Reviewed by Tori (Vicki)
TITLE: Roger 
AUTHOR: S.J.D. Peterson
PUBLISHER: Dreamspinner Press
LENGTH: 51 pages
RELEASE DATE: December 20th, 2017
BLURB:
Texas native Colt Burrow isn’t happy about his third cold, lonely Christmas in frozen Michigan. But when fate sends him a gift in the form of an abandoned puppy, he can’t keep his heart from melting. With the puppy’s companionship, he doesn’t feel so isolated anymore, and the holidays don’t seem as bleak. He even finds enough Christmas spirit to take Roger tree shopping. But just when Colt’s starting to hope Roger’s owner doesn’t show up… he does, and Colt doesn’t want to say goodbye.
Will Roger end up being Colt’s Christmas heartbreak… or his Christmas miracle?
REVIEW:
Poor Colt… alone on Christmas again, and in the snow, again. He’s from Texas, where all of his family is located, but he’s moved to Michigan for a job that he actually loves. He’s got a small house, and seems friendly with his neighbors, but has no friends, no boyfriend, and no family nearby. He’s surprised to find a small dog huddling on his back porch in the snow, and is happy to bring his new little friend in the house to warm up. He and Roger, the dog’s name according to his tag, share some eggs and cuddle up on the couch for the night. Colt does what he can to find Roger’s owner, but he’s not chipped, his tag is scratched, and no one seems to know who he belongs to. As the days go by, Colt bonds with Roger and is saddened when his owner finally makes an appearance. Then he’s surprised at the spark of attraction between himself and Killian, Roger’s owner.
This was a very sweet story about a man and a dog. What it isn’t, is a romance. Killian doesn’t appear until 57% in to the story, and the meeting is brief. The two main characters spend very little time together, two scenes really, then a very short epilogue a year later. There is no character building for Killian, no emotional connection between them, and no physical connection, just attraction and potential. It’s like the first six chapters of a book, all of the time up to the romance, but then we don’t actually get to see the romance part of the story.
Don’t get me wrong, it’s not a bad story at all. I liked it, Colt is a lonely man, and I loved seeing him find companionship with Roger. He does transform with the help of Roger. Then I liked the potential I could see between Colt and Killian. Dog owners will certainly appreciate the humor of caring for such a smart little dog, and will likely enjoy that part of the story, as I did. But I really wanted more from this story! I get that it’s a short holiday story, I just wish Killian had been introduced earlier, and we’d seen the two men together more…
If you are looking for a story about a man finding companionship with a small, sweet dog, by all means read this book. Just know there is minimal romance in it. It’s still an enjoyable story though!
RATING: 
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