Book Review: Waiting for Rain by Susan Mac Nicol

Reviewed by Susan65

Title: Waiting for Rain
Author: Susan Mac Nicol
Heroes: Rain Engel and Toby Prentiss
Genre: M/M Contemporary
Length: 280 Pages
Publisher: Dreamspinner Press
Release Date: February 24, 2014
Available at: Dreamspinner Press, Amazon, All Romance eBooks & Barnes and Noble
Add it to your shelf: Goodreads & Booklikes

Blurb: The village of Stamford, the quintessential chocolate box English scene, seemed an impossible dream for foster kid Toby Prentiss. Now he’s found a home among the haystacks and village fairs as the general manager for the Duck and Drake Hotel. With the fears and demons from his youth hidden away in this bucolic oasis, he’s very protective of who he lets in. Until he stumbles across shirtless carpenter Rain Engel building the hotel’s new custom-designed bar.

Working in the countryside, Rain prepared to face his biggest fear: sheep. He didn’t expect to deal with his second biggest fear: commitment. Toby’s controlled, tough guy façade coupled with his “find happiness where you can” optimism calls to Rain like nothing before. While Rain may be an exhibitionist, his romantic history forces him to hold his emotions close. As their relationship develops, secrets from their pasts drive a wedge between them: the ex-boyfriend who tore apart Rain’s trust and Toby’s history with the law. But can the secrets hiding among the quirky villagers bring them together? With missing sheep, pole dancing at the winter festival, and a crippling drought, everyone is waiting for Rain.

Review:

A true modern day romance in an old English town. A love story between two men who each want someone they can believe in, someone to love, and someone to love them in return. Rain is the wood worker tradesman that is creating the new bar for the hotel that Toby manages. Their attraction is instant, reciprocated, but gets off on the wrong foot. These two are firecrackers. They are each strong willed and neither are willing to compromise…however, they also can’t stop the attraction.

Toby is out and proud; he offers no apologies for being gay and in return has lived with bigotry since he was fourteen years old. But he also a tough cookie and you can only push him so far before he snaps and take you out. He is not a pushover and doesn’t take crap off anyone. Rain may be physically a larger man, but he is turned on by bossy and in-charge Toby. Toby is also full of secrets, some that he has never told anyone, but in order to move forward he needs to look back and face his past.

Rain is a woodworker by day and a pole dancer for fun at night. Not in the clubs anymore but in his own home. The man has a pole as a permanent fixture in his living room. How cool is that? But he is also silently suffering from a breakup that took him by surprise. His ex-boyfriend just got bored with life and said “see ya”…just as Rain planned to propose. That’s a hard deal to overcome, and it’s understandable when he doesn’t want to deal with a relationship anytime soon. He will also need to let go of his past before he and Toby can move forward.

For a Susan Mac Nicol novel this is fluffy and sweet, with just a touch of angst. I’ve read her other books so I was constantly expecting the rug to be pulled out from under me, but it never happened. They do have their fair share of issues, disagreements, and hurt feelings but it did not make me cry. It was an easy read, a bit heavy on the British slang (which fits the setting perfectly), but easy enough for this girl to understand.

This is a highly recommended story with a true romance, a sexy pole dancer, a big man with a sheep phobia, and overcoming adversity.

Overall Impression: I really liked it

*I received a copy of this book from the publisher in return for a fair and honest review.*