REVIEWED by Danielle
TITLE: Do You Trust Me
AUTHOR: B.G. Thomas
PUBLISHER: Dreamspinner Press
LENGTH: 200 Pages
RELEASE DATE: February 3, 2017
BLURB:
2nd Edition
The path to happiness starts with acceptance, and sometimes the chance for a bright, loving future means letting go of the past.
All his life, Neil Baxter has buried a large part of himself–the part that’s attracted to other men. He married a woman and denied that side of him existed. And he plans to keep right on pretending to be straight after his beloved wife has passed away.
To help him deal with his grief, Neil’s sister-in-law convinces him to vacation at a dude ranch. There, Neil meets Cole Thompson, a young, gorgeous, unabashedly gay wrangler–who is unabashedly attracted to Neil. And try as he might, Neil cannot deny he feels the same way. But desire soon becomes something more profound as the two men get to know each other. Cole is much more than a sexy cowboy: he’s kind, spiritual, and intelligent. In fact, he’s perfect for Neil… except he’s a man, and Neil isn’t ready to let go of a lifetime of denial. If he cannot find the courage to be true to himself, he might let something wonderful slip through his fingers.
First Edition published as Trust Me by Amber Quill Press, 2011
REVIEW:
Being a fan of author B.G Thomas’ writing I realised I had never read this story (in the first edition) so I was happy to pick up this re-release. And boy was I glad I did!
Where I normally am not really a May/December girl and this is definitely one of those kinds of stories, this one really grabbed me with the dynamics of Cole and Neil. I cannot deny that the story taking place on a ranch was a huge bonus for me because I am sucker for those kind of backgrounds.
Yet the author didn’t make it just about a ranch and a wrangler falling in love with a guest; they made it so much more. I couldn’t bring myself to stop reading because I wanted to see what was going to happen, hence my only slight form of critic.
The built up is slow, although it is justified I guess with the background of Neil and the loss of his wife. And Neil is finding out more about himself than he could have imagined, when he signed up to visit this ranch with his best friend Amy and their kids. Amy lost her husband and really wanted to visit the ranch to say goodbye to him. But I noticed myself really wanted to see that connection that was very present move to a more physical, one so to speak.
The story telling is superb. The way B.G. Thomas fits in both Neil and Cole’s background stories and history comes over so easily, it surprises me how the author was able to work that much detail in without weighing down the story. All the pieces fit.
I had some places I struggled, not because of the story, but because of the fact that it was hard for me to realise that yes people think in certain ways and act out on it unfortunately. So even more kudos for the author for taking this on, showing the dark side of homophobia and of ignorance. For showing the damage the lack of communication and information and teaching skills can lead to.
Overall I am so incredibly happy I picked up this story and recommend it highly for anyone who is looking for a contemporary story with a serious message, a life story and a romance to top it of.
RATING: 
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