Rating: 4 Stars

Publisher: JMS Books

Genre: Gay Romance

Tags: Quirky Time Tale, Sweet 

Length: 42 Pages

Reviewer: Kazza 

Purchase At: amazon, JMS Books 

Blurb:

Kevin knows his crush on his gorgeous but impossibly aloof boss Marcus isn’t going anywhere. So it’s a huge shock when Marcus mysteriously appears one night in Kevin’s bedroom. Kevin has just enough time to enjoy Marcus’ attention and warm familiarity, then Marcus vanishes.

And then it happens again the next night.

And the next.

Meanwhile, back in daylight office hours, Marcus is as cold as ever with no obvious recollection of his night-time visits.

What’s really happening? Kevin’s emotions run deep, but so does his confusion. He’s wary of believing they have a chance together, yet his body and heart respond too joyfully to ignore.

It will take a twist of fate, a break in the routine, and a bizarre time trip to bring them together properly and, hopefully, for real.

Review: 

I didn’t know what to expect when I bought this story, other than I was looking for stories by authors who are taking part in our 9th blog anniversary, and Clare London is. I thought maybe vampire because of this part of the blurb –

So it’s a huge shock when Marcus mysteriously appears one night in Kevin’s bedroom. Kevin has just enough time to enjoy Marcus’ attention and warm familiarity, then Marcus vanishes.

And then it happens again the next night.

And the next.

And some vampires are day walkers, depending on the book, so I wasn’t thrown off by the line about ‘during office hours’. Then it didn’t appear to be going that way at all, but I was still invested. I knew it was going to be an interesting, enjoying, albeit quick, journey. And unsure as I was until the latter part of the novella where it was meant to be headed, and even then you are given some of your own agency in deciding what it all really means, it was quirky and had a real hook.

I’ve read full length novels by this author, longer novellas, and shorter novellas, and for every one of them, Clare London invests a lot in the storytelling. However, I would have LOVED more here. With about 20-30 more pages, even a bit more, this probably would have been 5 stars because I liked what the author did with the characters in such a small sized tale. The ending just needed a push, although it has a happy ending. There was some build via kissing, a sex scene that was indeed sexy, the characters had enough depth for me to feel a connection, a requirement for my emotional investment. There are also some lovely lines – I had quite a few I could have chosen for this review.

Marcus Armstrong is the manager where Kevin works at an accountancy practice. Mr. Armstrong, as everyone refers to him, is relentingly on time – 7.02am and he is at work, right on the dot. 7.05pm, he’s out the door, again on the dot. He is also meticulously groomed in his suit, hair just so. His attitude toward work is also precision-like. Kevin crushes on Marcus, uh, Mr. Armstrong. But it seems like he never notices him in return, in fact he’s quite aloof and serious. Until he starts to turn up quite randomly in Kevin’s bedroom of a night when Kevin is in bed. Marcus pulls back the covers and treats Kevin like a lover or someone who is special to him, then he goes from Marcus to Mr. Armstrong again the next morning at the office. Kevin wonders what episode of the Twilight Zone he’s in.

“Where the fuck did you come from?” I looked around wildly. Nothing else had moved in the room. The door was closed. No noise from the living room, no warning alarms from outside the building. He’d just…appeared.

Overview:

This is a bite-sized tale that I thought was delightful, including having a nice cover – Kevin is young at twenty so it suits – and it had enough depth to reel me right in. I’ve just added a couple of quote/pics for you to get a general feel for the story.

If you’re looking for a nicely written quickie, then grab Timeslip. And if you’re reading this Clare London, please think about making this longer. I guess it wouldn’t be easy given the story’s trajectory from the publisher I shall not name to now, but this pair and their story really deserves something more. Nevertheless, it’s 4 Stars! from me for all the reasons I’ve mentioned.