One of my favorite queer cozy mystery books and cozy mysteries of all time. Hayden is a loveable character, and the narrator worked well with the story. I recommend this book to pretty much everyone I know who likes cozies.

What is this? A total dnf. I didn’t know what was going on and I completely lost interest. I’m hoping to circle back to it but I’m putting it down for now

What a fun romp! The humor blends well with the mystery in this story. I enjoyed the many different characters and am wondering if I'll see them all again. The narrator was just perfect. I've listened to him before, I'm sure, but I can't remember when. He does an excellent job with tone and characterization. Devil's Chew Toy was an enjoyable read, and enjoyable listen, and I look for forward to more from Rob Osler.

4.5 stars rounded to 5 stars!

Oh my gosh, this audiobook was so much fun! Gay, funny, suspenseful, twists and turns in nearly every chapter. The characters were likeable. The narration was perfect. Chapters were good in length, as was the entirety of the book itself. The reason for the title is briefly explained, but to the point. And who doesn’t think Bull Terriers aren’t adorable?

I was really expecting this book to be VERY mediocre, but I’m so glad I gave it a chance because I was not disappointed AT ALL! Sure, it could have used a little more drama and murder, but it’s honestly great just as it is.

Would highly recommend Devil’s Chew Toy to all readers who enjoy queer novels, and folks who appreciate a good suspense/mystery that’s not overly “edge-of-your-seat” gripping.

Well done, Rob Osler!


(I received an ALC for free via NetGalley in return for an honest review.)

New author, and a very well done book! It wasn’t an m/m romance, but an LGBTQ+ mystery, with the main character being gay, as well as several of the side characters being on the spectrum.

Hayden’s life was a bit of a hot mess, with a dumpster fire thrown in on top of it. But he was hilarious. He made me laugh out loud many times in my car or on my walks (since it was an audiobook, I’m sure I received several strange looks as I was walking through our neighborhood). Hayden wanted so badly to try to find out what happened to Camilo, the sexy dancer who disappeared after he spent the night with him. He also had to take care of the dog, which just added to the hilarity.

And the mystery was so well done…I had NO CLUE who the “bad guy” was, and what the twist was that caused Camilo’s disappearance.

I would have liked just a bit more of an epilogue, with more info on how everyone was faring, but I’m hoping (crossing my fingers!!!) that we might see more of Hayden, Hollister, Burley, the crazy brother and even find out where X person disappeared to! So, here’s hoping to this being a series, and maybe Hayden getting a little loving that he can enjoy!

While I enjoyed the story quite a bit, the narration left me wanting more. It was much more of a reading, than a narration. I didn’t hear a lot of vocal changes, and in some places didn’t feel the excitement. It wasn’t bad, just probably not the performance that I would have wanted for this funny book.

One more note. I realize that publishers set the price, and I’ve never once mentioned a price in a review, ever. However, I hate to say it, but I believe13.99 for a 300+page ebook is likely a huge reason why this book hasn’t done better. Having read it, I could absolutely see paying that for it, to support the author and publisher. But it being a brand new author, and not having read any of it? I just can’t see paying that price as a consumer. But the audiobook is available for 1 credit, so absolutely doable.

Nevertheless, I really enjoyed this book, and recommend it for a fun time!
Story: 4 stars
Narration: 3 stars

Fun and modern take on the amateur sleuth genre. At times the mystery is a little slow and lacking. Overall I enjoyed it and look forward to reading the next one in the series

A cute cozy mystery with a lovable diverse cast and a plot that will keep you guessing. I adored how Osler was able to walk the line between being silly and serious so it was never too much of either. (Listened to the audio book and loved the narrator!)

Fun, intriguing, cozy mystery, LGBTQIA

This was the first “cozy mystery” I’ve ever read and it was exactly that, a fun upbeat mystery romp. I adored this book. Hayden was a delightful main character and I loved following him around as he began to embrace life, find his absurdly amazing scooby gang and himself. Hayden goes home with a Go-go dancer he just met wakes up the following day to the cops telling him he’s disappeared. The events that unfold are hilarious and serious and wonderful. I was a bit surprised it ended where it did but knowing a follow-up novel is on its way I found the ending to satisfy me enough until the second book. Which I cannot wait for!
This was a delightful mystery with the right amount of twists, turns, lol’s, and heart.

