CliqueClackFrozen Heat proves Castle and Beckett can work as a couple
Disproving the Moonlighting curse, Castle’s season premiere and the latest Nikki Heat novel show that Castle and Beckett do work well together while also dealing with the mystery of Beckett’s mother.
I’ve enjoyed reading the Nikki Heat novels, especially the September-released novel, Frozen Heat. The biggest question on my mind all summer long surrounded what would happen if Castle and Beckett ever got together? Could they maintain the friendship, the humor and the mystery? According to the novels and the season premiere, yes.
The Heat novels are essentially Castle, but without the superficial crime or Rick Castle’s man-child humor. Each novel reflects the show’s darker tone while incorporating the existing characters. The streetwise, brilliantly ambitious Nikki Heat is clearly Beckett. Detective Ochoa and Detective Raley, AKA the combined Detective “Roach”, are Esposito and Ryan. The former of whom dates the department’s coroner. Jameson Rook is Castle, except he’s less of a man-boy who Beckett introduces to street crime. As an award-winning investigative reporter who delved into multiple gritty crimes, he utterly respects Beckett as a cop, lets her solve crimes, but also supports her on the side.
Frozen Heat covertly parallels the Castle season premiere, be it deliberate or unintentional. A frozen body is found stuffed inside a suitcase which relates to the unsolved death of Nikki Heat’s mother which takes her from
Paris to Manhattan and back again. Although the resolution of Heat’s mother’s murder greatly differed from the season premiere, the one thing that coalesced between the novel and the show surrounded the relationship between Heat and Rook AKA Beckett and Castle.
Last season I was pissed with Castle. His childish behavior in ignoring Beckett, treating the department like a secondary interest (after they treated him as part of the team), demanding Beckett NOT act like a cop (i.e. ignore her gut instincts about his friends), and always pushing himself into her investigation when he didn’t contribute (i.e. let him walk first into danger), ticked me off. However, reading Heat Rises and Frozen Heat, seeing how Rook supported Heat, urged her on, and contributed to her cases, while working within her boundaries, made me wonder if Castle and Beckett could ever do that.
I read the Castle novels to re-visit my favorite characters and catch a glimpse into Beckett’s interiority. I felt that Frozen Heat nicely complimented the season premiere, despite investigating an entirely different tangent. And, while they don’t have the laugh out loud humor of the Castle TV show they are addictive in their own right.
Either way, the Nikki Heat novels, especially the most recent, portrays a world where Heat and Rook (aka Beckett and Castle) struggle as a couple, but work well together as lovers and partners. It looks like the Castle TV show is following that tangent, by keeping the two real, without allowing the relationship to overrule the mystery. I like that. I look forward to more Castle episodes and more Nikki Heat novels.
Trust me, they’re to die for.
Hyperion Publishing released Frozen Heat in hardcover on September 11, 2012. It’s currently available through Amazon for 17.47. For more on Hyperion, check out their Facebook page.
Check out Castle’s season premiere on Hulu.
This review based on a complimentary copy provided to CliqueClack by Hyperion Publishing.
2 Comments on “Frozen Heat proves Castle and Beckett can work as a couple”
Andrew Marlowe, for the last 4 seasons, has made Castle and Beckett two very complex characters that work well together. Now that they have faced their feelings for each other this should open up more story ideas not fewer. Everyone talks about the “Moonlighting Curse”. The only curse involved is that the writers of that show weren’t able to answer the question of what comes next. More to the point, Kate and Rick have love, Maddie and David had lust. The little looks that Kate gives when Rick does something fatherly or the admiration that Rick expresses for Kate’s abilities as a detective far out shine the constant door slamming and bickering of Maddie and David. Apples, bricks. Not even a close comparison. On your recommendation, I’ve downloaded the Kindle edition of the first book, Heat Wave. Looking forward to a good read. Thank you.
Agreed that Marlowe continues the success of his 15th century playwrighting namesake. I think Maddie and David had love, but eventually the writers wrote them as a lovey dovey couple while dropping out their core personality facets, and focusing the show increasingly on the relationship and the baby. My biggest fear was that the writers would overtly focus on the Castle/Beckett relationship, but the pilot cured that. Here’s looking for more of that (or better).
I’ll be interested to see what you think about the novels.I haven’t read Heat Wave and planned on buying that in November. A lot of people complained that the Nikki Heat novels weren’t as warm or funny as the TV show. And, they aren’t. If you read a lot of mystery or James PattersonGrisham, it’s written in that vein. It’s basically Castle if it existed in the real world i.e. a loyal core group of colleagues with more questionable politicking ones on the outside. But, I still read them because I like reading about the gang. And I like how smart Heat comes across. And, I like the details. I think the writer(s) did a good job in Frozen Heat and Heat Rises portraying their relationship. I enjoy the novels but based on amazon.com comments, I realizethey aren’t everyone’s cup of tea.
If you really want a novel that Castle would write, try the Derrick Storm ones by Brian Michael Bendis. He’s one of the funniest graphic novelists out there who does a great job mixing the serious with the funny.
Happy reading!