BENT ARROW by Posy Roberts: ARC Review

BENT ARROW by Posy Roberts

Pages: 65

Date: August 18, 2015

Details: Novella

             ARC received from the author

E-book

The blurb:

“Sometimes curves in the road take you right where you belong.

Luther Almond’s life working the Bakken oil field is perfect—short-lived jobs, temporary housing, and easy hookups. That’s one reason he won’t move home when he inherits the lake house. When Erik Heat bends over to fix Luther’s pipes, his tattoos hint he might be up for more than working on the drain. The last thing Luther expects is to want more from this guy than one night. 

Every time they’re together, Luther is more grounded and Erik more confident. When the lake house demands attention, Luther asks for Erik’s help. There he imagines a more permanent life, one where he stops running. But he wants Erik by his side. Can he find the courage—and the words—to ask?”

My thoughts:

“The arrow is bent wood because I don’t fit anywhere: not in the straight world and not in the gay world. It was just my way of acknowledging that and celebrating the beauty of it at the same time.”

I only discovered Posy Roberts’ books recently but I have to say I’m delighted I did. It never ceases to be a wonderful experience when I run into an author who tells good stories using carefully chosen and beautifully applied words while introducing memorable characters. I also like it when an author takes me by surprise and turns my expectations on their head, and that’s exactly what happened in this story.

Given Luther and Erik’s individual backgrounds I would have expected Erik to be the one reluctant to proclaim the growing love between them to the world. After all he has had the bad experiences to justify fear and even paranoia, while Luther ‘only’ has his fears of what may happen if he comes out in his home town and to his family. But, that is not how it plays out. When push comes to shove Luther has to overcome the obstacles he sees in his way before their relationship has a chance of growing into something permanent.

But that’s later on in the story. At first it is very much Luther who is taking care of Erik and making sure he is as safe as he can possibly be. And I loved the gentle way in which this apparently rough and ready oilman took care of Erik.

It is very hard to write this review without giving too much of the story away so I’ll keep it short and sweet. Let me just say that I enjoyed spending time with these two men and discovering the softness underneath their tough exteriors. All too often the confidence we think we see in other people hides deep and mostly well hidden secrets and insecurities. Posy Roberts did a wonderful job showing me that Luther and Erik were a lot more than hard men doing hard jobs under very harsh conditions. Chapter by chapter we got to see more of who the men really were, beneath the public masks they wore, and they emerged as beautifully flawed, realistic, memorable and very attractive characters.

Bent Arrow was a captivating read and because it’s an novella I was able to read the story in one sitting which was just as well because I would have had a very hard time walking away in the middle of it.

About the author:

Real life. Genuine men. True love.

Posy Roberts writes about the realistic struggles of men looking for love. Whether her characters are family men, drag queens, or lonely men searching for connections, they all find a home in her stories.

Posy is married to a man who makes sure she doesn’t forget to eat or sleep. Her daughter, a budding author and dedicated Whovian, helps her come up with character names. When Posy’s not writing, she enjoys crafting, hiking, and singing spontaneously about the mundane, just to make normal seem more interesting.

Website: Posy Roberts

Buy links:

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