Genre: Contemporary
LGBTQ+ Category: Bisexual, Non-Binary
Reviewer: Tony
Get It On Amazon
About The Book
Mason gives people too many chances, Hunter gives too few, but are they willing to take a chance on each other?
Mason’s always tried to believe the best in people, and for the most part, their sunshine attitude pays off. They love their friends, their family, and they’re determined to win over their broody, gorgeous coworker Hunter—especially when their car in the shop turns into carpooling to work together.
Hunter’s only seen the worst in people, and he doesn’t trust easily—not after growing up with a mom who ditched and an addict dad. However, perky, sweet, hot-as-hell Mason seems to win him over with every goofy comment or adorable smile, and before he can stop himself, he’s falling hard.
The more time Mase and Hunter spend together, the more their attraction flares until they’re both holding the hope for something real. However, when Hunter’s past collides with his present, the secret he’s been keeping threatens to destroy everything—the home he established, the friends who’ve become his new family, and any chance of a future with Mason.
Roll the dice on romance at Tabletop Tavern…
The Review
Intelligence Check is in the Dungeons and Dating series. It’s a tale brimming with love, humanity and friendship between the employees of Tabletop Tavern.
The main characters are Mason (non-binary), and Hunter, a guy lacking in any self-worth, but who’s also a gentle giant with a delicious amount of grumpiness. The two are recent hires at the tabletop gaming company, and have been attracted to each other from the start, but neither believes the other would ever feel the same.
There is a lot to like here, from the interaction between the employees of Tabletop Tavern to the darkness that threatens to swallow up both Mason and Hunter, and the way the two come to terms with their secrets and past lives to find the answer to their emptiness in each other’s arms is heartwarming.
Both characters grow in strength and resilience as the story progresses, and there is an entertaing excursion to a Comic Con too.
A great book in which extreme sadness is finally overcome by joy.
The Reviewer
Tony is an Englishman living amongst the Welsh and the Other Folk in the mountains of Wales. He lives with his partner of thirty-six years, four dogs, two ponies, various birds, and his bees. He is a retired lecturer and a writer of no renown but that doesn’t stop him enjoying what he used to think of as ‘sensible’ fantasy and sf. He’s surprised to find that if the story is well written and has likeable characters undergoing the trails of life, i.e. falling in love, falling out of love, having a bit of nooky (but not all the time), fending off foes, aliens and monsters, etc., he’ll be happy as a sandperson who has just offloaded a wagon of sand at the going market price. As long as there’s a story, he’s in. He aims to write fair and honest reviews. If he finds he is not the target reader he’ll move on.
