Customer Reviews

Hard Fall

5 star:		(12)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

Don't get me wrong, this book is a great read (as an e-book read on an iPhone), but there are some editing problems. If the German "turon" prized her photography, as she allegedly did, she would have had an "SLR" camera, with an SD card, not a "SIM card" (found in a cellphone) and she would not likely photograph a sunset with the date imprint turned on. (The digital file would have been dated, however.) Kabe's eyes go from green to hazel and back again from page to page. (Hazel eyes, like the hazelnut, are usually described as "light-brown and gold.") Casting the editing side, the character development is excellent, though referring to Kabe as a "city boy" if he can climb well enough to perch like a frog upside down on the underside of a boulder is a bit much. You don't learn that by climbing climbing walls in a gym!

The religious aspect reminded me of Robin Reardon's Thinking Straight. but the Mormon/LDS twist on sex is as dogmatic as any: no sex (NONE) outside of marriage. And Joe is a believer right down to his special underwear. After the film Latter Days -- written and directed by a former LDS -- I thought it would be hard to surprise me with additional Mormon facts, but Ms. Buchanan has many. And the climbing jargon sounds like it comes from a pro. Certainly worth the price of the download!

Hard Fall is a multi-level thought inspiring story of coming to terms with yourself and existing prejudice. Joe is a man who accepts that he is "in the closet", yet he still has faith. Kabe is openly gay, serving his parole living and working on a ranch with his relatives. Working a crime scene together alone in the Utah wilderness, Joe cannot conceal the fact that he is gay, Mormon and desires Kabe. James Buchanan gives an excellent illustration of passion interwoven with how "the righteous in their own minds" people promote prejudice without giving thought to the fact that their words and actions are a violation of the very teachings they are attempting to enforce on others.

I won't go into the plot as others have already done that, but I had to write a review of this wonderful gem of a book in order to give it the five stars that it deserves.

The characters are fully formed and sympathetic. It doesn't take more than a few pages to begin to care deeply about them and the situation in which they find themselves. I've lived parts of Joe's story and the author did a wonderful job of portraying the range of emotions that he went through.

While there are some wonderful erotic moments, the story itself stands alone.

From the Mormonism to the bouldering, Buchanan nails every detail. I know some readers had a bit of a time with the religion aspects in this book. But I can tell the author's writes the Mormon experience from up close and personal, as it is as accurate as my own experience recalls. Having one of the characters, Joe Peterson, a devout Mormon, it was kind of hard to avoid addressing such issues, especially when those issues had the potential to mess with Joe's life.

Wouldn't y'all know, Buchanan had to throw a bad boy into the story, Kabe. And Kabe's a looker with a record, as usual. Buchanan's attention to the fine details of rope use (not just for climbing) and the inner torment Kabe puts Joe through is out of this world sexual tension at its finest.

Anyone who's a fan of rock climbing, mystery, or the erotic James Buchanan's good guy gets all the best parts of the bad guy stories, will truly enjoy Hard Fall. I did.

An enjoyable plot here as one deeply closeted deputy sheriff in a rural and religious community in Utah is forced to face his sexuality when he falls hard for a pretty city boy who is both a rock hound and an adrenalin junkie. Joe Peterson is the unfortunate deputy and a Mormon to boot. He is just a country boy at heart with a fear for God and awe for the rocky mountains he grew up in.

Told from his viewpoint, his narration is entertaining, absorbing, at times fun yet with bitter sweet moments when he is forced to choose his Mormon church or Kabe, the sexy city boy who has stolen his heart. Released from prison and on parole Kabe is an interesting character. Vulnerable and in need of a firm hand in his life it is no surprise that Kabe latches on to the deputy hunk who does not treat him like a twink. In the background is the murder mystery which brought both men together, with a little help from one staunch ally in the form of a formidable fellow female law enforcer.

Plot and characters certainly take precedence in James Buchanan's latest which I appreciate. The setting is refreshing, the mountain/rock climbing and bouldering by both men exhilarating and sexy. Maybe the scriptures spewing could be toned down in the confrontation between Joe and his hateful bishop but then it is an essential part of the homophobic town setting. With a dose of BDSM, the sex is erotic and sensual. And both guys getting of while scaling the rocks is certainly dangerously hot!

Warning: This review might contain what some people consider SPOILERS.

Rating: 8/10

PROS:
- I know almost nothing about Mormonism, and I was fascinated by the little details about the religion that are thrown in here and there. I also found it so refreshing to read about someone who has FAITH but struggles with his RELIGION's formal rules and boundaries. Even though Joe can't manage to fit himself into the mold that the Mormon religion requires, he still believes in God and tries to live in a way that is consistent with that belief.
- The book has a plotline other than the romance that is only marginally involved/detailed, and I liked that. A lot of romantic mysteries are so intricately written that the author has to focus so much on the plot that the romance suffers as a result. The plot here is simple--enough so that the guys have time to think about things other than solving the crime.
- I thought the sex scenes were well done. Not too short or too long, a decent number without being overwhelming, and there are a couple that occur while the guys are in the middle of climbs and Kabe gets all limber and acrobatic. Those ones are unusual.
- I had to laugh sometimes at Joe's descriptions of Kabe's anatomy. Joe is a visual creature, so he likes what he sees and describes certain parts of Kabe's body in minute detail. But because of his faith, he doesn't like to cuss, so mostly he uses words like "butt" rather than their more profane synonyms.

