Reviewed by Kimberley
TITLE: Misfits
AUTHOR: Garrett Leigh
PUBLISHER: Riptide Publishing
BLURB:
Restaurant owner Tom Fearnes has loved his partner Cass for as long as he can remember, but their work often keeps them apart. When he meets a striking young man named Jake on the vibrant streets of Camden Town, their heady first encounter takes an unexpected turn. Jake Thompson can hardly believe his luck when he wakes up in Tom’s bed. Tom is gorgeous, kind, and . . . taken. Tom’s explanation of his open relationship leaves Jake cold, but Tom is too tempting, and when hard times force Jake to accept Tom’s helping hand, he finds himself between two men who’ve lost their way. Cass Pearson is a troubled soul. He loves Tom with all he has, but some days it feels like he hasn’t much to give. Jake seems like the perfect solution. Cass risks everything to push Jake and Tom together, but Jake resists, wary, until the darkness of Cass’s past comes to call. Then Jake finds himself the last man standing, and it’s time to dig deep and shine a light for the men he’s grown to love.
REVIEW:
My favorite type of stories to read in this genre are ménage. This story starts off telling Tom and Cass’s story. Tom and Cass are partners in both business and in life and love with an open relationship. The encounters with other men aren’t common and it never comes between the two. That is until Tom meets Jake, a young waiter with Tourette’s syndrome. Tom’s attraction to the young waiter with tattoos was immediate and unexpected. As the story goes on, you realize that Jake and Cass have a lot in common and maybe that played a big part in Tom’s attraction.
I loved the direction this book went. The relationship didn’t immediately start with them being a triad. It originated with Tom and Jake as a couple, with a friendship blossoming between Jake and Cass. That is what made this book so much more interesting to me. Cass and Tom’s relationship was rocky; not to the point of splitting up, mind you, but it was rocky. Cass felt that with his troubled background, he didn’t deserve to be happy; he felt that Tom was too good for him. Tom feels that Cass shuts him out and I think this feeling of loneliness is one of the reasons behind Tom attraction to Jake.
Without giving away any spoilers, I will tell you that this story is heartbreaking and sweet with a few hot scenes in between. I was rooting for these men, glad that Cass had Tom and Jake in his corner to help him through his dark patch. Another thing that I liked about this book was the dialog. I’ve read quite a few books written by UK authors and have—or I thought that I have-a pretty good understanding of the British idioms and speech patterns. This book proved me wrong. As it was pointed out by one of my British FB peeps, “That’s a proper Cockney book you’re reading.” I had no idea what Cockney was until she explained it to me. I was so glad that she understood the dialect. It took me a bit longer to complete this book because I kept having to ask what a certain word or phrase meant. My favorite is, ‘taking the piss’ by the way. There was also the traditional British food that I was unfamiliar with so needless to say, I relied heavily on her while reading.
I truly enjoyed this book. Reading this I not only got a great story featuring these fantastic characters, but I learned quite a more bit about British culture and the cities. Leigh did a wonderful job with this book. This author is one I’m definitely going to keep an eye out for and this book is really worth picking up!
Thank you Petronella for your time and patience in translating the book for me. The UK and US are two countries separated by the same language. I definitely look forward to reading more from the authors in this genre from ‘across the pond’.
Rating: 