Annery

3.5The friends marathon continues and ... well no one has been hurt in the process but I'm fairly certain the stories won't linger in my mind either. Still I've been entertained by the audios. Here we have the Evan, the good Samaritan from [b:Finally Found 25715898 Finally Found (More Than Friends, #8) Aria Grace https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1472527614s/25715898.jpg 45178374], and Georgie who has been a fairly regular presence since [b:Just Stay 23159297 Just Stay (More Than Friends, #4) Aria Grace https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1471995878s/23159297.jpg 42706064], Bk.4. He works at Paddles, the arcade/male-brothel, and is the proverbial hooker with a heart of gold. He also has the requisite dream of something more, in this case being a fashion designer. I liked all of that. I also liked that his counterpart, Evan, isn't some glamorous or out-there guy but rather a truck driver who delivers potatoes between Oregon and Idaho. Ordinary. Normal. That was refreshing. This installment picks up a year after the previous book and through his friendship with Chuck, Evan is invited to a New Year's party hosted by one of the previous couples. There he meets Georgie, unaware of his “profession” and an attraction sparks. Georgie is and plays up his femme side, to the point of not being averse to wearing lace panties or pink jockstraps and Evan really likes ALL of that. After an initial misunderstanding and later reticence from Evan our two lovebirds decide to give the possibility of a relationship a go, in spite of Georgie's work and Evan being unsure of being able to share his SO, even if it's “only work”. All of this worked quite nicely within the confines of novella. Evan insists on romancing Georgie wining and dining him thus proving that his attraction/affection are more than those an escort is likely to expect and Georgie opens-up to him dropping the exaggerated mask he wears for strangers and clients. I also liked that besides finding each other and falling in love there weren't any other fairytale fulfillments. In fact Georgie finds that sometimes dreams have to be replaced or abandoned and it's not always a bad thing. I particularly liked that some of the dangers of Georgie's work were addressed. Being an escort isn't a glamour job. While it may be true that some do it by choice, for others it's a last resort option and it's not always a bed of roses.The audio is by [a:Tim Todd 6179893 Tim Todd https://s.gr-assets.com/assets/nophoto/user/u_50x66-632230dc9882b4352d753eedf9396530.png] and I liked his work more than in previous installments. I particularly liked his Georgie voice.

Uh oh! I'm afraid that this is a case of diminishing returns but the Audio was “free”, I'm a completist lunatic, and it's only 3 hours. ShrugThis is a totally random pairing. I was figuratively scratching my head as to why a boring guy who has been mentioned a couple of times and had a shoe-horned appearance in [b:My Name is Luka 25059465 My Name is Luka (More Than Friends, #7) Aria Grace https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1425768313s/25059465.jpg 44742266], (to set him up for this book), would get his own story. He's one of those guys who claim to have no time for relationships but is always whining over being alone. Into his orbit comes Chuck, formerly Will, who has made it to Portland fleeing a murderous ex-lover from Vermont. I had a couple of problems: 1) This a short novella and yet the first hour or so, (I did this as an audio), is spent on Will, later Chuck's, sexual encounters with his murderous ex-lover and subsequent days on the road doing what he has to do to make it to the west coast without any money. Use your imagination. 2) Trey is kind of a dick. Though he later mends his ways. We're all human.3) The resolution to Chuck a.k.a. Will's problem is pretty movie-of-the-week easy.4) Though this was short it still seemed to spend time setting-up the next book. 5) It doesn't seem like Chuck ever reveals his real name/identity to his new Portland friends & family. At least not on page. What's up with that? People are still calling him Chuck in the next book.6) There seems to be a radical difference between the Vermont and fleeing Will and the toppy lover he is to Trey. Not that tops can't be vulnerable just that he was the opposite while back East and for no discernible reason. None that's convincing. In the end none of these things mattered too much as have the end of the series in my sights, I'm keeping abreast of earlier characters, and this was narrated by [a:Michael Ferraiuolo 13467952 Michael Ferraiuolo https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1498214961p2/13467952.jpg] which makes everything worthwhile.

I was happily traipsing along to the Audio versions of this series, nothing groundbreaking, but a pleasant way to spend a couple of hours with each installment. But this one ... I had issues.The couple in this story are Brad a 21 year-old construction worker and sometimes bartender at RAY'S and Luka, as soon-to-be 18 year-old who lives in Brad's apartment complex with his physically abusive father. The attraction and eventual romance between the two was fine. Believable. No problem. My issues were others.1) There was this, IMO, artificial notion of Luka's age. Though Brad is treated, portrayed, and acts older he's 21. Luka is three (3) weeks away from turning 18. They're attracted to each other and yet a big to-do is stressed about waiting for the magic-hour. Legally? Sure. It was a good idea for Brad to protect himself. But morally? What's the difference? 2) The author seems to posit that Luka needs to continue to live with his father, in spite of all the abuse, until he's 18. Like he can keep him as some sort of indentured slave. Also if he hates Luka so much why does he wan't him to stay only to continue to dangle over him the threat of kicking him out on his birthday? I know that the idea of not wanting to go in to foster care is alluded to and is the reason for not reporting the abuse to the authorities, but Luka staying makes no sense. It's absolutely untrue that he'd have to stay with his father, much less an abusive one. Brad himself left home at 16 and managed to find his way. Just like many kids do in RL everyday. And Luka has a job. The father's hate was never satisfactorily explained and the resolution too pat for my liking. Or maybe all my complaints are because Luka's father is horrific and I hated him and wanted to dice him up into little pieces. And of course I thought the whole time of that 10,000 Maniacs song. Complaint overThe rest of the story proceeds in a little more rushed pace than the previous installments as it all takes place in three weeks. Characters from previous books play important parts but enough is explained about them that you don't have to have read their stories. Will these two be together in the foreseeable future? Maybe. Sure. Why not? I believe in romance and HEAs. The audio is once again by [a:Tim Todd 6179893 Tim Todd https://s.gr-assets.com/assets/nophoto/user/u_50x66-632230dc9882b4352d753eedf9396530.png] and I liked his characterization of Luka but Brad, though nice, sounded a bit like those late night disc-jockeys. I don't know. Just a touch extra.

