Hairy, Horny, and Over Here by J.L. Merrow
My rating: 3 of 5 stars
I got this one because it was by JL Merrow and I’ve yet to find a book of hers that I don’t laugh out loud while reading. Well I didn’t exactly laugh out loud at this one but I adore the ending and the story is cute and fun. It’s a throwaway in that it’s not one I’d remember exactly and there isn’t much to the story but it’s fun, easy to read, and enjoyable so worth the few bucks.
The short story jumps right into the action with British photographer Ethan out in the woods with an American hunting enthusiast, Logan. It takes a minute to understand what’s going on as Ethan’s internal narrator jumps around a bit and it’s hard to immediately grasp the dynamic between Ethan and Logan. However once you get past a bit of a rocky start the smooth writing kicks in and it’s easy to follow Ethan as he stumbles and grumbles his way around the woods.
The plot isn’t exactly realistic as it involves murderous jackalopes, an escaped convict, a horny photographer, and a sudden sex in the woods scene. But then again that’s kind of the whole point. This is meant to be a tongue in cheek fun romp in the woods without worrying about the realism aspect. I can go with it and did easily as the witty dialogue and back and forth make the narrative entertaining and engaging.
I didn’t love this story as much as I’ve loved other works by this author partly due to the choppy and rough start. Also the characters, while amusing, never really came alive for me. They seem very fun and Ethan especially makes for a good narrator but Logan is too cryptic with too many euphemisms used during the sex scene. They make the story fun but just didn’t work as well for me as they have in previous stories. As a short, this is worth reading but it’s not my favorite by this author.
three am 
It was fun and certainly not meant to be taken seriously. Ever since my first visit to South Dakota at the age of 12 I’ve had an unnatural affinity for jackalopes. What can I say, it’s a thing. 🙂
On an unrelated note. I can’t choose your on your poll. Waaahh. I probably read more TQ than anything because of all the shorts I read, but I basically buy my books based on the content, not the publisher. I share the love (and money) I suppose, although all of those listed have a higher technical quality level than some out there. Not too often you find glaring errors. As for stories, they’ve all produced some gems and some duds.
Do you tend to buy from third party retrailers like rainbow ebooks or all romance ebooks? I’ve been buying from publishers (none from TQ thank you) but mostly DSP, Loose Id, Samhain. I kind of forget other publishers exist unless I trek to ARe and check out their list of books.
I do buy a lot from ARe. Depends how eager I am for something if I’m willing to wait. I bought a bunch at Fictionwise but only because someone posted a 60% off coupon. For $11 I got something like 8 books. (novellas and longer) I don’t go there regularly though. I never buy from Rainbow, not sure why. Most often if I need it NOW I get from the pub directly or every now and then I scroll through the new additions to ARe to see if there is something there I meant to pick up but never got to. Which is usually the case. (free book every 10 after all) I’m kind of famous for going “Oh I must get that.” and then … Once in a blue moon I think about Silver or eXtasy but other publishers I confess I never visit and get their books when they show up at resellers.