Psycop Series M/M

[Regina]

I am starting this thread so we can gather and discuss reading Psycop 1: Among the Living by Jordan Castillo Price. When should we start?



Here is the series, including the free shorts (I think I have them all and they are in order, if you notice a mistake let me know):

[Gwennie]

We want to give everyone a few days to get the book, so what if shoot for next Friday?

Btw, Regina, did you ever finish the series?

[Regina]

Friday sounds perfect. Wendy I stopped after Secrets. So I have read all the shorts and I only have two more to go (Camp Hell and GhostTV). :( This is why I want to start from the beginning!

[Leea]

I haven't read any books by this author before, are the books long?

Friday sounds good, gives me time to find the books. I can't wait, thanks for letting me join you and i've wanted to read these books for awhile or the last time you and Wendy raved about them. These will be my first M/M centered books... exciting!

[Gwennie]

No, actually books 1-3 are considered Novella's. I don't know if the first one even hits 200 pages.

[Gwennie]

LOL, yep, the first one is only 90 pages. Well worth it though. They get longer and longer though. GhosTV was around 350 pages.

Leea, I'm PMing you.

[Leea]

Thanks!

[Stacia (the 2010 club)]

I rarely read a series back to back, so I might not be able to do the complete series right away, but I'll join in for the first one, since it looks like you guys are waiting until next Friday.

[Gwennie]

I doubt I'll reread the whole series back to back either.

Yay, lots of people reading one of my favorites!

[Regina]

I won't be able to either. This will be fun!

[Leea]

Sounds like we'll just start with the first book and go from there... sounds good to me :)

[Kay]

Oh yay! for this thread!! This is a great series that I will need to pick up again. I've only read up to 2.1, Striking Sparks.

[Stacia (the 2010 club)]

My ebook of Among the Living is showing as 69 pages. Do I have part of a copy or is it really this short?

It has a different cover from the GR default :

[Gwennie]

I got the page count off Goodreads, so you may have a different page count on the ebook. It looks like it's the right one. It is VERY short, more of a Novella.

My copy is lendable Stacia, if you want me to email it to you just in case.

[Regina]

I have them all on Amazon and they are lendable, I think I lent out the first two to Wendy before she bought them? But I can try and lend them again.

[Regina]

I just checked, my first one is no longer lendable.

[Leea]

Okay... I've got loaded on my nook and ready to go. it's 90 pages, does that sound right?

I'm going to start it tonight and read some because i'm very busy with my son's field trip tomorrow. can't wait!

[Regina]

So I started the re-read on my train commute in today and I completely forgot that (view spoiler)[even though Jacob approaches Vic, that Vic initiated the sexual contact.

"I closed the distance between us, slipped my arms around his neck and initiated a kiss of my own."

"I was the one to fumble with buttons and zippers, to expose our stiff cocks to the ambient light of my ex-partner's bathroom. Marks seemed pleased enough to let our experience take him where it would and to have me call the shots. But then again, Marks could probably people up whenever he was horny. I had to jump on any chance that presented itself to ..."
(hide spoiler)]

Damn, Jacob is hot.

"He was a big, dark-eyed, dark-haired hunk of a guy .... up close it was obvious that he was as wide as tow of me put together, and it was all solid muscle."

I also forgot that he refers to Jacob as "Marks" in this one.

[Leea]

Yeah, Marks is hot. This is my first m/m book. Vic's drug/medication use is still strange and I don't truly understand it. I'm only a few chapters in.

[Regina]

Leea, this was my first m/m too. I think -- unless you count Rough Riders. His medication is exactly a described in the beginning, so that he won't see/here dead people. But it is strange, it definitely is an added element to his character.

[Regina]

I am glad you are liking it! He has a very interesting voice. I like this quote, it says so much about him:

"I rummaged around my glove compartment and found an old pair of shades crusted with mysterious dust. How did things get dusty while they were shut inside a glovebox? .....Gutierrez' eyes were on the tiny GPS navigation screen. Also dusty, I noted."

[Juls]

I was bothered by the use of drugs by Vic but found that if he didnt use them he was bombarded by ghosts, sorry, that might be a spoiler of sorts.

[Regina]

I think you are safe. Vic says that upfront.

[Gwennie]

I haven't started yet (finishing up Explosive 18), but it's great because I can still join in and read the spoilers.

I think that the drug use was a good addition to his personality. First, it helps him control his gift. I felt bad for him, because it would be HARD to see what he sees every day. The drugs keep him sane. And his overuse of them, well that is a flaw. But all good characters need a flaw.

Jacob is hot! Vic and Jacob together are HOT.

I always loved how Vic was a bit of a mess. His life, his clothes, his place... he's not a very together guy and it causes me to relate to him.

[Juls]

Wendy F wrote: "Jacob is hot! Vic and Jacob together are HOT. "

i ditto that!

[Leea]

That's it Vic just seems like he's a mess and the 'drugs' don't help. I'm at the part where he just gets his new partner and (view spoiler)[ they man is murdered, vic takes some sleeping pills and then they go back to see if he can talk with the murder victims ghost (hide spoiler)]

I already like how you were just placed in a story already going... but that it was easy to catch on.

This is my first m/m focused book, now I did read the Rough Riders but I didn't see that relationship coming. I don't have any issue with is at all. I'm actually excited to see how that relationship progresses emotionally.

