NEW RELEASE - Memento Mori - Subway Slayings Book #2 - C.S. Poe

Title: Subway Slayings
Series: Momento Mori Book #2
Author: C. S. Poe
Genre: Mystery Suspense, Gay romance
Publisher: Emporium Press
Release Date: Oct 28, 2022
Format: Kindle
Pages: 274
Source: Amazon

Detective Everett Larkin of New York City’s Cold Case Squad has been on medical leave since catching the serial killer responsible for what the media has dubbed the “Death Mask Murders.” But Larkin hasn’t forgotten that another memento—another death—is waiting to be found.

Summer brings the grisly discovery of human remains in the subway system, but the clues point to one of Larkin’s already-open cases, so he resumes active duty. And when a postmortem photograph, akin to those taken during the Victorian Era, is located at the scene, Larkin requests aid from the most qualified man he knows: Detective Ira Doyle of the Forensic Artists Unit.

An unsolved case that suffered from tunnel vision, as well as the deconstruction of death portraits, leads Larkin and Doyle down a rabbit hole more complex than the tunnels beneath Manhattan. And if this investigation isn’t enough, both are struggling with how to address the growing intimacy between them. Because sometimes, love is more grave than murder.

Review by Gloria Lakritz

Review Chair for the Paranormal Romance Guild

I started reading Nevermore a Sebastian and Calvin novel and I was hooked at the writing ability of this young lady. I have read EVERY THING Carroll Poe has written and this is what I’ve discovered. C.S. Poe’s attention to detail is phenomenal. Her story telling always surpasses my expectations Her writing about people that are not perfect but some suffering from physical/ or emotional illnesses is her strength. And so is her writing ; it’s from her soul.

This is book #2 of Momento Mori The Subway Slayings. Detective Everett Larkin of New York City’s Cold Case Squad is just getting off sick leave after solving the horrifying Death Mask murders in Book #1 with it ending with an ominous message to Everett. With that in mind he and his husband Noah are dealing with divorce, so he has left his home with Noah and moved in with really the only person he is comfortable with; Detective Ira Doyle to recover.

Everett was struck as a young man by an assailant with a baseball bat and the effect has changed his life. He has never recovered and he is estranged from his parents and now his husband for not being what they want him to be…..To feel less. Somehow Ira Doyle has awakened hope in Evie; that he sees Ira as strength. We see this part of the story as Ms. Poe delves into Evie’s mind. This part makes my heart hurt and I cry for him. He lost his first love Patrick, now Noah who feels Everett is not trying in their marriage; yet not understanding that in trying so hard he is becoming an addict..

Our author allows us to find out about easy going, tall, handsome Ira Doyle. Called on to work with ‘Evie” in the first book, on the first case, we saw him as a voice of comfort for his partner, only learning he had lost a daughter and was emotionally scarred by this. But now Ms. Poe digs deeper into Ira Doyle allowing Everett an the reader to see into his soul. With this new found knowledge Ira finally allows Everett to see his strength and his pain. So I must say this book not only solves a terrible 30 year rampage of the killing of children and taking their pictures, selling the pictures in death, but giving this two broken men a path to start a life together….

The passage of Evie reliving thoughts about his parents not able to connect what happened to their son. Then and abandoning him because he didn’t act right. His marriage to Noah who kept on harboring anger at Evie for not doing enough in their marriage, Harboring anger for his short comings after knowing what he suffered from. And finally to be SEEN by Ira and understood….at first I couldn’t breathe, feeling his pain and the heavy release and sob with what he felt with Ira….a peace and hope….. finally made me cry.

This book is outstanding a 10 star read….

Reviewers Note

So beside book two being the day Everett can go back to work, asked to look into a Subway Slaying locally. Being a New Yorker it is such a treat to have streets and avenues and subway stations written and actually know where he goes, uptown, downtown east side etc….Attention to detail as I said!!!

LGBT/ROMANCE/SUSPENSE/MYSTERY