YVO’S SHORTIES #152 – Blue Night & Beton Rouge by Simone Buchholz

Time for another round of Yvo’s Shorties! This time around the first two books of the Chas Riley series (at least the first that have been translated from German); a series I’ve been meaning to read for a while now and the current blog tour for the third book Mexico Street was a perfect excuse to finally catch up. I admit I was a bit confused in the beginning, but once I warmed up to the writing and got to know who was who, I was fully hooked!

Title: Blue Night
(Chas Riley #6)
Author: Simone Buchholz
Genre: Mystery, Thriller, Crime
First published: March 7th 2016
Publisher: Orenda Books
Finished reading: February 27th 2020
Pages: 276
(Originally written in German: ‘Blaue Nacht’)

“We just let ourselves fall into the mist and all the sad things run under their own steam. Loneliness, for example. Or fear. Or being cut off from everything.”

Blue Night has been on my radar for a while now… Both because I’m a huge sucker for any drugs and/or organized crime angle and because more than one trusted fellow blogger has recommended the series in the past. I’m definitely not disappointed by what I found! While Blue Night is the first Chas Riley title that has been translated into English and is technically called the first book of a new crime series, it is in fact already book number six published in German and it showed in my less than smooth first experience when I started Blue Night. Why? Let’s just say that it felt like I was thrown into the deep end without any helping hand or any helpful background information to make the introduction to Chastity Riley and the others a little smoother. It took me a while to get used to the short and snappy writing style, and I also had a hard time figuring out who was who in the beginning. The flashback chapters were especially confusing at first, as you have no background as to who is who and how they all fit together. I honestly wasn’t sure if this story would be for me… BUT. Somehow, after I decided to take a little break and continue with fresh eyes, I started to warm up to Blue Night. Once I got the hang of both the writing style and the different characters in play, I was hooked. Or more than hooked; I literally devoured the pages, hungry for more. The writing style sure is something else, and combined with the unique and diverse cast of characters and the fascinating plot this was definitely a slowburner turned explosive pageturner for me. Definitely recommended if you enjoy an original, sharp and action-packed crime thriller and don’t mind being kept in the dark for a bit until you get used to the unique writing style and cast of characters.

Title: Beton Rouge
(Chas Riley #7)
Author: Simone Buchholz
Genre: Mystery, Thriller, Crime
First published: August 7th 2017
Publisher: Orenda Books
Finished reading: February 28th 2020
Pages: 276
(Originally written in German: ‘Beton Rouge’)

“Breathing this haze, which seems to soak up the big-city smog like a sponge, is a bit like smoking. I also light a cigarette – double poisoning is more reliable.”

While it took me some time to get used to the writing style and characters in Blue Night, I had no such problem with Beton Rouge. I was fully hooked as soon as I read the first chapter, and the same short and snappy chapters kept me turning those pages like there was no tomorrow. I definitely managed to race through my second Chas Riley book in no time at all! Beton Rouge is a lot more ‘readable’ and easier to follow for those who, like me, don’t know a lot about the background of the main characters. This makes it quite easy to read Beton Rouge as a stand-alone as well, although the characters are worth sticking around and reading the other books for. Chas is an absolutely brilliant character and I just love her sass and sarcasm… The cast of characters in general is diverse, well developed and they truly feel unique and quirky; they all add that little je ne sais quoi to the story and really take this series to the next level. The case Chase finds herself involved in this time around is without doubt intriguing as well, and I had a great time following her as she was trying to solve the puzzle involving the tortured men showing up unconscious in cages. The plot and plot twists work perfectly together with the short and snappy chapters, making it impossible to stop reading as you simply keep devouring those pages. There are no diet restrictions possible here! Chas and the rest of her crew will have you under their spell, and you won’t be let go until after you read the final shocking new developments. Trust me, you will be dying to read the next book as soon as you finish Beton Rouge! This series is quickly turning into a new favorite of mine.