Review - Stuff by Josephine Myles
Stuff
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Heat level: 
Volume 2 of The Bristol Collection
Tags: UK Setting
Posted in Book Reviews on December 14, 2025
Mas just got laid off from his sales job at a department store. He’s already behind on his rent and ends up doing something stupid. While avoiding a man with a personal grudge against Mas, he ducks into a shop near his flat. It’s like stepping back in time. The store is crammed full of old clothing, so full it’s hard to see anything, especially with the windows screened off. Perry, the owner of the shop, dresses in old-fashioned suits that fit with his inventory and speaks with a posh accent, for someone running a shop. Perry also lacks the social skills one needs to deal with the general public. Despite that, Mas is smitten and soon wheedles his way into working at the shop. The two men come from opposite ends of the class system. Can they really have a relationship?
“Stuff” is a sequel to Junk, and like the first book, pairs an unlikely couple, one of whom has problems with stuff. Perry is not really a hoarder. He wants to sell the vast collection of clothing and other curiosities he inherited. He just doesn’t have the merchandising or the people skills to do it. That’s where Mas comes in. Jasper and Lewis, the two main characters from “Junk”, play roles in this story, but you can probably safely read this book without having read the previous one.
We meet Mas first, and initially, he comes off as a stereotypical gay boy. A “twink” who likes to party. Naturally, there’s much more to Mas than it seems. He is a hard worker and has a genuine way of dealing with people that makes him very likable. The complete picture of Mas is of someone you almost can’t help but like.
Perry comes off as a bit less likable, at least for me. It’s probably the class thing. Perry has all the prejudices against the plebs that you would expect from a British upper-class twit. He seems to be self-aware enough to know he’s being a snob, but he sometimes still lets it get the best of him.