Why I read it: I received a review copy from the publisher so I'd understand the second book (which I got via NetGalley).
What it's about: (from Goodreads) Owen may be a bit of a
country mouse, but he's loving his vacation in London. After a long day
playing tourist, he's on the hunt for some cheap beer and a good burger.
Instead he finds a man hunting him, an arrogant prick with only one
thing on the brain: the kind of meat that doesn't come on a bun.
Eighty-hour weeks at a trading desk don't leave Malcolm Kavanagh much time for meaningful relationships. Besides, in his world, everything's a competition-even sex. When his newest one-night-sub fails to show, Malcolm sets his sights on the pretty young Yank on the bar stool beside him.
Owen's all for an adventure with a native, but he's not the pushover Malcolm thinks he is, and Malcolm's not as shallow as he tries to be. They both soon learn that nothing's too intimate to share with a stranger, and the strangest things happen when two people share the most important pieces of their hearts.
Eighty-hour weeks at a trading desk don't leave Malcolm Kavanagh much time for meaningful relationships. Besides, in his world, everything's a competition-even sex. When his newest one-night-sub fails to show, Malcolm sets his sights on the pretty young Yank on the bar stool beside him.
Owen's all for an adventure with a native, but he's not the pushover Malcolm thinks he is, and Malcolm's not as shallow as he tries to be. They both soon learn that nothing's too intimate to share with a stranger, and the strangest things happen when two people share the most important pieces of their hearts.
What worked for me (and what didn't): I write this having finished Country Mouse and not having started City Mouse. This novella, clocking in at just under 80 pages, tells the story of the initial meeting and first weekend together of Owen and Malcolm. It ends in a hopeful HFN because, as can be expected, they really don't know each other well enough for a believable HEA. I think in some ways the blurb and the title worked against me. I didn't see Owen as particularly 'country'. He was an American new to London but he didn't react with fear to the big city. It's not like he'd never seen traffic or high rise buildings. His own self reference as 'a bit of a country mouse' didn't sit right to the way I saw him. And Malcolm isn't the Dom the blurb led me to expect. Taking out those two items which did throw me off the scent a bit, I did enjoy this story. Once Malcolm and Owen had made it back to Malcolm's penthouse, the characters started to shine and I began to get a handle on who these men are and why they could be so good together.