Portland continues to bubble up with M/M romance pairings, particularly for the guys who work or frequent RAY'S. Vinnie is one of the bartenders and he's just feeling blah and left out seeing his friends pair-up. One fateful day Chance, his long-lost high school crush, comes for a drink. Sweet. This is a second-chance, grab-the-one-who-got-away romance. Vinnie & Chance went to the same high-school and had one magical, exploratory, summer together. However Chance freaked-out at and proceeded to date & marry a girl with whom he made a life away from Portland. Things have happened and years later he's back to the town where Vince has remained going through the motions of life. There are a couple of bumps in the road but thankfully nothing illogical or that goes on for too long. I did want to smack Chance up-side the head once or twice but nothing too bad. Vinnie turns out to be a seriously nice guy and makes a case for always looking beyond first appearances. The audio is by [a:Michael Ferraiuolo 13467952 Michael Ferraiuolo https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1498214961p2/13467952.jpg], which makes everything worthwhile.

Continuing with my AB commute listens ... Patton was betrayed by his ex who also happened to be his band mate. To make a clean break he became a masseuse and moved to Portland. He was introduced in the prior book as Dylan's sister's neighbor and one she hoped Dylan would take to. That didn't work out and in an attempt to meet new people in a new city Patton goes to RAY'S, a local gay friendly bar, where he meets Caleb, one of the bartenders, and the chemistry sizzles. Problem? Caleb does a little bit of prostitution on the side to make ends meet while he goes to school. As one does. Sure. Patton has a bit of an issue with this. Patton doesn't so much object to the prostitution as to the fact that he doesn't want to share his boyfriend. Not an unreasonable way to feel. Not in my book. He does suffer from a little bit of “foot-in-mouth” disease but he's essentially a good guy and a good massage therapist can be forgiven anything. Plus it's not like Caleb wants to be tricking. It's a thing to do for money. Period. Personally I'd think there are other ways to make money but ... no judgement zone. Being a short novella things get hashed out sooner rather than later and a HFN with HEA in the horizon ensues. The audio by [a:Tim Todd 6179893 Tim Todd https://s.gr-assets.com/assets/nophoto/user/u_50x66-632230dc9882b4352d753eedf9396530.png] is quite nice.The book does a good job of keeping us in the loop with previous couples and introducing future MC in an organic way.

It turns out this whole series is available on audio and each installment if a perfect length for daily commute consumption. Perfect and they're a good way to sample different narrators.These are “lightly” inter-linked stories of gay men living in Portland, OR. (except for the first 2). Here we have Dylan and Spencer, whom we met in the last two chapters of [b:Choosing Happy 20895061 Choosing Happy (More Than Friends, #3) Aria Grace https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1471995838s/20895061.jpg 40238196]. Spencer is a tech-geek, the son of Silicone Valley techies, whose developed an app or two which have made him rich. Dylan was muscle and has just been promoted to manager for Paddles, a video-arcade/male-brothel, around which the rest of the books gravitate. In other words these two are a match made in romancelandia heaven. LOL Nothing much happens. Dylan is a bit insecure that a smart guy like Spencer would be interested in him and Spencer has to get over Dylan being essentially a pimp. The attraction is never in question and they move pretty easily into more. No harm no foul. Also there is lust but no Insta-Love. Big Plus.The narration is by [a:Chris Chambers 3059129 Chris Chambers https://s.gr-assets.com/assets/nophoto/user/u_50x66-632230dc9882b4352d753eedf9396530.png]. It's okay, though a bit “breathy”. Dylan seems to always be speaking in seduction mode even when he's inside his own head. I lived.

Way above my pay grade but it seems I somehow read this in college. The refresher was illuminating. Not an easy read but if you're interested in XX Century English language lit a necessary one.

