Review - Bounty of the Heart by J. M. Snyder

Bounty of The Heart by J. M. Snyder is an m/m historical at 70 pages set in Alaska. The time period isn't stated, but here at Obsidianbookshelf.com I'm guessing it to be the gold-rush era of the 1890s. It's told in close third-person viewpoint by our hero Emmett and features no sex scenes but some mild sensuality.

Emmett is a 22 year-old innocent who works as a bounty hunter with Jack, a hard-bitten 37 year-old. He may turn a timid face to the world, but he knows exactly what is in his heart.

He feels a fully realized yearning for a romantic and sexual relationship with Jack. He wastes no time with traditional Victorian worries about sin and unnatural desires. His one fear is that Jack will reject him if he asks openly for what he wants. There is no question in his mind that Jack feels deep friendship for him, but the older man never responds to Emmett's subtle hints that he wants more.

They first met seven years ago when Jack got badly injured while trying to capture a Korean crime boss, Kim Ji, also known the Dragon Lady. Her henchmen almost killed Jack and blinded him in one eye. Then they threw him into the slave pits where Emmett happened to be a 15 year-old prisoner.

Emmett tended to Jack's wounds. When Jack managed to escape, he took Emmett with him. They've been working as bounty hunters ever since. The horrific experience forged their friendship and sharpened their resolve to bring down the Dragon Lady and her son Lin Ji.

Our story opens in Alaska where spectators gather for a famous dog-sled race. Jack and Emmett show up because they've heard that the Dragon Lady and her son plan to watch the race. They want a chance to exact their revenge, make the capture, and claim the bounty.

However, they don't expect another bounty hunter from Jack's past to show up. Monty joins them at their campfire in the opening scene. He, too, is out to get the Dragon Lady. He proposes that the three of them team up and split the reward, and they reluctantly agree.

Emmett finds him a disquieting presence. First, Jack barely tolerates Monty due to a bad experience between them in the past. Second, Monty immediately intuits Emmett's longing for Jack and begins to taunt them both with non-stop innuendos. Third, Monty begins aggressively flirting with Emmett as if to steal him from Jack.

Embarrassed, Emmett tries to ignore Monty. Jack keeps his distance while threatening frequently to kill Monty. Otherwise, the two of them put up with Monty's increasingly obnoxious behavior. Meanwhile they devise a dangerous plan that involves Emmett scouting out the Dragon Lady's pavilion. But as the time comes to act, Emmett fears that he or Jack might get killed without ever having experienced the romantic love that he knows they could share.

Negatives: I'm afraid that this story didn't entirely work for me. In my opinion, the romance wasn't as interesting as the suspense / action parts, and yet most of the story is dedicated to the romance. The reason the romance didn't quite engage me is because I found Jack to be taciturn to the point of invisibility. And, for me, Monty seemed not to be a complex character so much as a plot device to make Jack and Emmett uncomfortable. Here at Obsidianbookshelf.com, I liked the thought of a love triangle, but I could never feel it coalescing.

Positives: The Alaska setting is vivid. Emmett is a sweet kid, smart and full of optimism. Sticklers for historical research might wonder about his absence of religious guilt and his easy acceptance of his own homosexuality, but I wasn't bothered by that. Bounty of the Heart is available at Amber Quill Press through this link. Be sure to browse my reviews of eight other books by J. M. Snyder on my m/m fiction reviews list. [I don't allow my blog posts to be copied in full. Please click here to see how to use an excerpt/blurb.]