Toy Box: Wax edited by M. Rode, with stories by Lee Benoit, Kiernan Kelly, and Syd McGinleyPublisher: Torquere
Genre: Gay, Erotic Romance, Contemporary, GLBT, M/M
Review Copy Received from PublisherSummary:
Even in the world of hair removal, waxing is not mundane. Add in sexual play and it becomes something else altogether. Kiernan Kelly brings us Waxing Romantic: what’s a guy to do when he’s been in love with his best friend for ages, and is suddenly given the opportunity to seduce said friend? When Greer begs a favor from Mark that involves waxing, Mark seizes the opportunity to show Greer exactly how he feels, and a late-night waxing session turns into a paraffin fantasy come true.
In Full Frontal by Lee Benoit, Preston has never heard Paulo's safe word within a scene. When he does, everything stops, and Paulo and Preston are forced to confront a demon from Paulo's past. Paulo insists he's ready to move on, but the incident shakes Preston's confidence. To make their way forward takes courage and trust and... wax? Rounding out this Toy Box is Wax On, Wax Off by Syd McGinley. Tommy’s a great designer -- so why can’t he design the right commitment mark to show he’s Dr. Tanaka’s boy? As his deadline approaches, things only get worse when news -- the very best and the very worst -- from friends threatens to derail Tommy’s best intentions to please his Sensei.
Donna’s Review:
In quickly reading over the summary, I expected this book to be a trio of stories having wax as a unifying theme. Having enjoyed every page, in my opinion this book is more about involvement in unconventional but loving relationships with wax as an incidental means to an end.
The first story in this anthology, Waxing Romantic by Kiernan Kelly, is a fun and sexy story about two young men who have been good friends for years, each secretly longing to be romantically involved with the other, but afraid to speak up. I enjoyed the characters of Mark and Greer. They are likeable guys who happen to have a few insecurities, common to us all, that have kept them from being honest about their feelings.
The manner in which each man’s fibbing about the waxing situation plays a part in the climax of the story is somewhat reminiscent of the old romantic comedies except, of course, that the old comedies were missing the hot m/m sex scenes. And just so you know, the hot wax/sex scene is scorching hot in more ways than one!
The second story, Full Frontal by Lee Benoit, is a moving story of two men who have been in a loving Dom/sub relationship for years. When, in the middle of a scene, Paulo uses his safe word for the first time, both men are deeply affected. This sweet story is about the root cause of Paulo’s pain but even more, it is about the lengths both Preston and Paulo will go to in order to move beyond that pain.
The parts of this story that have to do with the book’s theme of wax are unexpected and tender. This is my first experience with reading Lee Benoit’s writing and based on the quality of this short story, I will be seeking out additional works by this talented writer.
The third feature, Wax On, Wax Off by Syd McGinley is a Dom/sub story with Japanese undertones. The sub, Tommy, is looking for just the right Japanese character to encompass all he feels for his Dom, Dr. Tanaka, but as so often happens when we want so badly for things to be perfect, nothing seems quite right.
The relationship between Tommy and Dr. Tanaka is complex and I would love to see the author write more about this interesting couple.
I enjoyed this book and am anxious to try others in the Toy Box Series.
Rated 4 1/2 Delightful Divas by Donna!
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