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carterkalchik 's review for:
Stirring Spurs
by M.A. Wardell
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
The feel good, gay cowboy romance of the summer.
First off, partners, let’s be clear: I’m not a cowboy fan. Never have been; never will be. And there aren’t many people who could get me to read a cowboy romance. But M.A. Wardell is on that list. He’s established that trust and he didn’t lose it after I finished Stirring Spurs.
This is both a short and a quick read, a 180 page novella (so almost kissing novel length) that has a zippy pace. The story of Boone (the “cookie” at the Rainbow Ranch, an all queer, working ranch) and Wylie (a cowboy passing through, working for his bed and grub) is “low-angst” and not very plotty. They’re both out gay men who are available to each other and are immediately attracted and we follow them as they get closer and then really close.
The book is pretty slice of life and Wardell focuses on the daily lives of our heroes and their allies-queer friends and family. Whether Wylie will end up staying is the biggest issue of their relationship but the biggest issue of the plot is if Wylie can tame a wild horse, which he does through cake baked by Boone. This, friends, is what we call a metaphor.
Stirring Spurs is charming and easy to love. It’s deeply LGBTQ-affirming and displays a level of care with gay male relationships that is surprisingly rare in MM romance. If you already love to see cowboys wrestling around with each other, then you oughta giddy up and lasso this one on to your TBR. And if (like me), you’re not real keen on those cowpokes, you still will probably get a thrill out of seeing them cowboys poke. Wait, don’t take the keyboard away, I didn’t do any jokes about beans…
First off, partners, let’s be clear: I’m not a cowboy fan. Never have been; never will be. And there aren’t many people who could get me to read a cowboy romance. But M.A. Wardell is on that list. He’s established that trust and he didn’t lose it after I finished Stirring Spurs.
This is both a short and a quick read, a 180 page novella (so almost kissing novel length) that has a zippy pace. The story of Boone (the “cookie” at the Rainbow Ranch, an all queer, working ranch) and Wylie (a cowboy passing through, working for his bed and grub) is “low-angst” and not very plotty. They’re both out gay men who are available to each other and are immediately attracted and we follow them as they get closer and then really close.
The book is pretty slice of life and Wardell focuses on the daily lives of our heroes and their allies-queer friends and family. Whether Wylie will end up staying is the biggest issue of their relationship but the biggest issue of the plot is if Wylie can tame a wild horse, which he does through cake baked by Boone. This, friends, is what we call a metaphor.
Stirring Spurs is charming and easy to love. It’s deeply LGBTQ-affirming and displays a level of care with gay male relationships that is surprisingly rare in MM romance. If you already love to see cowboys wrestling around with each other, then you oughta giddy up and lasso this one on to your TBR. And if (like me), you’re not real keen on those cowpokes, you still will probably get a thrill out of seeing them cowboys poke. Wait, don’t take the keyboard away, I didn’t do any jokes about beans…