Author: Kay Walker
Publisher: Dreamspinner Press
Pages/Word Count: 48 Pages
At a Glance: Even though the writing lacked polish and consistency in places, By Way of Vegan Donuts was, overall, a pleasant little read.
Reviewed By: Jules
Blurb: In a tourist town in the Canadian Rockies, Simon is spending the summer working at his sister-in-law’s bookstore. Shy around new people, Simon prefers to keep his nose in a book. When Benji, a local who works at a café down the street, hears Simon is vegan, he figures the best way to welcome him is bake him a vegan donut.
Upon their first meeting, there’s an undeniable burst of chemistry. Simon is drawn to Benji’s outgoing personality and wants to get to know him better. All Simon has to do is figure out a way to get over his nervousness and ask the casually flirty Benji on a date.
Review: The catchy title, cute cover, and the blurb drew me in on this one. A sweet, shy bookworm, and a laid back, flirty outdoorsman. That has to be good, right?! And, it was, for the most part. It wasn’t mind-blowing. Not every read can be – especially with under fifty pages to work with. But, it was a cute story.
The setting and descriptions of the scenery were amazing. The Canadian Rockies are spectacular, and the scenes that took place in Banff and Lake Louis were beautifully written and did a fabulous job of describing the majesty of the area. I wanted to be with the boys in that teahouse on the side of the mountain!
Simon and Benji were very sweet together. I definitely enjoyed their flirtatious banter; they were really fun to read at times. Simon is described as a shy hipster, which he is. Super mellow and sweet throughout the book, he loves his family, working at the bookstore, and reading in a cozy corner at the café while occasionally flirting with Benji. For his part, Benji was also very laid-back, as I said above—they were both very chill, polite Canadians—and he was extremely respectful of Simon and thoughtful in general where he was concerned. They were just cruising along…trying to get to know each other…
So, imagine my surprise when, in the last ten pages, things take a turn down Kinky Avenue! I like fun, kinky, spontaneous sex as much as the next girl, don’t get me wrong, but I felt like that last scene really came out of nowhere. It was like, Whoa! Very out of character all of a sudden. I mean, I’m okay with Simon going from shy hipster to a tiger in the sheets…but it needed more buildup.
Even though the writing lacked polish and consistency in places, By Way of Vegan Donuts was, overall, a pleasant little read.
You can buy By Way of Vegan Donuts here:
