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A review by susanscribs
Spun! by JL Merrow
4.0
I’ve read all of the Shamwell Tales by this author, and this is my favorite so far. Flirty, campy David, who readers met in Caught!, starts the book off with a bang, quite literally, losing his job and his home when he is caught in a tryst with his boss’ very married client. He seeks out his former boss Mark, now relocated to Shamwell, finagling a temporary job with him and lodging with Mark’s acquaintance Rory.
Rory is a very sweet, straight teddy bear of a man with two young children whom he wishes he could see more often. He has no problems boarding a gay man, even when his mate Barry warns him that David is out to “convert him to the cause.” But Rory, recently dumped by his girlfriend, is glad for David’s company, whether it’s cooking and eating together or comparing the merits of the various Dr. Who actors. David, who has a history of going for Bad Boys, is surprised to realize how much he likes and respects Rory, not to mention how well he gets along with Rory’s kids. Like slowly turns to lust for both men, but David is convinced that Rory remains straight as an arrow, and Rory thinks there’s no way David would be interested in a plain, poorly educated postman.
This book is just plain fun. David may be a bit too stereotypically effeminate (he carries on conversations with his teddy bear Gregory FFS), but you can’t help root for him to open up his heart and let someone in. Rory is just about perfect as he engages in a brief internal struggle about his attraction to David, quickly decides it’s no big deal that he is probably bisexual, and then risks his friendship with Barry because he won’t lie about his feelings. The only weakness is a bit of uncharacteristic and out of place angst when both David and Rory start avoiding each other instead of being honest, but the scene where they finally come together (and Rory processes his first gay sexual experience as it happens) is hilarious, sweet and worth the wait.
Merrow is at her best when she goes for humor and heart, hold the angst, and Spun! is one of her better efforts. While the previous books were published by the now-defunct Samhain, Spun! is being released by Riptide (who is also re-releasing the previous books in the series). I hope they give her the green light to keep the Shamwell Tales going.
Just adorable.
ARC received from NetGalley in exchange for honest review.
Rory is a very sweet, straight teddy bear of a man with two young children whom he wishes he could see more often. He has no problems boarding a gay man, even when his mate Barry warns him that David is out to “convert him to the cause.” But Rory, recently dumped by his girlfriend, is glad for David’s company, whether it’s cooking and eating together or comparing the merits of the various Dr. Who actors. David, who has a history of going for Bad Boys, is surprised to realize how much he likes and respects Rory, not to mention how well he gets along with Rory’s kids. Like slowly turns to lust for both men, but David is convinced that Rory remains straight as an arrow, and Rory thinks there’s no way David would be interested in a plain, poorly educated postman.
This book is just plain fun. David may be a bit too stereotypically effeminate (he carries on conversations with his teddy bear Gregory FFS), but you can’t help root for him to open up his heart and let someone in. Rory is just about perfect as he engages in a brief internal struggle about his attraction to David, quickly decides it’s no big deal that he is probably bisexual, and then risks his friendship with Barry because he won’t lie about his feelings. The only weakness is a bit of uncharacteristic and out of place angst when both David and Rory start avoiding each other instead of being honest, but the scene where they finally come together (and Rory processes his first gay sexual experience as it happens) is hilarious, sweet and worth the wait.
Merrow is at her best when she goes for humor and heart, hold the angst, and Spun! is one of her better efforts. While the previous books were published by the now-defunct Samhain, Spun! is being released by Riptide (who is also re-releasing the previous books in the series). I hope they give her the green light to keep the Shamwell Tales going.
Just adorable.
ARC received from NetGalley in exchange for honest review.