Reviewed by Paul

TITLE: Dazzle Me

SERIES: Summer bigger than others  

AUTHOR: Ofelia Gränd

PUBLISHER: Beaten Track Publishing

LENGTH: 32 pages     

BLURB:

Tom has been planning for months, but in those plans he never once found himself on a spa table in Bangkok on his and Santino’s one year anniversary. He doesn’t do airplanes, doesn’t like the tropical climate, and he does not do spas. Yet there he is, without a stitch of clothing, and with a man he’s never met before. He’ll do his best to enjoy his day and then he’ll give Santino the best anniversary imaginable, even if it means he has to be covered in chopped-up veggies on him for an entire day… …if only it were veggies. Part of “Summer Bigger Than Others – A Summer Anthology” from Beaten Track Publishing.

REVIEW:

A short story the way that short stories are supposed to be. I loved this, because in her own way the author connected me to the main character. The whole story is told from Tom’s point of view, and we really get into his mind. He tells us about his love for his younger lover, his doubts about that age-difference and his annoyance for public display of affection. Santino is his lover for a year, but due to a work-commitment, the day that Tom had planned was ruined. To make up for the one-year celebration Santino organizes a relaxing trip to Bangkok. But of course, everything that could go wrong on a short get-away like that goes wrong. A horrid plane-ride, lost baggage, hotel reservations that are lost. Even though Tom hates everything Santino had arranged, he loves Santino for taking the trouble doing so. And during a lovely day at the Spa, he feels that he needs to work hard to keep up with his lovers pace in life. In this story there’s a lot of humor and it made the story light, yet enjoyable. And although the author herself marked the story “no sex” , I never noticed the lack of it, as there are enough tender scenes and even a try to become members of the ‘mile high-club’ .  I enjoyed this summer read very much and as a short story should it gives you a happy ending.

RATING:

BUY LINKS:

Beaten Track Publishing

Amazon

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