The Monet Murders (The Art of Murder, #2) in Q&A with Josh Lanyon

May 31, 2017 Steve Leonard rated it it was amazing

Shelves: favorites

A tightly paced, emotionally wrenching thriller.

'The Monet Murders' (which picks up eight months after the events of 'The Mermaid Murders') begins with FBI Special Agent Jason West wondering about the status of his 'in limbo' relationship with BAU Chief Sam Kennedy.

It turns out the news on the relationship front isn't great, which has the effect of punching you (the reader) squarely in the gut and then not giving you time to catch your breath because the mystery immediately ramps up into high g ...more

5 likes · Like · see review

May 29, 2017 Jax rated it really liked it

Shelves: series, 4-star

I enjoyed this, but I haven’t completely warmed to Sam yet. He’s very closed down and it’s hard not to think that Jason would be better off with someone willing to give more of himself. I think I’m having the kind of problem some people had with Adrien’s Jake, although I never had a problem with him. Strange. But I’m guessing we’ll see that evolve over the course of any future books. Anyway, the mystery was good so I didn’t mind the stretches where Sam wasn’t around. But I did lose track of one ...more

5 likes · Like · see review

Aug 02, 2018 ⚓Dan⚓ rated it it was amazing

What can I say...It's pure Josh :^) ...more

5 likes · Like · see review

Jun 04, 2017 Debra Guyette rated it it was amazing

FBI Special Agent Jason West of the Art Crimes Team has enjoyed all the late night sexy conversations with Sam Kennedy, Behavioral Analysis Unit Chief. But when Sam calls Jon in to help with a crime, Jason receives mixed signals from Sam. Their job comes first and someone is murdering wealthy art collectors, leaving behind a poor rendition of Monet depicting the scene of the crime. While Sam may have called him in to help professionally, he has made it clear that personally, there is nothing. Ja ...more

Like · see review

May 27, 2017 Karen rated it it was amazing

Shelves: series, josh-lanyon, art-and-artists, serial-killer, fbi

Love this series, love these guys (in all their oft frustrating complexity), love how the mystery is constructed with its overlapping cases. And I love how certain issues are left pending for the next episode.

BTW, if by chance you read the final version from the point that the draft version ended (after Chapter 20) — go back NOW and re-read the final version of that chapter. :)

In previous chapters I noted only a few, very minor, changes in wording, but Chapter 20 is significantly different in co ...more

Like · see review

May 28, 2017 Kirsten rated it really liked it

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here. Let me preface this by saying that I really did enjoy the book. Read it through completely in one sitting. I still like Jason and Sam a lot; they're fast moving up the ranks of favorite couple in Joshland.

That said, there were a few things that I didn't care for, or I wanted more of: (view spoiler) Let me preface this by saying that I really did enjoy the book. Read it through completely in one sitting. I still like Jason and Sam a lot; they're fast moving up the ranks of favorite couple in Joshland.

That said, there were a few things that I didn't care for, or I wanted more of: (view spoiler)[I wanted more of Sam. He vanishes early on in the book and it seems like he is mostly gone for half the story. Jason is on his own investigating and questioning people. The thing I liked best about Mermaid Murders was Sam and Jason's back and forth and solving the crime together, their banter and glances and watching each other. That was pretty much absent in this book. They were both off on their own and only really came together near the end. (Plus as a little personal aside, Winter Kill is one of my least favorite Josh books, so having all the references to it was a bit frustrating. I mostly put it out of my mind, so having to struggle to remember what happened in that book and the characters from that book was personally irksome.)

For some reason, I thought Tucker from the Fair series was mentioned in this world. I don't know where I got that idea, but I kept expecting him to make an appearance.

I also wanted to see the reaction of Jason's family when Sam showed up at the birthday party. I love family interactions and seeing Jason upend what his family thinks of him would have been a great payoff for him having to put up with the party. I wanted more of Jason's family in general.

As for the Jason/Shipka thing, I was definitely getting vibes of Adrien/that professor guy from it. (Or Kit and his stalker/admirer.) I knew Jason was just feeling lonely and didn't really "want" him in any long term way. It felt more like an "any port in the storm" kind of situation to me. Which was weird, because I kinda thought that Jason was a relationship guy, not a casual sex guy, from the first book? Am I wrong in thinking that? That said, it was kinda weird that Jason was thinking about Shipka during the sex with Sam. Realistic, but not very romantic at all. Made the blowjob seem more desperate and effort rather than pleasure to me.

Finally, I did get a small sense of menace from Eric Greenleaf when Jason confronted him (not a lot, just a little), but pretty much none from Shepherd. They didn't seem very scary to me, so Jason freaking out at the end came a little out of the blue. I've never associated mass shooters with serial killers. It seems like completely different pathologies to me, so that was a bit of a surprise. Doesn't Eric have his own boat? He could have just left the island. Killing the FBI people would have been a suicide play, and he didn't seem desperate or suicidal enough. Just angry at the Durrands.

Lastly, I'm glad Jason got his cufflink back. ;) (hide spoiler)] ...more

Like · see review

May 29, 2017 Katelyn Sweigart rated it it was amazing

One of my favorite Lanyon series

The emotional rollercoaster of this book and this particular couple is what had me up until the early morning reading. As an art history lover, I adore this series and the technical parts of the mystery are fantastic.

While there were technical difficulties in obtaining the right version of the book, Josh was 100% transparent and quickly rectified the situation.

Like · see review