Rating: 4.5 stars
Buy Link: Amazon | iBooks | Amazon UK
Length: Novel
Cash keeps to himself these days. He has his job as a mechanic and his close friends, Lucky and Dom, but even they don’t know what Cash is hiding behind his shattered heart and memories. When Cash is out one night for a family obligation, he meets Rae, who is everything Cash doesn’t want to need.
Rae is a hunt saboteur and he and his team live mostly off the grid. Their lives are dedicated to sabotaging the illegal hunts and saving as many foxes as they can. It’s a rare night of luxury that has Rae falling into Cash’s bed, but as connected as they were, Rae knows he needs to move on.
What Rae and Cash don’t know is that their lives are connected in ways they didn’t see coming and Rae finds himself once again at Cash’s door, although for a different reason. The hunt calls to both men, it’s in their blood, but being together calls to them as well in ways they never expected. But Cash has a past and following Rae into the present could lead to disaster for both of them.
Garrett Leigh has been on my favorite author list for quite some time now. Her characters are brilliant, and they often have unique backgrounds. She’s not afraid to go deep and harsh into uncomfortable worlds, and the dialogue between characters is always intriguing, always entertaining, and always spot on.
This book is as much about illegal fox hunting from a hunt saboteur perspective as it is about the budding relationship between Cash and Rae. The world of a hunt saboteur is harsh and unforgiving and there is little gratification to be found. These are people dedicated to a cause of social action and retaliate in their own way when the authorities look the other way. The relationship does take a backseat at times and while this story appealed to me, the realities on page will not be for everyone. Also, not being from the UK, my knowledge of fox hunting there can only be second hand. We are also shown the edges of a world of corruption as seen through the eyes of the hunt saboteurs. There is no violence toward animals on page, although Leigh writes a clear narrative of what takes place and the scenes of the team sabbing will leave you breathless.
But on the relationship side, Cash and Rae are amazing together. They have a difficult road to be able to be together. Cash has a painful past and a shattered heart that he really has no idea how to recover from. He can’t trust again and although his body calls out for Rae, they have a mountain of issues to get around to be together. But when they are together, the scenes are classic Garrett Leigh and are evocative as well as emotional and it’s so easy to get lost in the scenes she creates. Dom and Lucky are here as well, and while it’s not imperative to have read their book, the bond they have with Cash (and still with each other) is special and it was also so great to see them again.
There is a lot to think about as the story progresses and as the book focuses solely on the foxes, the teams barely give a thought to the other animals involved in the hunt until the end and that I could not explain for a group dedicated to saving animals.
Garrett Leigh once again writes an interesting world here with characters living difficult, complex, and completely interesting lives. Be prepared for a group dedicated to social action and justice on their own terms in the midst of a consuming and dedicated relationship between Cash and Rae.
