Release Day Review: Snow Balls by Tara Lain

​Title: Snow Balls

Series: Balls to the Wall: Book 6
Author: Tara Lain
Release Date: December 6, 2017
Category: Contemporary
Pages: 121

Dreamspinner Press

JJ LaRousse looks like a quarterback but acts like a queen. He’s trying to be proud of who he is—until a robbery at the famous Laguna Winter Fantasy brings JJ face-to-face with tough cop Ryan Star. JJ hears Ryan likes manly men, so he drops his voice an octave, colors his pink hair, and tries to pass as a football fan.

Ryan Star may be tough, but he keeps his sexuality to himself at work. He learned in New York that being a gay cop can be deadly. His attraction to JJ threatens his secret, but he’s finding it hard to back away from a guy who’s so totally his type. Then, during a ski trip and a confrontation with JJ’s biggest nemesis, all the façades come crashing down. In the aftermath, can Ryan love JJ for who he really is? More importantly, can JJ?

First Edition published by Etopia Press, 2012.​

4 Stars!

Ryan's a macho cop who’s assigned to investigate thefts occurring at the Famous Laguna Winter Fantasy. JJ is working for David’s gallery's booth where he winds up as a witness, having spoken with the suspects. When he realizes the gorgeous cop he can’t stop lusting over will be questioning him, he panics. There’s no way a man like Ryan would be interested in him as he is. Instead he decides to borrow a baseball cap and turn on his own macho.

Unfortunately, both men find themselves caught up in a lie. JJ is hiding who he really is and sacrificing his future with Ryan by doing so. He can’t keep up the act for very long and it’s causing him anxiety about what happens when Ryan finds out. Ryan is hiding in the closet, afraid of the reactions from the people watching his back. He’s already been betrayed once, he doesn’t want to face that again.

These two can’t fight their attraction and the more time they spend together the harder it is to walk away. But what happens when the truth finally comes out? Can JJ and Ryan be themselves and still make it work?

This story is pretty entertaining and I totally enjoyed it. It's a hot, quick and easy read. While it’s fun and humorous it also touches on some serious issues as well. JJ needs to learn how to be himself and not worry about how others see him. Ryan has to overcome the fear of coming out in a career where it can mean life and death. However, it’s all done in a way that still leaves the book feeling light and sweet.

I definitely recommend Snow Balls.

***Copy provided to Bayou Book Junkie by Dreamspinner Press for my reading pleasure in hopes of an unbiased opinion, a review was not a requirement.***