Rating: 3.5 stars
Buy Link: Amazon | iBooks | Amazon UK
Length: Novella
Having recently broken up with his boyfriend, Paul is taking his vacation to Spain all on his lonesome, until he meets Omar, a handsome — very handsome — stranger who suggests Paul visit the Rock of Gibraltar. On his way there, Paul meets Omar, again. Or at least an Omar who is just as handsome, just as flirty, and who suggests that Paul visit Morocco. In Morocco, Paul meets, you guessed it, another Omar! This one offers him a drink, a very special drink from a very special bottle, and it’s there that the adventure begins!
Between genies, curses, vodka bottles, and Chinese pottery, Paul finds himself falling balls deep in love with the genie of his dreams. But if he doesn’t remove the curse, his third wish (and he’s already made two) will be the end of it, and all of his memories of his genie will be gone in a puff of smoke.
This novella moves along at a blisteringly fast pace and is filled with handsome, hung, and horny men. Paul goes from groping a man in a stairwell, to jerking him off in the car as they drive through a rainstorm (please don’t be Paul, and wait until your car is parked before trying this!), to enjoying an encounter with a genie in a few pages. And it doesn’t let up from there. Paul is all about the adventure, and the adventure, once it takes off, doesn’t slow down.
As a character, Paul is a nice guy, always willing to flirt with or chat up a handsome stranger. But he’s also a kind person, wanting to help those who are in trouble, like Yuri, another victim of the curse. He doesn’t want to fight with his ex; he’d rather they found a way to be friends, and he’ll fight to the bitter end to keep Genie at his side.
However, that said, I had some very personal difficulties with this book. The author has a sly sense of humor, but it’s not one that really tickled my funny bone, and while I enjoyed the bits of history and culture thrown in here and there, I also found myself somewhat exhausted by the pace. Just because I didn’t enjoy the author’s style doesn’t mean this is a bad book, not by any means. But it does mean that I’m going to suggest that you try a sample, first, to see if this book works for you.
This story is well plotted and well written, and I wish that my own personal taste and the author’s were a little more in sync.
