Shades of Henry

Henry and Lance have many hurdles to overcome before they can think about a future. However, seeing them both grow and learn to trust others makes this a heartwarming story. Gett8ng a visit fr9m a few other characters kept it lively!

Nothing comes easy for Henry and Lance, but they are adorable together. Henry shows up at the flophouse convinced he’s at the end of the road. Lance is stuck in limbo. He’s a doctor and porn star still living like a college student because he doesn’t know what he’s looking for. They begin an uneasy truce to take care of the porn “kids” that leads to hope of something more. But first they have to beat a murder rap, a vindictive depilatory full body mask, and an entire handful of bulimia disorders.

I love Amy Lane and this crossover that bridges her Fish and Johnnies books to create a new Flophouse series is just fantastic!

4.25 Stars ~ A great big huge thank you to the author for not making ‘Shades of Henry’ predictable, nor in any way, shape, or form stale. What in the world am I rambling on about? This is the first book in Ms. Lane’s new series, ‘The Flophouse’, but it is a spin-off from two of her series, ‘Johnnies’ and ‘Fish Out of Water’. Not to mention that ‘Fish on a Bicycle’, book four in the latter series, introduced Henry Worrall, his suspicion of murder, his involvement in helping Jackson and Ellery uncover proof of his innocence, and his eventual decision to get his PI license and work for Ellery and Jackson. So phew, wipe my brow and all of that. I won’t say it’s mandatory that you’ve read all those other books in both series in order to enjoy this one. I will, however, dare you to not go peeking at what they have to offer after you’ve read ‘Shades of Henry’. It’s an addiction, I’m afraid. With that said, I’m not going to reiterate the storyline that was covered in ‘Fish on a Bicycle’ because in my opinion, this is Henry’s story and he needs a chance to shine.

“Vulnerability didn’t come easily to Henry Worrall. Watching him come undone as he’d told that painful story… Lance’s throat ached thinking about it.” ~ Lance

I didn’t know how to feel about Henry when I first started this book. The very first time I saw him was in Dex and Kane’s book and he was beyond a little brother sh*thead. He seemed to be exactly like his father – a bigoted, racist redneck from Montana – but he was also sleeping with his sister’s husband. I sensed there might be a little bit more to him and perhaps his attitude was more learned than how he truly felt. When I saw him next, it was through Jackson River’s eyes (and Ellery’s) and there isn’t much either of those two men miss. Henry began to redeem himself so I was very excited when I learned the author was writing his and Lance’s story.

As it turns out, there is a whole lot more to Henry than what I’d seen and it didn’t take me long to fall for him. He has spent the past eleven years in the Army with his best friend, Malachi, who’s also married to his younger sister. Henry and Mal have been “just fooling around” since they were teenagers but Henry has a much softer heart than I had believed, and this heart is tired, so very tired, of Mal’s abuse, although it takes Henry a while to be able to say those words out loud. Regardless, Henry takes a promotion in the Army just so he can say no to Mal and Mal rats him out, leaving Henry with a dishonorable discharge and a beatdown from his dad. This is how Henry ends up on Dex’s doorstep in Sacramento. Lost, vulnerable, still trying to not be an as**hole like his dad - although that’s a work in progress - hurting, and just needing something but not knowing what.

Lance is gentle and sweet with his own burdens from childhood. He is a first-year resident although the other guys in the apartment (the flophouse) all think he’s still just in medical school. He helps to care for the young porn stars who work at Johnnies and live in the apartment. Believe me, some of these men need a lot of den mothering. As the author said recently in a blog post “a houseful of guys who haven’t quite grown up yet, in spite of what their penises could do.” Lance sees Henry for who he is right from the start and the friendship might be tentative in the beginning but the feelings don’t take long to develop. Neither of these two young men have any clue how real relationships should work but they have some wonderful role models to learn from.

“Still, having those arms wrapped around his shoulders, the way being held by Henry had felt like he was holding an equal, someone who would shoulder Lance’s burdens and lay his own down for Lance to carry—that had been pretty damned intoxicating.” ~ Lance

I really adored this book. Part of that came from seeing characters I’ve grown to love over the years, but also because it’s rare to see two men who are so perfect for each other and deserve one another wholeheartedly. The angst is here but, considering who the author is, it’s very low-key. ‘Shades of Henry’ is a beautiful character study and I can’t wait to read more in this series.

NOTE: This book was provided by Dreamspinner Press for the purpose of a review on Rainbow Book Reviews

We first meet Henry in Dex in Blue form the Johnnies Series. Lance is also a previous background character from that series. This book has a whole other book that happens in the middle Fish on a Bicycle which explores the “case” from Jackson and Ellery POV.

This isn’t to say you can’t start with this book. Just know if you love it there are a lot of other books that came before it. If you hate stating in the middle know that this is not where you want to begin. If you do start here and you feel like the case was resolved in a paragraph of recap in the middle of the book it is because it all is happening in another book. We also have a momentary glimpse of other of Amy’s characters in the classic Easter egg fashion.

All that said, for the longtime reader this was an absolute joy! We get a douse of all our favorite from multiple series all in one world. After all someone just needs to pop-in at candy heaven and we would be – in heaven.

Sacramento is after all only so big and it’s good to see cameos from longtime favorite characters, and any excuse to do a reread of all the good books that came before is always welcome.

For our non-seasoned reader, I think you will still enjoy the novel. If you read it and want more start with the Johnnies series, then Fish Out of Water, with a side step to Racing for the Sun before book 4 of Fish. Then Start your Flophouse journey.

Shades of Henry by Amy Lane was given in exchange for an honest review. . After his life imploded from an abusive relationship, Henry Worral, went to the only family who he thought could help. David, aka Dex, did what he could to help by having him work odd jobs and live in the flophouse to help keep an eye on the young porn stars of Johnnies. Lance, a Doctor and porn star, is trying hard to help the kids in the flophouse while afraid to leave because he doesn’t want to lose the only family he has left. Henry while protecting “his kids” becomes embroiled in a murder investigation where he is prime suspect. While helping Jackson & Ellery with his case Henry finds his calling to become a PI. I really enjoyed this story watching Henry and Lance work hard to find that they were both worthy of happiness and that they could find their place in the world where both were valued and loved unconditionally. We really need that kind of love in this world. I will be waiting in line and needles for the next installment.