I absolutely loved this novel.
Such a great story with defined characters and a great plot.
What drew me in the most was how fleshed out the characters were
The writing style was fluid and relateable.
The cover was fascinating as well.
A reviting read overall
Definitely recommend adding this to your TBR!

The plot immediately caught my attention and I was preparing for a quirky, humorous, and unique read. I was right on all accounts. This was such a fun read and there was never a dull moment.

Thank you to netgalley and the publisher for granting me free access to the advanced digital copy of this book.

3.5 stars

*I had the absolute privilege of getting an ARC from the publisher, Argyll Productions, and Netgalley and I could not be more grateful. All thoughts and comments are my own.*

I am always on the lookout for new authors, so when I saw this was a paranormal mystery/romance, I was sold.

Jai is an ex-military Private Investigator with a bound were-bear ghost partner Sergei. When Jai receives a call from his ex-commanding officer with an offer to hire him on a cheating spouse case in Detroit, Jai finds he just can't refuse. The problem is Detroit is where his ex is and so many issues that come with that. Then his ex-c.o. turns out to be hiring him about his own cheating spouse and when he goes to investigate, Jai ends up being the one being hunted.

Overall, the world Susman builds is extremely interesting. The mystery kept me engaged. I wasn't sure where everything was going to end up, but I really enjoyed the ride. This was a clean read, meaning there were no spicy times, which was par for the story. A spicy scene would have been awkward with the general storyline as Jai and Czoltan were largely estranged. I'm sad about it, because I feel the author would be able to write a pretty satisfying scene, but I'm salty and want what I want regardless of whether it makes sense, so don't listen to me.

I will be looking forward to see if the author writes another in this series.

Unfinished Business by Tim Susman is the first book in the urban fantasy series Wolftown. Private Investigator Jae Kim doesn't have a werewolf problem—at least not as long as he can keep clear of his ex-boyfriend Czoltan. But when a suspicious police report hits the streets of Wolftown, Jae suddenly finds himself hunted on the streets he used to freely roam. Dodging bullets from Wolftown vigilantes, he's stuck hiding out with Czoltan while he and his were-bear ghost Sergei search out whoever set him up—and his life isn't the only one at stake.

Unfinished Business had a bit of a slow start for me, but I was quickly caught up in Jae's personal drama and the multilayered world and character building. I thought the mix of adventure, personal growth, mystery, and honesty about mental health all come together perfectly. I liked getting to know Jae, and seeing the complexity of his relationships and how war and family dynamics shape the way he reacts to the world around him. I thought the mystery and crime aspects were handled very well, and even when I thought I was a step ahead I greatly enjoyed the ride. I really liked the way mental health, honesty, and prejudice were approached throughout the book, and I expect it to be handled similarly in future volumes. Honestly, my only complaint is that when the book ended I felt like I had just gotten to fully know and understand some of the characters and I wanted more. I look forward to whatever comes next.

Unfinished Business is a highly engaging read and the start of a series I will be following.

Netgalley is a good way to discover new authors that I'm going to like. This is an entertaining and gripping urban fantasy that I thoroughly enjoyed.
Good world-building and storytelling, interesting characters.
Recommended.
Many thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for this ARC, all opinions are mine

I can’t seem to stop myself from trying new authors even though I can’t really keep up with the ones I already read. This is one such new-to-me author. I want to say first that overall, I really enjoyed this book. With a few minor tweaks, this author will definitely go places. One of the major things was that there wasn’t much plot to the first part of the book. We get to know Jae and Sergei (love, love Sergei), their life, and how this universe works, but the actual meat of the story doesn’t come until later than it should in the book. However, like I said, overall, I really enjoyed this book because it is written well, has some unique elements, and has some great action moments. I hope the author writes another book in this series, and if so, I’ll definitely read it. Recommend. I was provided a complimentary copy which I voluntarily reviewed.

This book went a little bit out of my normal genre - into a bit more fantasy! However, I always enjoy reading LGBTQ titles, and throwing in some fantasy and shifter, especially when it does have a hint of romance to it, did take it more into my wheelhouse.

In the end, I enjoyed this one quite a bit, and especially taking a break from straight out romance that I normally read (sometimes you just need a break from that). This was my first Tim Susman book and I did find it interesting to learn that he also writes furry lgbtq as well under a different name (I didn't know that was a thing, but after seeing a CSI episode all those years ago about the furry world, I guess I should have realized there would be a book genre for it - so, go you!). May have to look into this further.

