Tony is an information gatherer, a low-level demon who likes his job and his perks on the earthly plane, thank you. He doesn't need human demon-hunters like Salter hanging around and making trouble, no matter how attractive they are. Or how capable. Or hot, with their leather and gun-toting ways.
Salter needs Tony's help, though, to find a demon even an experienced hunter can't take on alone. Both Tony and Salter are used to working solo, but they'll have to become a team to take on a demon like the Tail and his cronies. Can Salter convince Tony that it's worth his while to play along?
Lorne Rodman’s characters tend to reflect the wide array of personality traits possessed by the author; from shy and squeaky to bold and arrogant, they represent the best and worst of Lorne’s life. Humor and hot sex are trademarks of Lorne’s stories, as is pushing the envelope of what is proper and acceptable. Lorne’s hobbies range from searching for the ultimate gay porn story to attempting needlework with his toes.
Chasing Tail is an amusing, delightful novella that takes some classic stereotypes and gives some fresh new life into them. The dialogue is witty with a lot of back and forth bantering and some hot sex in the later half. Tony is a sin keeper demon, one who keeps track of the sins of others. As such, he knows a lot of information and demon-hunting Salter decides Tony’s going to help him. The sparks fly between these two as they reluctantly work together to find Salter’s target “The Tail.”
I was pleasantly surprised at this enjoyable story and liked the quirky Tony a lot. Here is a demon that is a bit of a hypochondriac and thinks sex is kind of nasty. Oral has way too many germs and the backdoor is an exit only. He’s fastidious and doesn’t like to be around people which puts him up against a pretty big wall with the stubborn Salter. Salter is your typical brash bastard that intimidates those around him to get what he wants. But he also shows concern that Tony not get hurt. Although Tony is clearly the weaker of the two – and obvious bottom – he can stand up for himself and has a clever wit.
The world building is sparse to non-existent as the urban fantasy world is shown in gritty clubs and smelly humans. There is very little descriptive quality to the setting and the characters send the majority of the time ruminating in their head with information dumps about why a character can’t do this or that. There is very little structure given to the demons even though they clearly have some sort of administrative ladder given their duties. Additionally the actual plot of chasing this seven foot demon with a tail is not given much weight, significance or purpose.
So really the story is a fluff piece with some hot sex and likable characters. Tony’s issues with the dirtiness of sex kind of just disappear once he and Salter decide to give into their mutual lust and Salter’s brash personality seems to melt under Tony’s amusing bitching comments. Salter acts like a classic Seme but not as arrogant as he listens to Tony’s body instead of the voice. Tony may very weakly say no but he really wants it so this is more amusing than anything. The real enjoyment comes the snappy dialogue and quick pace to the story.
I wish the novella had taken the characters and the story further by delving into the setting and creating a gritty, fascinating world. The outline is there but never developed and fully explored. Also the characters are quirky and interesting but they also stop too soon and give in to end the story rather than carrying their quirks to more developed areas. The idea of a gay demon that loves his horns stroked but finds sex unhygienic is great and could offer a good deal of humor and great antics but sadly just isn’t as fully used as possible. Even though the story stops considerably short of greatness, the amusing antics and entertaining story is worth reading.
I put off reading this book, even though I generally love Lorne Rodman's writing, because of the ugly Torquere template cover. Don't make my mistake: don't judge this book by its cover because it's wonderful.
In a new departure for the very talented Rodman, Chasing Tail immerses us in a world where demons and humans coexist, albeit a little uncomfortably.
Tony is a demon snitch. His job is to tally up human sins and he's good at it. Picture an OCD demon checking off your sins. Gluttony, check. Lust, check. Too many ebooks, check. (just joking there!)
"Tony stifled a yawn and checked the various sins off the little list he'd had printed at Kinkos, every one with a neat little box next to it. So much easier than writing it out longhand, especially as he had the ancient demon symbols for each word printed there, too. The boss refused to learn anything newer than Hebrew.