[Regina]

For those re-reading (view spoiler)[ are you seeing Lisa' statements and actions in a new light? I am. It seems obvious now that she is always doing the si no (hide spoiler)]

[Leea]

Regina and Wendy, What should I read next? Book .5 or 1.1??

[Regina]

Either. :)

[Gwennie]

I'm so glad you guys are liking it! I haven't been able to start, darn holidays. I'm just getting home from a christmas party so I'll probably read it tomorrow.

The books just get better and better, imo. For being such short books she does a really good job fleshing them out as realistic characters.

Leea, maybe just go right into 1.1, because both are big Jacob books and you can always go back and read .5 at any time.

[Leea]

Thanks ladies! Once we've read the first book are we going to continue?

[Regina]

I am up for anything!

[Leea]

I'm rereading , but after that i'd like to continue.

[Gwennie]

I'll probably reread them all intermingled with other books. I need to start TBH soon.

[Leea]

Yeah you do :). I was thinking the same thing, they are very short reads and I can read then in between the heavier books.

[Gwennie]

That's what I did last time. I have to warn you that YEARS go by between PsyCop installments, so it's best to read them slowly.

[Regina]

I need to finish Lord John and the Scottish Prisoner and then I will start TBH. But I feel such an itch to keep going now with Jacob and Vic. My first time through I went through them slowly, but right now I feel like I just want to rush through and read Criss Cross.

I never gave Storm Born a fair try b/c I got distracted with Scottish Prisoner, so I am torn between reading Storm Born or moving on to TBH.

[Gwennie]

LOL, I need to read TBH but really want to start Lord John and get my Jamie fix.

I also want to move on to Iron Queen, lol. And read the PsyCops again.

[Regina]

Crap! I wish I could freeze time and do it all. :)

[Gwennie]

LOL!! I know!

[Regina]

But instead, I need to go clean the gosh darned bathroom. Bleh. ;)

I know you don't do audio, but I will love to listen to the audio of the psycop series. I can't wait to write my review for #1, it is going to be mainly my favorite quotes. Price is so funny.

[Gwennie]

LOL! IT does have some great quotes.

[Regina]

So what do you all think of who Vic's ideal was David Bowie and Jacob's ideal was (view spoiler)[Vic (hide spoiler)]? And how would that make (view spoiler)[Jacob feel? (hide spoiler)] We know how it makes Vic feel. ;)

[Gwennie]

I think that it is the perfect representation of who the two of them are. And I think that that was such a sweet moment, it really showed (view spoiler)[exactly how Jacob felt about Vic (hide spoiler)]. (Don't read this next spoiler unless you've read book 2) It also was a hint to (view spoiler)[the attraction Vic will have toward Crash (hide spoiler)].

[Regina]

Oh great point! He really struggles with that, which I think is very realistic. I wonder how that will evolve down the road.

[Regina]

I am re-posting the Jacob interview for the benefit of everyone here, this is from Jordan Castillo Price's website. Below is just an excerpt from it, the interview shouldn't be read until the Crash character has been introduced in the series, but the portion below is not a spoiler:

Carolyn: There's a whole bunch of questions about Victor I'm supposed to ask you. When did you realize you were in love with him?

Jacob: I want to say it was love at first sight, but that's such a cliché. I guess lust would be a more accurate word for what I was feeling. The love? Watching him with Lisa, when she'd hijacked his Auracel and was sick as a dog. He was so tender with her, really sweet, and I got to see through the chinks in his armor.

Carolyn: So you waited until the day after you met him to fall in love.

Jacob: If you want to put it that way.

Carolyn: How would you describe his appearance?

Jacob: Hot. Very hot.

Carolyn: Care to be more specific?

Jacob: He's got the whole rock-star look going on, rail-thin, tight jeans, faded T-shirt. He comes off as really butch, at first. It's that scowl of his. Now that I know him better, I can tell it's focus, rather than anger. He's always filtering stuff out that most of us will never have to deal with, I get that about him now. But when we used to see him at departmental meetings….

Carolyn: Now I know why you were always so picky about where we sat.

Jacob: He looked like such a badass. But then he's got such full lips, a really hot mouth….

Carolyn: We're venturing into TMI here.

Jacob: He's an amazing kisser.

[Gwennie]

It is really realistic. It happens, and it's good to see how he fights it whenever he's around.

It's hard because I've read them all, so I don't want to give anything away on accident about Camp Hell or GhosTV. Suffice to say that I think that eventually (view spoiler)[something will happen that will lead to Crash and Vic to sleep together (hide spoiler)].

[Regina]

I agree. And you know I haven't read those, but I am thinking that too. But, (view spoiler)[ I am actually okay with it. Not because I want him too, but b/c Price seems to be writing about real life (except for the paranormal stuff) and people who are insecure make bad choices. ACtually, people just make bad choices in general. So I admire an author who is willing to go there and I trust her to deal with the aftermath in an authentic way. For example, the revelation that Jacob sought Crash out in Secrets. That was some good writing. (hide spoiler)]

[Gwennie]

Regina, I freaking love that part of the interview. It gets me all warm and fuzzy. Who doesn't want their man to look at them and think of them like that.

I'm grinning like an idiot again.

[Regina]

Me too Wendy and I needed it this morning!

I am such a fan girl at this point, my parents live 1 hour from Ms. Price and I feel like taking a road trip to where she lives! But that would be creepy and I am not creepy. ;) I just want to tell her - -please write more in this series!