Rating: 3 stars
Buy Link: Amazon | All Romance | Amazon UK
Length: Short Story
Rock singer Stone Manson lives for the music. At age 30, he knows he’s too old to be in Vegas playing an x-rated version of Seven Minutes in Heaven, but his band mate and best friend is trying to cheer him up. Stone’s girlfriend of eight years abruptly left him and Stone is grumpy. The sight of cross dressing Devon perks Stone up, but Stone never thought about being attracted to a man before. One hot kiss has Stone wanting more, but his confusion only leads him to saying things to Devon that are difficult to take back.
Devon knows what he likes and a hot, tattooed, heavy metal singer checks all of his boxes. But, he’s definitely not interested in a closeted or confused man. Devon is just trying to get on with life, but a dangerous shadow from his past has once again made its presence known.
This story opens with Stone’s first person edgy narrative. He wants to be anywhere but where he is and he’s delightfully grumpy. His friend roped him into playing an old school game and he can’t get out of his own way when he thinks, I felt sorry for whoever’s name I pulled because the next seven minutes wouldn’t feel like heaven. He immediately notices Devon, who refers to Stone as “Angry Rocker Guy,” and of course that’s whose name Devon picks to spend seven minutes with.
Devon is completely comfortable in his own skin. He left a volatile home life and has been making it on his own. The kiss with Stone is electrifying, but Devon has no intention of putting up with Stone’s cruel words or his apparent confusion at the situation. Devon offered a great combination to his persona as he spent his days with grease under his nails working in a garage only to slip into a dress and a pair of heels for a night out.
Both characters had a great voice, but I felt this story tried to accomplish too much within its pages. Within the time frame, it would have worked better for me if there had been more focus on the guys building a relationship and Stone’s confusion with being attracted to a man. There was that, sure, but there was also a focus on both Stone and Devon’s friends, Stone’s career, and then Devon’s past. The story lines with the friends seemingly went nowhere and the way Devon’s past was handled was what ultimately caused this story to spiral down for me. Also, their later conversation regarding their sexuality, while providing some insight into the characters, had a forced quality to it.
This was a debut book from the author and, while I did enjoy the opening dialogue and narrative, the plot ultimately read to me as an amateur effort. However, as her style evolves, I would consider taking a look at future work.
