Fish in a Barrel (Fish Out of Water)

I rounded my review up to five, because I love Amy Lane's Fish Universe so darned much. Jackson and Ellery are trying to catch their breath, and heal from their latest adventure, when they find themselves embroiled in a HUGE corruption scheme. There are social issues discussed in this book, related to homelessness, and their related social issues. I think Amy did her research, and wrote the plight of the homeless population with much respect and dignity. What I also love about the 'Fish Universe' is the wide array of characters that Jackson and Ellery have surrounded themselves with. Henry and Galen play major roles in this story, as well as a persnickitey haunted car named Jennifer that Jackson and Henry better treat well, or the doors will slam on your hand! Jackson has the best names for people, and nick names his cat "No Thumbs" when scolding him. Meanwhile, Ellery is learning to trust that Jackson will always come back to him, and has learned to take care of himself. Jackson has grown emotionally, and absolutely realizes he wants to be the man Ellery can depend on. There are developments at the end of the book that will make your heart smile. I could NOT put this book down. It's exciting. It's action packed. It has friendship, and it has humor. I laughed and gasped as the events of the book unfolded. Henry is the perfect back-up for Jackson, and I appreciated him having Jackson's back. Jackson + Ellery = FOREVER!

I’ve been a published romance novelist since 1996 and I am picky as HELL. There are a lot of books I read that I don’t even get through more than a chapter. The characters don’t engage me, the writing isn’t good, and I can’t enjoy a book I keep wanting to edit.There are others that I finish and forget.And then there are series like this one: books with characters and plots that obsess me, that capture my heart and make me cry. Hot, sexy and tormented Jackson, and Elliot’s desperate campaign to keep him from killing himself trying to save the innocent. (And the sex, which is so damn hot it makes steam roll out of my ears.)Read the whole series. You’ll love the hell out of it.

Ahhh, I missed them. This story digs into a serious city issue, and it is just as human as all the other stories. I loved it. Lane does a great job of reminding readers who is who in the interrelated series as they crop up in this novel. But nothing replaces having read them all. I re-read them all during the shutdown, and what a great idea that was.This book ends at 83% (kindle), and then we get four shorter stories from the Patreon, set among the previous novels.Cruller: Jai's boyfriend, ICE, Lucy Satan, and that kitten. :DClinging to the Curtain: so CUTE.Jackson's Christine: haunted car!I've Got You: nightmare help

This was a great story, but I didn’t like it as much as School of Fish, the previous book. I expected it to continue that story, but it went on a whole other plot, one related to a political issue in Sacramento, where the series is set. While I applaud authors who want to write about important current issues, I’m hoping this series doesn’t turn entirely political, as I read romance to escape some of that.

So happy to be reunited with my favorite people. Books in this world are always an automatic buy for me. Did I miss something with Cotton though? I thought he was going to school in SoCal. I feel like I missed something. I’m not happy with him being sad.I live in Southern California. I love the references to places I’ve been to in my beloved state. Including, unfortunately, Redding. The city has one of the biggest sundials in the world, and that’s pretty much it. It’s not a place that would be kind to the homeless population.Thank you so much for another book in this series!

This is by far the best book in the Fishiverse to date. In addition to Ellery and Jackson, all of their friends, family and colleagues are involved in this case as well and it's great to catch up with all of them. My favorite part of this entire story is witnessing Jackson's growth and the things he does now to keep Elliott happy while still giving his all to helping out the less fortunate. He still gets involved in bad situations that cause physical pain but he also has backup plans in place whenever possible. I happily look forward to the next book in this series and hope it's not a long wait.

I love this series and these characters! Jackson and Ellery are so much fun and I love how they take care of each other and their family of friends. I will say the main plot of this story is very sobering regarding the homeless. It very much brings to light that they are a population who deserve compassion. I did enjoy the stories at the end of the book too!I can't wait for the next Ellery and Jackson adventure!

I love everything to do with the Fish Out of Water guys! They delight me. Always into so much trouble. This was a great story line. Loved it!

Dies ist meine absolute Lieblingsserie von Amy Lane. Jackson und Ellery sind einfach hinreißend, die Nebencharaktere sind ebenso faszinierend (ich liebe Lucy Satan) und der stetige Kampf umGerechtigkeit macht mich immer fassungslos und atemlos.