Murder Once Seen

Terror meets passion in Hall’s gripping paranormal romantic thriller, set in a demon-infested 2080s America where superpowered Oddities are disparaged and even hunted. Derwin Bryant is a bounty hunter in the city of Nis, making professional use of his superhuman strength and the ability to feed off of the pain of others. Two years after the murder of his boyfriend, Grady—possibly by someone who had a grudge against Derwin—he meets Elliot Leed, who was forced to sell his body to survive after his parents kicked him out of the house for being not only an Oddity but gay. Elliot can touch an item and perceive what has happened around it. As Derwin digs further into the circumstances of Grady’s murder, Elliot tries to help—but when Derwin learns that Elliot’s sex work client list includes a major organized crime boss, he realizes they might be in all kinds of trouble. Love blossoms between the two men, but will they survive long enough to revel in it? Hall (The New Hire) combines a believable paranormal plot with a twisty plot, plenty of explicit sex, and characters who will win readers’ hearts. (Dec.)