CONS:
- I had a hard time picking up the rhythm of the narration. It contains a mix of colloquialisms and terms that were simply foreign to me (example: "what was I in for if'n a two-bit, citified, pretty boy could gill me on a trotline with just a look?"), so there were chunks of the story that I just wasn't able to read smoothly. There are some little explanations here and there that help a bit, but I confess that after a while, I stopped trying to understand some of the main characters' conversations and just sort of skimmed ahead.
- As much as I admire the author for taking a good, honest look at the situation, I found some of the fallout from the discovery of the men's frowned-upon relationship very difficult to read about.
- I didn't dislike the story's ending, but it felt a little too much like Happy for Now (as opposed to Happy Forever) for me to really love it.

Overall comments: I think this is worth a read for anyone interested in the exploration of faith and sexuality. There are some scathing remarks about the theatricality of some people who profess themselves to be "religious"--Joe compares his Bishop to a used car salesman at one point, for example--but the book does an excellent job of examining what is perhaps the most difficult part for a person whose religion condemns his/her homosexuality: not that s/he doesn't have faith, but that some other people think s/he SHOULDN'T have faith.

Deputy Joe Peterson is a lawman, an avid climber, a Mormon, and gay. He walks a fine line between his religion, which he cares a great deal about, and the other parts of his life. He's not pleased when a sexy young parolee, Kabe Varghese, shows up in town. The boy seems like trouble. Then he gets a call about a hiker who has fallen down a cliff, and Kabe's the only other person with the climbing skills to help him retrieve the body. Joe soon finds himself caught up in a mystery, as well as an attraction that could mean the end of his life as he knows it.

Hard Fall is a fascinating story with a lot of depth. I learned a lot about the Mormon religion and climbing while reading it, all told in Joe's (often amusing) first-person narration. Joe is a very down-home kind of guy, with a simple life and a lot of faith. He's conflicted over his sexuality and some aspects of his job, but he's able to separate everything into compartments in his mind. Kabe is wild and doesn't seem to think things through unless climbing is involved. He balanced Joe out in some ways, and I liked the way they could come together and cooperate when climbing and investigating a possible murder. The mystery angle isn't all that mysterious, but the way it plays out is interesting nonetheless. The most compelling part of Hard Fall involves Joe's inner turmoil regarding his faith, and the way others perceive him. While the die-hard romantic in me wanted a more settled ending, Hard Fall is an emotional story with both realism and drama.

Cassie
Reviewed for Joyfully Reviewed

Joe Peterson is Deputy Sheriff, Garland, Utah; and it being Utah it is no surprise to learn that he is a Mormon, but with a difference, for he is gay. When Kabe, a cute dark-skinned young guy with attitude and a criminal record arrives on his patch he is immediately attracted. But such an attraction can lead only to trouble, trouble for Joe and his position as Deputy Sheriff, and trouble for his standing with his church.

When Kabe raises the alarm that a women has fallen to her death in the National Park, Joe enlists Kabe's help, taking advantage the lad's rock climbing skills, in retrieving the body, and in the subsequent investigation into the death. In the process the attraction between to two men leads to action, which in turn means a lot of trouble for Joe.

The story is narrated by Joe, and told in his local Utah voice; it take only a page or two to adjust to. Hard fall is well written, with a good plot and interesting and diverse well formed characters, including Joe and Kabe; Nadia, a sympathetic NPs law enforcement ranger; along with some rather more bigoted members of the community. This may be classed as gay erotica, but it is a touching story of the relationship and trust between two men that is well able to stand without the graphic details of their intimacy.

The two heroes in James Buchanan's 'Hard Fall' couldn't be more different--or better drawn. Using a first person narrative from Joe Peterson's point of view, we get to see a man who is simple, direct, smart, and deeply faithful, in spite of the fact that the rules of his religion would reject him for his most human attribute: his sexuality. Joe is fully out to himself--but he lives in a tiny town surrounded by a world of lonely and he is fully cognizant of what will happen should his secret be exposed.

Enter Kabe Varghese-- an ex-con with a smart mouth (much to Joe's horror) and a deeply betrayed trust. Kabe doesn't believe in anything--until he realizes that Joe is as tough, solid, and beautiful as the open cliffs they both love to climb.

I loved this book. I grew up in a town that was mostly Mormon--I recognized the mindset and I recognized the crisis that Joe underwent whenever he tried to fit his own person into the faith he loved. Although I am not Mormon myself, I was impressed with the respect that the author showed to the faith--Joe rightly blamed his difficulties not on the church, but on small minded people who might be found in ANY church, and who, in this case, had the power to turn a personal prejudice into a religious one.