Shout out to the narrator, Pete Cross you did a fantastic job.

Special thank you to #NetGalley, #RobOsler and #DreamscapeMedia for sharing this digital copy for my honest thoughts on #DevilsChewToy
Also, a thank you to narrator #PeteCross.

This is a super fun mystery. I wouldn't quite classify it as a cozy but it's very similar. It was quite amusing and I liked the characters.

Devil's Chew Toy follows the story of a part-time blogger named Hayden McCall in his adventure to find his almost hook-up Camilo. The description of this title gives a fair amount away in my opinion, which takes some of the mystery aspects to it. I think the author is great at developing characters, but I wish I had found this book next to a different type of book (it is not really my cup of tea). I will keep in mind I usually gravitate towards darker titles while comparing the things that make and break this book. I think this would be better on screen, given that Hayden has a bright and funny personality. I have never watched New Girl, but for some reason kept thinking that this could be a similar type of show with mystery added to it. It is definitely a mystery, but the interaction between characters brings a lot of lightheartedness to the story. I found the story a little long for my liking, but I love all the topics it tackles. This is a novel that talks about immigration and the fears/risks for the people going through it, police brutality, and like the author said “quozy” (queer + cozy mystery). It was very refreshing reading a gay novel in which the characters are just who they are, rather than your stereotypical gay side character. My main issues would be that the summary reveals the whole story (not a very "mystery" thing to do) and that I have a really hard time believing Hayden would go through such lengths for someone he doesn't really know. Not only did he put in time and effort, but also money. Would love to see this as a mini-series, and love that the author took the time to craft a story so relevant and diverse,

Partying to one night stand, and the guy is missing?! This LGBT book took me though a world win of events. Hayden finds himself questioned by the police which in turn has him doing some detective work to see who Camilo really is, what he was up to, and why he disappeared.

The narrator’s voice acting skills are flexible and skillful. A listener can differentiate each character’s personality and unique characteristics thanks to the narrator. Pete Cross did a great job at changing up all the voices. He made it easy to follow. The flow and pace in his voice remained smooth and even, especially when I didn’t detect heavy-breathing sounds, as if the narrator ran out of breath while reading. My favorite voices—due to how well they were portrayed—were Sara Lee’s, Jerry’s, Roy’s, and Burley’s. The narrator brought these characters to life, to a point, I could picture their facial features and body language.
I found myself tickled over the lingo, adding up Hayden’s sort of perky personality with his dynamic duo, Hollister, transported me to its southern setting. You’d pick up all the quirks and humor throughout their investigation, wanting to take a slice out of their detective work, perhaps advising them to reach out to the police, knowing it would be as fruitful as their made-up minds. They weren’t wrong to assume the authorities’ incompetence, after all. My interest piqued, whenever the topics about racism, identity, homophobia, and undocumented immigrants came up; being someone of color and part of the lgbtq+ community myself, it hit home.
Among the best parts of the story, was the setting; the author didn’t spare an ounce of space to fill it up with all kinds of worldbuilding. Honestly? Top ten on the setting! Rob Osler fleshed out those characters and made them grow—Hayden’s character development evolved from a young peep to his true and powerful self, and Hollister added her unique charm to the mix. Of course, let’s not forget Commander who is the true hero in this story…he’s such a sweet dog, even though he pooped in your shoes, Hayden. Oh well, nothing a good old-fashioned wash can’t do.
I recommend this audiobook to any who enjoys being transported into an adventure, full of humor, mysteries to unfold, and baked goods (I’m looking at you, Burley).

Thanks, NetGalley, for the advance audiobook in exchange for an honest review.

Hayden McCall is a middle school teacher with a dating advice blog in Seattle. After a crazy night at the club, where he gets a black eye and goes home with gorgeous dancer Camilo Rodriguez. When he wakes up at Camilo’s house in the morning, Camilo is gone and the police are at the door looking for him. Camilo’s beloved dog, Commander, needs care with Camilo missing, so Hayden takes on the task despite the no dogs rule at his apartment and his nosy, rule-enforcing neighbor Sara Lee. Hayden joins forces with two of Camilo’s good friends, Burley and Hollister, to track Camilo down and make sure he is safe.

