Southern Fried by Rob Rosen

[reviews_and_ramblings]

A mix between mystery / thriller and cinderfella romance, this is the story of southern boy Trip, the very wealthy heir of an antebellum mansion and estate in South Carolina. Trip is gay and open about it, as you will learn the very first day of his arrival back in the deep south after ten years of absence: he meets Zeb, the stable boy, and he will find out that he is no more the only gay boy of the town. But he will also discover that he is not the only heir to his granny, apparently he has a brother he didn’t know about. And here the mystery starts: where is Beau? And more important, who is Beau? Why no one has ever heard about him, why he is not living in the mansion?

What I found quite funny of this novel is that, wherever Trip is turning, gay boys are appearing and to Trip is like a candy story for a child. I think that, at one point, Trip started to wonder why he spent the last 10 years of his life in “cold” NYC, when he could find all this entertainment right in the place he likes the best. Yes, since, despite everything, Trip is a 100% southern boy, and he plenty enjoys the old way of life of that country. In a way, Trip is even snob, he has that aura around him, like he could be friendly with the servants, but they still remain employed hands. Oh sure, he likes Zeb, and I’m sure they will have a nice and long relationship, but Trip will always be the lord of the manor and Zeb the stable boy.

Even the mystery remains on the light side, something I have already the chance to experience with this author’s novels. The boys got in trouble, but they always manage to come out of them unscathed and smiling, like it was a funny adventure more than a dangerous situation. If you like to laugh more than worry for your heroes, any Rosen’s novel is right for you.

http://www.mlrbooks.com/ShowBook.php?book=RR_STHFR

Amazon: Southern Fried
Amazon Kindle: Southern Fried
Paperback: 244 pages
Publisher: MLR Press (September 2, 2011)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 1608204359
ISBN-13: 978-1608204359

Reading List: http://www.librarything.com/catalog_bottom.php?tag=reading list&view=elisa.rolle