Every Breath (EVERY, #1)

by Ellie Marney

When James Mycroft drags Rachel Watts off on a night mission to the Melbourne Zoo, the last thing she expects to find is the mutilated body of Homeless Dave, one of Mycroft's numerous eccentric friends. But Mycroft's passion for forensics leads him to realize that something about the scene isn't right--and he wants Watts to help him investigate the murder.

     While Watts battles her attraction to bad-boy Mycroft, he's busy getting himself expelled and clashing with the police, becoming murder suspect number one. When Watts and Mycroft unknowingly reveal too much to the cold-blooded killer, they find themselves in the lion's den--literally. A trip to the zoo will never have quite the same meaning to Rachel Watts again...

• ISBN10: 1770497722
• ISBN13: 9781770497726
• Publish Date: 14 October 2014 (first published 20 August 2013)
• Publish Status: Active
• Publish Country: CA
• Imprint: Tundra Books
• Format: Hardcover
• Pages: 352
• Language: English
• URL: https://penguinrandomhouse.com/books/isbn/9781770497726

Reviews

[Stephanie]

Well apparently I am the black sheep when it comes to this book. I bought it after seeing all the positive reviews. It didn't really sound like my kind of book, but I was intrigued by the Sherlock part of it, and my library didn't have it, so I decided to buy it and give it a try. Most of the time I'm pleasantly surprised when I try something out of my comfort zone, but Every Breath was not the case.

I was very confused when I first started reading because the story starts off with Watts patching up Mycroft because he got into a fight at school (well, that's what I assumed because it's not very clear, even going back and reading it, I'm still not sure). It didn't make much sense, to be honest, and it took me a while to even figure out what was going on, because if this did happen at school, why isn't he at the nurses office? Why is Watts the one cleaning him up? Why isn't Watts in class? I'm so confused, what does this even have to do with the story? Where's the murdered guy?!

Even before that opening scene, there's a prologue that has Watts talking about her as a kid, then Mycroft as a kid, then them meeting because of 'fate', but yet we are never told how they met and how they became so close after only 4 months of Watts living in the city. The whole prologue and first chapter could be cut out, and it wouldn't effect the story at all. I don't understand why this book wasn't opened with them finding the dead body. That would have instantly made me interested in the story.

But I wasn't interested in the story. I was mostly bored. The only time I was actually invested in the story was when Watts and Mycroft found the murdered homeless guy and when it was finally revealed who the murderer was. Every thing else was boring to me. Even when they were going around investigating, I just didn't care, and I don't really know why.

Maybe it was the writing, I felt like there was a lot of description that I didn't care about. I really don't need to know what color the walls are painted or what plants are in the room. This book is very Australian, which was to be expected because the author is Australian and it's set in Australia, but I think I kind of had a disconnect because of it.

There is a little more meat to the story. Mycroft has quite the background and is known as the trouble maker. He makes a lot stupid decisions because of issues in his past. I actually really liked Mycroft, even though he was the stereotypical 'bad boy' who smoked all the time and did stupid stuff. I still liked him, mostly because of his humor. Watts also has her issues, but mostly because she's not adjusting to the city life and all the tension that moving to the city has caused within her family.

So there was a lot more happening than just Watts and Mycroft running around the city trying to solve this murder. Yet, I still didn't like it, and didn't really care. I will say I did enjoy the romance, although I felt like that kind of went from 0 to 100 quickly in the last 100 pages or so. I wasn't reading the book furiously and hoping Watts and Mycroft would just kiss already. There wasn't much build up to it.

I feel like I'm being hard on the book, but all I can really say is I enjoyed the murder mystery and Mycroft. Mycroft is pretty much the reason I gave the book 2 stars instead of 1. Watts may have been the narrator of the story, but Mycroft was the star of this book.

I wouldn't go out and recommend this book to a friend, but it seems like a lot of other people would. I would say if you enjoy murder mysteries with a bad boy who has some issues to work through, then maybe give this a try.

[Kelly]

4½ Stars.
http://www.divabooknerd.com/2014/11/aussie-author-every-breath-by-ellie.html
Every Breath is a phenomenal thriller from a Brilliant Australian author in Ellie Marney. It follows the story of Watts and Mycroft, who are on a strictly last name basis. Both dynamic characters in their own right, but share an intense attraction.

