Driven from his family when his sexuality is exposed, Jonah discovers drama, passion, and intrigue in a traveling carnival--and in the enigmatic owner, Rafe Grimstone. The preacher’s son and the lord who’s rejected his former life in England feel the heat of attraction from the moment they meet. Open-hearted Jonah is willing to risk hellfire and damnation for brief moments of pleasure with Rafe, but the older man is frozen in a past he can’t escape no matter how far he runs.
As Rafe struggles to choose between responsibilities of his present and his past, mysterious accidents assail the close-knit community of the carnival. Will the perpetrator be revealed before the traveling show is ruined, and will Rafe finally reveal his true self to Jonah or continue to mask his identity like the changing images in a house of mirrors?
As Rafe struggles to choose between responsibilities of his present and his past, mysterious accidents assail the close-knit community of the carnival. Will the perpetrator be revealed before the traveling show is ruined, and will Rafe finally reveal his true self to Jonah or continue to mask his identity like the changing images in a house of mirrors?
Reviewer: BlackTulip
Two main characters, two men, one of them will be the key to unlock the other's heart.
The story takes place in a circus in the early 1900s and we follow the heroes from Southern Ohio all the way to Kentucky.
We are first introduced to young Jonas with his face bloody and battered and his body aching after the beating he has taken. He is forced to leave his home and seek a job, any job. Then we meet Rafe, a tall dark-haired man, the owner of the Carnival who hires him - temporarily.
There's an undeniable attraction between them from the first but in the beginning it's only lust. It will take some time for them to realize and accept that what they share has developed into something else. Rafe is definitely the most stubborn of the two.
He has a dark secret in his past that catches up with him before the end. At this point it becomes a great complication in their relationship. There is also an interesting mystery that takes place behind the scenes. But let's not forget all those wonderful and colorful minor characters who added so much liveliness to this book, each having their own unusual story. Because of them there was always something happening, either happy or sad.
Although I'm not particulary interested in neither the period nor the location the novel's set in, I really liked the authors' previous books and the story was unusual enough for me to give it a try. Now that I have, I can say without a shadow of doubt that it was very engrossing and I don't regret my choice.
I found this novel a great read. I give it a 4/5.
See the original review on goodreads
http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/219500687
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