Heart of the Steal by Avon Gale and Roan Parrish

Narrated by Kirt Graves and Iggy Toma

Heart of the Steal is the first (and so far, only) collaboration between popular m/m romance authors Avon Gale and Roan Parrish. I confess that I haven’t yet read or listened to anything by either author, but this sounded interesting, and when it popped up at Audible with the names of two experienced narrators attached, I decided to give it a whirl. The synopsis led me to think the story would be some sort of light-hearted cat-and-mouse caper featuring a billionaire philanthropist who succumbs to the occasional instance of light fingers, and a starchy FBI art crimes specialist. But while that dichotomy is the catalyst for the romance, the bulk of the novel consists basically of a well-put together love story between opposites, two men from very different worlds and social backgrounds who struggle to work out how – and even if – they can fit into each other’s lives. Maybe if I’d read the book I might have been a little disappointed, but Kirt Graves and Iggy Toma deliver such fabulously engaging performances that I was happy to just go with the flow and let them take me wherever they – and the story – wanted me to go!

Will Fox isn’t exactly overjoyed at being dragged to a party by his twin sister, Charlotte. It’s the end of a long week, he’s tired, and making small talk with the super-rich isn’t his idea of a fun evening, but Charlotte’s event planning company has catered the party so he goes along to support her. Part way through the evening, she points out new arrival Amory Vaughn, one of the wealthiest men in the country and head of the Vaughn Foundation, a philanthropic organisation that administers and contributes to a number of charities. Vaughn is gorgeous – striking, well-dressed, urbanely charming, with a southern drawl that was pure old money – and Will can’t take his eyes off him, embarrassed when he’s caught staring and completely unable to return the flirtatious wink Vaughn sends his way. When Vaughn starts making his way towards him, Will bolts; he’s terrible at flirting and has no wish to make an idiot of himself, so he heads downstairs to take in the host’s art collection – but isn’t alone for long. Vaughn makes clear his interest very quickly, and Will is helpless to resist the pull of the attraction that’s been zinging between them ever since they made eye-contact. It’s the hottest sexual encounter of his life – and likely to be the only one they’ll ever share.

The next morning, Will finds a large package propped up against the wall outside his apartment – and is horrified to discover that it contains the painting that he and Vaughn had been admiring the night before, together with an invitation to Vaughn’s home the following Saturday. Will is shocked, angry… and disappointed to discover that the man with whom he’d felt such an intense connection is a thief. And worse, Will is going to have to arrest him.

Thoroughly smitten with the handsome man in the ill-fitting suit he’d met at that party, Amory Vaughn decided a grand gesture would be a good way to get his attention. He’s surprised at the degree of interest he’s taking in William Fox; it’s been a long time since he was so strongly attracted to anyone, but that only serves to ramp up Vaughn’s anticipation as he looks for William among the crowd gathered at his home to celebrate his best friend’s wedding. Just as he’s pretty much given up hope, Amory spots him and is initially pleased when William (Amory likes to think of him as William rather than Will) insists they find somewhere quiet to talk… but not so much when the other man calls Amory out on the theft. The problem – for Will, anyway – in all this is that Amory doesn’t seem at all fazed by this turn of events, and what is supposed to be an impersonal confrontation ends with the pair of them extremely turned-on and taking things to their natural conclusion. On the desk. And against the wall. It’s a terrible idea and Will knows it… but he can’t resist. No-one has ever affected him the way Amory Vaughn does – but how on earth can he possibly reconcile his job as an FBI agent with the overwhelming attraction he feels towards a man who clearly has such different moral standards?

The obvious dichotomy between the occasional thief and the FBI agent is a symptom of a far more serious issue lying in the way of a happy ending for these two, one born of their very different circumstances and outlooks. Amory was born with the proverbial silver spoon in his mouth, and never wanted for anything – except real companionship and affection as a child, and, as he grew older, people around him who wanted him for himself rather than what he could do for them. He is, quite frankly, a snob, although the authors mitigate that quality by making him charmingly endearing and unfailingly generous – and poking very gentle fun at him through Will’s PoV. The trouble is that he fails to see that what he thinks of as generosity is often akin to manipulation. Amory wants Will to be happy and to make his life easier, so he does things without thinking about how they will look to Will or how they might make him feel, and eventually goes farther than Will is prepared to accept.

But the issues aren’t all Vaughn’s. Will struggles with his attraction to him, seeing the good in him but sometimes deliberately clinging to the things that show his cluelessness about how the other half lives. Will is smart and insightful, but he has to learn that his – perhaps – naïve view of life as starkly black and white is as flawed as Amory’s view of it as being his to manipulate as he sees fit.

The chemistry between the leads is fabulous and the romance is full of humour, affection and unexpected moments of sweetness; Amory is a romantic at heart and takes great delight in simply making Will smile. The sex scenes are hot – Amory talks like a prince, but unleashes the dirty talk in the bedroom ;) – but the depth of affection between the two men shines through regardless of what they’re doing, and it was easy to believe in a future for them, in spite of their very different backgrounds.

Even though I listen to a fair amount of m/m books, I haven’t yet listened to either narrator, which is weird because they’ve both recorded in the genre quite extensively. After this though, I’ll definitely be seeking out more of their work because they were both superb. Kirt Graves narrates the chapters told from Will’s PoV and Iggy Toma those from Vaughn’s, and I was really impressed by the consistency they both achieved when performing dialogue by the other character (i.e. Mr. Graves’ portrayal of Vaughn and Mr. Toma’s of Will). I commented to my fellow Gals during our Currently Playing chat that week that both their interpretations of Vaughn were so good and their delivery and accent so well co-ordinated, that I occasionally forgot which one of them was speaking! I described Vaughn’s southern accent as a “full on Scarlett O’Hara” – he’s the perfect Southern Gentleman, and I loved his smooth, sexy drawl as performed by both narrators. Pacing and enunciation are excellent, and both performers really nailed the emotional nuances of the story, especially in those moments we get to hear Vaughn’s vulnerability and Will’s awkwardness and uncertainty. Their female voices are good, too, as are all their characterisations of the various secondary characters and differentiation between them.

Heart of the Steal might not have been what I was expecting, but it was a charming and entertaining listen nonetheless, and one I’d recommend it to anyone in the mood for a tender, sweet though hot romance between two likeable leads. Terrific performances by Kirt Graves and Iggy Toma undoubtedly enhanced my overall enjoyment; this one gets a thumbs-up from me.

Caz