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A Trashy Affair
Jane Marshall, environmental project engineer for Ste. Jeanne d'Arc Parish, is having a terrible day. The local government has cancelled her beloved recycling program. To top that off, the office CAO is out to get her fired. When the jerk who lives across the street lobs his beer cans into her yard, she marches right over to lecture the large, threatening man known as Crazy Merlin Tauzin about littering.
Merlin, a war hero with adjustment problems, has not felt like smiling, laughing, or being with a woman for a long time. Jane makes him want to do all three. Combat taught him he cannot save the world or even his best friend, but he might be able to save Jane's world--if she will only admit sometimes a guy with a big-ass truck can come in handy.
Merlin, a war hero with adjustment problems, has not felt like smiling, laughing, or being with a woman for a long time. Jane makes him want to do all three. Combat taught him he cannot save the world or even his best friend, but he might be able to save Jane's world--if she will only admit sometimes a guy with a big-ass truck can come in handy.
292 pages, Kindle Edition
First published December 1, 2012
6 people are currently reading
76 people want to read
About the author
Lynn Shurr
44 books14 followersOnce a librarian, now a writer of romance, Lynn Shurr grew up in Pennsylvania Dutch country. She attended a state college and earned a very impractical B.A. in English Literature. Her first job out of school really was working as a cashier in a burger joint. Moving from one humble job to another, she traveled to North Carolina, then Germany, then California where she buckled down and studied for an M.A. in Librarianship.
New degree in hand, she found her first reference job in the Heart of Cajun Country, Lafayette, Louisiana. For her, the old saying, “Once you’ve tasted bayou water, you will always stay here” came true. She raised three children not far from the Bayou Teche and lives there still with her astronomer husband and two big-boned, orange cats named Jake and Elwood.
When not writing, Lynn likes to paint, to cheer for the New Orleans Saints and LSU Tigers, and take long road trips nearly anywhere. Her love of the bayou country, its history and customs, often shows in the background for her books.
New degree in hand, she found her first reference job in the Heart of Cajun Country, Lafayette, Louisiana. For her, the old saying, “Once you’ve tasted bayou water, you will always stay here” came true. She raised three children not far from the Bayou Teche and lives there still with her astronomer husband and two big-boned, orange cats named Jake and Elwood.
When not writing, Lynn likes to paint, to cheer for the New Orleans Saints and LSU Tigers, and take long road trips nearly anywhere. Her love of the bayou country, its history and customs, often shows in the background for her books.
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Displaying 1 - 15 of 15 reviews
June 12, 2023
Wow. I’m speechless. This was my first and only go with Cajun smut and I was throughly entertained.
I was gifted this book as a joke last Christmas and the front cover has been a big topic of conversation for guests of my home. The smooth-skinned portrayal of the story’s cajun war hero compounded with the author’s pseudonym, which sounds suspiciously similar to ‘Lyncher’, had me wondering what could possibly be between the pages.
From the get go, the author establishes herself as someone who likes to cling to the traditional nuances of the south. Any attempt at making South Louisiana charming was foiled by the way-too-frequent attempts at Cajun slang and painting Merlin’s Louisiana-raised family as southern trash. Merlin comes from a poor family with much more drama than Jane’s. The relationship that stood out most to me was with Waldo, the parish’s undertaker, who impregnated Merlin’s 16 year old sister but swept it under the rug with his money. Instead of contacting the police, Shurr saw a better victory as Merlin threatening Waldo if he didn’t marry his now 20-year-old sister who was pregnant again with his child. Statutory rape remedied with marriage and a ~40 year age gap. Justice served…?
The main character, Jane, is supposed to be a strong, able-minded woman who can accomplish anything she sets her mind to, but instead is bailed out of every single conflict by a big, scary man who fights her battles for her. Losing your house due to unemployment? Just quit your job and let the man buy your house from you. As long as you cook for him and keep him healthy, he’ll bring home all the money with his oil field job! You were wrongfully fired at your place of work? No worries - let the scary man extort political officials and get you back on track for success!
I also enjoyed how on two different occasions in the text, the waitress is referred to as a large black woman and the two parish garbage workers are named ‘Lemonjello’ and ‘Oranjello’. Lynn Shurr makes it very clear, whether she noticed or not, how she generalizes blue collar workers.
It seems that Ms. Shurr is her own editor. I love catching grammatical errors in books, but she made it a little too easy. I challenge you to take a shot of whiskey every time you see “could of” or “should of”.
Above all else, my absolute favorite parts were the sad attempts at Merlin’s night terrors caused by his PTSD. The entire storyline of his experience overseas was so obviously lacking research and attention. I’m sure the author wanted my toes to curl and get goosebumps from her sex scenes, but instead I felt my skin crawl from the incredibly awkward and tacky storytelling of Merlin’s war stories. I also loved Merlin’s authentic dialogue while watching Thanksgiving Day football - “No, no, go for the field goal!”, “Damn! I knew they wouldn’t make that two point conversion. But still, ahead at the half.” Wow. Sounds like a true die-hard.
