Shannon hates Christmas. Mostly because Christmas hates him. It sure seems like it, anyway: every crummy thing that’s happened to him since high school has befallen him at the Most Wonderful Time of the Year. Every humiliating break-up, every high-rise hotel fire—heck, a few years back, one guy he had the hots for up and died. Which goes a long way toward explaining why he’s a whimpering mess when he meets Ben the barista one Christmas morning at his neighborhood coffee house. It doesn’t completely excuse his using Ben’s T-shirt as a handkerchief—while Ben’s still in it—but Ben’s nothing if not a good sport. Ben’s such a bright spot that after a while Shannon wonders if maybe his Christmas Curse hasn’t been lifted. And what better place to test this theory than at Ben’s family festivities? It’s not like Christmas is actually cursed.
Is it?
I couldn’t stop laughing while reading this. Shannon and Ben’s story it’s a delightfully sweet holiday-themed story, while somehow managing to stay fresh, keep away from too much fluff, and introduce relatable and endearing characters. Shannon’s hate for Christmas, Ben’s very French family, the way their paths keep criss-crossing during the winter holiday season, the coffee shop that’s their scenery, it all seems crafted to perfection. And the terrible Christmas stories of boyfriends past will make you laugh and feel saddened at the same time.
It’s Not Yule, It’s Me takes a fairly overused theme – the holiday season – and turns it into a read you just cant put down. Sincerely loved every second of it. And annoyed my family with the neverending laughter.
JMS Books: http://www.jms-books.com/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=29_98&products_id=1575
Amazon US: http://www.amazon.com/Its-Not-Yule-Me-Michael-P-Thomas-ebook/dp/B0190NALJM
Amazon UK: http://www.amazon.co.uk/Its-Not-Yule-Me-Michael-P-Thomas-ebook/dp/B0190NALJM
Amazon AU: http://www.amazon.com.au/Its-Not-Yule-Me-Michael-P-Thomas-ebook/dp/B0190NALJM
Smashwords: https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/597226
“I’m Shannon, by the way,” he eventually says. “Have we done that already?”
“I don’t think so. Not officially, anyhow. I’m Ben.”
“You don’t sound French.”
“You should hear me arguing on the phone with my mom.”
“I mean ‘Ben.’ Doesn’t sound like a very French name.”
“Maybe not, but Benoît is more trouble than it’s worth.”
“Ben-what?”
“Exactly.”
I was born in France, but raised in Colorado; I’ve only been to France a handful of times, none of them recent. My mother was born in this country and raised in Washington, DC, but by French parents. Her mother is ethnically Gujarati, but French by virtue of being from Réunion. We’re still parsing the extent of my French-ness when Seth rolls in, only fifteen minutes late.
“Hiya, Benny-Boy” he warbles, planting a kiss on the top of my head as he swoops by; Seth enjoys flaunting his straight-but-not-narrow status. “What’s goin’ on?”
“What you get is what you see,” I tell him.
“Zis what Santa brought you?” He jerks his chin at Shannon, makes a show of sizing us up as a party of two. “You musta been a pretty good boy this year.”
Shannon groans.
“Ix-nay on the Anta-Say,” I scold Seth, although we’re all three laughing. I get up from the table and bus it clean by way of making preparations to call it a day.
“Rough trip down the chimney, eh?” Seth says, waggling his eyebrows.
“Pretty much the worst euphemism ever,” I assure him as I shrug into my jacket.
He laughs, offers me a fist bump and a “Peace out,” both of which I return.
“So …” I say to Shannon, sidling up to him. “I’m done here. You wanna get a drink or something?”
“It’s like noon.”
“Lunch, then?”
“It’s Christmas Day.”
“Dude, how hard are you gonna make me work for this? What, you never had Chinese food?”
“It’s just, I’m supposed to go to my aunt and uncle’s … it’s not that I don’t want to … maybe another time?”
I shrug. “You know where to find me.”
Michael P. Thomas is a flight attendant whose writing is continually inspired by his work with the flying public, who flatly refuse to be boring. The author of three novel-length gay romances and a number of romantic and erotic shorts, he writes gay fiction because when he was coming out he sure was glad to have it to read. After misspending his youth in San Francisco, he now lives in his native Colorado with his husband.
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