Mycroft is a young man without supervision, living in a run down, ramshackle house with his absent aunt. His bedroom housing a makeshift laboratory, and follows his passion of forensics which entertain his inquisitive mind. He's charming yet dysfunctional, and doesn't adhere well to the classroom. Watts is the country girl stuck in the city, and is expected to provide a positive influence in Mycroft's life. Something her parents don't approve of. But Mycroft isn't just a troubled young man, he has a bright, brilliant mind and struggles with grief each day.

I absolutely adored Mycroft and Watts, as individuals and as an incredible duo. The two teens have befriended a homeless man and his dog Poodle, who reside in the parklands surrounding the Royal Melbourne Zoo. But when they discover Homeless Dave has been brutally killed, they soon realise the police aren't interested in finding the assailant and Mycroft takes it upon himself to seek justice for Dave. What ensues is a grim and heartbreaking adventure, which will leave you on the edge of your seat.

Ellie Marney is a natural storyteller, creating realistic, flawed characters that will adhere themselves to readers. I simply adored the slow burning romance, the intensity of the attraction between Mycroft and Watts only added to the suspense. It was simplistic, beautifully written and cemented Ellie Marney as an instant favourite on my shelves.

[jnikkir]

This review can also be found at my blog, There were books involved...

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Let's get one thing straight right off the bat -- I freaking loved this book.

I love Sherlock Holmes in general, so that blurb on the cover? What if Sherlock Holmes was the boy next door? YES PLEASE. A contemporary take on Sherlock/Watson, set in Australia? I AM SO THERE. Watson (Rachel Watts) is a girl, you say? DOUBLY THERE. Sherlock (James Mycroft) is a lanky British boy-genius-troublemaker with a tragic past? YES. A THOUSAND TIMES YES.

...Why are you still here and not running off to order Every Breath?!

Oh, you want to read an actual review? ...Fair point. So let's get down to business.

First off, with anything that's compared to Sherlock Holmes, I had certain concerns going into it. I'm a very character-oriented reader, and I'm not a huge fan of mysteries for their own sakes: What I love about the original Sherlock Holmes is the characters - the mysteries are fun and all, but the characters are what make me love it. So the last thing I want in a Sherlock-inspired book are characters who were obviously modeled after the originals to the exclusion of standing on their own.

Well, I can say with absolute conviction that Ellie Marney's characters more than stand on their own. In fact, some things in this book might have been inspired by Sherlock Holmes, but really? I feel like Every Breath is just an excellent book, with some really fun Sherlock-ish coincidences here and there - icing on an already delicious cake, if you will. ;D

Every Breath is told from the perspective of Rachel Watts. Rachel is originally from a farm in the country, but (as of a few months before the start of the book) she and her family have recently been forced to move to the big city of Melbourne -- her definition of a nightmare. James Mycroft is Rachel's best friend. He lives only two doors down from Rachel -- and yes, he is brilliant. He's first in his class at school, but his main passion (obsession) is studying forensics, because of a tragic accident in his past. It's this accident that has shaped his life - and led him to have a reputation for being somewhat of a troublemaker.

Mycroft grins. "So, you've only been in the city four months and you're already the babysitter for the school's eccentric genius."

"It's been four and a half months. And if you were such a genius, you wouldn't have a black eye."

"I'm only a genius with facts. I'm an academic genius and a social moron."

"At least you admit to being a moron at something."

"I admit to being a moron at a lot of things. Being a moron in one or two areas serves to highlight my extraordinary brilliance in everything else."

Every Breath, US eARC, 5%

Both of them, Mycroft and Watts, are so believable, and so brilliantly developed. They fit together much like their namesakes - though they're incredibly different at first glance, they have more in common than you'd expect, and they balance each others' strengths and weaknesses so perfectly.

"...I could do this on my own, but . . . I don't want to."

"Right." I roll my eyes. "You need me to be your Watson."

"That's right."

"Because your genius doesn't work unless it's being lavished with attention."

Mycroft just grins. "Come on. I'll walk to you Biology."

