The Tockleys by Laney Cairo

[reviews_and_ramblings]

Boys love, show business setting and also a nice female character who doesn't mess with the two male characters? What is there to not like in this story?

Lori is a drummer, she is living with her boyfriend who is in a band and she has also the chance to write a song here and there, but she really wants to play her music. And so she puts an ad to find bandmates and Luk and Jude answer to it.

Jude is Lori's best friend, openly gay and with a nice voice but an even nicer look that goes well on stage. Jude is Straight Edge: you can always learn something while reading, even if you are reading romance; from Wikipedia, Straight Edge refers to a lifestyle that started within the hardcore punk subculture whose adherents make a commitment to refrain from using alcohol, tobacco, and recreational drugs. Plus Jude is also a buddhist, and so he is also vegetarian and avoids to have "recreational" sex.

Luk is a college student who is just starting to realize why he doesn't like to have sex with girls and why he finds so interesting blokes... He still lives at home with his parents and he lives from an allowance; he is also so lucky to have a former famous rock band member as neighbor that let him use her expensive equipment. Luk is quite irresistible, with his punk look that only hides a boy in searching of an identity. And since he is so cute, Jude can't avoid to fall in love with him.

Jude and Luk's relationship is easy and nice, no much drama and very enjoyable sex, very simple and tender; quite a novelty, in a Laney Cairo's book, since she has accustomed me to be quite bold and a source of info in "unusual" way to do it. But probably in this book it was not necessary, the love story is quite nice as it is, with Luk's awkwardness since for him all, and when I say all I mean that, is new when it arrives to sex with a man.

When I said the Lori is a nice female character, I don't mean that she is only a pretty thing to grace the story; she is bold and strong, talk straight and shot straight (only with words) but not for this reason she is less feminine or charming: she is woman in all for all. She is not lucky in love thought, and she needs help, even if she doesn't know how to ask. All in all probably she is the best character in the book, meaning how she behaves. Luk probably is second in list, but he is also very young and maybe even a bit spoiled but his mother; when he has the chance to build something steady with Jude, he prefers to return back home with his mother and continues to have a "boyfriends" relationship with his man... but he is still 19 years old, and so it's only the right thing to do for him. And the Jude; he apparently is the more balanced of the three, no drink and drugs, only safe sex and rock and roll... but he is also the first to retreat in "peaceful" silence when things go wrong and it's not even the first time; he needs to be said as behave with his wounded friend (Lori). Jude is not bad, don't get me wrong, but I believe that he is not as strong as Lori and Luk are.

Anyway the story is good and all the characters, even the supporting ones, are well developed and interesting. And I like also the Australian setting, I don't know how to explain, but you can say that it's another world than USA or UK.

Note: Wonderful cover by Manic Pixie, and despite the term "Diva" that in italian is female, the boy on the cover is Luk :-)

http://www.torquerebooks.com/index.php?main_page=product_info&products_id=1653

Amazon: The Tockleys

Reading List:

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


Cover Art by Manic Pixie

Comments

[leeteng.livejournal.com]

Very good Elisa. I was waiting for you to comment before buying this as I was afraid this may turn into a M/M/F. I enjoy Laney Cairo's writings :) Thanks.

[elisa-rolle.livejournal.com]

Yes, I suppose that there were some people that maybe could read wrong the blurb, also I had the same problem. No worry, it's strictly a M/M, the female character is only a friend. Elisa

[laney-cairo.livejournal.com]

Thank you for the review!

Manic Pixie is right here with me, so I showed her what you said about her cover.

[elisa-rolle.livejournal.com]

You are welcome Laney, and the cover is really wonderful, very original and right in the mood for the book. Elisa