This is a case of Audio and good will triumphing over personal taste. No one was hurt in the process. HuzzahI can't say I've ever been a dedicated contemporary M/F reader, in fact most of my M/F reads are/were historical. However [a:Kristen Ashley 2958084 Kristen Ashley https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1442937365p2/2958084.jpg] is an author who seems to be EVERYWHERE and I gave her a try, on Audio, with [b:Knight 36146228 Knight (Unfinished Hero, #1) Kristen Ashley https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1504030448s/36146228.jpg 19143978], which I understand was a departure of sorts in her regular style. I liked it. The couple had nothing to do with me or what personally gets my ya yas going but it came off as an honest portrayal of a certain kind of couple. More power to them but this couple or more precisely the heroine in this story? Umm ... NO. Nope. And more Ugh. The female protagonist of [b:Mystery Man 17333485 Mystery Man (Dream Man, #1) Kristen Ashley https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1361485925s/17333485.jpg 17276473] is a walking cliche: she loves shopping, shoes, and eating cookie dough when feeling stressed. I'm sure there are people who tick all these boxes but add to that saying things like “uh-oh!” whenever things get bad? I almost thought KA was putting us on with an “I Love Lucy”parody. The plot itself is on the ludicrous side. For a year-and-a-half Gwendolyn, our heroine, has been receiving regular nightly visits from a man whose name she doesn't know or whose face she wouldn't recognize in the light of day. He comes, she comes and ‘later'. Sure. That happens all the time. I'll bite. Her sister seems to have gotten on the wrong side of some bad ass bikers. But they're actually good guys and their leader, Tack, has the hots for Gwen. Same goes for the Detective Mitch Lawson, who's in charge of investigating ... whatever, he too thirsts for Gwen. Of course. Why not? This is her reaction to his name:“I kept my cheek to my knee when I told him quietly, “That's the perfect name for a cop.” ... “It is?” he asked.“Mitch,” I whispered. “Strong, the last three consonants, that is, but not in a harsh way, in a soft way. And when you're with someone you care about and you're close and they say something you can't hear, you don't say, ‘What?' you say, ‘Mm?' real soft. Put that and the last together, soft and strong, things a cop needs to be ... Mitch.”Yep. WTF?!?! That's how this chick talks. And he's not even her Mystery Man! After that it's a convoluted and busy plot concocted by some teenager with an overactive imagination full of soft whispers and uh-ohs. I gamely rolled with all this nonsense, it wasn't hurting anyone, but I have to draw a HARD line at Gwendolyn being an editor of ANYTHING. Anyway ... the audio is decent and I'm sure girls/women like this live somewhere out in this great big world. In the spirit of sisterhood: NO JUDGEMENT. Oh! I almost forgot. The Hero is your standard former military, all knowing, and practically invincible, hot dude who works as ... dunno. It wasn't too clear and frankly I didn't care. Gwen wants someone to rescue her and he's up for the job. Enough said. Enjoy or not. Drinks, good will, and a vacationing mind might be required.

I won't lie. I got this series because of [a:Chris Patton 1381825 Chris Patton https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1297104882p2/1381825.jpg]. He can read me anything. Also these come in easy to “digest” installments and it was no hardship to have them as my commute listen. The story, about a young man who is a merman but doesn't know it, had an almost innocence about it, with an action and adventure plot that brought to mind those 40's & 50's radio serials. There's a quite a bit of recapping at the beginning of each installment and perhaps unnecessary repetition as to who each character is but CP can painlessly get you through anything. Gabriel has always had a love and affinity for the ocean, but when his parents die during a storm at sea when he was 10 years-old he retreats from the water due to guilt and fear. Years later, as a college-age young man he returns to visit his grandmother at her sea-side cottage. He meets a mysterious stranger, Casillus Nerion, a member of an ancient race of Mermen who have apparently been visiting human settlements from time immemorial, to the point that they've paired up with humans and had children with them. Gabriel is the descendant of one such line but doesn't know it and has a bit of hard time accepting it. To complete the time sensitive transformation he must enter the water but since the death of his parents he's shunned and feared the water. Logical. In due time and coaxed in no small measure by his attraction to Casillus, Gabriel begins to accept his merman status though this means having to say a temporary goodbye to his land-living, human family and friends. Another spanner in the Gabriel/Casillus HEA under the sea is the discovery of a temple to a VERY OTHER god, for whom Gabriel happens to be a “caller”. This God has unfathomable powers of destruction and has become a fixation for Johnson, an Indiana Jones type explorer, who'll do anything to destroy said God. To wit he kidnaps Gabriel to use him and ... I'll say no more. If you can do this in audio I'd fully recommend it as a fun way to fill a few hours. Action, adventure, end-of-world crisis, some romance, nice world building, fun & sweet characters and EXCELLENT narration. What's not to like?

Series review at the end of Book 5

Series review at the end of Book 5

Series review at the end of Book 5

Series review at then end of Book 5

Excellent bite-size, cracky, sexy, fantasy fulfillment fun and [a:Robert M. Clark 338303 Robert M. Clark https://s.gr-assets.com/assets/nophoto/user/u_50x66-632230dc9882b4352d753eedf9396530.png] delivered the goods flawlessly.Let's face it, we weren't all saints from day one, we didn't come programmed with instructions on how not to be a shitty human. We learned along the way, we shifted, and adjusted. And maybe sometimes, most of the time, we misremember things, forget the details, hold on to hurts and turn a blind eye to kindness. Here's hoping all high school stories have a HEA like the one [a:Cardeno C. 4620386 Cardeno C. https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1411446551p2/4620386.jpg] gifts us with here.