Every Breath, US eARC, 19%

Mycroft and Watts are already good friends when the book starts -- which is so effortlessly established you just sort of fall into the story knowing that these two are going to give you feels. Rachel definitely feels something more for Mycroft, but she's also dealing with her recent move to the city, and some major discontent there, and she doesn't want to upset the balance between them, because she so values the friendship they both already share.

"You don't have to pretend with me, you know." He reaches out and tucks a strand of my hair behind my ear. His expression is so open and honest I feel it like a sucker punch. "I used to pretend, all the time, so I can spot it a mile away. If you're feeling shit, then just say so. I don't need to know the reason, it might be none of my business—"

"I'm feeling shit."

Every Breath, US eARC, 65%

But man, let me tell you, these two were not cut out for just friendship. Hello, new favorite OTP / I ship it so hard / I want to smoosh their faces together / etc, etc, etc. Realistic development? CHECK. Chemistry? CHECK. IN SPADES. Starting from page 5, not kidding.

The murder of one of Mycroft's friends, and its subsequent investigation, brings these two together even more. As they deal with everything and eventually decide to try and figure out what happened, it was so amazing to see them forming this partnership, a mutual respect for each others' strengths, and also to see them both being developed and growing as individual characters - especially Rachel, as she's really struggling throughout the book with her discontent in the city, and her anger at having to leave her home. I just have a lot of feels for these characters and their situations okay?

I have courage sometimes, in the strangest situations, when there are dead bodies with their throats cut in abandoned hollows of midnight parks. But I'm gutless most of the time, gutless enough to say things that slash and wound with the same violence as a knife across an old man's throat.

Every Breath, US eARC, 73%

Additionally, everything about the mystery and plot was handled SO WELL, especially considering that Mycroft and Watts are teenagers who decide to investigate a murder. I've tried to read a few contemporary mysteries where teens investigate stuff, or are somehow involved with police investigations, and there are so many potential believability issues, I can't deal with those books most of the time -- there are both plot issues, and issues of "would these teenagers actually act that way in these messed up situations?!" Every Breath was, excuse the metaphor, a serious breath of fresh air in this regard. I totally believed in Mycroft and Watts -- I believed that these characters would investigate things, and that they had a realistic chance of figuring things out. I never felt like they were acting in ways unrealistic to their characters or situations -- and they have to deal with some seriously messed up stuff... For example, we're not spared the grisly details of the murder scene, and those details do not escape Mycroft or Watts either -- they're not hardened cops investigating the latest murder scene, and they don't act like it. They are just so unbelievably believable...

...in reality he's just looking for the same answers that everyone who loses somebody looks for.

Because the questions aren't How did he die? or Who killed him? They're much simpler. How can this happen? How can someone who was alive suddenly just not be there anymore?

Every Breath, US eARC, 32%

In conclusion...

If you're a fan of Sherlock Holmes and contemporary YA, read Every Breath. It's smart, it's clever -- and Mycroft and Watts have stolen my heart.

Like I said, I'm not one to pick up a mystery for its own sake, so when I love a mystery, there's got to be a reason. I was glued to these characters, and they made me become glued to the plot, as well. Mycroft and Watts made me care what was going on, got me invested in the outcome - and most of all, invested in the effect that their partnership and investigation was having on the two of them.

THESE CHARACTERS, GUYS. New favorites.

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PS: Every Breath has been out in Australia for about a year, so this review was for an eARC of the US edition, being published by Tundra Books. After reading it, I was desperate for book 2, which is also already out in Australia, and I ended up ordering the Australian editions of both books 1 and 2 from Allen & Unwin's website - it was a little pricey, but so totally worth it. Every Word is, if you can believe it, even better than Every Breath (MY MYCROFT FEELS you guys don't even know), and I'm absolutely dying for Every Move, which comes out in March in Australia. And which I will also be ordering from Allen & Unwin, because I am in desperate need. DESPERATE. NEED.

All that to say, if you want to start a new series without worrying whether it continues to be awesome in subsequent books... this is the one to start.

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There were books involved...

[anne]

More 4.5 than 5 - better than expected. Wish they had been more subtle with the Morcroft name thing, it is too clunky for a story that has finesse.