Unfinished Business has to do with the unfinished business of a ghost character - so the title is spot-on. Jae, the main character, has a ghost partner that is bound to him, and they are bounty hunters. Jae is former military, and his former commanding officer calls him from Chicago to Detroit to help out with a case - he thinks his wife might be stepping out on him - so Jae comes running. Problem is, Detroit is where Jae's ex werewolf boyfriend lives, and he's a bit worried about bumping into him in the very tiny Wolftown community where Richard has sent him in search of the wife. And the moment Jae and his ghost partner, Segei, spot the wife with her werewolf lover, everything goes awry... the werewolf lover suddenly has a warrant for Jae's arrest, for the murder of 5 werewolves, including Jae's ex, who he literally just spoke to. They have to figure everything out, including how the warrant came to by, why, how to survive and just what the heck is going on.

This is a wild ride through a paranormal world ("extras") - so hop on the train and buckle in, because it's exciting and you're going to want to enjoy the unexpected thrills! I definitely recommend this book, even if you don't normally read paranormal or thrillers or lgbtq or anything but your strict one set type of book (it's time to read outside your box) - this is a quick read, and one you do not want to miss.

I received an advance review copy from NetGalley and Argyll Productions, Independent Book Publishers Association, and this is my honest feedback.

Thank you for providing an ARC in exchange of an honest review.
Tim Susman created an interesting world were humans and extra, such as werewolves and ghosts, cohabits. I did find the universe captivating and wanted to know more about the characters. Sergei was probably my favorite in this story. However, I was not able to bind with all of them and that included Jae, the main character of this story. The plot was also missing some consistency and the ending was maybe too rushed. I don’t know if the author is planning a sequel but there is room for it. I would be curious to see how it develops from there.

If you are looking for a fun gay urban fantasy read, "Unfinished Business" is a good choice. Especially if you like werewolves.

Thoughts, Spoiler-Free:

This books is by an author who is a furry and has written a lot of furry books in the past. That influence definitely shows in the worldbuilding and writing. Even though this is not an anthro-only/furry-only world, the kinds of things which (I assume) have been discussed and developed in those spaces were reflected in the worldbuilding. For example, Jae talks about homes built for non-extras vs. homes built for extras, and how werewolves like more open buildings that allow for large pack-structure groups. It was really interesting! Being a furry writer was a real boon to the worldbuilding.

Note on that: I am not a furry, nor am I particularly into werewolves (more of a horrifying flesh monster kinda guy) but I don't think you have to already really be into the whole anthro-furry-werewolf idea to enjoy this. It is structered so that it's enjoyable by both werewolf lovers and the werewolf apathetics alike.

I also liked the lore around ghosts and how to bind them. Not going to get into specifics, but I thought it was really interesting and fun the way in which it was centered on conversation and empathy rather than force.

One final thought on the worldbuilding. Several real-world issues and struggles of marginalized groups were used to develop the ways in which extras are marginalized and negatively treated. I don't necessarily think that it is an issue because it's clear that the ways extras are treated does not replace real-world struggles but rather live alongside and interact with them in the lore of the world. More on this in my final thoughts.

Thoughts, Containing Spoilers:

There are three major points about this book I want to discuss.

The first is the chase scene. I liked it because it did a good job at ramping up tension and allowing us to explore Wolftown, seeing the different shops and people and such. I also liked that there were elements set up but not used--for example, the secret underground tunnels--which I hope to see used in future installments. However, I do think that it did go on for a little long an I was definitely wondering why he didn't consider going to Czoltan a little earlier than he did (even if the first time he decided against it). I was especially wondering why Sergei didn't suggest it. I think that the chase scene could have been shortened.

I was also a little confused on the motivations/reasoning for the antagonist's reasoning at first. The binding scene and getting to see the world through metaphor and the desperation/leaps of logic the character took went a long way to clearing some of that up but I was definitely struggling a little to understand why this particular complex plan was made (and one question I had--wouldn't sex activate the poison just as well as running?).

I also didn't fully understand why he was so intent on killing Jae--it made sense his motivation for Desiree, but not for him, It wasn't so bad as to ruin any enjoyment of the book but it was a plot element that definitely felt... not quite like a plot hole but it was definitely a weaker element and I think that it would have been more interesting had he actually had some kind of grudge or specific motivation for wanting to kill Jae too beyond "eh, I just figured I might as well".

