Dec 22, 2011
Men Under the Mistletoe
I am not traditionally a Christmas person. As a gay/vegan/atheist/occasional-anti-capitalist, the holiday just presents all sorts of personal dilemmas and opportunities for grousing.
This year, I decided that I was done grousing, though. Sure, I’ll still calmly explain why I think the way my fellow humans behave during “the holidays” is something to be concerned about, why I don’t buy gifts for anyone over the age of thirteen, why the general assumption that everyone in America is Christian causes undue stress on those of us who are not, and more, but only if I’m asked. Otherwise, I’m tired of getting rankled every time I see a Christmas tree or hear “Jingle Bells.”
Still, even I was surprised when I decided to read a Christmas-themed novella. I happened across it (as much as anyone “happens across” anything on the internet), decided it sounded like a fun, possibly nostalgic read. And it was.
I’m referring to Lone Star, by Josh Lanyon. I’ve never read any of Lanyon’s other works, but he’s a pretty big name in gay and M/M romance/erotic fiction. If Lone Star is any indication, he deserves the acclaim.
Lone Star tells the story of Mitchell Evans, a ballet dancer who returns to his home in Texas to take care of his father’s estate. When a freak (and possibly imagined) encounter with a reindeer causes Mitchell to wreck his car, who happens to be following close behind him but his old flame, Web Eisley? Web, now a Texas Ranger, helps Mitchell get home and reestablishes the connection between Evans and the friends and family he knew before he moved away.
It’s a sweet, short story that doesn’t rely too much on Christmas miracles, but is driven instead by the long-suppressed feelings between the two characters. While Mitchell is certainly flawed and occasionally annoying, Web is a solid, caring character and you can see how the two would fall in love.
Lone Star is available as a standalone novella or as part of a collection, Men Under the Mistletoe. There’s a review of the anthology over at USA Today’s Happily Ever After romance blog, and according to them, the other stories might be worth checking out as well. I am about to spend the weekend in Tennessee with my partner’s family, and maybe a few more gay romance stories is just the tonic I’ll need to get through the weekend.
Also: whiskey.
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