Mysterious Pride!

I’ve only ever kinda-sorta dabbled in writing mystery or thrillers, and only in short fiction. I wrote “Keeping the Faith,” in Men of the Mean Streets (though even that was kind of cheating and sliding into fantasy, because it was about someone stealing a priest’s faith), and for Saints and Sinners short story contests, I did end up with two tales that kinda/sorta count as well: my out-of-print “Hometown Boy” (where an author goes back to his hometown to learn his childhood tormentors all had an “accident”), and “Sweet William” (where a drag queen gives her final confession with her priest before heading to her lethal injection).

Safe to say I’m an enjoyer of mysteries and thrillers, but I don’t think I have the writing chops to pull off a full-length novel with the skill others do. And that’s fine! Because I love sinking into a mystery or a thriller, and it’s Pride Month and I’m recommending books I loved, so…

How about two thrills?

Two different types of taking fire…

So, to start with, I’m going to talk about a thriller that also took the slightly-speculative route. Jessica L. Webb’s phenomenal Trigger is a medical thriller narrative given an ever-so-slight sci-fi twist. We meet our heroine, Dr. Kate Morrison, in a Vancouver ER, where fate puts her in the right place at the wrong time: a man stumbles in off the street and collapses, and while Kate tries to save him, police arrive and demand she not touch him at all. When she does—and when nothing bad happens and she manages to save the man’s life—instead of praise, Kate finds herself in the harsh criticism of RCMP officer Sergeant Andy Wyles, the woman who ordered Kate to keep her hands off the patient.

Confused, and despite Sergeant Wyles’s desire to keep Kate out of it, the doctor is soon caught up in something far darker than she could have imagined. Someone has turned human beings into bombs. Triggered by touch, people like this man have been exploding, and Kate is the first human being who seems somehow immune to triggering the effect. Suddenly very important to both the investigators who want to uncover who is behind this potential act of terrorism and also a danger to those who have created these human weapons, Sergeant Wyles has little choice but to draw Kate further into the investigation, working with her joint task force that crosses the Canadian-American border.

That’s right. A mystery centred around spontaneous human combustion. (Oh, and also there’s a lovely romantic sub-plot that blooms between the two heroines as the series continues, of course.)

Dr. Kate Morrison doesn’t know how or why someone would create human bombs that are triggered by touch. But when Sergeant Andy Wyles blocks Kate from touching the patient who collapses in her Vancouver ER, Kate joins the investigation to demand answers, regardless of the danger.

As the two women work together to find those responsible for creating an army of human weapons, Kate finds it increasingly difficult to ignore her feelings for the fiercely protective and unrelentingly perceptive cop. The investigation escalates, and Kate gradually begins to trust Andy, not only with her safety but also with the difficult details of her past.

With lives at risk and her heart on the line, Kate must search for a way to defuse the bombs and save her patients, even as she questions the intensifying connection between herself and Andy.

Next up, a book I read while on vacation about a vacation that goes very wrong, 24/7 by Yolanda Wallace set a pretty hectic pace from step one and didn’t let up on the throttle thereafter. As choices for “relaxing read while soaking in the sun” went, I ended up more-or-less gobbling it down instead, but I regretted nothing!

Finn, a travel writer who isn’t so good at making long-term connections, and Luisa, an officer with the Mexican Federal Police have a very quick—and fiery—connection that they both enjoy, never really thinking they’ll encounter each other again, but when the all-woman resort adventure Finn is enjoying for work turns out to be an opportunity for them to maybe get to know each other since it’s within range of Luisa’s life, things get a bit more complicated. And then, when the criminal element Luisa is trying to defeat also gets involved? Things go from complicated to deadly. 

Wallace has a real knack for turning up the tension and for heart-stopping thriller moments. Also? I rooted for those ladies something fierce.

Finn Chamberlain is a travel writer with more passport stamps than friends. Her career keeps her constantly on the go, leaving her precious little time for relationships. And that’s just the way she likes it—until a charged encounter with a beautiful stranger causes her to call her unsettled life into question.

Luisa Moreno is an officer with the Mexican Federal Police. Her chance meeting with Finn Chamberlain was supposed to be a one-time thing, but it leaves her wanting more. When Finn’s life is threatened, it’s up to Luisa to save her. Will Luisa’s rescue attempt be successful, or will she lose much more than her heart in the process?

Hit me up with your favourite queer thrillers and mysteries!