Review: Coastal Views to Die For

Coastal Views to Die For by Sam Lumley
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Oliver and Ricky are back for a second travel assignment that turns into a murder mystery, this time set in the fictional Rose Beach on the Oregon coast. While the first book somewhat riffs on Glass Onion by dealing with a stupid and obnoxious tech bro CEO, this book is much more Knives Out as it deals with a toxic family whose secrets are coming out in the will. Additionally, the relationship between Oliver and Ricky develops in unexpected ways, not as sunshine and roses as the book’s cozy vibe would have you expect…but stick with it, and we’ll all be rewarded. This series is definitely one I’ll be following as long as it continues!

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Review: How to Have a Killer Time in D.C.

How to Have a Killer Time in D.C. by Sam Lumley
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Here’s a series that’s just right for me: a gay, autistic travel writer based in the Bay Area gets an assignment in DC and becomes an unlikely detective after witnessing a death involving a self driving car. Being set in DC, there’s no shortage of political references, including some veiled jabs in the eye at Trump and his traitorous acts, but also a bit at Elon Musk, lampooned (as it were) by Moonshot Motors CEO Kelso King. Though King more closely resembles Musk’s brother Kimball with his Texas aesthetic (and he’s allegedly the son of an oilman), the faulty EV’s and absolutely obvious lack of critical thinking skills are so Musk, it hurts. But hey, this book gives us a far more positive autistic role model with Oliver Popp (DON’T call him “Ollie”), and his love interest Ricky (aka Tariq) is a very well fleshed out character too. Being biracial, Ricky’s very name is an example of code switching. And unlike the reserved Oliver, he’s gregarious enough to perfectly match his energy in an “opposites attract” way. I’ve already got the sequel coming soon on my TBR too, promising a trip to the lovely Oregon coast…

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Review: Stumptown, vol. 4: The Case of a Cup of Joe

Stumptown, vol. 4: The Case of a Cup of Joe by Greg Rucka
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

The fourth and (sadly) final volume of Greg Rucka's Stumptown saga is absolutely the most Portland of them all, not least of which because it deals in a Barista Mafia whose members are all trying to outdo one another on the world-class PDX coffee scene. This book, more than either the second or third before it, would've made a terrific episode or arc in the ABC series - and it also makes the strongest case for why there needs to be a full fledged film series adaptation of Stumptown getting all four graphic novels properly adapted and then some. This series, this franchise, does not get enough love in the world, and I should've read these years ago when the ABC show first came out.

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Review: Stumptown, Vol. 3: The Case of the King of Clubs

Stumptown, Vol. 3: The Case of the King of Clubs by Greg Rucka
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Dex Parios returns with another kickass Stumptown case, this one rooted in the world of Portland soccer and its consistent rivalry with Seattle, represented by the tension between herself and Seattle PI, C.K. Baines. The ongoing storyline with Marenco's men also stands out as the kind of storyline that would've made engaging viewing on the ABC series, even if that series gave much more emphasis to Sue Lynn and her tribal matters. In the event of a film series picking up ABC's slack - and again, I must say, Stumptown reboot when? - that's a difference I hope the eventual film series splits by giving both Marenco and Sue Lynn's crews equivalent screen time.

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Review: Stumptown, Vol. 2: The Case of the Baby in the Velvet Case

Stumptown, Vol. 2: The Case of the Baby in the Velvet Case by Greg Rucka
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Reading my way through Rucka's original Stumptown graphic novels, with a storyline that would've been great to see on the show - rock 'n roll mystery, with a bit of ongoing drama from Dex's refusal to engage with Hector Marenco and his hydra of interests - makes me demand more than ever, Stumptown reboot when? And this time, it needs to be a series of films, one for each volume in the series, and actually properly filmed in Portland too the way the ABC series didn't get the chance to be.

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Review: Eyes of Kings

Eyes of Kings by Chloe Gong
My rating: 2 of 5 stars

Chloe Gong finishes her first officially adult series, her first trilogy, with a long-promised epic war between the forces of Calla and Anton, and August and Otta...but after two books of frankly uninvestable characters, this third and final book feels like it never had a chance to get off the ground and be as amazing as it ought to have been. The worldbuilding was always slow to make itself known, and while Gong was always big on sharp sociopolitical commentary - especially about the state of China throughout history and today, too - the moments of insight were never great in number themselves. I'm amazed I picked up this series to begin with, but at least it ended more or less like how I expected. But as much as I'll always go to bat for Chloe Gong, it's not going to be for this series, I'm afraid.

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Review: Stumptown, Vol. 1: The Case of the Girl Who Took Her Shampoo

Stumptown, Vol. 1: The Case of the Girl Who Took Her Shampoo by Greg Rucka
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Almost seven years after this series of graphic novels was adapted into a TV series on ABC (with the pilot episode being loosely adapted from this first case), I've finally found all of the books at the libraries in Washington County outside Portland. And reading these books again, it reminds me of just how salty I still am that ABC went and canceled the series after initially planning to renew it for a second season, only for the pandemic to throw a wrench in things...but they kept several other shows on air, didn't they? Including The Rookie which went ahead to become a whole franchise with at least two spinoffs and counting to date, and yet Stumptown, an imaginative and fertile spin on the genre set in Portland, couldn't get that renewal? Well, I'm living in Oregon now and appreciating this series and its characters more than ever, and hoping to see some of my own mystery work get adapted to film and/or TV for all the salty Stumptown fans like myself.

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