Relic (The Morelville Mysteries, #1) by Anne Hagan

Relic (The Morelville Mysteries, #1) Reviews

• 
  Frank Van Meer

  While reading this I had a short conversation with the author, where I pointed out a big issue I had with this novel. It's a "double-barreled" investigation and for a reason I still don't understand, it was done in first POV for both characters. While the author made some effort in putting dividers in place to notify the switch (mostly by mentioning the character in the chapter titles), for me it did not work.
  
  When the story is told in first POV, I'm inside the mind of the charcter, her thoughts and actions. It is therefor utterly confusing at times when a new chapter begins with the second character and it takes me a few sentences before I realize who is talking. To make matters worse, these switches sometimes occur mid-chapter. It gives me a headache. The author explained that there were two distinct sides to this approach: those who like it and those who hate it. I'm firmly on the latter side.
  
  Our two ladies both work in law enforcement and while there was never any indication of age, I'm placing them both in their mid-thirties. Problem is, they talk like teenage girls. There is an over-abundance of exclamation points. Sometimes we get entire conversations ending with them. Are they shouting, or just excited? At the same time, there is a distinct lack of comma's and quotation marks. It makes for difficult reading. And another thing that was puzzling: near the end, the characters begin to swear and cuss, but the author somehow found it necessary to censure them. Either let them say fuck or don't, but having to read it as f**k is just silly.
  
  I finished it, based on the author's comments that the sequels will focus more or less on one lady at a time. Still, I'm not really sure I'll be reading them anytime soon.
  
  For a European guy with a basic understanding in US Federal law enforcement agencies, the raid at the end was
  a shake my head moment for me.
  
• 
  Kexx

  Just couldn't get into this story at all - apologies if it was my mood but it failed the "common sense" test and I couldn't buy into either of the main characters.
• 
  Betty

  I love mysteries. I probably like most genres to be fair, but there is a special place on my bookshelf (or kindle) for thrillers and the like. So although I looked forward to this, it is definitely, just, OK.
  
  There are a few major flaws though. It is written in first person, which I think suits such thrillers. But NOT when it is used for two main characters. After a while they blended together into the same person. It became too much effort to decide who was who at any one time and gave up.
  The plot also seemed to meander a little and failed to get to the point. When it did, it was over fast. or perhaps I missed things as I skimmed through some of the pages. Lots of cliches too, and phraseology is sometimes rather to hackneyed.
  One of the characters, the sherriff, gets shot at, and I'm not entirely sure I liked the notion of her hiding away from trouble and being protected from trouble by the other main-character-law-enforcement type.
  I already have book two (bought as part of a Bookbub deal) but I am not rushing into that at the moment. Maybe later...
• 
  Christina

  This was a book I got from a BookBub link in the middle of the night because I couldn't sleep, and then read in said middle of the night. Oh it's so bad.
  
  This book is bad because it is a mess. The grammar is bizarre, exclamation points abound, and the most off-putting tendency of the writer was to put present-tense exclamations in the middle of past-tense plot. Like this:
  
  

  Smiling again, the woman that was fast moving from dream to nightmare in my mind took out a badge.
  
  "I'm Mel Crane, the county Sheriff!"
  
  Crap! Just what I don't need! I looked her up and down more carefully this time.

  
  
  uggggghhhhhh
  
  And the two supposedly grown-women narrators, Mel-the-Sheriff and Dana-the-agent, both come off as emotional popcorn bags. They are burning with lust for each other, then really angry, then exasperated, then stoic, then looking up with doe-brown eyes wet with tears that just need to be kissed away, then emotionally distant ... all in the span of two ebook phone-screen pages. They talk like teenagers, and they are bad at their jobs, missing or ignoring obvious leads and not communicating with other government departments. Like three different people get shot because of shoddy policing.
  
  I mean really. I am sad that people on Goodreads seem to like this book because it features butch lesbians just doing things in life. Are there that few books with butch lesbians that exist, that this is near the top of the list? Underserved cultural groups still deserve much, much better than this.
  
