by J.L. Merrow
3 Stars
His job: downsized out
of existence. His marriage: on the rocks. It doesn t take a lot of arm twisting
for Tim Knight to agree to get out of London and take over his injured brother
s mountain bike shop for a while. A few weeks in Southampton is a welcome break
from the wreck his life has become, even though he feels like a fish out of
water in this brave new world of outdoor sports and unfamiliar technical
jargon.
The young man who falls literally through the door of the shop brings everything into sharp, unexpected focus. Tim barely accepts he s even "in" the closet until his attraction to Matt Berridge pulls him close enough to touch the doorknob.
There s only one problem with the loveable klutz: his bullying boyfriend. Tim is convinced Steve is the cause of the bruises that Matt blows off as part of his risky sport. But rising to the defense of the man he s beginning to love means coming to terms with who he is in public in a battle not even his black belt prepared him to fight. Until now.
The young man who falls literally through the door of the shop brings everything into sharp, unexpected focus. Tim barely accepts he s even "in" the closet until his attraction to Matt Berridge pulls him close enough to touch the doorknob.
There s only one problem with the loveable klutz: his bullying boyfriend. Tim is convinced Steve is the cause of the bruises that Matt blows off as part of his risky sport. But rising to the defense of the man he s beginning to love means coming to terms with who he is in public in a battle not even his black belt prepared him to fight. Until now.
Hard Tail is a slow-burn, coming-to-terms-with-your-sexuality,
m/m romance, that is an easy sweet read.
This is our first J.L. Merrow book and we really enjoyed it. The story is set from Tim’s point of view – a
newly separated late 20’s out-of-work accountant that temporary moves back to his
hometown to look after his brother’s bike shop when he breaks his leg. And one of the employees at the shop in
Matt. Sweet Matt. We don’t really get to know a lot about Matt,
but being from Tim’s POV that isn’t surprising. Matt is a out-gay man, a klutz that has a
live-in boyfriend named Steve.
What did we like about Hard Tail? Tim’s voice is perfect; he is sarcastic, humorous
and self-effacing. We also really like
the British writing, the slang, the places, so fun, and paints the picture of
the idyllic countryside in which the book is set. But the real gem of the story is the other
character, Tim’s brother Jay and a friend named Adam. Seriously J.L. Merrow should write a book
about Adam! And we can’t forget about
the scene-stealer Wolverine! We do have to mention that there is some
between-the-sheets action, although enjoyable, it doesn’t have the steam we
hoped Matt and Tim could generate.
There were a few things that did make Hard Tail a bumpy ride
for us. The homophobia in the book, even
from Tim himself, gets a bit much. And
how Tim comes to accept his sexuality, there doesn’t seem to be much thought
about jumping into his first gay experience.
Speaking about jumping, we go from some fooling around between Tim and
Matt to love-you-forever’s and moving in together, wished J.L Merrow had
flushed this out a bit.
All in all this is a sweet romance, with a funny POV, and generally
an easy read. We will be picking up more J.L. Merrow books soon.
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