Crabby McCrabby Review
Well this happened ....

You know those illustrated, coffee-table quality cook books? The ones with the gorgeous photographs of the ingredients and the finished dishes? You look at them and you think “yes! this is going to be awesome!” and yet despite following all of the instructions to a T none of the recipes work out. I'll stop with the cooking/cook book analogy but that was this book for me. A big meh.

The good parts: Beautiful cover, no discernible errors in copy, and clearly professionally formatted & edited. Bravo. As for the story all of the principals are nice, good, and progressive people. There's no shaming anything, there's a bit of a flip on the traditional older/younger, bigger/smaller roles etc. Sadly all of the things that are “right” with the story are what made me not connect with it on an emotional level at all. Or maybe it was the way it was told.

Maybe Spoilerish from this point forth
At the age of 37 Samuel Bishop's life takes a sharp turn. After sending his daughter off to college he and his wife, Gayle, admit to each other that though they love each other they were never in love. As a way for both of them to ease into the dating pool they go to a key swap party and pretty much what you expect to happen happens. Both Gayle and Samuel meet people who will turn their lives around. In Samuel's case that happens to be Oliver Hughes a 22? up-and-coming model. Oliver is that now almost ubiquitous gay character in romance: physically slight, somewhat traditionally fem in his choice of clothing & make-up, and attracted to a bigger, older male, however he's no wilting flower in the bedroom. On the contrary he can be quite bossy. That's our Oliver, though his topyness is more alluded to than seen.

Everything else and everyone else suffered from an illness I like to call Aspirational Characters. Example: when Samuel first spots Oliver and his loins literaly stir he barely bats an eyelash. Granted we're told he'd felt attraction to men before meeting and marrying Gayle, but we also know that he's so good that he'd been nothing but a devoted father and husband in those 17 years. I'm thinking he might of had a moment, just a second, of soul searching. Nope. He's just mesmerized by Oliver's beauty. When he tells Gayle that he's now seeing a man, a way young one at that, again ... immediate understanding. His daughter is the only one who comes closest to manifesting anything but PC approved emotions and it lasts for about half a second.

Let us now talk about how insta everything is for everyone. Samuel & Oliver are exchanging “I love you” after a couple of weeks and apparently so are Gayle and her new man. And the pièce de ré·sis·tance is Samuel's very first bottoming with Oliver rimming and penetrative sex all in a premiere session and loving it. *doubts*.

There's a side story which I'd like to erase from my mind because it brought nothing to the story, which in my mind should be the developing relationship between Oliver & Samuel. Period. However since that story has zero conflict, the author has grafted on an absurd serial killer story. No thank you. Zero conflict relationship stories can still be rich territories to explore.

This didn't work for me but it was well written, hurts no one, and maybe will be someone else's cup of tea or mine on a different day. Who knows.