• 
  Chey

  No build up, I'm out. DNF
• 
  Tony Hisgett

  The beginning of this book was appalling, it seemed to consist of a supposedly professional agent just lusting after the sheriff she had only just met. It doesn’t get any better when they were supposed to be working with each other, Dana just behaves like a petulant teenager. Sheriff Mel is equally unprofessional, her reaction to Dana was ”I’m not letting a city Customs Agent tell me what to do!”,
  The story did improve, although I felt the way their personal and professional relationship developed was still a bit ‘clunky’, however, it did keep me interested right until the end of the book.
  
  The end of the story highlighted how badly organised are America’s law enforcement agencies. I have read a few reviews that criticised the story because of the mess at the end, but actually it’s quite realistic given the real life lack of cooperation between the numerous ABC agencies and local law enforcement.
  
  I wasn’t sure about the rating, but overall I did enjoy the book and even though the two main characters had their issues, I am still looking forward to reading the next book.
  
• 
  Jess

  I was excited to start this series because I love a good mystery, but I found the characters lacking.
  
  This is a small-town Ohio mystery about local sheriff Mel Crane and newcomer Customs agent Dana Rossi. Mel has her hands full with a puzzling local counterfeiter as well as a pesky ex-girlfriend getting too close for comfort. Dana has bigger fish to fry as she goes undercover in small, rural Morelville to bust a smuggling operation. The two cross paths and butt heads (and deal with plenty of sexual tension) before realizing they may just be after the same person.
  
  The mystery itself, which unfolds from small-town crime to a bigger operation spanning multiple states and a tangle of jurisdictions, is actually pretty interesting, and I found myself invested in the minutiae of it. Hagan definitely took the time to think it out. But I didn't like how the cops and agents felt like bullies a lot of the time--yelling, waving guns around, being smug and sassy with people in their custody. It felt mean-spirited and very old-fashioned in a way I don't read a lot about in LGBT fiction. I also thought the characters of color were written with some negative stereotypes and had cringey accents and mannerisms best left 20 years back. It seems to point to the ideals and maybe age of the author more than anything.
  
  I also thought Dana and Mel were pretty thin themselves. I often forgot which woman was narrating, since they both seemed to speak and think the same way. I didn't feel much chemistry between them, even as the sexual tension simmered.
  
  I love a mystery, and this one has potential, but I don't think I'll continue with this series.
• 
  Celina

  This was a very innocent when how characters fell for each other. Though, I didn't understand the whole bad guy thing.
• 
  J H

  Federal and local cases have connections that bring two women together
  
  SAPPHIC BOOK BINGO: unusual job, butch character, meet-cute, not a romance, full-time writer, out of your comfort zone; UNICORN: twins (possibly other categories)
  
  A customs agent investigator and a small town sheriff were pursuing two different cases that ended up being parts of an even bigger and more dangerous crime syndicate. There was immediate chemistry between the MCs, even though their first interaction led to the agent being brought into the sheriff's office for questioning. After being let go from the sheriff, the agent hoped that she'd never see the other woman again. As would be expected, it was only the beginning. The MCs' similarities and differences seemed to balance each other out, and they had better team communication as a result. Their work together had exceptional results, and created opportunities for a romance to develop.
  
  I liked the characters and how the cases added more complex layers to the plot. The story was intriguing and well-written, and a promising start as the first book in a series.
• 
  Darlene

  One of the book clubs I belong to mentioned that this book was free a while back. I went over to Amazon and found it free on Kindle Unlimited. Then a couple days after that the book was really free, so I turned in my 'borrowed' copy and got my own.
  
  Look, um, I'm not crazy about mysteries or suspense/thrillers, so I was hesitant to read this. Turns out it wasn't too anxiety producing. So I could move to my bedtime book. Well, that is, until near the end of the book when I realized I was still awake reading at 4 AM.
  
