Reviewed by Carissa

TITLE:  Polyester Prince

SERIES:  ABQ Heat #2

AUTHOR:  Hayley B. James

PUBLISHER:  Dreamspinner Press

LENGTH:  214 pages

BLURB: Kyle Edington built his life around clubs, alcohol, nameless sex, and turning a blind eye to his future, but having front row access to his best friend’s perfect relationship leaves him wanting something he doesn’t understand—the white picket fence. After an ankle injury hinders his plans for PrideFest and puts his day job selling furniture at risk, Kyle attends Pride anyway to cheer himself up. Leaving his crutches at home was a mistake, though, and he’s shoved off balance and hits his head.

A bike officer keeps him safe until the paramedics arrive. Kyle’s memory of the event is foggy. He doesn’t recall the name or face of his guardian angel, but he definitely remembers the finest polyester-covered ass in all of Albuquerque.

But when he goes in search of his polyester prince, Kyle realizes relationships take hard work. After he learns the name of that perfect ass, a lifetime of avoiding serious boyfriends leaves Kyle second-guessing himself and making difficult decisions about what he wants for his future.

REVIEW:  

Sex, booze, and sugared confections.  It’s what Kyle Edington lives for, and he has no qualms about standing up for his right to enjoy all three–preferably together.  Kyle has no desire for picket fences…er, I mean boyfriends or a commitment that last longer than the afterglow of a boozy orgasms.   His life is simple and fun…and he wants it to stay that way.

With Albuquerque’s Pride Parade coming up he plans to live life up to its fullest.  And it would have been great…except he kinda got in a fight between gravity and a highly slippery pole…stripper pole, that is.  How was he supposed to know they greased them up like a…well, like a gay boy at Pride?  But Kyle’s not going to let a little thing like a busted ankle keep him down, so off he goes to show his pride and try not look too much like all he wants to do is crawl back home and snuggle on the nearest flat surface.  Turns out he should have been a bit more specific as to which flat surface he was dreaming about, ‘cause knocking his head on concrete and taking a nap on the sidewalk wasn’t exactly what he was looking for.

But his fairy-godmother must love him, because after the falling and the bleeding, there were hazel eyes, a kind voice, and the most incredible, the most beautiful, the most perfect ass ever to have been created.  Perfection wrapped in polyester…and in one hell of a mystery after he wakes up the next day not knowing the name of the most perfect ass in creation.  Good thing he has connections (and the bake goods to bribe those connections with).  Now all he has to do is find his Polyester Prince, convince him to shag him silly, and then….  Shoot.  What does he do then?  It’s not like he has much use for a picket fence, no matter how hot his ass is.

This story was an interesting mix of wanting something and knowing you want to stay as far away from it as humanly possible.  Kyle makes it perfectly clear that he doesn’t want anything that smacks of commitment.  He’s a bit of an asshole, when it comes to his one-night stands, I’ll admit–and he’ll probably admit as well–but it is not like he goes in there offering them anything more than a particularly great shag.  Which probably makes his predicament with Isaac all the more fun.  He goes from one-night stands to wanting Isaac…all the while knowing that the first sign Isaac makes towards the ‘B’ (boyfriend) or the ‘C’ (commitment) word, Kyle is likely to freak out, head to the hills, and make a mountain of bake goods to sooth his picket-fence fears.  And yet…he stays anyways.

There is just something about this that should bug the living daylights out of me (this should I stay or should I go mentality), but it doesn’t.  Maybe it is because I like Isaac so much, or that Isaac like Kyle so much, or maybe it is just the vain hope that Kyle will grow up.  At least a little.   I think Kyle was written is such a way that you genuinely understand why he felt the way he did.  And that it wasn’t a horrible thing for him to feel that way.  Even if at time I really reallyreallywanted to shake some sense into him.  It was probably a fine line between acceptable frustration and angry ranting, but I think this book pulled it off.  Just barely, but still.

I really liked how Isaac and Kyle found their way through to a relationship.  How neither of them were looking for white picket fences, or a ring on a finger, but how they simply found themselves not wanting to leave when the day was done.  How the small things became as important as the mind-blowing sex.

I kinda wish that this story at started a bit later though.  I enjoyed reading first fifth of this story–I mean it was interesting and I’m pretty sure it set up nicely the next MC in the series (or who at least I have my bet on it being), but felt way longer than it needed to be.  I had this problem with the first book as well, and I can’t help but feel that while all the information was useful for the rest of the story, that it could have easily been condensed into a more direct opening.  It was just a tad too drawn out for my tastes.

This story never goes exactly where I thought it would go, and I loved that I was never quite sure where I would end up.  It was really good to see all of Kyle’s layers, after reading the first novel in the series, and watching him pull those layers back (slowly) to show Isaac who he really is, made a great romance.   It was, perhaps, not the romance I was expecting…but one that I am glad I got the chance to read.  And if I now have a serious craving for cupcakes and odd cookies…well, I guess I know who to blame.

RATING:

BUY LINKS: Dreamspinner  ::  Amazon  ::  ARe

ABOUT HAYLEY B. JAMES

Hayley B. James is a lifelong resident of New Mexico with no plans to pack up and leave just yet. Writing is her part-time job and full-time hobby. She works in a small office during the day and lives in her written worlds at night.

When she isn’t writing, Hayley is reading m/m romance, mystery, real-life crime, fantasy, and yaoi novels, and can be found cruising Tumblr and webcomics. She may or may not have an unhealthy obsession with police officers. It’s still up for debate.

Website: http://www.hayleybjames.com/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/#!/HayleyBJames.author?fref=ts

Twitter: https://twitter.com/hayleyb_james

GIVEAWAY

Winner’s prize – A set of paperback copies of Paid Leave and Polyster Prince

A “Paid Leave” coffee mug

Runner Up will win – An ecopy of the book

a Rafflecopter giveaway