4.5It's 1985, Glasnost and Perestroika have come to Russia, AIDS, which had been steamrolling through the gay community, is making its presence known to the world at large, and the Year of the Spy is in full swing between the C.I.A and the KGB. Welcome to the world compellingly and masterfully brought back to life by [a:M.K. South 16534495 M.K. South https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1490139560p2/16534495.jpg] in [b:Of Our Own Device 34602181 Of Our Own Device M.K. South https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1489592344l/34602181.SX50.jpg 55638426]. To his colleagues in the American Embassy in Moscow Jack Smith is a recently appointed junior officer with the USIA. In reality he's a deep cover C.I.A. operative whose persona is that of a gregarious, friendly, and at times oblivious American, though he is no such thing. It turns out Jack is uniquely qualified for life as a spy. He's a gay man who came of age in a less accepting era (I'm guessing he's over 25 but under 30) and place. He grew up in an infelicitous household, complete with dead mother and an abusive, alcoholic, bigoted father. In short he knows how to hide in plain sight in spite of physically being a looker: tall & dark with cornflower blue eyes. All he wanted was an escape, a better life, a ranch in California, the reality of which the army and later the C.I.A. promise like a mirage in the desert. Jack is tasked with befriending any and all comers and, when possible, recruiting future agents or being a dangle. He not only speaks fluent Russian but due to his own curious nature is knowledgeable of the mores and culture which endears him to the locals and he can't help but return the affection. In spite of everything he's wonderfully human and that's one of the almost surprising things the author does so well: making the characters fully rounded individuals who live in a recognizable world and don't necessarily subscribe the easy construct of spy, agent, villain, hero etc. Within Jack's purview falls Eton May-Volkonsky, the son of an American and what amounts to Russian royalty; the grandson of, in the world of the book, the Soviet originator of the Nuclear Winter Theory and a physicist in his own right. He's also a musician, a poet, and generally a sweet soul who seems almost too fragile for the harsh world of the 1980's USSR. Even so, he's no wilting flower in need of rescue. In need of love? Who isn't?The book opens, during a performance of Eugene Onegin by Tchaikovsky at the Bolshoi Theater, the spy/thriller fans may think of the Mission Impossible or Jason Bourne movies but as the story progresses it put me in mind of the Bourne books and even of Le Carre, with the almost relentless emphasis on the daily minutiae in the life of a spy which paired with that of a bureaucrat is endless reports, counter intelligence runs to make sure you are or are not being shadowed by the “organs”, answering to office drones who are not in the field, and agencies who at times have contradictory agendas. In Jack's personal circumstances he also has to work extra to keep up the facade of a heterosexual man. All of this is exhausting when all he wants is a weekend trip to Helsinki, have some meaningless sex, and watch the Live Aid concert. I don't know how much is too much to reveal in terms of the plot/events of the book. The bare bones would be that Jack comes in to the orbit of Eton, Lara, an aspiring actress and the daughter of the Deputy Minister of Culture, and their circle of friends. Though they're all young, 20 or 21, they're irresistibly attracted to Jack and all of his Americanness. For Eton, Jack is wide open spaces and a dream-like California. I had “Hotel California”, the whole album, on repeat for a week. It really sets a tone for the book. Eton feels an unspeakable attraction for Jack, one he can't quite iterate even to himself. He has no point of reference for it. Jack feels the same but he's so deep in the closet due to work, the times, and choice that a future together isn't a foregone conclusion not least of all because almost all of Jack's interactions with Eton are based on suspecting Eton of possibly being a current or future KGB agent and trying, albeit halfheartedly, to recruit him as an asset for the C.I.A. Needless to say those are less than ideal circumstances for anything meaningful to develop and though this is definitely not a romance, M/M or otherwise, the relationship between Eton and Jack does shape the course of the story and ultimately of their lives. Some might object to some of Jack's interactions with Eton, more specifically how he treats him, like a potential agent, however he behaves entirely how a well trained case officer should. Bravo.The bulk of the story takes place during 1985 & 1986 at the height of a veritable spy tit-for-tat between the U.S. and the slowly collapsing USSR. These are perilous times, everything is in flux, the earth is shifting, who can be trusted? where do you draw the line? how close to the edge can you stand without falling over? how much of your authentic self can you sacrifice for what you believe to be the “greater good”? The denouement of the story takes us to the latter part of 1989 when the cracks that were evident within the power structures have become craters. Afghanistan, the Soviet Union's Vietnam, is blowing up, Denmark legally recognized the first same-sex marriage, and things in Berlin are about to take a sharp turn. Coincidentally Berlin is where our principals meet again after a lengthy separation. They haven't gotten through the years unscathed and they can't remain static. I won't lie. The book is long and initially it gave me pause but once I started it was like reading the diary of someone, Jack, with a life way more interesting than my own. The bulk of the story is told from Jack's P.O.V. but there is a small section of journal entries from Eton, which is genius, because we get to be in the head of this complicated, smart, and beautiful Russian man, Jack's counterpart and very much his equal. They both come from a place where they need to hide an important part of who they are. Such are the seeds of what promises to be a great relationship. Jack and Eton will linger in your mind long after you turn the last page. Ultimately this wasn't a 5 star read for me because I desperately wanted, nay needed another chapter, an epilogue, or any kind of coda to comfort my heart as to Jack & Eton's future. That's how much M. K. South makes these characters vibrant and alive. I cared about them like dear friends whose story I never wanted to end. For those interested in genre classification I'd say this is more of a spy/thriller/action-suspense with a same-sex couple as part of the story, and all that entails in that place and time, but definitely not a romance, though there absolutely is a love story. Full disclosure: The author offered me a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review, however after reading the first chapter I realized I was all in and purchased my own copy because, whenever possible I like to support artists/writers and don't want any BS from Amazon. fingers crossedReview also up on the blog

3.00 From my cold cold heart. (Really 2.75 but ¼ stars don't exist)

On paper Alex Goodwin's life is peachy. His dream of becoming a doctor has come true and he's now starting his internship. He has a handsome & loving boyfriend who even helped pay for his medical school. He has friends who care for him even when his family does not. Reality is quite different.

Alex's home life is a living hell. His live-in boyfriend, Cole, is controlling and abusive physically, verbally, and emotionally. This translates into an Alex who's always nervous and exhausted which bodes ill for a medical intern. Cole has rage issues because ... well basically because he's a sociopath but the character's back story is that before DADT he was outed and kicked out of the army. In civilian life he's an accountant who resents everyone, is prejudiced, racist, and any other bad quality you can peg on a human being, but basically he's an a*hole. One day a police officer gets injured in the line of duty and is brought to the hospital accompanied by his partner, Jack Reed, and Alex's world is thrown for a loop. It so happens that Jack was Alex's college boyfriend. Things did not end well. Jack ended them spectacularly badly. They were young shy gay boys, closeted from their religious families at home, who, as is true for many, took their first forays into exploring and embracing their sexuality when they went away to college. They met during their freshman year, back when Alex was feisty and outgoing and Jack was seduced out of his shell. Things went well until Jack, incapable of publicly admitting his sexuality, sundered them inexorably apart. But the new Jack, the one who shows up at Alex's hospital is an out and proud gay man, a police officer, who looks at Alex with tenderness, regret, and longing for the past. He offers a lifeline to Alex, even though he doesn't “know” the extent of what is happening to Alex. Ultimately this is a second chance, hurt/comfort story wrapped in a PSA about domestic abuse, and how it's not a problem exclusive to heterosexual couples, or those without higher education. All of this is laudable and fairly well done and I'm a terrible person because ultimately this story left me cold. Sorry.I've been racking my brains trying to figure out why I really didn't care at all for these characters or their story, plausible & believable, though it was, and I've come up with things that are probably particular to me and my tastes. Therefore you should absolutely ignore them. My biggest problem is that I felt nothing for Alex & Jack as a couple. Yes we get flashbacks to their cutesy campus life but that didn't sustain or flesh them out for me. I didn't believe or care enough about them to slosh through their, necessarily, messy reunion. All of the drama inherent to a person, Alex, who's living under domestic abuse and has their happy/painful past come back, was just exhausting. Alex was terrified of Cole, snippy to his best friend, and prickly towards Jack. Perhaps accurate and understandable behaviour, but *ducks he's a character you don't really want to hang out with. Why were Alex & Jack still in love each other? Dunno.