The search for Camilo is a crazy ride, and there is lots of action and lots of humor. The characters are diverse with many different backgrounds and personalities. I enjoyed this cozy mystery. It was an easy, light read with an engaging story line and lots of laughs. Most of the characters were like able, and the ones that weren’t were the bad guys so no need to like them anyway. Overall, I enjoyed this quick read. It is the first in the series and I will be looking for the next one!

Thank goodness for my tendency to only read the first paragraph of book summaries, because the official summary in its entirety is literally an overview of the whole book. Just the whole damn thing. That being said, if you plan to read this book I don’t recommend reading the official summary. The blurb I’ve posted here is a shortened version of the official.

If you’re looking for romance, this isn’t the book for you. Described by the author as a “Quozy Mystery” (queer + cozy mystery), Devil’s Chew Toy begins with a Meet Chaotic (you know, instead of meet-cute) between our boys Hayden (the POV main character) and Camillo that ends in the two of them going home together. But despite what one might expect from a go-go boy, Camillo only wants to cuddle on the first date, so after chatting a bit that’s exactly what they do. When Hayden wakes up alone in the morning, he doesn’t even have time to process what’s happened until he’s confronted with Camillo’s suspicious disappearance.

Since I didn’t read the full summary before I read this book, I went in just knowing that it was gonna be queer. Check. I really found myself rooting for our band of amateur sleuths. The main characters were extremely likable; the plot wasn’t really about them, but they stole the show.

Devil’s Chew Toy is written in the first-person perspective of the relatably anxious Hayden. I found the prose well suited for this type of character. The little blog posts periodically sprinkled in were a neat touch, though I don’t feel that they added to the story at all. I usually found the supposed connection between the plot and what Hayden wrote a stretch at the best of times and redundant or irrelevant at the worst. Again, they are kind of fun. I enjoyed it as a way to understand Hayden a bit more.

Some complaints:

At one point Hayden finds out that Camillo is in the US on DACA (Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals). If you’re unfamiliar, this means that because he was brought to America as a kid, he’s able to essentially defer deportation giving himself time to apply for and be granted citizenship. It’s a very personal thing, and Hayden reacts poorly to this information. The author has two side-characters correct him- I mean, really he only actually knew Camillo for a few hours. I just- I got pretty upset during that ordeal.
There’s a bipolar character who is supposedly off her meds and does some pretty absurd things. The inclusion of this character felt unnecessary and careless; she existed as a red herring, and while having characters that mislead us is to be expected in a mystery, did it have to be the single mentally ill person not taking their meds that does the totally unhinged things? Ugh.
Non-white characters are described with their race, but white characters are not.
The completely open ending.
After checking the author’s website I found that this debut isn’t standalone, and instead the start of a series called Hayden and Friends Mysteries. I’m really looking forward to that since we didn’t get much time with Hayden and Camillo together and despite actively seeking non-romance titles I still like a bit of romance in my books.

Story: ★★★

Now the audio portion! This was fan-freaking-tastic. Narrator Pete Cross was the perfect voice for Hayden. He’s such a talented voice actor. I don’t think I would have enjoyed the book as much without listening to his voice.

The author’s prose combined with the voice actor’s reading completely pulled me into the story.

Audiobook: ★★★★★

Final Thoughts: A fun audiobook to listen to. The premise is interesting, though the execution was undistinguished. The characters are distinct and engrossing- definitely my favorite part of the story itself. I highly recommend the audiobook (and any other audiobook by Pete Cross probably)! This works well as an introduction to the series because I’m excited to see more of our characters. ★★★ ½

Devil’s Chew Toy • Rob Osler ⭐️- 3.5
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I’m not too sure where to start with this review. I liked it overall as it was something different but also can’t recall much about it, and did find myself distracted listening to it (but that could just be due to listening to an audiobook)
I would describe it as a funny mystery not too dark but definitely not light as it touches on some very serious topics including immigration, deportation and bullying to name a few.
I’m surprised at how funny it was there were definitely some one liners that were great, but also somethings seemed a little ridiculous/ out there.
I enjoyed the characters overall they definitely stood out, they were very colourful. Overall I liked the storyline and it was a good book to just shut your brain off and enjoy.
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Thank you to @NetGalley for gifting me an eARC in exchange for an honest review
# DevilsChewToy