The boss really preferred his languages, and humans, dead."
Who's Tony's boss? We're never told, but we have a pretty clear idea. Tony loves his job and loves being up here with us humans. Hell is ... well, hell.
Then who should walk in but Salter, a big, hunky demon bounty hunter. Tony tries to make a break for it, but he's not on Salter's list. Salter just wants some help locating a particularly nasty demon called Tail. Hence, 'chasing Tail'.
Tony and Salter really don't want anything to do with each other at first. Tony doesn't want to be anyone's target -- he's just an information gatherer. And Salter works alone, only alone.
I love the quirky humor and the sly banter in this unabashedly hilarious interspecies relationship. Who knew demons had big cocks? How hot can the sex between a human and a demon be? Hmmm.... you'll just have to read Chasing Tail to find out. And you must read it! (Tony is taking names, after all, and you don't want to draw the boss's attention, do you?)
I really like "Chasing Tail," not so much for the story itself but rather for the interaction between the characters. Salter is basically a pushy asshole of a demon hunter who doesn't take no for an answer and always gets his way, come hell or high water. Tony is basically a shy, run-away-rather-than-fight demon who would rather sit in Starbucks and read books than meddle/interfere with anything or any*one*.
So what makes this short novella different? What puts Salter and Tony away from any other Seme/Uke pairing? Salter is not a bite-your-head-off bastard. An asshole yes, bastard no. He's not afraid to show he cares, but doesn't exactly say it outright and certainly doesn't gush or any such nonsense. His caring is shown in how he lacks selfishness when it comes to their dealings, and carefully he handles Tony when it counts. Does he all of a sudden turn love-struck? No.
Then for Tony [love his full name by the way - Dantonion:], he's not a coward. Shy and non-confrontational, but he can stand up for himself and fight when its needed. Granted, not very well, but if he has to stand firm he does, and doesn't get terrified over it. He would just rather, you know ... not.
Lorne Rodman stays true to both characters throughout the whole novella which is commendable; a lot of authors have problems with that. My only whine/complaint [which isn't really one at all:]: I kind of wish it was longer!
[but not mean, rude, or bite-your-head-off:], the gruff sort that *does* have a heart, just doesn't like to show it
Tony is a information demon, he keeps track of people's sins and knows lots of stuff. He's approached by human demon hunter Salter to help him find a demon called the Tail. Tony does NOT want to help and Salter never asks for help but thanks to the manipulation of another demon they are forced to work together to find a serial killer who escaped from hell and has teamed up with the Tail. Tony and Salter are attracted despite the fact that they don't want to be and Salter has never had a demon lover. This story was an incredibly pleasant surprise. I didn't know what to expect but I totally fell in love with Tony on the first page. He is spunky and and snide and despite the fact that Salter freaked him out he never backed down. He has a very appealing narrative voice (it switches off with Salter by section) and I just thought he was funny. He's also a germophobic virgin. An example of his opinion on sex: "Penetrative sex always seemed so distasteful. And oral... Man, there were germs. Icky, gross germs." He rarely swears and loves his magic fingers massage chair and his cappuccino machine. So a great story with a spunky little demon hero who REALLY likes his horns touched. ;-)
Salter is a demon hunter and Tony a demon who tallies sins and occasionally snitches on other demons. When Salter needs help on a case Tony reluctantly finds himself working with him. I really enjoyed the witty dialogue between these two seemingly different men. Tony especially is a wonderful character and I found their interactions fun and interesting. The world building lacked a bit but it was made up for in the characters and storyline. The one thing I really don't like is the strange cover which does nothing to indicate that there is a fun, sexy story within.
This started out a little slow because demon hunter and demons don't get along so there was a lot of grumpy reticence. Half way through it started to pick up and I was really getting into it and it stopped. Do you know how frustrating it is to try to turn the page exclaiming "no not yet" when there are no more pages? I did notice that there is another book to this little series which I will be reading shortly!