The side characters were also THAT: characters out of central casting. Again totally a personal taste thing. Jack has the boozy landlady, whose seen it all and done it all, but has a heart of gold. Fine. I can live with that. But did she have to be called Delilah? Then we have Alex's “best friend” Andrea. I'm not sure whether to applaud the inclusion of her character or be annoyed. For starters how is she Alex's BFF? It would seem, and I may be wrong, that they've known each other since Alex started at the hospital, where she's a nurse. A year. Alex doesn't appear to have any other friends which is usually true of people in coercive relationships. Their captors do everything possible to isolate them. Also Alex was so heartbroken after his break-up with Jack that he just lost touch with former classmates and friends; how is Cole, a racist control freak, okay with this “newfound” friendship with Andrea, who is presumably Mexican? To me her character was more of a nudge & wink to “we've got diversity here” and part of the “every gay guy has a female bestie” canon. Also, again personal, but can we stop with every character who's meant to be Latino dropping random Spanish words when speaking to non-Spanish speakers. I would venture to say it's not a thing. Don't get me started on Andrea calling Alex papi at work? Umm ... NO. Just no. Alex doesn't come off as warm and fuzzy, more like nervous and reserved. I don't think someone like that would invite one calling them papi. Much less at work. And I won't get into how the use of papi as an endearment is usually more prevalent to folks from Caribbean descent than Mexican. Prevalent being the operative word. Anything is possible and can happen and I'm sure someone has a best friend who .... etc. etc. etc.

This brings me to my other BIG stumbling block. Cole. He's properly evil and believable in his treatment of Alex. His belittlements, threats, and later crumbs of affection. He was perhaps the best fleshed out character in the ordinariness of his horribleness which is why when things took a movie-of-week turn I was disappointed. It was as if the author didn't trust that the everyday humiliations, random physical violence, and unwanted sexual contact were sufficient to make Cole a proper villain. It was.

Again, this was the author's story to tell however they saw fit, but all these factors and the lack of others made this not work for me. Not as a romance and only marginally as a hurt/comfort story. Others may enjoy it. It's not badly written and tries to earnestly tackle domestic abuse. Kudos. I've never been so sorry to dislike something.

4.5I'm an idiot. I waited to read/listen to this and worse yet have procrastinated in writing a review, ergo it will be brief and unspecific. I'll kick myself later. We met Leo Trevi is DJ's brother from [b:The Fifteenth Minute 26720038 The Fifteenth Minute (The Ivy Years, #5) Sarina Bowen https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1442717711s/26720038.jpg 45099924] and Georgia is his ex high-school girlfriend, with whom DJ remained friends. After a stint in the minors Leo has finally been called up to a major team but besides coping with rookie nerves he'll have to deal with two surprises. The team's current PR person is Georgia, whom he hasn't seen since something bad happened during their last year of high-school, and his new coach is her father, who harbors ill feelings for Leo and doesn't even want him on the team.I really loved most of this. Sarina Bowen is one of a handful of writers I trust with my M/F reads and NA for that matter too. I loved Leo and Georgia together. What they, yes THEY, went through was harrowing. I think liked the way it was handled: sensitively yet it didn't overwhelm the story or Georgia. I liked all of the guys on the team and the female relationship that existed outside of the men. I'm sure this will be a re-listen at a certain point and I'll make sure to do a better review when the details are fresher in my mind. The Audio by [a:Nicol Zanzarella 4813559 Nicol Zanzarella https://s.gr-assets.com/assets/nophoto/user/u_50x66-632230dc9882b4352d753eedf9396530.png] & [a:Rock Engle 15892927 Rock Engle https://s.gr-assets.com/assets/nophoto/user/u_50x66-632230dc9882b4352d753eedf9396530.png] was aces!My niggle, caveat, bump in the road? Georgia's father. I got where he was coming from, though apparently he hadn't spoken much with his daughter. Maybe that is true behavior and, though I want to smack him, I can empathize. His hostility to Leo? Not so much. There was no reason. No logical reason. And at least chronologically Coach Worthington was the adult in this party of three. Whatevs

