Reviewed by Sadonna
TITLE: The Scoop Around the Corner
SERIES: The Gayborhood
AUTHOR: R. Cayden
PUBLISHER: Self-published
LENGTH: 226 pages
RELEASE DATE: April 21, 2026
BLURB:
REVIEW:
Gayborhood business rivals. Unwitting pen pals. Ice-cream lovers.
Meet Riley Horton and Finn Robeson.
Riley’s got trouble.
The motorcycle shop I’m running is at war with the rest of the gay neighborhood.
I’ve developed feelings for my anonymous pen pal, a man I’ve never even laid eyes on.
My awkwardly grumpy social skills are earning me enemies left and right.
And worst of all, I can’t stop thinking about Finn, the smiley, friendly man who runs the ice cream shop across the street.
The hot, geeky, perfectly infuriating man who I argue with every day.
The man who is turning my life upside down in ways I don’t understand.
Finn’s got ice cream.
My ice cream shop has a nemesis, a grumpy biker with an annoyingly hot growl and a noisy garage.
Sales have plummeted, the gayborhood is in chaos, and Riley Horton is at the center of the storm.
It doesn’t help matters at all that we have… chemistry.
Luckily, I’ve got a fun distraction in my anonymous pen pal, an intimate friendship that might be turning into something more.
I’m going to ask him to meet in person. Whether he’s the man of my dreams or not, anything is better than another minute arguing with Riley.
The Scoop Around the Corner is a steamy M/M romance featuring a gruff biker and the geeky, bright owner of an ice cream shop. Gayborhood hijinks ensue, the community comes together, and Riley and Finn find their happily ever after. Enjoy!
REVIEW:
Finn owns an ice cream parlor in the Gayborhood. It’s been open about a year and things are going well. They were. Until a motocycle garage opens across the street. Now the noise from the shop is affecting not only Riley’s business but other businesses on the block. Foot traffic has all but dried up do to the noise of the bikes.
Riley has just arrived in town to help his friend Chase manage his new business, a motorcycle repair shop in the gay neighborhood of Buffalo. He’s committed for a year and he’s going to do a good job. He may not have social skills but he’s a good mechanic and knows how to run a shop. However, he doesn’t count on the hostility from the neighborhood. Despite noise ordinances, the shop has some kind of dispensation and so they aren’t going to budge. This sets up an adversarial relationship with the other businesses. Oh well. At least he’s got his online relationship with his “pen pal” MorningEnthusiast. They are writing a sci-fi fantasy story together and have become friends over the years. It’s completely anonymous. Riley’s moniker, NotAnOgre is apt 😉 They are best friends even if they haven’t met.
Riley and Finn end up at a con together and well the heat between them turns to something besides animosity. It’s desire. And they act on it. Uh oh. What have they done? Now they have mixed the neighborhood dispute with sex?? And you can see where this is going 😉
Riley and Finn are definite opposites. Riley is convinced that nobody will every what him. Finn is surprised by his attraction to Riley considering their initial interactions, but he can’t deny that they have chemistry. Riley is not good socially and Finn gets that. He does his best to try to get things back on track for the neighborhood and with Riley after some steps forward and then backwards. Finn figures out things and wants to be honest with Riley but Riley is devastated thinking he’s lost everything. But he’s dead wrong. I loved how these two complimented each other. Finn encourages Riley to come out of his shell and Riley convinces Finn to do what he knows he can for the Gayborhood. Turns out Riley might not be such a loner after all 🙂 This is a cute story and I enjoyed revisiting the Gayborhood.
RATING: 
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