I gave this read two stars because I was truly entertained, but the writing was so tacky for someone that had written so many books. The story had some potential, and the awkward sex scenes were such a small part of the story. There were so many different plot points happening at once that the author wasn’t able to effectively develop the characters in any redeemable way. I am going to pass this book along to my cousins in Lafayette who would get a kick out of the feeble attempt at capturing the culture.
I was gifted this book as a joke last Christmas and the front cover has been a big topic of conversation for guests of my home. The smooth-skinned portrayal of the story’s cajun war hero compounded with the author’s pseudonym, which sounds suspiciously similar to ‘Lyncher’, had me wondering what could possibly be between the pages.
From the get go, the author establishes herself as someone who likes to cling to the traditional nuances of the south. Any attempt at making South Louisiana charming was foiled by the way-too-frequent attempts at Cajun slang and painting Merlin’s Louisiana-raised family as southern trash. Merlin comes from a poor family with much more drama than Jane’s. The relationship that stood out most to me was with Waldo, the parish’s undertaker, who impregnated Merlin’s 16 year old sister but swept it under the rug with his money. Instead of contacting the police, Shurr saw a better victory as Merlin threatening Waldo if he didn’t marry his now 20-year-old sister who was pregnant again with his child. Statutory rape remedied with marriage and a ~40 year age gap. Justice served…?
The main character, Jane, is supposed to be a strong, able-minded woman who can accomplish anything she sets her mind to, but instead is bailed out of every single conflict by a big, scary man who fights her battles for her. Losing your house due to unemployment? Just quit your job and let the man buy your house from you. As long as you cook for him and keep him healthy, he’ll bring home all the money with his oil field job! You were wrongfully fired at your place of work? No worries - let the scary man extort political officials and get you back on track for success!
I also enjoyed how on two different occasions in the text, the waitress is referred to as a large black woman and the two parish garbage workers are named ‘Lemonjello’ and ‘Oranjello’. Lynn Shurr makes it very clear, whether she noticed or not, how she generalizes blue collar workers.
It seems that Ms. Shurr is her own editor. I love catching grammatical errors in books, but she made it a little too easy. I challenge you to take a shot of whiskey every time you see “could of” or “should of”.
Above all else, my absolute favorite parts were the sad attempts at Merlin’s night terrors caused by his PTSD. The entire storyline of his experience overseas was so obviously lacking research and attention. I’m sure the author wanted my toes to curl and get goosebumps from her sex scenes, but instead I felt my skin crawl from the incredibly awkward and tacky storytelling of Merlin’s war stories. I also loved Merlin’s authentic dialogue while watching Thanksgiving Day football - “No, no, go for the field goal!”, “Damn! I knew they wouldn’t make that two point conversion. But still, ahead at the half.” Wow. Sounds like a true die-hard.
I gave this read two stars because I was truly entertained, but the writing was so tacky for someone that had written so many books. The story had some potential, and the awkward sex scenes were such a small part of the story. There were so many different plot points happening at once that the author wasn’t able to effectively develop the characters in any redeemable way. I am going to pass this book along to my cousins in Lafayette who would get a kick out of the feeble attempt at capturing the culture.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
December 6, 2015
This was an awkward read for me. It's hard to explain what exactly was the problem, but I'll do my best...
Everything was choppy, the flow was strange and I really didn't connect with these characters at all. The dialogue, while sometimes funny, was a little odd and perhaps abrupt? The 'courtship' was interesting, but there wasn't much heat for me, which I believe stems from me having a hard time connecting with the characters. Also, I don't need overly descriptive sex scenes, but their first time was pretty much wham, bam, let's eat! I just needed a little something more.
July 1, 2023
This book was so, so, so bad it was kinda good. Like a dumpster fire that you have to watch. I especially loved the predominant theme of the “big-ass truck” and the slightly prejudiced undertones. Great rec Jimmy!!!
February 1, 2014
The moment I saw this book, I had a strong gut feeling that I would like it.
I looked at the cover, I read the synopsis, I looked at the cover again "Whoa, how tasteful!" ;) And the fact that it was a freebie was certainly convincing too.
Jane and Merlin felt like real people to me; no one had to grew up in foster care, no trust issues because of unhappy former relationships, no member of the family got killed in a car accident: Just people like you and me or your next door neighbor...
Their attraction was rather instant, but it was dealt with in a very relaxed way on both sides. No weeks long wining and dining with tension to built up and waiting to explode.
Jane acted very mature for her 24 years and not like a spineless, whining heroine, but one with a backbone and self-esteem.
Merlin had serious mental problems because of his service in the Army and he tried to cope with his trauma by rather excessive drinking in his free time. He had insecurities because of his simple minded mother. And the rest of the family wasn´t either one you would actually look forward to make an acquaintance...