4.5When I need of something good I can always count on [a:Cordelia Kingsbridge 5781497 Cordelia Kingsbridge https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1381577348p2/5781497.jpg] and she didn't disappoint. She doesn't know how to write cookie cutter characters and combined with an AB by [a:Nick J. Russo 8141120 Nick J. Russo https://s.gr-assets.com/assets/nophoto/user/m_50x66-82093808bca726cb3249a493fbd3bd0f.png]? KRYPTONITE.As usual CK delivered a story populated by diverse characters, strong women, and unapologetically sexual beings. Brava! The icing on the cake is a great suspense story where I didn't have to do a total suspension of disbelief. Only a bit.Charles Hunter and Ángel Medina are ATF agents whose burn-the-sheets affair ended badly. Spectacularly so. Two years later Charles is on a “routine” extraction mission of an agent who has been undercover in a Mexican cartel and of course it turns out to be Ángel. Once these two reconnect there is no force that can keep them apart. Not past recriminations, not work restrictions, not crazy stalkers. The connection is too strong and CK does a great job of showing it on page.“Fucking Angel yesterday hadn't gotten him out of Charles's system. If anything, he'd burrowed deeper inside, coursing through Charles's blood like the first hit of heroin after two years clean, all the more potent for having gone so long without. Charles had lost his tolerance.”I loved that though Ángel felt betrayed by and still carried a torch for Charles he didn't cease acting on his sexual appetite, even in situations where others might disapprove. I liked that he's a make lemonade kind of guy doing the best he could with the shitty hand he was dealt. I love his resilience and his sense of humor. I'm more than a little in love with him. There were aspects of their previous relationship that could've easily been resolved by that thing called “talking” but we know that's not always easy. I can see them having a long happy future together.I loved that though both MCs were other than white it wasn't a belabored part of the story. It was just a fact of life that is normal for anyone who lives in XXIst Century America or the world at large. My only niggle is with these omnipotent and omniscient villains who seem to populate fiction. I find them annoying and exhausting.

3.75

I think we all know the genesis of this book and as such I'm going to rate on a curve.

I enjoyed this because it ended up being more and different from what I expected it to be. The general story is of a boy/man who has been leading the regular dissolute life of the aimlessly rich: parties, meaningless sex, and no obligations. The end of the party has come for Ashton Carrington when his father collapses and ends up in hospice. It turns out that Carrington Sr. has bone cancer and had kept it a secret from his heir. Ashton has to take the reins of the company but he's unraveling, luckily his school friend Vic sends him help in the form of Brand Forsythe, valet extraordinaire.

The story has a distinct Yaoi feel, Ash is even half Japanese. Forsythe is the all knowing, older, larger man. I loved the bigger/smaller aspect and they're own peculiar D/s dynamic:

“Brand was not whole unless he was shepherd to a lamb, and right now every soft and tender and vulnerable thing about Ashton Harrington was begging for Brand to protect him, possess him, do for him so that he might never need do for himself again. That hungry thing inside Brand needed someone to depend on him. He'd never wholly understood it – if it was about care or about control or about something else.”

or

“Ash's cheeks burned. There was both desire and shame in this, in wanting so desperately, in feeling so deeply, in begging so brazenly. He lowered his eyes away from that gaze that tore into him, searched deep, sought out everything that made him feel small, that made him want to submit to that hard, hot-sculpted body arched over his.”

It is by no means perfect. It would have benefited from a good once over from a good editor to both clean up easy mistakes and tighten the story. One must accept that this takes place in some NYC of the imagination and not the actual city. One has to make peace with the fact that Forsythe is not only an extremely competent valet but also seems to know everything about running a multimillion dollar company. One has to ignore the fact that Ash's friend Vic, a British public school graduate, would say something like:
“That's not such a bad way to feel around someone then, innit?. Vic said with unaccustomed gentleness. “How are things with your Da, then?”

Some have found the writing purple but I rather enjoyed the poetic notes that peppered the story.

If you like yaoi, D/s, Bigger/smaller and aren't looking for a dose of reality this could work for you.

My first [a:Mariana Zapata 5760202 Mariana Zapata https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1330380214p2/5760202.jpg] read was [b:Lingus 13500758 Lingus Mariana Zapata https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1330240154s/13500758.jpg 19047610] and though it started off okay the last third sort of took a nose dive for me which is why I approached this with a little bit of trepidation. Also it's 16 hours long!Don't fear. You're in good hands all around. MZ wrote an excellent slow slow slow burn story which reads utterly authentic and [a:Callie Dalton 7438028 Callie Dalton https://s.gr-assets.com/assets/nophoto/user/u_50x66-632230dc9882b4352d753eedf9396530.png] delivers the goods with heart to spare. I loved it.

4.5Queue Big Smile

I won't bury the lead. I loved this. Yes I did kick and scream a bit but Ella Frank pulled me through to the other side. Thanks. The audio is by Charlie David and though at first it felt a bit rocky, maybe too fast? the characterizations came together quite well in the end and it was all smooth sailing.

