Second Serve

by G.S. Wiley

This title is part of the 2011 Advent Calendar: I'll Be Home for Christmas

Michael Morgan, former top-seeded Australian tennis player, is long-since retired. When his former rival—and former one night stand—Arkady Yemelyanev comes to Sydney and asks him to play in a Christmas Eve exhibition match, Michael is forced to come to terms with the fact that he will never again be a top professional player—and that lovers last longer than rivals.

Genres: M M Romance, Christmas, Holiday, Short Stories, Anthologies, Contemporary, Sports

30 pages, ebook

First published December 1, 2011

About the author

G.S. Wiley is a writer, reader, sometime painter, and semi-avid scrapbooker who lives in Canada.

Visit G.S.'s web site at http://wileyromance.googlepages.com/.

Reviews

[Bubbles Hunty Honest & Direct Opinions · Rating 1 out of 5]

starts at 2% and ends at 90%

everything was detailed in this one but the characters or the relationship. vague stuf is mentioned about them including flash back sex but nothing in the current time is reall shown. they are barely together. this wasn't a Christmas story or romance at best you can say it has a HFN ending but really there was nothing for me to like in this one. the MC was a depressing and boring narrator IMHO very unsatisfying read

[Serena Yates · Rating 2 out of 5]

This story is, in a word, about second chances – which is exactly what the title suggests. I felt pulled into the story by Michael, as he remembers the old days and runs Into Arkady again. They used to be rivals, and Michael definitely still feels a lot of animosity for the other man. I thought it was interesting how Michael slowly works his way through the past, letting me find out what had gone on between the two men at the same time. The detail about his current life and the tennis references added an extra layer to the story that tennis fans, especially, might appreciate.

Please be warned that the ending is very abrupt, and will leave you in a state of wondering what is going to happen. At least, it did me. I would have loved to find out what happens with these to, how they make use of their second chance, but that is all left to the reader’s imagination. The game ends after the serve.

If you like tennis, if you have ever ‘let a lover get away’, and if you like flashbacks that explain what happened in the past, you will probably like this story.




NOTE: This book was provided by Dreamspinner Press for the purpose of a review on Queer Magazine Online

[Meggie · Rating 2 out of 5]

This undeveloped plotted chapter could have been a good promising novel with some good ideas and more developed story. In general it was fine, but sadly to short chapter.

[Melora · Rating 2 out of 5]

★★½ - Okay to pass the time with, but be prepared to roll your eyes.

There are lots of great tennis references and some good details about Michael's daily life. I'm not knocking the ending, however, I don't really see where the story accomplished anything. Sure the MCs are getting a second chance, but at what exactly, a hookup? a match? a relationship? Maybe it's all of the above, but I would have been more satisfied if that question was answered. This definitely reads like the first chapter in a longer work.

[melek · Rating 3 out of 5]

Re-read 25-06-14 plus needed a review which I forgot . I would have loved it even more if I knew the outcome of the match and their happy ever, but it's ok I guess.

Story is about Michael and arkady years later they are playing an tennis match for a 11 year old girl he favorties I'm guessing. They had something back then but then something happened , drifted apart but they still have feeling for each other. Still left me with hope of imagination I guess. Like most story's .

[Sadonna · Rating 2 out of 5]

I felt cheated at the end. This is another possible opening chapter to what could be a good story. I don't mind short stories - in fact I enjoy them, but not when I feel like I'm cut off in the middle.

[Morgana · Rating 2 out of 5]

2.5 stars

[Mandy*reads obsessively* · Rating 2 out of 5]

This is a very melancholy story. I also felt it was just too short, there was almost no on page time between the MCs and I really don't know how their story is supposed to end, or continue.

[Cheryl · Rating 2 out of 5]

This story left me scratching my head and going huh? It was hard to follow with the flashbacks. The present parts didn't make much sense.

[✨ · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was good but it seemed to feel as if it was cut short at the ending. I feel like this would have been better as a longer story.