Finally, Sergei moving on. Now, I did think that this was a good thing to do--I was expecting it (which did not make it any sadder) but there are two thoughts I have about this. The first is that I really would have liked a bit more buildup to it--maybe a longer conversation between him and Jae specifically about treasuring what time you had with the one you loved instead of regretting what you missed. While that theme was definitely explored in the narrative, and it was talked about between Jae and Czoltan with Sergei watching on, I wish that we had gotted a Jae-Sergei conversation specifically, because Sergei was such a fun character who I really enjoyed.

The second Sergei-related thought and my final one overall was that Sergei's character and he and Jae's dynamic contributed a lot to the narrative tone of the book. Possibly replacing him with Richard--who is considerably different--for future books will possibly have a massive effect on the overall tone. Interested to see how that will change and how Richard's character will be handled.

Final Thoughts:

One concern I have is with the incorporation and treatment of real-world issues such as racism and transgender rights. I am white and as far as I can tell the way that Jae was portrayed seemed fine (with some possibly iffy elements such as the treatment of his mother), but I would be interested in hearing from Korean-American readers.

As a non-binary person who has a lot of trans friends, it was clear to me that the process for being turned into an extra was based upon the process trans people have to go through to get gender-affirming care. This is not, in my opinion, an issue in and of itself. However, there is a conversation near the end of the book where a werewolf and Jae have a (very short) conversation about these requirements. Jae says he thinks it is reasonable, while the werewolf says that being a werewolf isn't a bad thing and that treating the change as some irreversable thing and isolating extras in Wolftowns is alienating (to summarize). Jae doesn't seem to disagree and says he wants to listen, and I am interested to see how his stance on it (and how the narrative treats it in general) will develop in future books. Again, not necessarily labeling this as problematic or bad, but it is a narrative point I find interesting and want to see developed/explored in the rest of the series.

Additionally, while there was plenty of queer rep in this book (which I loved, I hope Pete comes back in future installments and gets more screentime, go wlw), I would be interested in seeing more about the queer community, especially trans and non-binary characters and how those identities intersect with and are expressed by those in the in-world extra community because I think there is a lot of really interesting stuff to work with there. (Also, I would KILL to see what a Wolftown pride parade looks like.)

The furry community from what I have seen is a place with a lot of diversity and activism. Since the author is writing about a lot of these real-world issues, I would suggest sensitivity or beta readers for future installments--not because this first novel was bad, but because it was good, and I think that employing those (if not already in employ) would help those concepts to continue to develop in future installments.

Looking forward to the next book in the series and hope to read more about Jae and Czoltan in the future.

I enjoyed this book. It was a little too much dense to me. Idk, it was not for me?

I think my brain just got so overwhelmed.

It was not bad. It was so goood. I really recommend it.

I actually enjoyed this one, the over the top action scenes, too many parentheses, and all. Jae was someone who basically was a hermit who's best friend was his bound ghost, Sergei. There was only Jae's POV for the entire story. At first, I was not into Jae. He just wasn't very interesting and the chapters seemed to be drawn out. I did read at the end that this was a serial that was converted to a book, so that made more sense.

Jae is a PI that is asked by his friend to follow the friend's wife to see if they are cheating, then everything goes from being boring to chock full of exciting things. One of the exciting things is his meeting up with his ex wolf boyfriend that only happened because his ghost Sergei set him up. Sergei was funny. I would have loved a POV from him. The ending was rushed. I really wish that it had been a bit longer between the "I have not seen you in 4 years when I kicked you to the curb" to the "Let's start a long distance relationship and see what happens."

I do have to point out that while there is no sexytimes in this book, Jae does kiss Czoltan while he is shifted. I had no issues with the wolves and other shifters running around partially shifted, but just a heads up in case you do.

I was not expecting this book to make me cry, so I'm just the slightest bit mad at it for that. LOL. I absolutely LOVE the premise of the detectives working with bound ghosts as partners. I thought that was so interesting, but I do happen to agree with Sergei, and felt that he was doing the lion's share of the detective grunt work. LOL

What starts as a routine job checking up on a "straying wife" for an old friend ends up being Detective Kim's craziest day ever. There were chase scenes, shoot-outs, bears screaming in people's faces, people jumping off of roofs, and then mild trips to museums. ALL IN ONE DAY.