  I did like the main characters. I liked how the author, Anne Hagan, divided the points of view between both of them. That way she could let us in both women's thoughts and actions.
  
  For most of the book, I found the writing fair. Towards the end though, sentences were hard to understand and there were words that should have been other words. Like the word 'man' should have been 'main'. Maybe earlier in the book I wouldn't have noticed but here we are in the thick of trying to solve the crime and the tempo of action has sped up. I often had to reread passages to understand what happened.
  
  In my opinion, using cuss words should be full out, and in this case warranted, or not used at all. I felt spelling a cuss word with asterisks felt like cheating. It was another thing that pulled me out of the book. The other cheat was in how the book ended. We're in the middle of the shake-down (or whatever that part of the arrest process is called and we don't get to see what happened until later. Sorry, I nearly threw in a spoiler. Then when it is all explained, it felt anticlimactic. Then the next book has a preview which is that scene duplicated. Truly a letdown. I do understand why the things in that last part of the book got jumbled. When I write a fast scene or erotica I find my grammar and spelling give up the ghost. And my descriptions are horrid. Note the above review. But I hope that part and the beginning of the next book can live up to the rest of the first book.
  
  By the way, this book can be rated "G". What I mean is the sex scenes are kept to the minimum. For me, this story didn't call for long erotic scenes. Maybe in the next book or so? Mostly the story kept to the mystery. Relationships are building, but the main characters try to keep it 'professional'. I won't say how successful they were, but the author did a good job keeping it real.
  
  I hope I haven't been too critical. I did like the book and do look forward to reading the rest of the series. Like I said, I liked the story and the characters. Worth the read, folks!
• 
  A.R. Fiano

  ​As a crime/PI/procedural fiction lover, I look for good stories​ with intriguing characters. I also enjoy stories with strong and interesting LGBT portrayals. I think Anne Hagan's Morelville Mysteries is a solid addition to the genre of Mystery/Thriller/Crime fiction, and LGBT genre fiction. Morelville Sheriff Mel and US Customs Agent Dana Rossi are the protagonists here, looking into a dangerous counterfeit operation. I like the writing, the sustained tension, and the overarching question of who or what is Relic--the possible party behind the criminal activities.
  
  I look forward to the development in future Morelville stories regarding the characters and their relationships and backstories. I like learning about the rural areas in Ohio, the setting of the town of Morelville, and the careful procedure of the investigation. This is well-balanced against the will they/won't they personal tension between Mel and Dana, and the insight into their characters and motives.
• 
  M.J. Doherty

  I really enjoyed it. The story was great and the two lead characters very engaging. I loved that the viewpoint switched between them, letting me into both of their heads. If I had to pick a favorite, it would be Mel. She was extremely likable, a good contrast to the more complicated Dana. The pace was just right, making me wanting to keep reading it and the small town setting was well depicted. I look forward to reading the next in the series.
• 
  Melissa Hensley

  Just a little mystery
  
  Like the storyline. The development of Mel and Dana's relationship is a little slow, however, quite refreshing characters don't meet and jump right into bed. Overall good book and look for more Morelville Mysteries.
• 
  Silver Screen Videos

  The title of Relic, the first book in a series of mysteries by Anne Hagan, does not refer to some ancient artifact out of a Dan Brown plot. Instead it refers to the identity of the criminal mastermind crossing paths with Hagan's heroines, big city Customs Agent Dana Rossi and small town sheriff Mel Crane. Sadly, if this book did concern a relic from antiquity, it likely would have been far more interesting than the rather dull storyline that author Hagan came up with here.
  
  The two protagonists first meet when Dana’s investigation into a major smuggling operation leads her to the small town of Morelville in central Ohio, where the villains have set up their base of operations, in part with the help of Mel’s predecessor sheriff, now deceased. The smugglers are involved in importing all types of counterfeit designer goods, which, by an odd coincidence ties into Mel’s current investigation into a currency counterfeiting ring that’s also operating out of Morelville. Of course, this is no coincidence, but merely one of the major improbabilities that run through Relic. For, if a group of smugglers sets up operations in a small town so they can fly under the radar, you would think the last thing they would want to do is to call attention to themselves by passing counterfeit money in that same location.
  
