Ellis doesn’t rely on stereotypes in his new dark mystery of detectives, drugs, sex, and secrets.
Keelan Ellis
Fiction | 250 Pages | 5” x 8” inches| Reviewed: Kindle ARC
978–1948608893| First Edition | $15.99
NineStar Press | Albuquerque | BUY HERE
With the summer season, certain staples in reading exist. Along with the cozy beach read that so many people look forward to, the darker mystery remains a favorite for many readers. While movies have made a drastic turn toward the supernatural mystery genre, many books stay firmly planted in the realism of detectives, police officers, and special agents. Fans of this genre will be familiar with names like Jack Reacher, Alex Delaware, Alex Cross, and many others. With Keelan Ellis’ Good Boys, a new name has entered the field: Paul Solomon.
In many ways, Solomon is a great deal like all the other names on the list. What makes him stand out from the crowd is that he’s gay. This is a representation that is not often seen in the gritty detective role. With this addition, more people might relate to the character type than before. Ellis doesn’t rely on stereotypes to make his character interesting as a gay man, such as putting Solomon in charge of “party scene” cases or having pages of sex-filled romps. Instead, we see him in his everyday life as a gay man in the world, dealing with cases, his personal life, and the assumptions that come with it.
As the book opens, Ellis provides a glimpse into Solomon’s life and its troubles. Unable to let go of his failed eight-year relationship, Solomon must finally come to terms and move on, which also includes moving out of his shared house. To add a layer to his problems, his partner and he immediately pick up the case of two teenaged boys found dead. Before he can even situate himself with the case, Solomon must deal with rumors going around about the dead boys and why he has been put on the case.
“What makes you think these boys were gay?” […] Paul tilted his head in mock curiosity and crossed his arms while he waited for the young man to finish his sentence. “Well, because you’re gay. I mean, I assumed? I’m sorry. Maybe I’m wrong. I thought I heard you were.”
Despite these notions being thrown around, Solomon pushes through on the case that leads him down many winding paths and uncovers many different secrets about the boys’ lives and those of the people around them. He must work to overcome prejudices from not only his coworkers, but also from suspects like Jimmy, the “punk” teen who might have had a secret relationship with one of the victims. Drugs, sex, and secrets wait down every path that Solomon turns down.
Entwined with his case, Solomon still has his personal life to contend with. With the last bits of his relationship crumbling, he has to rebuild some semblance of normalcy in his life. This is made difficult by Solomon, himself, who tends to have a self-destructive streak when it comes to his personal relationships. His partner, Tim, and his best friend, Annie, are both victims of Solomon’s tendency to pull away and build walls around himself. But with his new start, he attempts to mend some fences.
This includes a new friendship that has the potential of turning into more, when Solomon meets David and feels a deep attraction. Sparks fly between the two, but problems arise when certain parts of David’s past come to light. Solomon has trouble reconciling his feelings with knowing that David has deep homophobic skeletons in his closet. Against his judgment, he decides to attempt at least a friendship with the man.
“But how could he say no when David was reaching out for some kind of help?”
Ellis makes a valiant attempt to start a series here. With any beginning book, there are dangers when it comes to the execution because there’s a lot to do. In a stand-alone mystery, the only concern is wrapping things up in a neat bow by the end. But with a series opener, many things have to be set up just the right way to end the main narrative, while leaving enough loose ends with the background drama to connect to future installments. Ellis does a good job at maintaining interest to keep the series going forward but has trouble with the main narrative. The mystery is compelling and enthralling enough, but the conclusion seemed a bit rushed, almost like an afterthought. With just a little more detailed action, the climax could have been more powerful.
Still, many could find a new series to follow in the Solomon Mysteries if they are looking for a genre that rarely reaches out to members of the LGBT+ community, but has successfully with this one.
