Dirty Laundry by Heidi Cullinan ~ Book Review ~ @RiptideBooks @heidicullinan

Title: Dirty Laundry

Author: Heidi Cullinan

Publisher: Riptide

Publication Status:

Genre: Contemporary, M/M Romance

Themes: BDSM, Hurt/Comfort, Mental Illness, LGBT

ISBN: 9781937551773

My Rating: 4 of 5 stars

From the Publisher:

Entomology grad student Adam Ellery meets Denver Rogers, a muscle-bound hunk of sexy, when Denver effortlessly dispatches the drunken frat boys harassing Adam at the Tucker Springs laundromat. Thanking him turns into flirting, and then, much to Adam’s delight, hot sex over the laundry table.

Though Denver’s job as a bouncer at a gay bar means he gets his pick of geek-sexy college twinks, he can’t get Adam out of his head. Adam seems to need the same rough play Denver does, and it’s damn hard to say no to such a perfect fit.

Trouble is, Adam isn’t just shy: he has obsessive compulsive disorder and clinical anxiety, conditions which have ruined past relationships. And while Denver might be able to bench-press a pile of grad students, he comes from a history of abuse and is terrified of getting his GED. Neither Denver nor Adam want to face their dirty laundry, but to stay together, they’re going to have to come clean.

My View:

Dirty Laundry is the third full-length novel in the Tucker Springs universe. I have not read the first two in the series, nor have a read the short story, also by Cullinan, that was expanded and re-written to create this novel. That being said, you absolutely don't have to have done either of those things in order to enjoy this novel. The Tucker Springs novels are interesting in that there are actually 3 different authors for the ever expanding series. The first book is Where Nerves End by L.A. Witt (a favorite author of mine) followed by Second Hand by Cullinan and Marie Sexton. The main characters from these two novels are minor characters in Laundry.

Dirty Laundry follows the relationship between Denver, a local bouncer, and Adam, an Anxiety and OCD ridden grad student. The crux of the relationship is mostly learning to deal with both Adam's anxiety issues, though to a lesser extent you also see that Denver is not perfect, either. It is a symbiotic pairing, even though, on the surface, they don't seem like they should work. Though some might find Denver and Adam's solution to his anxiety a bit unconventional, it works for them, much to the chagrin of Adam's ex. You get to watch their love develop while they find creative places to have hot sex. It is a fun read that takes on some serious issues with compassion.


Buy it on Amazon Buy it on All Romance ebooks

I would like to thank Riptide and NetGalley for providing me with the eARC of this title in exchange for my honest opinion.