  Actually, the real purpose of having the bad guys involved in counterfeiting appears to be to provide an opportunity for the two main characters to “meet cute” when Dana accidentally passes a counterfeit bill and Mel arrests her. That leads to the immediate bickering and clashing between the two lead characters, followed by the gradual realization that they are each incredibly attracted to the other. It’s a standard storyline that most people have seen in movies or read in books dozens of times—with one difference. In Relic, the two bickering, soon to be romantic, characters are women, and, indeed, the book’s sole calling card is that it features a lesbian couple as protagonists.
  
  I was somewhat curious to see how the author would treat her main characters and to what extent she would turn their sexual identities into plot points. The answer to the latter question is surprisingly little. The two women are accepted by their peers, without any scenes in Relic involving them having to “prove” themselves or to deal with crude putdowns or to fend off unwanted attention from the male characters in the book. Instead, they are simply cops working on cases.
  
  Unfortunately, the cases themselves don’t prove all that interesting. There’s little mystery involved here, as the bad guys get caught very easily (in one case by engaging in a shootout with each other in the middle of a bar at lunchtime), and spill their guts just as easily. Even the identity of Relic isn’t very secret, since a secondary character conveniently blurts out to Mel that it’s the nickname of one of the town’s better-known citizens. Pretty soon, seemingly dozens of federal agents descend on Morelville, and it’s just a matter of time, far too much time spent in detailing boring and repetitive strategy sessions, before Dana’s agents and Mel’s officers lower the boom on the bad guys.
  
  While the mystery in Relic isn’t all that mysterious, the romance is cloyingly sappy. The book is told in alternating chapters narrated by either Mel or Dana, and they spend much of their time mooning over each other like lovestruck teenagers. So, we get dialogue like, “My brain is telling me to avoid this and focus on the job but my heart is telling me something totally different… For once, I’m going to listen to my heart.” Regardless of whether the characters are straight or gay, a little bit of that language goes a long way, and readers have to plow their way through chapter after chapter.
  
  Truth be told, it was curiosity about having a lesbian couple as protagonists of a mystery that led me to read Relic. (it was available as a free download when I picked up the book on Amazon). And I found it refreshing that the author would write a 300-page book that did not become more of a political statement than an actual mystery. Further, the main characters have some potential to develop in later books, especially Mel, who gets considerably more in-depth treatment here than does Dana. But a dull, plodding mystery with a sappy romance involving lesbian characters is just as mediocre as a dull, plodding mystery with a sappy romance involving straight characters. Either book is a relic best avoided.
• 
  Megan

  When Special Agent Dana Rossi comes into the small town of Morelville to investigate a possible international smuggling operation she meets the Morelville sheriff, Mel Crane, who has her own cases to worry about and doesn’t need feds around scaring off her suspects. Could the two cases be related? Of course they are and Dana and Mel eventually get together in solving the case—and get together personally as well.
  
  Like Jody Valley’s Kera Van Brocklin and Barbara Wilson’s Pam Nielsen, Mel has an identical twin. And when the sister is shot—mistaken for Mel—it gets personal.
  I think that there is a touch of tongue in cheek in the mystery, which features a mysterious gang boss called only Relic, a trucking company owned by a gang of criminals, designer knock-offs by an angry European designer, and a surprise stalker. In other words, there are more than a few places where the reader has to suspend disbelief a little more than usual but the characters and setting are rendered so well that we really do not mind—or even think about it.
  
  Readers of cozies or fans of British TV will like this series.
  
  Someday I hope to go on with the series and find out how the characters are getting along. For right now though, I’ll just say that Relic is a worthy start for a writer whose career seems to be taking off. Kudos to her for her perseverance and her imagination.
  
