3.5 Stars ( )

While the “coal miner’s son” appears in the title of this family drama set in West Virginia, the “boss’s son” plays a significant role as well. In fact, it’s the social differences between the two that stand in the way of a possible relationship and it was fascinating to watch how both men deal, or not deal, with the problems arising from such a different background. As usual in these ‘States of Love’ novellas, the setting is almost as important as the story, and I loved all the details about the people, their attitudes, and some of the sights in “The Mountain State”.

James is “the boss’s son” and he hates that title. He has always loved spending time with the people of Willow Hollow, one of his father’s biggest mines, and he never wanted to feel any different. Owain, one of the miners’ kids, was his best friend growing up, and they have remained close now that James is more involved in managing the mine. James wants to help, whether it’s by making the mine more secure or by supporting the miners and their families financially. But his biggest wish, getting closer to Owain’s older brother, Cai, has been thwarted for years – Cai avoids James like the plague.

Cai is the one with the biggest issues around his attraction to James. He “admits” that James is cute, but he can’t see how their different backgrounds will ever let them become equal partners. Cai has been working in the mine since he was sixteen, and while his family is not dirt-poor, they do have to watch the pennies. James has grown up with the proverbial silver spoon in his mouth, is educated, and is Cai’s employer. It’s interesting to see that, once Cai starts actually talking to James, he discovers that they both have very similar values. Not to mention that the physical attraction begins to pretty much sizzle between them once Cai opens up to the possibilities.

James and Cai might have continued living alongside each other for years if not for some unexpected problems around one of Cai and Owain’s sisters. It means Cai is upset enough to let James into his personal space, and they soon discover the differences between them are more superficial than real. It doesn’t make figuring out how to relate any easier – after all they are still employee and employer. But with quickly evolving feelings in the air, the incentive to find a way is definitely there.

If you like characters who come from opposite ends of the social spectrum and have to figure out how to make a relationship work, if you enjoy stories with a distinctive, interesting setting, and if you’re looking for a read that has longing, drama, and an understated romance all in one, then you will probably like this novella.


NOTE: This book was provided by Dreamspinner Press for the purpose of a review on Rainbow Book Reviews. ( )

Damn it, I wanted to really like this book, but I just couldn't.

I don't feel like Cai and James' relationship had really any good built up to it at all. On one page, they're expressing to other people how they NEVER talk to one another (Cai avoids James like the plague, partially because James is the mine's owner's son, partially because he has been attracted to James for a while, and the rest ??????? I don't feel like these are good enough explanations for the level of avoidance Cai has maintained for YEARS.). On the next, they're calling each other "honey" and wondering how James is going to move to town so they can be together. Meh.

I also didn't get the Appalachian vibe here. We have a very distinct way of speaking, particularly those in the hills, and that didn't come across here at all. I got a sense of community, but no sense of place. For example: we LOVE our negatives ("I ain't never seen nothing like that nowhere no how" is a valid sentence that my cousin has actually used in conversation with me), nouns of place ("That there tractor"), "ain't" (a staple!), and peculiar phrases that most of the "flatlanders" don't know ("I'm a fixin' to work on that there car once it ain't so airish outside"). I don't know, maybe the author thought that it would make the people of Appalachia sound stupid if she incorporated that into her work - I'm not saying that it had to be in every sentence, but it could have peppered the dialogue - but that is REALLY how some of us talk (and how I talked before college!), especially those who are isolated and haven't left the hills (both of which are the case for Cai).

And while mentioning speaking, people who were high school dropouts and people who were college educated spoke exactly the same - there wasn't any difference in word choices at all. Look, I'm not saying that people who drop out of school are dumb or anything like that (I know quite a few myself who had to quit to get jobs to help support their parents, siblings, etc), but I would expect a college-educated man to have a more, shall we say, "high-falutin'" vocabulary.

The chemistry between Cai and James is practically non-existent; I felt like James and Owain (Cai's younger brother and James' best friend) had more chemistry together. Also, what was with Owain giving James shit when he was drunk about how he didn't know how James could sleep with guys, when Owain is at LEAST bi-curious and James is aware of that? It felt...weird.

Also, the mine at Willow Hollow is a union mine, and the pay tends to be better, with better hours, safety conditions, and benefits to boot. I really didn't get that feeling here; even while working at a union mine, poverty tends to be a way of life for many in Appalachia, but I really felt that the conditions here were more of the non-union variety.

Meh. Maybe it's because I'm from Appalachian coal mining stock, but this just didn't ring true to me, and the hasty romance between Cai and James didn't make things any better. ( )