessary and only loosely connected to the actual cabin murder, which made it even less impactful.

On a slightly different note, I have to mention something that bothered me: there was quite a bit of casual biphobia throughout the story, particularly aimed at Brick. It was tossed around like it was just another Tuesday, and honestly, it didn’t sit well with me.

Final Thoughts:
I didn’t hate the story, but it’s not one that will stick with me for long. Vaughn and Tim definitely made it worth reading, but I doubt everyone will love them the way I did—or the way they loved each other—so keep that in mind.

I've read a lot of David Pederson's historicals and remember liking them. So I was surprised that this contemporary was so hard to get through. The first 30 percent or so—maybe more—was tell, tell, tell (with a healthy serving of "As you know, Bob" dialogue). I couldn't figure out why any decent person would want to hang out with any of the characters apart from Milo. And then, once the murder took place, the unraveling of the mystery had at least one major plot hole. (Spoilers: No one with an upscale lodge and a fancy kitchen would try to slice bread with a carving knife rather than a bread knife. Oh, and a presidential candidate doesn't pick their running mate until they've sewn up the nomination.)

I can, and will, forgive a lot in a book if I care about the characters and am caught up in the plot, but this book achieved neither of those things. All in all, it was a surprising disappointment.

My thanks to the publisher/NetGalley for an advance copy of this book.