SHAMROCK GREEN

by Jackson Cordd

Reviewed by Aricia Gavriel

Publisher: Dreamspinner Press

Shamrock Green by Jackson Cordd is a good read, though not quite what I expected from the blurb and cover … and speaking of the cover, let me award a large stamp of approval to cover artist Paul Richmond for a marvelous piece of work which contributed majorly to my decision to read this novel. In an era when genre consumers are literally overwhelmed by the outpouring of new gay and m/m writings, the cover artist’s job should not be underestimated. If s/he doesn’t hook prospective readers immediately, which of us has the time to study so many blurbs?

Rather than rambling, let me give you Dreamspinner Press’s cover notes directly:

 Ever since hearing his granny’s old fairy tales, Hank Lear has longed to experience the ancient magic coursing through Ireland, sure that some grand adventure awaited him among the verdant hills. Now, with his vacation coming to an end, he’s about to return to Texas with nothing but memories of old castles, modern cities, and a cheap Claddagh ring he bought in an antique store. On a whim, Hank visits a bath house on his last night in Dublin, where he meets Darren Connell, a man with plenty of secrets of his own. Obscured by the dim light and thick steam, shy Hank musters the courage to flirt with Darren, and though they can barely see one another, a strong and mysterious connection forms.

Just as Hank is about to leave for the airport, Darren stops him, tells Hank he needs his help, and begs Hank to stay. Hank can’t refuse him, and soon they’re caught in a web of forces outside their control and outside reality as Hank understands it. Each step leads them to Shamrock Green and the last portal to the world of the Fae. With danger closing in, Hank and Darren must decipher their destinies before the portal is lost forever.

…which hints at the bare tip of the iceberg. An intelligent and compelling plot spins off from the preamble of the diminutive Texan tourist (!) headed back to Dublin airport after coming up sadly empty on a quest for holiday romance, and the story held my attention till the end. The reader looking for a sweet gay romance without explicit scenes hits paydirt here (though the reverse is obviously just as accurate! Readers turning pages looking for those steamy m/m bits will be frustrated).  Shamrock Green is actually a brooding character study built on a really outstanding idea for a paranormal mystery, and the narrative is at its best when it centers on its cast of fascinating players and the complex relationships between them.

The book does have a couple of downsides, though only a minority of readers will notice. The story is set in Dublin, but it’s very obviously written from maps, since the location could as easily be Melbourne, Auckland or London … local color and Irish “flavor” are absent. And the pagana depicted is devoutly Hollywood style … fair enough. There’s only so much a writer can glean from books through the due diligence of research. However, if the reader is not a member of the modern pagan community, and/or isn’t familiar with Dublin, these points won’t detract.

Full marks to Dreamspinner Press for the preparation and packaging of the book: as we’ve come to expect, the proofreading is exceptional, and I’ve already mentioned the gorgeous cover.

Shamrock Green is recommended for readers looking for a clever gay paranormal mystery revolving around plot and characterization rather than sheer sensuality (which, actually, makes for rather a pleasant change!), and for readers who won’t be concerned by the aforementioned minus points. I’m going to give the book four stars out of five here because those points did rub me the wrong way just a little, but what the hey? I’m buried in a minority group -- and smart enough to know the other 99.5% of readers won’t even glimpse the problems. So --

Four stars for Shamrock Green, which was a most interesting read throughout, and a welcome change from the reading one has come to expect from a genre renowned for its … shall we say, unremitting sensuality! Clever plot and intriguing characterization carry the generous-length book, and there’s plenty of room for a sequel.