Mystery

An abandoned old house in a small town northeast of Houston is the site of a second murder, eerily similar to a supposed cold case of fourteen years earlier. FBI Agents CJ Johnston and Paige Riley are dispatched to find the link between the two homicides.

The team, including Ice and Billy, find the case to be anything but cold. For CJ and Paige, juggling the investigation while trying to keep their love affair a secret proves to be as hard as uncovering long-buried clues.

REVIEW
WARNING! If you haven’t read Keepers of the Cave yet, immediately abort! DO NOT READ PAST THIS PARAGRAPH! I would highly recommend finishing Keepers of the Cave before picking up Weeping Walls. You’d really be cheating yourself if you didn’t. There’s a beautiful depth to the story that would be better understood and appreciated if you start at the beginning. For those that have already finished Keepers of the Cave, this review is more like an extension of my previous review. Onward, we go!

Weeping Walls picks up right where Keepers of the Cave left off. CJ and Paige are working together on a new assignment involving a homicide, a cold case, and a haunted house in the town of Pecan Grove. Gerri Hill seems to have a real knack for weaving stories that scare the heck out of readers.

Stories can sometimes degrade down the line, from book #1, to book #2, to book #3, etc. The Southern Vampire Mysteries is a case in point. It’s like a car that runs out of gas and just eventually sputters to a rolling stop. Thankfully, this is not the case with the Johnston & Riley series. The writing is consistent and the storyline is just as engaging as Keepers of the Cave. Weeping Walls has a well-executed plot, and the character development for the main cast (CJ and Paige) as well as the supporting cast (Billy and Ice) is exceptional. You’ll develop a real fondness for this FBI dream team as you follow them on this crazy adventure.

CJ and Paige’s love story is what really shines in this series. They are both very likable and relatable characters, and the progression of their relationship is enjoyable to read. In Weeping Walls, CJ and Paige begin to see that what they started in Hoganville is becoming more than just a temporary affair. CJ and Paige both stumble into a place that they’ve never been before, as they allow themselves to let go of their fears to just love. The sex scenes are tastefully done, and the emotional aspect of their intimacy is powerfully written. What happens here is really a wonderful thing. Sigh. L’amour. I really hope that Gerri Hill will write at least another book or two for Johnston & Riley because this was friggin amazing.

SOUNDTRACK
1. Jose Gonzalez – Step Out
2. Shakey Graves feat. Esme Patterson – Dearly Departed
3. Radical Face – Secrets (Cellar Door)
4. Modest Mouse – Lampshades on Fire
5. Shins – Phantom Limb
6. King Charles – Gamble for a Rose
7. Matt Harke and Maggie Peake – Gold
8. Arctic Monkeys – Baby I’m Yours
9. Shins – September
10. Death Cab for Cutie – Soul Meets Body
11. Johnnyswim – Don’t Let It Get You Down
12. Ray LaMontagne – You Are The Best Thing
13. American Authors – Best Day of My Life

CHEERS!
This book would be best read with a….

SAMUEL ADAMS BOSTON LAGER

While the investigations go on in Dallas and Baton Rouge after the disappearance of a senator’s daughter, FBI agents CJ Johnston and Paige Riley are assigned to the sleepy backwoods of East Texas for a dead-end assignment to infiltrate an all-girls school.

Random disappearances dating back fifty years and more raise red flags that point to a tiny, isolated community of Hoganville. But CJ and Paige fear there will be little distraction from the memories of the one-night stand they shared six months ago.

Nevertheless, they integrate themselves into the lives of the teachers and staff, but soon the odd behavior of the townspeople has them convinced something sinister lurks there. Something, perhaps, that even the residents of Hoganville don’t know about.

REVIEW
Who was your TV girl crush during the 90s? If your answer is Agent Dana Scully, then Gerri Hill’s Keepers of the Cave is right up your paranormal alley!

Gillian Anderson… Hubba Hubba! ❤

Honestly, paranormal stuff scares the bejesus out of me. I am the absolute worst date to take to a spooky movie. I’ll spend the entire film curled up in fetal position with my ears plugged and my eyes closed. Spooky books are slightly less terrifying, since I have more control of the outside variables (i.e lighting, reading setting, background music). But that doesn’t mean that I’ll be able to sleep with the lights off that night. Despite scaredy-cat tendencies, I couldn’t put down Keepers of the Cave. This book is the ish!

Gerri Hill is a versatile writer who has perfected the pitch and tone for various subgenres within lesbian fiction: traditional romance, paranormal, thriller, crime, mystery. This novel is no exception to her all-encompassing delivery, and you’ll feel the hair raising above your neck as you fall deeper and deeper into the storyline. Keepers of the Cave is categorically a paranormal romance. There are elements in this novel that are extraordinarily unreal (the town of Hoganville, its people, the resident monster, etc.) and this creates an intriguing contrast to its central love story, which is much more conceivable in its cadence.

CJ and Paige’s love connection isn’t built upon the premise of fate and destiny. There’s an initial spark and attraction, but that doesn’t go much further until they’re forced to confront the nature of their connection directly while on assignment together. The back and forth between CJ and Paige as they navigate their way through their own feelings is refreshingly honest and direct. These two kick-ass women grow to love and respect each other, despite their differences and the potential complications that come when you’re working together and sleeping together. No rose-colored glasses here. They’re both well aware of what they like and dislike about each other, and these ladies are all in.

Readers, beware! This book will keep your eyes wide open and the midnight oil burning well into the night!

SOUNDTRACK
1. Mumford & Sons – The Cave
2. Hozier – Someone New
3. Coldplay – Sparks
4. Ray LaMontagne – Can I Stay
5. Death Cab for Cutie – Stay Young, Go Dancing
6. Mumford & Sons – Believe
7. Civil Wars – Same Old Same Old
8. Fleet Foxes – Tiger Mountain Peasant Song
9. Of Monsters and Men – Dirty Paws
10. Civil Wars – Dust to Dust
11. Ray LaMontagne – Be Here Now
12. Kaleo – Way Down We Go
13. Iron & Wine – Woman King

CHEERS!
This book would be best read with a….

PATRON SILVER TEQUILA

Shots! Shots! Shots! Shots! Shots! Shots! Everybody!

Les Read Out Loud

Lesbian Literature + Soundtrack + Libation

Gerri Hill – Weeping Walls

Gerri Hill – Keepers of the Cave