Can You Feel the Maple Tonight (Love in Maplewood) by Bix Barrow

Can You Feel the Maple Tonight by Bix Barrow is a good introduction to this author. A nice read that shows how a person can be flawed but still a good person at heart. Drake and Finn discover how to work together, and apart, to find their perfect fit.


From the blurb:

Catching feelings for my friend with benefits? Surely there’s a song about that...

When my musical mentor asked me to help his old buddy put on a music festival in Vermont, I thought it’d be a nice break from my regular life. Not that my life has been regular lately. My twin left to go be an actor, and I’m not on tour for the first time since I was a kid. Working on a project like this is just what I needed.

But I’d barely arrived in Maplewood when I almost ran over a teenager, heard about a local cryptid, and got shouted at by a fanny-pack wearing, floppy-haired, thirty-something veterinarian named Finn. Who was adorable. When he wasn’t yelling, of course.

This being a small town, I keep running into Finn no matter how I try to avoid him. Only, as much as he rubs me the wrong way, I wouldn’t mind him rubbing me the right way if you know what I mean.

Turns out he feels the same, so we agree to stop bickering and start lick...er-ing. Whatever. You get my drift. It’s all just casual, friends-with-benefits fun, a physical release. And that’s all it can be, because I’m only in town until the festival is over. Then it’s back to my regular life.

But someone should’ve warned me that Finn’s actually sweet. He’s always doing thoughtful little things for me, and he’s so supportive of his teenager. How can I keep things casual in the face of all that? But it’s way too soon for either of us to be having “feelings”. Maybe I can find an excuse to stick around a little longer....

Can You Feel the Maple Tonight is a low-angst, small town contemporary MM romance with an age gap, a single parent, musical interludes, something strange in the woods, a giant tortoise, hats for every occasion, and a murder chicken.

With the highest percentage of LGBTQIA+ residents in Vermont, Maplewood is a town where everyone belongs. And with festivals year round, there’s always something fun happening! This multi-author, low-angst queer series features ten standalone romances—each set against the backdrop of a different festival. Come for the celebrations, stay for the happily-ever-afters!


SNik's review:

Part of a multi-author series (Love in Maplewood), but can be read as a standalone. Age gap. Single parent. Found family. Dual POV. 

Former music star and current songwriter Drake comes to Maplewood Vermont to help run the local music festival, and being attracted to the local veterinarian has no future since Drake is only there for a short time. When they first meet, Finn winds up yelling at the handsome young man that rescued his son, but he really wouldn’t mind a short term hookup until Finn realizes he can’t bear the thought of Drake leaving. 

Both Drake and Finn were likable characters, although I wish we got to see more of their personal backgrounds and since their relationship quickly turned serious, some more time spent with them together and their emotional connection. There was a lot going on in this story with a multitude of interesting side characters, a mysterious local cryptid, music festival chaos and some troublesome chickens. Overall, a cute read with some cameos from the author’s previous books and some overlap of characters from the Love in Maplewood series.

Molly Otto's review:

Drake is sent to help run and judge the annual musical festival in the small town of Maplewood. He starts off eith a unique way in first earning the affections of the local vets teenager first than the vet, Finn, himself. Drake growing up in the limelight has issues trusting people and loses his temper more often than necessary. Finn, having just gained full custody of Charlie after the untimely death of his parents, needs to take things slowly with Finn. Yes, some mistakes are made on both sides, but these two have great open communication in discussing issues with the other when issues arise. Some plot points felt short or at least not resolved enough for my taste, would have liked to see them more resolved in the end. Just fell short on its overall potential. This was my first read from this author and have a feeling will not be my last.

Heather's Review:

This was a quick and quirky read for me!  I've been loving all of the Love in Maplewood stories and this one is no exception.  I appreciate the way this story goes from angry meet-cute to a "vacation" romance to something more.  Like the other Maplewood stories, the town is quite invested in this romance and also in the music festival that Drake has been tapped to help run...

Between Charlie's angst and Finn's reluctance, this book feels like it's going to be slow burn, but the steam rises quickly and they eventually connect the dots and figure out their HEA...

I truly love the way this town folds people into it's circle and each of these books has been a wonderful oasis in the midst of a dark world...

Can You Feel the Maple Tonight is currently available as an e-book and can be read as part of your Kindle Unlimited Subscription