The Mechanics of Lust by Jay Hogan

Narrated by Gary Furlong

Jay Hogan’s series of romances set in the remote sheep country of the (fictional) Mackenzie Basin continues with The Mechanics of Lust, a poignant, emotional story of two men who have been grieving, in different ways, the loss of family and struggling to make sense of changes in their lives. As with all this author’s books, the leads are likeable and well-characterised, and the situations they face and their reactions to them feel very real; there’s a great supporting cast of familiar faces and the author’s descriptions of the starkly beautiful scenery are enough to have you looking at the price of plane tickets.

Note: This review contains spoilers for the previous book in the series.

It’s been a year since shepherd and dog trainer Zach Lane came out and left behind his home, his family and the future he’d envisaged for himself because he wasn’t prepared to live a lie any longer. And it’s been a tough year; after Zach left Lane Station, his bestie and former friend-with-benefits Holden Miller offered him a home, but that proved to be its own kind of torture when Zach had to stand by and watch as Holden fell for Gil Everton, a grieving father and psychologist from Wellington who had taken a temporary job on the station. It was hard, but as time passed, Zach began to like Gil; he can see how happy Gil makes Holden and how right they are for each other, and lately, he’s found himself envying what they have rather than envying Gil for being Holden’s choice.

On the night of Gil’s fortieth birthday party, Zach isn’t completely surprised when Gil’s ex, Luke Nicholls, arrives at the bar to join the celebrations – Zach just wishes Luke would go back to Wellington and stay there. There’s something about the handsome, sophisticated older man with the wicked smile that spells trouble of the sort Zach most definitely doesn’t need – and his plan to keep Luke firmly at arm’s length is tested when he learns that Luke has re-located to Oakwood (the nearest town) where he’s taken a temporary job piloting helicopters for a local charter company.

Luke has been smitten with Zach from the first time he saw him a year earlier, and had hoped that the hostility he’d sensed coming off him would eventually dissipate – but it never has. For a year, he’s watched Zach laughing, joking, and chatting easily to everyone except him, and is at a loss to explain it – he’s never done anything to upset Zach as far as he knows. The weird thing is that he suspects his attraction to Zach is actually mutual; he can’t be the only one feeling the sizzling chemistry between them, but he’s not going to push for anything Zach isn’t willing to give. If any moves are to be made, they’ll have to come from Zach… which, sadly, looks unlikely.

On the surface, it seems as though there’s nothing really keeping these two men from being together apart from stubbornness and a good conversation, but both of them have good reason to be cautious about getting involved with someone long-term at this stage in their lives. They’re both grieving and trying to decide where they go from here, so there are lots of complicated, messy emotions involved which sometimes hinder their ability to make good decisions. Zach’s desire to keep Luke at a distance is understandable given how deeply he’s been hurt by those who were supposed to love him. He’s determined never to open himself up to that kind of hurt again and to focus on making a new future for himself – and he doesn’t have room in his life for the kind of uncertainty a certain gorgeous and annoying someone would bring to it.

Luke arrived at Miller Station unexpectedly at the end of The Art of Husbandry hoping to achieve some kind of closure with Gil after the tragic death of their daughter, Callie. He’d come to realise that although he had held himself together better than Gil had at first, the real depth of his grief hadn’t really hit him until around a year later, when he fell into a downward spiral of unhealthy coping mechanisms. Tracking Gil down and having several important conversations has helped both of them to realise that they each bear some responsibility for the breakdown of their marriage, and seeing how well Gil is doing, listening to him talk about how the relative isolation at the station helped him to start to get his life back on track helped Luke to realise that maybe he needs a fresh start, too.

The romance between Luke and Zach is not without its stumbling blocks and is superbly done, although it has to be said that Zach is a judgmental prick towards Luke to start with, his dislike founded on something that is completely inaccurate and, frankly, none of his business. Thankfully, Luke calls him on it fairly early on – and so does Gil – and Zach is able to admit he was wrong and needs to do better. After this, the two men begin a passionate affair, but Zach is determined that sex is all they can have – if he doesn’t catch feelings, he’ll be able to walk away without being hurt. Luke knows exactly what he’s doing but he also knows that whatever is happening between them, it went waaaaay past casual not long after their first time together. Their encounters morph slowly from hooking up to generally hanging out and talking openly, telling each other things they’ve not told anyone else. Luke is the first person Zach confides in about his ambitions to set up a dog-training business, and Luke talks about his grief, his loneliness and how he feels he failed Gil and Callie. I loved the way they’re so supportive of each other, Luke helping Zach to understand that he can do and be whatever he wants, and Zach encouraging Luke to start thinking about making a new life and to find a way to carry good memories into his future. There’s no doubt they’re good for each other, but Zach is so busy trying to protect himself he’s in danger of screwing up the best thing to happen to him in ages.

Once again, the author does a fantastic job with the setting and depicting the realities of life and work in such a remote location, and I really liked the scenes set during a training exercise for the mountain rescue team of which Zach is a member, and seeing him working with his dogs.

It was a very good day when Jay Hogan chose Gary Furlong to narrate her audiobooks. He’s done her and her characters proud over the last few years, and, if anything, is getting better and better. I’ve always been impressed with his talent as a vocal actor, with the way he finds the emotional heart of a scene and communicates it to the listener so that we’re fully immersed in the actions and feelings of the characters involved. Like The Art of Husbandry, The Mechanics of Lust is a deeply emotional story about coming to terms with grief and loss, and Mr. Furlong does a terrific job when it comes to fleshing out the inner lives of the two leads, expertly portraying Zach’s confusion and irritation over his feelings for Luke at the beginning of the book, his regret over the situation with his family and his insecurities as he struggles to believe he has any good options for his future. Mr. Furlong is similarly good as Luke, the lower-pitch and deliberate manner of speech he adopts clearly depicting a man who is confident in his own skin while he also injects an element of vulnerability into his portrayal when he’s around Zach. His delivery in the key scenes later in the book where Luke finally faces his grief head-on is pitch-perfect – the emotions are so raw and utterly heart-breaking, and I don’t mind admitting to shedding a few tears myself while listening.

I liked The Mechanics of Lust even more than the previous book – although both are incredibly good and testament to Jay Hogan’s skill in creating poignant, insightful romances that address complex themes and emotions in ways that are compelling and easy to relate to. Throw Gary Furlong’s stellar narration into the mix here, and you’re in for almost eleven hours of pure listening pleasure.

Caz

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