Reviewed by Ro
TITLE: Keystrokes and Kittens
SERIES: Foggy Basin Season 3
AUTHOR: Gabbi Grey
PUBLISHER: Self Published
LENGTH: 187 pages
RELEASE DATE: August 10, 2026
BLURB:
Soren
My life is super simple—there’s my labrador retriever Tibby, my job as a cybersecurity expert, and my cabin on the edge of a beautiful lake in Foggy Basin. I have virtual coworkers who are kind, I have real-life friends who are generous, and I belong to a thriving and accepting LGBTQ community in town. My life’s pretty damn sweet. Except when I think about one shy, gorgeous, elusive man. Sam makes my heart beat a little faster. He makes my smile grow a little bigger. And he runs whenever we’re alone together.
Sam
As the manager of the pet food store, I get to meet the most amazing pet parents. I’ve become friends with the local dog trainer, and at his Christmas party, I ran into a guy I’d been admiring and avoiding whenever he came into my store. Soren is kind, and he’s hot, not the kind of man to look at me twice. I always get tongue-tied and run away as fast as I can. Until I rescue a litter of newborn kittens and find myself drowning in the demands of their hour-by-hour care. Then Soren finds me falling asleep over my register and offers to help. I can’t turn that kindness down, but I still don’t know what to say when I’m around him.
Keystrokes and Kittens is an opposites-attract, interracial gay romance with a normally chill guy who can become discombobulated, the man who wants to be his friend, and the cutest litter of matchmaking kittens ever.
Welcome to Foggy Basin. Just passing through? No problem. Here to stay? Well, better find your place. Sit back, relax, and get to know the townsfolk. They love hard and play even harder. Each book is a standalone, but why not stay and get to know us and read them all.
(CW – death of a pet)
REVIEW:
In this episode of Foggy Basin we meet Soren and Sam. Soren is a cybersecurity expert who has a newly certified therapy dog named Tibby (she’s adorable). Sam is the manager of the pet store that Soren used to frequent, until a random kiss last Christmas made Sam run and Soren not return. The two of them are sort of a mess.
Sam has a lot of baggage. His parents, brother and sister-in-law were killed in an accident where he was the only survivor. At 19, he took custody of his niece, Quinta, who was nine. So he’s had a lot of responsibility, and he’s a little spooked about getting close to people. He has survivor’s guilt and that doesn’t help. He’s also dealing with Quinta now being in college, and wanting to live her life. She doesn’t want to hurt Uncle Sam, but we all know how it is when the little kid is growing up. “Just that I thought the school year was over, but Quina says she’s got more going on.” Add in that Quinta helped out in the store, which is already short staffed. And then…kittens. Someone leaves three newborn kittens on the pet store doorstep and what can Sam do but try to take care of them?
Soren feels badly because he thinks he completely misjudged the thing at Christmas and now he doesn’t know how to get to go back to his favorite pet store. But he’s finally gotten the courage and he’s going in. When he goes in, he sees that Sam is over his head with trying to take care of the kittens and the store. So he offers to help. Sam can move in with him, and they will split kitten care. I admit, my first thought was MOVING IN? Really? That seemed extreme to me, but okay. Sam’s in the guest room and the kittens can be cared for.
A warning to non-pet people. There is a lot of kitten care in here. Their friend, Noah, (from a previous book, Finding Noah Foggy Basin Season 2), teaches them how to care for kittens and how to acclimate Tibby to the kittens. There is a lot of kitten talk, as the title would suggest.
Sam is dealing with some aspects of his sexuality as well, just to add more to his plate. I have to say I loved how Soren supported Sam with this, and how patient he was as they worked to figure things out together.
This really is a no-angst book, despite a sad moment with Carlos and a sad history.
RATING: 
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