Cooper is a drifter. He has his
motorbike, his violin, and doesn't stay in one place long enough for
people to start asking awkward questions. He's running from a tragic
accident in his past; an accident that has shaped the person he is
now.
He lands in St Ignacio –
affectionately called St Nacho's by the locals – and only intends to
stay for a few days. He takes a job at a bar, and finds the idea of
setting down some roots not as awful as he's always thought. Of
course, Shawn – the pretty college boy who's got Cooper in his
sights might have something to do with Cooper's decision to stay ...
Shawn is deaf, and Cooper communicates
most easily through his music but the two of them find a way, and
Cooper starts to think that maybe this whole relationship thing isn't
so bad after all.
Then he gets a phone call from his
past, and everything is turned on its head.
Cooper has a somewhat messed up idea of
what his obligations are, but he follows through on them, leading to
a bit of a tangle for everyone.
St Nacho's was a good, easy read.
Cooper and Shawn are great characters and their relationship grows
realistically, even with Cooper's personal demons along for the ride.
Shawn is determined, stubborn and refuses to let Cooper get away with
shit. For his part, Cooper is a loner yes, but not the ~mysterious
loner~ type that I find so annoying. He sees it as self-preservation
rather than as a way to bring all the boys to the yard.
The side characters – especially
those in St Nacho's – are great; fun and fleshed out really well.
The only character I had trouble with was Cooper's childhood friend
and first boyfriend, Jordan. I felt their relationship wasn't fleshed
out enough for me to understand why Cooper reacted the way he did
when Jordan kind of fell back into his life.
But that's a minor quibble for a novel
of moving on, finding love and found families (ask my what my
weakness is. Go on. [It's found families]).
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