Review: Deefur Dog

Title: Deefur Dog
Author: RJ Scott
Publisher: Silver Publishing
Publication Date: 19 June 2011
Reviewed Format: ebook
Length: 109 pages

Rating: 5 out of 5

Review: Eighteen months ago, Cameron lost his partner, Mark, to an automobile accident. Now, the only piece of Mark Cameron has left is his dog, Deefur. Unfortunately, between a hectic job, a 2-year-old daughter, and the dog, Cameron is running into difficulties: namely, finding a nanny who can deal with not only his lifestyle but also the energetic Great Dane mix. When the last one doesn't even make it through the door, Cameron resigns himself to giving Deefur up, but a trip to the local rescue gives him another answer in the form of volunteer Jason, who just so happens to be looking for work as a nanny. Is it exactly what Cameron needs, or is it just too good to be true?

Cameron is at the end of his rope, desperate to hang onto Deefur as the last remnant of Mark but unable to figure out how, when Deefur is directly responsible for the loss of countless nannies. His upset over the thought of losing Deefur is touching, as is his love for his daughter, Emma. He's conflicted over his attraction to Jason, still mourning the loss of Mark, but doesn't wallow in it much, instead focusing on moving forward. He's stronger than he thinks, and he's absolutely adorable.

Jason is struggling, about to be evicted, one year left for his degree, and blown off by the agency through which he's looking for work as a nanny. He volunteers at a friend's animal rescue which is where he meets Cameron, a happy coincidence that lands him not only a job but also a home. He quickly comes to love Cameron's family, both human and canine, and settles nicely into his new circumstances. He's content with what he has but also confident enough to go after what he wants, which makes him a really charming character.

Cameron and Jason work very well together, with a low-key attraction that builds slowly. Although the attraction is there from the start, it's a sweet development rather than breathless and overwhelming. This isn't a story about sex, although that does ultimately happen; it's two people growing and coming to realize what they could have together.

The supporting cast is small, with Emma and Deefur being the biggest secondary players, although Cameron's brother Neal and Jason's friend Billy both have decent roles. Given the focus on the build between Cameron and Jason, it works fine; the quality more than makes up for the quantity.

The story itself is minimal once Cameron and Jason meet, focusing instead on character growth. This is far from a bad thing--the characters are both appealing enough that they carry it effortlessly. The lack of conflict makes the whole story comfortable, like a warm sweater you can't wait to squidge into.

I picked it up for the dog and the kid, but I definitely got far more than that out of it. Great characters and a cozy romance make this a lovely little story, one that I definitely think I'll be revisiting.

Review: Her Two Dads

Title: Her Two Dads
Author: Ariel Tachna
Publisher: Dreamspinner Press
Publication Date: 21 June 2010
Reviewed Format: ebook
Length: 193 pages

Rating: 3 out of 5

Review: Srikkanth is shocked by the news that his friend Jill has died in childbirth, delivering the baby for which he donated sperm. Unable to give the baby up for adoption, he brings her home to the bachelor's apartment he shares with two other gay men. Along the way, he has to deal with ignorance, a complaining roommate, and Child Services, just for a start. Will discovering love amidst the chaos make everything worth it, or is he in over his head?

Srikkanth is a likeable enough protagonist, if a bit of a woman. (Seriously. His reactions to a lot of things remind me of my mother, which is an... interesting association to have.) He's also a bit bland; I never got a good impression of him as a person.

Jaime is more of the same--likeable but still rather bland. I grasped him even less than I did Srikkanth, as he never left a strong impression beyond being a necessary half for a romance.

The supporting cast was fairly generic, seeming to exist more to provide quantity than quality. None of them left a particularly strong impression, but none of them were overly annoying, either. Likeable but bland.

The chemistry between Srikkanth and Jaime was sweet rather than hot. It also wasn't overwhelming in the acting upon of said chemistry; what sex there was was well-done and not particularly frequent, which is a bonus for me.

