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Deputy Joe Peterson is a lawman, an
avid climber, a Mormon, and gay. He walks a fine line
between his religion, which he cares a great deal about, and
the other parts of his life. He’s not pleased when a sexy
young parolee, Kabe Varghese, shows up in town. The boy
seems like trouble. Then he gets a call about a hiker who
has fallen down a cliff, and Kabe’s the only other person
with the climbing skills to help him retrieve the body. Joe
soon finds himself caught up in a mystery, as well as an
attraction that could mean the end of his life as he knows
it.
Hard Fall is a fascinating story with a lot of
depth. I learned a lot about the Mormon religion and
climbing while reading it, all told in Joe’s (often amusing)
first-person narration. Joe is a very down-home kind of
guy, with a simple life and a lot of faith. He’s conflicted
over his sexuality and some aspects of his job, but he’s
able to separate everything into compartments in his mind.
Kabe is wild and doesn’t seem to think things through unless
climbing is involved. He balanced Joe out in some ways, and
I liked the way they could come together and cooperate when
climbing and investigating a possible murder. The mystery
angle isn’t all that mysterious, but the way it plays out is
interesting nonetheless. The most compelling part of
Hard Fall involves Joe’s inner turmoil regarding his
faith, and the way others perceive him. While the die-hard
romantic in me wanted a more settled ending, Hard Fall
is an emotional story with both realism and
drama. |
