Reviewed by Vicki
TITLE: His Client 
SERIES: His Client #1
AUTHOR: Ava March
PUBLISHER: TKA Distribution
LENGTH: 137 pages
BLURB:
Love wasn’t supposed to be part of the bargain…
On every visit to Madame Delacroix’s brothel, Nathaniel Travers requests the same man. Stunningly handsome and highly skilled, Jasper not only shares Nate’s fondness for wickedly erotic games and black leather corsets, but he has become a trusted confidant. And Jasper’s the only person who knows Nate longs for a committed relationship with his childhood friend, Peter Edmonton.
Unrequited love hurts, but it hurts even more when the object of affection is in love with another. Jasper Reed has been working at Delacroix’s for a decade. He’s saved enough to retire, yet he remains at the decadent London brothel. Leaving would mean leaving Nate and the hope someday the rugged gentleman would stop pining for his best friend and realize he loves Jasper, just as Jasper loves him.
Edmonton’s impending marriage looms before them, causing Jasper to take another look at his stubborn heart. Yet Jasper’s a bastard whore, and Nate’s the nephew of a viscount. Surely there can’t be any hope for them…
Note: This is a previously published work. This second edition has been edited with minor changes. For readers who purchased the original edition, this second edition is not substantially different.
REVIEW:
Before I get in to the heart of this review, let’s take a moment to look at the cover. Did you look at it? Do you appreciate the beauty of it? Sigh…. that chest, that belly, and look in the background at that bed. Such a sexy cover!
Ok, there is a story here, stop drooling over the cover! I love rent-boy-finds-love stories so I was quite happy when we decided to do a love for sale theme this month. Ava March has several books that fit that theme, this is one of my favorites. I love her books, set in the Regency era in England, when homosexuality was illegal. I love the added drama of the time period, the need to hide even more what your sexual preference was, maybe to the point of marrying even though you didn’t want to. The clothing of the time period, the fussiness, the regality of it all adds to my enjoyment of historical romance novels of this era. Then add in Ava’s BDSM elements, and I am sold. She’s probably my favorite m/m historical romance author. There are a couple that add some paranormal elements to historical romances, which I do love, but there is something about Ava’s pure historical books that gets me every time.
I read The Client a few years ago, and thought it would be a good one for our theme this month, and it was. It certainly has a rent boy finding love even for his jaded self, but it’s also about acknowledging what you have in your hand, what is in your heart, what is right in front of you.
Nate has been in love with his best friend Peter since their school days. The only problem is, Peter does not share his sexual preferences. Nate has been visiting Delacroix’s, a local house of ill repute, and seeing Jasper for five years. They play a bit of games, some mild BDSM, a little role-playing and spanking, but nothing overly dramatic. They have become…. almost friends in this time. But only at Delacroix’s. Nate spends a fair amount of time whining about Peter, and how horrible it is that he doesn’t love him. Jasper patiently listens, all the while wishing it were he that Nate pines for. But it’s not to be. Or so he thinks.
So this is a small story, it takes place in Jasper’s room at Delacroix’s, a scene in a church, one at Peter’s house, and at another house later on. There are not a lot of other characters, Peter and his wife appear once, and a couple of very brief appearances by others. It is really focused on Nate and Jasper. I like that. I like big complex plots, but this is simple and nice. Nate is a jerk, then he isn’t. Jasper is stubborn. We see a couple of very nice sexual encounters between the two, with just a little naughtiness. It’s a great story, the writing is good, the characters are good, the time period is interesting, there is a little drama, and a great ending. I love Ava’s books, if you haven’t read anything by her, or from this time period, this would be a great one to start with.
RATING: 
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