Reviewed by Dan
TITLE: Drawing the Devil
AUTHOR: Jon Keys
PUBLISHER: Samhain Publishing
LENGTH: 162 Page
BLURB:
A heart can live a lifetime in eight seconds.
Ever since his father caught him with another boy and threw him out at the tender age of sixteen, Dustin Lewis has been fighting his way up the national bull-riding rankings. He’s on the brink of qualifying for the National Finals when he draws Diablo, a notoriously rank bull—and the ride goes bad.
When bullfighter Shane Rees frees Dustin from the rigging of the same bull that nearly destroyed his face, he comes dangerously close to dropping his guard. Shane knows the potential consequences of being gay in a sport loaded with testosterone-overdosed cowboys, and the resulting scars of mind and body have left him with little self-worth.
Their near-death-by-bull first meeting sparks an attraction that awakens every last one of their personal demons. Yet as the National Finals draws closer, so do they. But they’ll have to overcome emotional highs, near-tragic lows, and bone-crushing danger before love can bust out of the chute.
REVIEW:
I’ve had this book in my “to be reviewed” pile for a while now, but have kept putting it off because the publishing date wasn’t until February. Today I decided to pick it up to help work past a book hangover from a really dark book I had just finished. It was the perfect idea! It was a great fast moving read, with believable characters and story line. I’d be happy to hang out with the MCs. They seem like a couple of really nice guys because the author did a good job of making them three dimensional.
Dustin Lewis is an up and coming bull rider on the national circuit. As far as he knows, no one except his father and grandfather know he is gay. They both threw him out when they caught him giving a neighbor boy a blowjob when he was 16.
Shane Rees is a bullfighter who was severely wounded by a bull named Diablo a year or so prior to this story. Shane has a large scar on his face, and some on his torso. He is also gay, but suffers from an inferiority complex brought on by the scarring. He figures no man will ever want him for anything but a quickie in a dark room and then they will run from his ugliness. He dreams of a man who will love him for him.
This book is the story of the two men and their journey to the National Finals. Along the way both men deal with their growing feelings for each other, in between both being repeatedly injured by both animals and humans. Will they make it through to the other side, or will their uncertainty and their family backgrounds keep them apart? With their nicknames for themselves being Dumb and Ugly (brought on by their individual insecurities) will any sort of romance even be possible? Or instead, will one of the bulls get one of them before anything can happen? What will happen when Dustin draws Diablo for his ride? You’ll just have to pick up the book to find out!
I really liked this book. It was a great evening read. It was well written and well edited. The sex was pretty hot, but there was also a story. Good Job!
RATING:
BUY LINKS:
this is on my tbr. i haven’t read a good cowboy-esc book for a while now, and am looking forward to checking it out.