They all added to this delightful and entertaining read, especially his grandmother and her intimate knowledge of the city´s "who is who". All characters in this story were well fleshed out and not just supernumeraries and stooges invented to pretend that there were more people involved in the story than just the protagonists.
Being in a relationship together helped both, Jane and Merlin, dealing with their issues and they complemented each other on every level.
The sex scenes were not overly descriptive but enjoying to read. I wouldn´t have minded more descriptiveness, but I was content as it was.
The author succeeded in describing the setting in a wonderful way. This also added to the book without making it look like a travel guide, with too many detailed descriptions and thus boring to read.
I felt like I was with them there and had the opportunity to see and meet everything and everyone involved.
Overall a great read for me and one I would definitely recommend!
July 1, 2017
The trash in the title is literal in this book. A young woman starting her career moves to the South to convince residents of a small town and their elected officials to initiate a recycling program. The author has really captured these political characters. They closely compare with those I've often read about in nonfiction along with those quoted in my small town newspaper.
Also, I've endured many authors and filmmakers who claim to represent a unique area known as Acadiana. Ms. Shurr accurately portrays the importance of family in this culture especially those members of our family who don't live up to their family's expectations. This romance provides an opportunity to contrast cultural differences when the main characters visit each other's family.
For anyone who wants a picture of small town South Louisiana, read A Trashy Affair by Lynn Shurr.
Also, I've endured many authors and filmmakers who claim to represent a unique area known as Acadiana. Ms. Shurr accurately portrays the importance of family in this culture especially those members of our family who don't live up to their family's expectations. This romance provides an opportunity to contrast cultural differences when the main characters visit each other's family.
For anyone who wants a picture of small town South Louisiana, read A Trashy Affair by Lynn Shurr.
November 25, 2013
Far from a trashy read
I'd say this is a solid 3.5 star read for me. Im going to go ahead and round up since it was offered as a freebie at my time of purchase. It was predictable but still maintained some orginial attributes. It was much more of a clean romance then I tend to go for. I did like the Lousiana and Cajun references, sayings, etc.
I'd say this is a solid 3.5 star read for me. Im going to go ahead and round up since it was offered as a freebie at my time of purchase. It was predictable but still maintained some orginial attributes. It was much more of a clean romance then I tend to go for. I did like the Lousiana and Cajun references, sayings, etc.
May 30, 2014
Do not judge this book by its cover. It's amazing
ok, my truth is that I was mildly put off by the cover. I made a huge mistake by judging this book before reading it. I loved every moment of their love story. you can see the love blossom and grow between the flawed characters. A fantastic lazy day read.
ok, my truth is that I was mildly put off by the cover. I made a huge mistake by judging this book before reading it. I loved every moment of their love story. you can see the love blossom and grow between the flawed characters. A fantastic lazy day read.
December 15, 2013
I just finished reading "A Trashy Affair" by Lynn Shurr. Interesting and lovable characters make this a fun read! My favorite character is the petite matchmaker granny! This is a stand-alone book.
If you like reading Diana Palmer, you'll enjoy this!
If you like reading Diana Palmer, you'll enjoy this!
October 26, 2017
What an awesome read! I thoroughly loved the characters in this book. And of course. Louisianans! This is about Blackie & Jane.
March 23, 2016
Fun read
Fast paced
Clever dialogue that teased
All that and Cajun seasoning!!
great read
With a HEA ending that added just the right of kick
Fast paced
Clever dialogue that teased
All that and Cajun seasoning!!
great read
With a HEA ending that added just the right of kick
December 30, 2013
This is Lynn Shurr's best, though not one of better know Sinners football novels. Taking place in Cajun Country, the title refers not to hot sex (sorry to disappoint anyone), but to saving the environment. When Jane Marshall fails to convince local politicians not to cut the recycling program and they accept a sub-standard garbage contract, she is at a low ebb. The government powers also plan to cut her job as an environmental project manager. In the midst of all this some jerk throws his beer cans in her ditch right in front of her. She gets in the face of the large, intimidating man known as Crazy Merlin Tauzin who claims he can help her with all her problems, though he is certainly her complete opposite. Jane resists him at every turn, but finally succumbs to his dark and quirky charm. Merlin can fix everything but himself, but then, Jane does believe in salvaging all she can, even Merlin. This story will make you laugh out loud and maybe tear up a little in other parts. As usual, Cajun culture is strongly portrayed, colorful secondary characters abound, and the sex is spicy and fun.
July 29, 2015
The title and cover gave me pause, but this turned out to be a really fun, sweet and romantic read. There were a few places where Jane got on my last nerve, which kept it at 4 stars for me, but my goodness - Merlin was a fantastic character.
January 6, 2014
it was a sweet and funny story. characters were relatable. just certain parts dragged a little. but I loved Merlin.
June 29, 2017
Is a great book to read
November 26, 2013
I liked this more than I thought I would - surprise.
Displaying 1 - 15 of 15 reviews