Fish Out of Water by Amy Lane

Narrated by Greg Tremblay

It will come as no surprise to anyone who regularly reads my reviews that I will listen to Greg Tremblay read just about anything. When, a few weeks back, I saw a new release with his name on the cover – Red Fish, Dead Fish by Amy Lane – I was keen to review it, but then saw it was the second book to feature jaded ex-cop-turned-P.I. Jackson Rivers and hot-shot defence attorney Ellery Cramer… so I had to find book one, and oh, my – am I glad I did.

Having grown up in poverty, Jackson Rivers has fought hard for everything he has. Neglected and essentially abandoned by his junkie mother when he was a boy, he was lucky enough to fall in with the Cameron family: Kaden – his best friend at school – Kaden’s sister, Jade, and their mother, Toni, a warm, loving woman who was more of a mother to him than his biological parent ever was. The Camerons are the only family Jackson has ever known and he is fiercely loyal and devoted to them. Thanks to Toni’s love and care, and Jackson’s own determination, he grew up ‘right’, and eventually achieved his ambition of enrolling in the Police Academy. But his life was forever changed when, as a rookie, he was paired up with a much older, more experienced – and dirty – cop.

For months, Jackson’s life was hell; airing his concerns about his partner led to his being used as an informant, wearing a wire day after day, scared that each one would be the one he was exposed as an “IA rat” – until eventually, Jackson was shot and almost fatally wounded by former colleagues who were never brought to justice. After months of rehabilitation and gruelling physical therapy, Jackson became a private investigator and now, eight years later, he is the head PI at a prestigious law firm.

Defense attorney Ellery Cramer has a reputation for being tough, unflappable and somewhat aloof. He’s damn good at his job and his ability to take apart a witness on the stand makes him a force to be reckoned with, but when it comes to people and relationships he’s a little less successful. For the six years he’s worked at the firm he’s had a bit of a crush on Jackson, although Jackson – never without female – or male – company and with a reputation as a player, has never shown any sign of being the slightest bit interested.

Which is why Ellery is surprised when Jackson asks him to defend his brother when Kaden is accused of shooting and killing a police officer at his gas station store. Jackson knows Kaden has been set up – but has yet to work out precisely why, and there’s absolutely no question in his mind that something is very, very wrong. Questionable evidence, suspect procedures and, finally, the deliberate destruction of information that would have led to the case being dismissed… all of it has “dirty cop” written over it, and Jackson will stop at nothing to get to the truth and exonerate his brother.

Fish Out of Water is a fast-paced, tightly plotted, steamy romantic thriller that grabbed me from the very first moments, didn’t let me go until the end and left me wanting more. The romance is of the classic ‘opposite attracts’ sort – the cynical, laid-back, scruffy detective who has slept with (in his own words) half the city and the proper, expensively-besuited stick-up-his-ass lawyer shouldn’t work as a couple, and yet they do, so beautifully, as the author gradually reveals both the extent to which Jackson’s upbringing has damaged him and Ellery’s persistence and stubbornness as he goes toe to toe with Jackson each time he tries to push him away. The storyline is meaty and complex – just as I love in romantic suspense – the central characters are likeable and well-drawn and the attraction that ignites between them burns hot. Jackson – who is bisexual – has most definitely not been unaware of Ellery’s tall, lean frame and chocolate brown eyes over the past six years, but given Ellery’s obviously moneyed background, thought the lawyer was way out of his league.

The romance between Jackson and Ellery is intense and develops quickly but, given the heightened tension of the situations in which the pair find themselves, it works – and anyway, I was so caught up in the story overall, that I didn’t really notice any deficiency. Jackson frequently likens himself to his battered bruiser of a tom cat, Billy-Bob, shagging anything that moves and then moving on. But, as Ellery discovers – after witnessing one of the nightmares that continue to haunt Jackson, even eight years on – there’s far more to it than that. Jackson is strong but damaged – both by his upbringing and his short-lived police career; he trusts about three people on the entire planet and although he’s a superb PI, he’s weighed down by a ton of emotional baggage and doesn’t think he’s good – or good enough – for anyone.

By contrast, Ellery is a far simpler prospect. Born with the proverbial silver spoon in his mouth, he’s never had to worry about money and the worst he has had to deal with personally is his overbearing mother. That said, he’s worked hard to get where he is and to build his formidable reputation, and he’s not afraid to stand up and do the right thing. He’s a little less well-defined than Jackson, although it’s clear straight away that he’s extremely perceptive and has Jackson pegged almost from the start. Their snark-filled banter is a delight and I loved that he was so persistent (not in a stalkerish way, though) and refused to take any of Jackson’s crap.

As to the narration portion of this review… how about I just write “Greg Tremblay is (once again) awesome” and let you fill in the rest? No? Damn. Okay. Well, Greg Tremblay IS awesome, and everything about his performance – pacing, characterisation, differentiation – is spot on. He gives Jackson this deep, slightly gravelly tone that really does conjure up the image of a world-weary, grouchy, alley-cat of a guy who has seen and done too much but is never going to give up trying to do the best he can for those he loves. The vocal contrast between Jackson and Ellery is achieved by his pitching Ellery quite a bit higher (although not too far); and he is spot on throughout when it comes to the emotional heavy-lifting. There’s never any question as to which of the two is speaking and there were times I had to remind myself I wasn’t listening to two different people – not necessarily because they sound so different, but because of the weight of personality accorded to each character and the naturalistic way in which the conversations are conducted. I recall one of the Gals mentioning the ability of one particular narrator (Kate Reading) to “interrupt herself” during dialogue in a very realistic manner – and Mr. Tremblay can do exactly the same thing, because it really does sound as though two people are (almost) talking over each other at those points. There is an engaging, well-portrayed cast of secondary characters – notably Dave and Alex, the nurses who treated Jackson at the hospital after he was shot, his not-quite politically correct neighbour, Mike, and Ellery’s mother, whom a drugged-up Jackson nicknames “Lucy-Satan” and who turns out to be a surprising ally.

The suspense plot is (mostly) resolved by the end of the book, and the romance reaches a very firm HFN, so Fish Out of Water can easily be listened to as a standalone. Fortunately, however, there’s a plot-thread left over for book two (Red Fish, Dead Fish) and I can’t wait to jump in.

Caz