Tom or An Improbable Tail

by Ruth Sims

In Ruth Sims' beloved contemporary fairy tale, "Tom or an Improbable Tail," a lonely gay lawyer's cat spends six months of the year in the shape of a hot twink. Of course, our owner happens to be closeted at a very conservative law firm. Dare he want more than a pet?

Genres: M M Romance, Short Stories, Paranormal, Romance, M M Paranormal, Fantasy, Contemporary

25 pages, ebook

First published January 1, 2006

About the author

Librarian Note: There is more than one author in the GoodReads database with this name. See this thread for more information.

Reviews

[Tam · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a short story, only 20 pages. Its told as if someone is telling you the story that their friend told them. I find that a bit awkward but its not too bad and its pretty funny at the start. Its basically a cat who spends 6 months of the year as a cat and 6 months as a boy. He ends up living with a closeted gay lawyer with a mad scientist friend who can do surgery to make him a man forever. He's really innocent and gay lawyer introduces him to gay sex (all off screen) but the guy misses being a cat too. So does he get the cat/boy to undergo surgery or let him go back to being a cat? That is the question.

[Eiko · Rating 3 out of 5]

弁護士のWilliamはこれといった自分がなく、非社交的で無趣味、友人と呼べるのは１人だけ。その友人を車で家に送った時、猫がWilliamの車に入り込んできた。つまみ出してもすぐ戻ってくるので、諦めてWilliamは猫を飼い始める。ある日、仕事からアパートに帰ったWilliamはソファの上に見知らぬ美少年を発見して驚く。少年はTomと名乗り、Williamに飼われている猫だと打ち明けた…

短編。主人公のWilliamがあんまり魅力的とは言えないので、キャラ萌えはなく、展開を楽しむお話だと思う。Tomは本当に猫なのか、Williamは彼とこれからも暮らせるのか？　が最後まで気になる展開になっている。終わり方は納得がいくものだったけど、萌えはしなかった。「え？　ああ、そうなんだ」って感じ。いいお話ではあるけれど…。

[Alex · Rating 3 out of 5]

I think this would have only ranked a 2.5 if it weren't for the ending. The writing is okay, it's not a terribly emotional story, and not exceptionally hot either. But it's cute, and again, the ending.

[BookAddict ✒ La Crimson Femme · Rating 3 out of 5]

Tom is a cute boy who happens to be a cat, Tom cat. Snicker. This very short story caught me off guard with it's cuteness. I'm hesitant to reveal too much because it could become a spoiler. Basically, Tom reaffirms that cats have an awesome life.

[Alaska · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5

This was a cute story. At first I was a little skeptical and had to get used to the chosen writing style. But especially the end got me. It was like a fairy tale where the hero didn't do what he wanted but what was right. And although I don't have a cat, it made me want to cuddle my dog :)

[Ann Roberts · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was a very imaginative, funny short-story that truly reminds us that we need to let the ones we love be whoever they are inside--regardless of how that may affect us at the time!

[L-D · Rating 2 out of 5]

I didn't really care for this story. I did like the very end and the decision that William made, but overall, I wasn't able to relate to the characters.

[K.C. Beaumont · Rating 4 out of 5]

This short story was adorable and so very funny! I snorted with laughter the entire time reading it. Very cute and imaginative with a great message at the end.

[Rachel]

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