The story itself was surprisingly without conflict. The stress of Jaime's and Srikkanth's coming out was dealt with long before the book began, so it was residual "Oh, my parents don't approve!" throughout much of the book, and even that was fairly low-key. The difficulty with the roommate, with Child Services, with the other issues that arose was fleeting and resolved quickly and easily, with the effects of it usually lingering a chapter at most.

The writing overall was good, though not what I expected after Once in a Lifetime. It was a bit of a shock to find my hated third-person omniscient point-of-view, although it was at least limited to the two leads. I think it was this disappointment more than anything that soured me a bit on the book, which I recognize is rather unfair but which I can't shake.

There was a bit too much information in dialogue sometimes. The early portion of the book read like a discourse on taking care of babies, which got to be a bit annoying in the midst of the information dump. Too much telling, not enough showing.

I have to confess being a bit startled by some of the terminology used, too; I've never before read of testicles being referred to as nodules, for starters. Referring to the anus as the guardian muscle also threw me; I kept envisioning it bristling with spikes or some such, which made the whole thing rather silly.

Overall, it wasn't a bad book. It was an easy, almost soothing read, a decent way to pass an afternoon--likeable but bland.

Review: Bewitched by Bella's Brother

Title: Bewitched by Bella's Brother
Author: Amy Lane
Publisher: Dreamspinner Press
Publication Date: 11 August 2010
Reviewed Format: ebook
Length: 192 pages

Rating: 3 out of 5

Review: Sebastian is set to work on his second doctorate when his best friend Bella's brother Asa invites them to stay at his house for the summer. As the only member of Bella's large family that he has never met, Sebastian is not certain what to expect in Asa, but it's not quite what he finds--a composed, taciturn man who's devoted to his son. As Sebastian and Bella find their way together into Asa's family, though, separation looms as the summer comes to a close and Sebastian's plans take him away.

Something about this story just didn't sit right with me, and I can't quite put my finger on what it was. It never clicked.

Sebastian is a likable character, sarcastic but laid-back, and devoted to Bella and her family. It was sometimes difficult to see him as a doctoral candidate (especially for a second doctorate), but his education didn't really play into the story much, aside from being the reason for separation that added a poignancy to his relationship with Asa.

Asa is less developed to me--I think he's part of what failed to click. He seemed somehow too perfect, and I just couldn't get a good handle on him. His physical description also didn't sit right with me; the components listed when Sebastian first meets him didn't jive in my head with an attractive picture, despite the author's insistence otherwise. (Really, the facts that his eyes were slightly crossed and that his nose was Roman didn't need to be mentioned as often as they were.) I'm still not sure how to pronounce his name either. I'd thought it was AH-sa, but there's a scene in which Asa's ex-wife calls him Ace-hole, which makes me think that it's perhaps pronounced AY-sa. I like to taste characters' names in my head while I'm reading, so wondering how it was correct pulled me out of the story more than once.

The supporting cast was good, with the high point being Bella. I never did quite come to like Jordan, despite my predilection toward appreciating single dads and their kids in the genre. The rest of the Bryne family was lovely, if fleeting, and Julie was fun for the bits she was actually there, rather than an aside.

The chemistry between Sebastian and Asa was okay, if not particularly steamy. I did, however, enjoy Sebastian's seduction of Asa (if it could be called that, the first time he encouraged him to make a move). I could believe in them as a couple, but they were a rather boring couple.

The story itself flowed nicely, well-paced and engaging. Some of the word choices made me snicker, though, especially during sex. Reading a character screaming "Gawwwwwdddd" comes across as rather ridiculous. (I totally wish I was exaggerating that, too, but I actually counted the Ws and Ds in the story, and my reproduction is accurate.)

This wasn't a bad way to spend an afternoon, being a pleasant read if not stand-out. I'd recommend starting with other stories by this author first, though; there are better introductions to her writing out there.