Title: Stroke to his Cox
Author: JL Merrow
Length: 25 pages
Publisher: Dreamspinner Press
Genre: m/m contemporary
Rating: B+
Blurb:
As coxswain of a Cambridge college rowing team, pint-sized Dave Tanaka has eight strapping athletes hanging on his every word, their strength at his command. Leading his crew to win their oars might be easier if Dave didn’t have to hide his crush on Archie, the stroke rower – but as they prepare for their final race, Dave doesn’t suspect that Archie is in the same boat as him in more ways than one!
Review
For three years of my life I went back and forth from Cambridge University every other week, visiting hub who studied there, so when I saw that JL Merrow had written this cheeky little short based around rowing and set in Cambridge, I just couldn’t resist. It tells the story of Dave who is a cox for a rowing team from one of the Colleges (it’s never specified which one). He’s short, part oriental and skinny compared to the beefy guys who pull the oars. One of those guys, Archie, has caught Dave’s eye for a long time now and Dave spends much time dreaming about those thick thighs and tight shorts. As the May bumps come along, the whole team are hoping for a win and Dave gets a whole lot more than he ever imagined.
One thing I loved about this story was the way that JL Merrow’s dry humour shines through the character of Dave. He’s well aware of his physical shortcomings when compared to the rest of the team, but he also has a perverse delight that he has four gorgeous men who hang on his every instruction.
Nope, my lads were sitting there at frontstops, practically quivering as they waited for me to give the order. God, I loved it. I drew it out as long as I could, and then I gave them what they’d been waiting for.
I also liked the portrayal of the other team members who all managed to retain a separate identity, from the sharp tongued Tariq, to the affable Rob and Phil who gained their place at Cambridge for their athletic ability, rather than their brains. There’s a number of sly digs regarding the sort of casual and non-malicious racism which happens amongst privileged white males and I admired both Dave and Tariq’s patience in handling those remarks.
The main meat of the story is based around Dave’s attraction to the big and beefy Archie. This was handled with a deft touch and a surprising amount of depth for such a short story. In fact I was pretty impressed all round that the author managed to fit in a rowing action scene, enough background on the characters and a very satisfying sex scene into such a short story, as well as retaining a good sense of place. The rowing scene was also done well. I visited the bumps a couple of times and the general excitement of the crowd, the various laughable accidents and the sense of purpose in the rowing is all captured well, leading to quite a compelling scene that even those not keen on rowing will probably enjoy. The sex scene is littered with amusing rowing terms, as well as a bit of a surprise which I’ll let you read for yourself.
Those of you who like British set stories will enjoy this one, as will those who like sport themed stories or who are looking for a nicely written, hot little short with a great humourous touch to the writing.
This on sounds just like my, ahem, cup of tea. And I think I’ve read and liked stories by JL Merrow before. Thanks for pointing it out. It’s been a while since I’ve moseyed at Dreamspinner. I’ll be dipping my oar in over there sometime today.
Lol, Sirius
. Hope you enjoy the story – despite the numerous rowing inspired puns.
I read it at my naptime and it was perfect – going to sleep with visions of scullers (that IS what they’re called, yes?) When I lived in Philadelphia, I loved to go down to the boathouses on the Schukyll and watch.
And darn you, but I not only bought this but three others as well! You guys are bad for my pocketbook!
I’m glad you enjoyed it, Sirius
. Hmm, we ought to have one of those disclaimer things on the site: Warning, reading these reviews could damage your bank account, or something like that, lol!
I love when I can read stories about somewhere I’ve been or an event I attended. Sounds like you got that experience here. I’m clueless about rowing, only know when the Canadian team wins something at the Olympics.
But it sounds like a fun read. I’ll definitely have to check it out.
Yeah, I did wonder whether someone who hasn’t been to Cambridge or experienced the madness of the spring bumps would get the same thrill out of the story that I did
. I think there’s enough in the story for even someone who knows nothing about rowing.
Does Canada win rowing medals at the Olympics? I thought us Brits beat you most of the time
.
In your dreams honey. Not sure how we did last time but we have a good number of golds under our belt. LOL
[...] “Stroke to his Cox” by JL Merrow is a fantastic read – amusing, sexy and sweet, I can recommend it to everyone. Come on, it’s worth buying for the title alone! Jenre’s glowing review can be found here. [...]
I love this little story, and it was great to read your review, Jenre. I know absolutely nothing about rowing so I was the perfect beta reader for this one, but even in the draft I read it was all remarkably clearly explained considering what a strange race the bumps is.
I thought Dave was the perfect viewpoint character for bringing out Jamie’s wonderful humour. I hope other readers enjoy it as much as I did!
Hi Jo
The bumps are really confusing at first – I remember hub’s flatmate at the time trying to explain it to me one year. I thought Jamie did a wonderful job getting in a clear description of how it all works without resorting to ‘lecture mode’.
I do like JL Merrow’s writing, so I’ll have to pick this up sometime!
Me too, Chris. I hope you like it as much as I did when you get around to reading.
I’ve never read anything by this author, but this one sounds well worth picking up. Thanks for the info, Jen.
Hi Val
I’ve read quite a few stories by this author now and all of them have been really good. As well as this one, I’d recommend Pricks and Pragmatism which is published by Samhain.
I loved the humour of this one, even though I know *nothing* about rowing LOL. However, by the end of it, I felt quite the expert
. And the characters shine through all the action.
That’s true, Clare. The characterisation and the action work well together without overshadowing each other.