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26 of 32 found the following review helpful:
 Gay fiction, schmay fiction! Nov 11, 2008
By Arthur Singer
"yazbuff"
I'm one of those readers who finds an author, and - if I like him/her - I'll read everything that they write until I'm disappointed. Patterson, Flemming, King, etc., etc. Nothing complicated. I, simply, like to be entertained. A year ago, a dear friend turned me on to this Nick Nolan guy and to his first book - Strings Attached. Although he felt obliged to "warn" me that I would be reading "gay fiction", I bought a copy, opened the box from Amazon, and didn't put the book down again until it was finished. I sat there a while trying to figure out why the book was listed as "gay fiction". OK, OK.......there IS an obvious gay bent to the story line but to pigeon-hole the work as solely "gay", does not do Mr. Nolan justice. The story and characters are incredibly well developed and thoughtful. The story line is a nail-biter in every sense of the cliché.
Nolan's latest is every bit as insightful as Strings Attached. Double Bound is another example of wonderful fiction - straight, gay, black, white, polka-dotted, plaid - whatever! Although one may have a tendency to characterize this as a sequel, I prefer to think of it as a continuing saga as well as trip a couple of layers deeper into the tangle of a very intricate plot-line that is every bit as tense and compelling as that unveiled in book number one.
I understand that work number three is currently in development. One more success and Nolan achieves the literary equivalent of the "hat trick". To readers who are fans of story that is unpredictable, plot twists that are not gratuitous and characters that are believable and still remain interesting - Nolan is your guy! In a nutshell - he is just plain talented. So.......gay, schmay..........Read him. You won't be disappointed!
10 of 14 found the following review helpful:
Brilliant Piece of Work! Jan 30, 2009
By Courtney Sonne
"Sparks Fan"
I eagerly awaited the return of Jeremy, Carlo and Arthur the day I finished Strings Attached; however, I never expected Nick Nolan to create such a captivating love story with twists behind every page. I read Double Bound over a two day period as I laid by the pool imagining I was in Brazil with Nolan's picturesque depictions of the sandy, white beaches, surrounded by those beautiful men. Even though my skin was getting baked in the sun, I could not put the book down due to Nolan's ability to leave you in suspense at the end of each chapter. I had to keep turning the page to see what was going to happen. I found myself gaining more excitement as I got deeper into the story and hoping the love would develop between the forbidden pair, yet the sorrow I felt for the man left behind. Although labeled as a "gay fiction", I felt myself, a female committed in a heterosexual relationship, able to connect with the characters and to understand what each was feeling, due to Nolan's brilliant writing. I am beginning to think Nolan is a straight woman trapped in a gay man's body.
Double Bound not only fulfills the adventurous side of us all, but also the longing we have for that passionate love story usually only found in the movies. I cannot wait for the day to watch this novel come to life on the big screen.
1 of 1 found the following review helpful:
Highly recommended Jun 04, 2011
By Benjamin
Following close on the heels of the appealing Stings Attached, which centred on the young Jeremy Tyler's rise to the fortune to which he was entitled, comes Double Bound. The central character here however is Arthur Blauefee, ex-Marine and more recently ex-FBI agent and now butler and estate manager to wealthy Katherine Tyler, and protector and unofficial surrogate father to Jeremy. Here the story is told very much from his perspective and as such it steps back in time to provide some insight to his upbringing, earlier career and his previous love life.
The account then picks up where Strings Attached left off, and we are taken on an escaped to Brazil where Arthur accompanies Jeremy and his flambouyant lover Carlo as carer and bodyguaard. Jeremy has been charged by his aunt Katherine with responsibility for investigating an investment opportunity the Tylers are investing in; an adventure that will involve corruption, double dealing and betrayal upon betrayal, and prove life threatening for all three men.
The few days in Brazil also provide other opportunities. Importantly a chance for Arthur and Jeremy to explore their true feelings for each other, feelings it seems are equally shared - perhaps the predominant theme of the story. It's also chance for Arthur to put into practice his training as a Marine, and for Carlo to prove that he is very much more than just a beautiful sissy boy. Events in Brazil will form the making of each of these central and most likable men, especially in view of the further troubles they will have to face on their return home.
Double Bound, based on the fairy tale Jack and the Beanstalk interwoven with old Brazilian beliefs and superstitions (as the author fully explains in his Notes at the conclusion) is a much darker tale than Stings Attached. In fact the opening chapter sets the scene with a seemingly unrelated sinister and tragic account involving a couple of American boys in Rio de Janeiro, but in fact does have a direct relevance. We get to know Arthur very well, his strengths and his weaknesses along with his failures, and we will no doubt become very attached to and feel for him as he faces dilemmas and difficult decisions. As such it is at times a very moving tale, especially when the real crunch comes towards the end; but it is yet a positive story.
I really enjoyed this book, possibly more even more than Strings Attached, it has greater depth and explores the characters more fully, with no holds bared. It is also a story of the meaning of true unselfish love. There are just a couple or so explicit sex scenes, but these are essential to the story, and one of these even keeps the reading tantalisingly guessing. Although I read this shortly after Strings Attached, it is a book that can stand very well on its own, providing enough information on relevant facts from Strings Attached for those that have not read that, but not to the extent that readers of it will feel they are being served up old information. Highly recommended.
8 of 12 found the following review helpful:
 Didn't Grab Me May 20, 2010
By A. Luciano
Katharine Tyler is a wealthy businesswoman who is part of a group that is building and managing a spectacular resort in Brazil. She is unsure of her partner in Brazil, and decides to send her nephew Jeremy, his lover Carlo, and a family employee, Arthur, to check on things. Arthur is a former Marine and FBI agent and will act as bodyguard to the two younger men.
The trip for Arthur is agonizing, as he has feelings for Jeremy but knows it would be wrong to act on them. He is simply trying to survive, when suddenly the three men are plunged into danger they didn't imagine.
I was really looking forward to reading this book, as I feel like gay men are a group under-represented in fiction. I was interested in reading a book in which the main characters were gay, but the book wasn't about their gayness.
This book, although full of gay characters (an unbelievable amount of gay characters!), didn't give any of them three-dimensionality. They were uniformly gorgeous, hardbodied, sexually excited. The first comment any of the men in this book made about any new male character was how hot he was. Arthur's feelings for Jeremy were juvenile and, because of Arthur's past relationship, a bit creepy. Jeremy and Carlo's relationship seemed tumultuous without any real emotion.
For all of these reasons, plus the fact that the suspense didn't seem all that suspenseful, this book just didn't grab me. I hope to see more fiction that focuses on gay characters in the future, in a format that will be more appealing to me.
6 of 9 found the following review helpful:
Too fluffy - not what I thought May 15, 2010
By Jane E. Applebee
This book fits into what I consider the bodice ripper sub-genre of gay romance. Please understand that I have nothing against bodice-rippers of any sexual persuasion as long as they are intelligently well-written and sexy. Double Bound, however, is neither intelligently well-written nor sexy. It is choppy and it is silly.
I can't read this book. I tried but could not. I read the first 75 pages, it is possible it gets better... but the possibility is not strong enough to keep me reading. On page 75 I still have no clear idea of the book's focus, unless the focus is 'stilted and frivolous gay soft porn without focus'. The vaunted mystery foreshadowed in the prologue is left forgotten there chapter after chapter. Even though the action is about to move on to Brazil - the scene of the prologue's crime - and maybe get off the ground, things are not moving fast enough and I am taking the nearest exit.
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