I really can't say enough nice things about this book. It's not at all what I expected when I picked it up. It was charming, poignant, sobering, funny, sad, sweet, and a bit activist at heart. Not your typical mystery, not your typical romance. Definitely Romantic Suspense!

It starts off slow and kind of dense, but once the action begins, it's hard to resist the story as it drives forward. It reads as a true epic, one that makes you feel the world really has been reshaped as you read it. Would recommend.

This had so many things that sound right up my alley, but it ended up being something of a miss for me. Some plot elements made very little sense and the pacing felt rushed when it came to the relationships and character building, but slow when it came to some of the action scenes, including a chase scene that went on way too long for me. I liked the characters, especially the relationship between Jae and Sergei the ghost bear. And some of the world building was interesting for sure. But neither the plot nor the romantic relationship had me fully engaged or invested. Some funny and fun elements, but overall it missed the mark for me.

This did exactly what it set out to do and is an enjoyable book with a quick plot and some fun characters.
I don't read in this specific niche of (I think?) furry fiction so there were elements that weren't my cuppa tea (the kissing scene was odd to me but again not really my thing so what do I know?)
However I was quickly interested in the story and enjoyed the relationships between all three main characters, (and found the end resolution quite moving). I especially enjoyed the friendship of our MC (Jae) and Sergei who had some fun banter, and I personally liked the slow(ish) development of the romance and how it tied into their backstory . The romance is not the sole focus in this book but does tie into a lot of the plot.
I was a bit confused over the main antagonist plot logic, but not enough to throw me out of the story and I think the world was paced quite well considering the length. Kept it simple and reasonable inserted word building in without info dumping the enjoyment out of the scenes.
I also liked the chase which is not usually something I enjoy in books, but felt the adrenaline of the moment was captured well!
I'd rate this a 3.5 (which rounds to 4 for me) since this isn't really my wheelhouse but it still gave me a fun few hours of reading and I think I would read a sequel.

Unfinished Business, Tim Susman

Review from Jeannie Zelos book reviews

Genre: LGBTQIA, Romance, Sci Fi & Fantasy

I enjoyed this story, didn't know what to expect but it proved a fun read. There were parts I wasn't so keen, the romance is always a big draw for me but it took forever to actually start, and for us to find out why they split in the first place.
Wolftown was great, the inhabitants interesting. Its a slightly different take on the usual shifter scene, but as always, as we have in real life, any minorities are low on the pecking order ;-(
The action and chase, they're never a big attraction for me but it was simple enough for me to follow and feel the excitement and the scares. Jae had some very close calls, they really showed us how close he and Sergei were. Sergei was a great addition, very succinct in comments, but although “controlled” by Jae the bond between them was very close. I was glad things went well for him.
I still don't wholly understand exactly why Jae was targeted but hey...that's probably me, I'm not the best at following action themes ;-) I got most of it so I'm happy.
Overall an interesting read, in a world slightly different from the usual shifter novels. I'd be interested to read a sequel and see what happens next for Jae.

Stars: 4. A fun read, not sure I'd reread, but a great start to what could develop into a series.

ARC supplied by Netgalley and publishers

An enjoyable, quick and easy read. It was well written with a good storyline and well developed characters and a good level of world building too.

The good
+ Sergei the ghost bear
+ The description of the chase. I felt the adrenaline Jae felt and couldn't put the book down until it was over
+ Jae's PI friend (Jo?) who had his back when no-one else did
+ Jae's compassion for the extras
+ Jae's PI skills
+ Tail wagging. Cute!

The neutral
o I was kindly provided with an ARC. My review remains honest and unbiased
o They kissed while Czoltan was in his shifted form, and I was not prepared. I have read a lot of weird stuff, but usually I knew what I was getting into. Somehow, I didn't expect it here and it kind of grossed me out? Especially because Czoltan had a human face that could be kissed

The bad
- Jae was pretty stupid about leaving Czoltan, especially because he said it was because he was a wolf and couldn't introduce him to his parents, yet kept dating other wolves
- It took really long for the reader to learn why exactly they broke up, and by then it was a little too late for me to start rooting for them before the book was over
- We didn't really get to know Czoltan, so I didn't really feel their connection


This book was alright. I liked the main case and all the PI stuff. Unfortunately, the romance wasn't executed as well. Will there be a sequel to this? I'd like to get to know Czoltan better.

Nice read.
It has a good building of its world.
I wish the author would begin considering a sequel