Thanks to Dreamscape & NetGalley for providing a free audio ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This is a cute little outing, full of quirk and adventure. Hayden McCall, the hero of this story, finds himself embroiled in a mystery after he has a meet-weirdly-cute encounter with go-go boy Camilo. Camilo accidentally kicks Hayden in the eye while Hayden is attempting to tip him, and the two strike up a conversation and end up snuggling together overnight. A great start to a relationship, right?
Unfortunately, Hayden wakes to find Camilo gone from the apartment, and it's not long before the police are involved, as they have found Camilo's abandoned truck, door ajar, in a parking lot. Camilo is a DREAMer, and Hayden has the sense that the cops aren't too bothered to look very hard for someone they consider to be in the country illegally.

This prompts Hayden to do some sleuthing on his own; he really likes Camilo and is, understandably, concerned. He manages to trace some of Camilo's friends, and together with a spunky lesbian artist named Hollister, he follows clues all over Seattle, eventually getting to Camilo's side hustle, a job at Barkingham Palace, a pet store. But Camilo's supposed boss says she's never heard of him! Hayden knows something is fishy, so he and Hollister press on until they put themselves in fairly serious danger and crack the Case of the Missing Go-Go Boy.

Very cute, decent plot. Nothing special or groundbreaking, nothing that would upset your grandma (aside from a brief interlude of discussion about tall/big men wanting to "top" smaller men, which Grandma probably wouldn't understand anyway), but an amusing diversion for an hour or two. Pete Cross is a capable narrator; I was able to differentiate between characters easily and he even tossed in some flourishes here and there. It was nice to have a book talk about homosexuality in an everyday way, something you don't normally get in mystery books, let alone cozy mysteries. Solid debut, hoping for better next time. Maybe lose the gay dating blog posts interspersed throughout the book.

4.35 stars

This is not a typical cozy mystery (I think it's better!). It qualifies in that the main character is (becomes) an amateur sleuth and there is minimal violence (and no graphic violence). But, it's atypical in that it's not set in a small village.

There is excellent diversity in the cast, including characters who are LGBTQ, of color, and of varying generations and walks of life. In addition to the characters mentioned in the publisher blurb, Hayden's neighbor, Sarah Lee; Hayden's Aunt Sally; Sally's elderly neighbor, Jerry; and Camilo's bull terrier, Commando; make notable appearances.

There's considerable character development, without getting tedious, and significant relationships are formed. Several social and racial justice issues are also important to the story. There's a lot of humor. There's a terrific twist at the end.

My reading experience was so thoroughly enjoyable that I hope this will be the first of a long series!

Thank you, NetGalley and Dreamscape Media, for the audio ARC of the book in exchange for an honest review. Publication is expected February 8.

Rob Osler did a great job! I don't usually go for mysteries but I was very glad I tried this one. It's not sci-fi or fantasy at all, definitely a mystery though cause every time you think you've figured out what comes next the story surprises you with what the actual truth is. Very descriptive of each character so you can really picture them without being bored with specifics. The main character Hayden is a teacher on summer break in Seattle and is in for one heck of a summer adventure! A slew of LGBT favorites, a sweet old soul and cute dog! Couldn't put it down all the way to the end! I really hope there will be a sequel.

This book was so freaking fun! It was such a unique story with a whole cast of unique characters and I loved every minute of it. Rob Osler really said “let’s write a twisty mystery but make it gay” and he NAILED it! 😍

Hayden was the perfect main character. He was funny, kind and the Spider-Man of the story (just like he wanted to be.) Hollister, Burley, Jerry and even little Commander were the most perfect secondary characters and really gave so much to the story. Even our bad guys were enjoyable to read about! All these voices lead us to our big finale and I gotta say, I didn’t see it all coming! Some of the details we were lead to but not all, so that was awesome!

This story, the plot and the characters, was so well-rounded and I just can’t say enough about how wonderful it was. Additionally, the narrator of the audiobook was amazing and really embodied Hayden and our other characters. 🤩

I gotta give all the thanks to NetGalley and Dreamscape Media for this audio ARC! Devil’s Chew Toy releases February 7 so get it added to your TBR!

4.5 stars. I fell in love with every single character in this cozy mystery and I hope I get to go on more adventures with them in the future. Perfect audiobook to throw on while you go about tasks, it had me smiling ear to ear and laughing out loud.