Le Jazz Hot by Clancy Nacht & Thursday Euclid

[reviews_and_ramblings]

I have to admit that I was fascinated both by the cover and the plot, a cross-dressing story about a pretty wanna-be Broadway artist falling in love with an hunky firefighter. The not so subtle inspiration is the Victor/Victoria play, where a struggling singer finds her fortune dressed as a man impersonating a woman. Here instead Julian decides to “wear” the dress of Julia to be the woman Trent felt in love with.

While the authors play a lot with all the prettiness and sexiness, and naughtiness, of Julian while he is wearing woman clothes, they decided to not transfer it also on his sexual preferences, sure, Julian is gay, but he is an all over top in bed, and that is not exactly something Trent, a completely newby to gay sex can ignore. That is at the same time the point I liked the most but that sometime felt a little too pushed: when Trent finds out Julian is a man, and gay, and in love with him, he is most of all worried that he will not be able to “perform” anal sex. That said, I find Trent a sweet and nice man, a real good guy, and in a way, his worries were natural and right, for someone who has never ever considered to be in a same-sex relationship, to decide to step into one while at the same time accepting that he will be the bottom, is not simple, I think.

I also liked how the authors explained how Trent was willing to accept to be in love with another man even if he has never had previous similar experiences; basically from the first scene we are introduced to Trent, he is already proving some queer tendencies, something that is latent and that he has never once really acknowledge, but in any case it’s there and ready to be unveiled by Julian.

Julian is a mix of naughtiness and fragility; I think he comes from a not easy past, when he was asked to explain and justify his liking all frilly female things while at the same time having the urge to be the dominant in the relationship. Julian achieved a balance, but it’s not a steady one, and he can be easily hurt even by simply words. Falling in love with Trent is not easy for him, since at the beginning it seems like he had to renounce to all his maleness to be the one Trent would love back. And even if it’s difficult for him, Julian is ready to do that for the small chance to be Trent’s boyfriend. But Trent will prove to be the good boy he seems to be, and also the one who is able to understand what it really important in life, more than appearances and other people opinions.

http://www.loose-id.com/Le-Jazz-Hot.aspx

Amazon: Le Jazz Hot
Amazon Kindle: Le Jazz Hot
Paperback: 230 pages
Publisher: Loose Id, LLC (March 26, 2012)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 161118391X
ISBN-13: 978-1611183917

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


Cover Art by P.L. Nunn