  Final Rating: 3.6
  
  Note: I read an ebook copy of this novel that was offered free by Amazon in 2019.
  
  Another Note: This review is included in my book
  The Art of the Lesbian Mystery Novel, along with information on over 930 other lesbian mysteries by over 310 authors.
  
• 
  Lisa Marie Gabriel

  This book is an easy read that will appeal to fans of crime with lesbian protagonists but I couldn't give it full marks because I did have some issues with it. The first and most important of those is that there are problems with format and typesetting (particularly at the end, where the story repeats as a prequel to book two). The ragged right edge would be better justified I think. Another problem derives from using first person accounts from joint protagonists. I did find myself a little confused when it skipped from Dana's POV to Mel's and back again. As regards the relationship between these two it was quite slow burning and intense so I was quite disappointed when it just faded to black in the sex scene. I think both the girls and myself as a reader would probably have liked more romance. Having said all that, it was quite an easy read, a fast paced story and is likely to appeal to lesfic readers who like serialised stories.
• 
  Candace

  This is the first book in a series of at least nine related mysteries featuring a lesbian sheriff and lesbian federal Customs agent. The characters, setting (small-town south Central Ohio) and plot are interesting, but the book is bedeviled by lapses in grammar, by typos, and by disjointed editing or editing lapses. Even the précis of the novel contains obvious editing problems. I also wish the book developed its characters more — characterization takes a backseat to a police-procedural kind of plotting. Still there is something positive about the author’s worldview that I enjoyed. I just wish she’d hire an editor!
• 
  Fleppy85

  The story was interesting, the characters likeable, BUT the editor of this book did a really poor job. Quotation marks were missing, placed randomly, often three sentences started with the same word and there were spelling mistakes even I (as a not English native speaker) saw. These things ruined the fun of reading a little bit. Changing the POV, sometimes in the chapter, was not that bad, there was always the information if you were reading the story from Dana or Mel's POV. The end felt rushed like the author didn't want to carry on writing this story and just wanted to get over with it.
  I'm not sure if I want to read the second book of the series unless the editing has improved.
• 
  Ocean .

  A good ol' fashion, 'who's the bad guy' mystery
  
  I enjoyed this book. Typically, I don’t read many mystery/detective stories, but this caught and kept my attention. I thought the story line was interesting as was the relationship tension between the two main characters, Dana and Mel. The pace of the story developed nicely, it wasn’t rushed but didn’t drag out. I thought the cop procedures and explanations were believable and kept the story interesting. All in all, this was a pleasant read for me.
  
• 
  Teryn

  Short endings are a disappointment for me as a reader.
  
  This book was decent I might have given it 3 stars, but the abruptness of the ending was really disappointing. The book was fine, but the climax and ending were there and gone in the blink of an eye. For all of the build up of the rest of the book, I was really dissatisfied as a reader at the end.
  There were also way too many exclamation points.
  
• 
  IkiMiira

  The action-packed story with its twists and turns was nice and entertaining, ditto the budding relationship between the two main characters. But this book could really have used a stricter editor and a couple of proofreaders. For a nitpicker like me, it was at times painful to read. Hoping part two is better!
• 
  Amanda Kranick

  Eek
  
  I usually don't read LGBT books. Fan fiction yes books no.
  
  For starters there was grammatical errors throughout what I read. I only got to 79% because I just didn't enjoy the story anymore.
  
  The plot moved slowly and choppily. Overall it just wasn't a good book.
• 
  Hetkala

  Nice and easy read.
  Got it for free with a bookbub deal and decided to read it thanks to Jae's "Lesbian Book Bingo".
  
  Exactly what I needed at the time. Some romance, no angst. No big surprise in the "mystery" but a great introduction to the characters.
  
  I'll be reading the sequel soon.
• 
  Jennifer Hilliger

  An good introduction to characters
  
  I liked to story and could not figured out the mystery. I'm looking forward to reading more of this series in the future.