Reviewed by Chris
TITLE: Spun!
SERIES: The Shamwell Tales #4
AUTHOR: J.L. Merrow
NARRATOR: Mark Steadman
PUBLISHER: Riptide Publishing
LENGTH: 7 hours 44 minutes
RELEASE DATE: November 29, 2017
BLURB:
With friends like these . . .
An ill-advised encounter at the office party leaves David Greenlake jobless and homeless in one heady weekend. But he quickly begs work from his ex-boss and takes a room in Shamwell with easygoing postman Rory Deamer. David doesn’t mean to flirt with the recently divorced Rory—just like he doesn’t consciously decide to breathe. After all, Rory’s far too nice for him. And far too straight.
Rory finds his new lodger surprisingly fun to be with, and what’s more, David is a hit with Rory’s troubled children. But while Rory’s world may have turned upside down in the last few years, there’s one thing he’s sure of: he’s straight as a die. So he can’t be falling for David . . . can he?
Their friends and family think they know all the answers, and David’s office party hookup has his own plans for romance. Rory and David need to make up their minds and take a stand for what they really want—or their love could be over before it’s even begun.
REVIEW:
I was lucky enough to review the ebook of this story last year, so I’m going to do my best not to rehash everything I previously said there in this audio book review. I think that just about everything I said in that review is still correct, so I’d rather spend more time focusing on what a reread was able to add to this story, as well as how the narration by Mark Steadman influenced my opinion of the book. If you have not previously read this book, I’ll do my best to bring you up to speed:
Bad-timing, bad-judgement, or just bad-luck–hell, maybe all three–lands David Greenlake with no job, no home, and an increasing dearth of friends willing to let him crash on their couches till the first or the second situation rights itself. So he gathers what is left of his pride and calls in a favor from his former boss, Mark Nugent (see previous story: Out!) asking him to take him on as a personal assistant/dogsbody. Mark–much to his partner Patrick’s annoyance–agrees. But–much to Patrick’s insistance–has no couch to lend, or bed to rest poor David’s head on. He does however know of a man who might just be in need of a roomate.
Rory Deamer, having just been summarily dumped by Patrick’s mother, is actually happy to have someone to share his house with. Granted, there is not much house to share, but he has a free room, and sharing with a mate of Mark’s shouldn’t be a problem. Even if the guy is rather more…um, obvious? in his sexual orientation than any gay man Rory has ever known. But, really, Rory doesn’t mind, and even kind of likes the odd bits about David. And yeah, the way people are suddenly assuming that he and David are in a relationship–despite the fact that someone like David falling for a man like Rory is beyond ridiculous…and not even just because Rory is straight–is a bit bemusing, but David is quickly becoming an essential part of Rory’s day, and really, what harm is there in people’s assumptions anyway?
I hadn’t had a chance to go back and reread this story since I read it the first time. I did remember liking quite a bit though, so when I saw that we had been offered a chance to review the audio book, I thought I’d give it a try. And much like the first time I read it, that first chapter made me squirm with so much second-hand embarrassment that I was unsure if I wanted to continue. David is such a…unique individual, and Mark Steadman (the narrator) does such a good job of bringing that to life, that I so worried that I’d end up hating how over-the-top he can be at times. But just like last time, the moment passed, Rory came on page, and oh my god did I remember what I adored about this book. Not just that Rory is by far and away my favorite character in the entire series, but that the combination of Rory and David is absolute perfection. They balance each other so well that neither is too much or too little.
And the narration only added good things to the story. I have had the chance since finishing this audio version to go back and listen to several of the other books in this series, and while I do think that Mark Steadman does a wonderful job in each of them, there is something so perfect about this story that beats them all out. I literally planned to take over a week listening to this book on my commute to and from work…and instead finished in probably less than 48 hours. Luckily I was able to listen to it while working or else I think I might have found myself hiding out in the break-room more than is strictly encouraged to get another five-minute fix of the damn thing. The narration fits so perfectly with these characters that when I finished the story I kinda wanted to just go back and listen to it again. That takes a damn good book to pull off.
All in all, I can’t help but recommend this audio book. I know that David isn’t for everyone, but my god does he work so well in this story. And Rory…can I please have more Rory in my life??? I had so much fun listening to this, and as I am quickly running out of books in this series to listen to, I can only hope that Merrow is planing a book five at some point. Or else I’m just going to have to go back and reread them all over again.
RATING: 
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