Beyond that, I thoroughly enjoyed Joe's and Kabe's interactions. Joe has an open mind and an open heart--but he lets nobody push him around. Kabe is almost entirely closed--the one thing they share, at the beginning, is a love of God's country and of rock climbing. The two of them take this one beginning, and dig a toehold into a relationship with it. And then they attempt to scale the whole mountain. The fact that the ending was hopeful, but not fairytale, only added to the charm and the authenticity I found in Joe's plain country voice. I truly enjoyed spending time with Joe Peterson, and after only a few pages, I figured I'd probably like anybody he was drawn to. Turns out, I was right.

What can I say about Hard Fall that will do justice to this unusual story that just kept peaking? Sheriff's Deputy Joe Peterson is one hell of a character - he is a Mormon who believes in God and practices his faith but knows that he is imperfect because he has sexual urges to bed other men, and he can't control them. He has been able to keep his two lives separate until he meets former convict Kabe Varghese who ties him up in knots, literally and figuratively, and sets him on the road to ruin. Joe and Kabe start out together as part of a search and rescue team investigating the murder of a German woman, a "touron", and everything points to her husband as the perpetrator, but the evidence to connect him to the crime is hard to find. As Joe and Kabe set out to uncover sufficient evidence to charge the husband, their relationship escalates until it envelops both of them and sets Joe up for a very hard fall.

Hard Fall is told in the 1st person POV and Joe's "voice" is so authentic it's clear that James Buchanan worked very hard to get it right, even his speech which sounded as bona fide and believable as his clothes. Joe lives in a very small town in the State of Utah with all the baggage that entails - a closed-in community that's wary of outsiders, and if you're someone who is hiding his sexual orientation you're in deep trouble with the Church and a community that questions your choices if you're still single by the time you reach 23 or 24. The traditions were all new to me and there was so much that surprised me about the Church of LDS - something as simple as caffeine being forbidden. The search and rescue was another amazing aspect of the story; the climbs were realistic and dangerous as Joe and Kabe hung 10 storeys in the air while they played, which almost gave poor Joe a heart attack.

Clearly the major issue was how could a devout (or almost devout) Mormon LDS reconcile the teachings of his church with what his heart wanted and what would be the price if he followed his heart. Joe was obviously conflicted about his sexuality, however he was honest about his feelings for Kabe. The romance was incredibly sweet as well as hot and hard as each man fought to gain ground with the other. There are some spankings and rope play which add even more texture and passion to an already intense relationship. Inevitably Joe and Kabe are not as circumspect as they should have been and soon their secret is a secret no longer and Joe has to face the real prospect of being fired.

Here's what I loved best about Hard Fall and why I rated it so highly: The complexity of the story is a good place to start. I have to take my hat off to James Buchanan for tackling this story, for giving readers a multifaceted adventure with wonderful three dimensional characters including the supporting roles of Sheriff Simple and that terrific woman, Ranger Nadia Slokum who could bust the toughest balls; great pacing, smart and fresh dialogue, a wonderful journey into two different worlds - a rock climbing paradise and the Mormon Church with all its bigotry and prejudice in the middle of a murder investigation, and above all a sweet romance right underneath all the intrigue and hate. I love Joe who is at times tough, vulnerable, good ole' country boy, bemused lover, pissed off member of the community, and whose his faith is at variance with his love for Kabe. Since this story is told from Joe's perspective the reader doesn't get as much sense of Kabe's character but what is clear is that he is just as three dimensional and makes his presence felt whenever he is around, which is a lot.

Hard Fall also gave me a picture of how beautiful this little part of Utah is in terms of the scenery and terrain and to use the author's words "its pine covered mountains and bare swept plains of rock...." which illustrate the beautiful prose throughout the book where everything is described in such vivid detail. The religious aspects of the story are evident throughout-- as Joe tries to make up for what he views as his fall from grace. In order to understand his character, the parts of the story which draw the reader into the church and all its machinations are absolutely necessary, in my opinion. It's not overwhelming but it's there and if you pass on this story because of concerns about religion and the Mormon church in particular, you will miss a wonderfully complex book with all the elements that make it such a great adventure and love story.

James Buchanan must have done an immense amount of research into both rock climbing as well as the Mormon Church and I learned a lot about both. While it's fine to read a typical contemporary M/M romance where boy meets boy, they fall in love, have a few conflicts and then everything is resolved, there are times when I want something more ... and this is something more. If Hard Fall doesn't deserve 5 stars then I don't know what does.

As always, reviews are a matter of personal opinion. We all look for something different when we read a book and this is a gem of a story about love and redemption wrapped around hate and prejudice, a fun romance with some of the hottest and most carnal sex, loyalty to a fault, emotions that will blow you away, an introduction to the world of rock climbing, and the most amazing sex while suspended hundreds of feet above the ground. Some readers may be turned off by the religious aspects of this story but all I can say is that this excellent book is worth getting over your feelings about organized religion.

I highly recommend Hard Fall - two thumbs up for this unusual book.