My main reason for jumping into this was Robbie, wonderful Robbie, who played a pretty prominent role in the Temptation series. You could read this independent from that series but why would you? Robbie is just a boy looking for love, wanting to belong, and eager to please. Circumstances have him cross paths with Joel Priestley a.k.a Priest & Julien Thornton, a couple looking for a third to balance out their marriage. It turns out that Priest and Julien are like magnets that should repel but are in fact very much attracted to each other. However this union needs a third to balance out things among them the fact that both Priest & Julien are dominant and don't/won't submit to the other. Not easily. They need someone to be the warm center that softens their harsh exterior. In return they offer love, protection, and an equal place in their relationship. M/M/M done right. Who would say no to that? Not Robbie. And neither would I! Also I liked that this didn't take a dive into BDSM, which a lot of books now do in a completely contrived way. This menage remains firmly on the D/s shore and I for one couldn't be happier. Don't get me wrong. I love some good, non-scene, non-traditional BDSM but I just knew that it would be totally false for Robbie. No whips and cuffs for the Robbie we all know and love.

Julien is an award winning, t.v. famous, world class chef with an Adonis body decorated by drool-worthy tattoos. He had me at Chef. Priest is a lawyer who is both ruthless & relentless when it comes to his clients and those he loves. Those he considers HIS. And Robbie ... sweet Robbie, sigh he's not some kind of secret genius, super talented musician, or closet nerd. Nope. He's just a guy who loves his family, wants someone to love who will love him back, and likes to have fun. In other words he's that best friend most of us are lucky enough to have. In Robbie's case he comes dressed up in bright colors, short shorts, and eensy teensy pieces of cloth he calls underwear. What's not to love here? Nothing.

I love how Priest & Julien are with each other outside independent of their wooing of Robbie. Here they are talking about Robbie but this scene is so much about them:
“Hurry up and come home so we can go to dinner.”Priest's body hummed at the request, and he thought about all the things he wanted from this man. “He's curious, you say>““Curious and wary.”“Both qualities that I admire.” “Don't you mean both qualities that turn you on?”Priest smirked. “Most of the time. You on the other hand ...““What about me?”Priest imagined the smile that would be stretched across Julien's sexy mouth and said, “You breathe and I'm turn on.”

Their courting of Robbie? Nice. They basically wine and dine him and ALWAYS treat him with respect. Perfect. I generally loved the progression of the story and the breadcrumbs leading up to the next two? books in the series. EF gives us just enough about Priest & Julien's personal history to wet our appetite for more without being overly expository. I'm hooked.

Big bonus for the Temptation series fans (me!): Logan Mitchell. I love that man.

Gripes ahead. Ignore them completely.

I've saved my complaints/reservations for the end because they are in fact inconsequential and perhaps entirely too personal. Feel free to disregard or better yet just stop reading here. Also if you do go on I may mention some slightly spoilerish things that happen in True, the last in the Temptation series.

My main ugh is that I don't quite understand or rather am convinced as to how or why Priest & Julien set their sights on Robbie as “The One”. Due to he nature of their relationship Priest & Julien have been having a third in their bed for some time. It's been a revolving door of anonymous bodies but at this point they've decided that they need/want something more permanent. Something that will go beyond the physical and go deeper to an emotional intimacy. I agree. However how did they know that Robbie would/could be that person? It seems like they've settled it in their minds and are only waiting for Robbie to agree before they know very much about him, which becomes quite apparent during this book. Even if you've read the Temptation series you don't know what it is. Robbie meets Priest during the course of the last three books, in fact Robbie starts right where True left off, and to say that they don't get along is putting it mildly. While it is true that those who grate on our nerves are usually those that make us tick in other areas I just didn't SEE what did Priest really know about Robbie which made him pursue Robbie. That pursuit started somewhat in earnest in True when he sends Julien to check out Robbie at his place of work and Julien ends up getting Robbie's phone number after a brief flirtation but without being explicit about “who” he is or what “they” wanted. You should totally read the Temptation series. Not only will you get a deeper understanding of Robbie but you'll get Logan & Tate. Win Win.

My other gripe is twofold. First: this recurring thing of people coming on command. People who are new to a relationship. Sure. Uh huh. Second: these omniscient, almost oracle like characters. I get that Priest is the D in this D/s relationship but I didn't think that he knew Robbie well enough to be all that “I Know You” with him. Shrug I'm being bitchy. But Doms always raise my hackles until they prove themselves. Sue me.

Part three of my endless kvetching: what's up with these size queens and their magic peens? why does sex for the bottom have to be “leave-him-limping-from-monster-cock” to be satisfying? It seems that Robbie is into it, almost as a point of pride. Julien, not so much and I'm with him.

Happy SighWe've come full circle in the epic love story of one Logan Mitchell and one Tate Morrison. It's been a whirlwind ride for two improbably perfect male specimens and yet I've loved every second of it because just below the surface of gorgeous masc guys, with more than healthy libidos perpetually hot for each other there's a believable human story, with real emotions, and a plausible progression.This is the final installment of the series and it's a very satisfying end mostly because it's not an end. Not really. It's more like a last? visit with dear friends seeing them on the next stage of their HEA. Bring your tissues. You will need them. Where the first book in this series was all about LUST this final one is about emotion. It's about the bone deep connection forged by those who truly love one another, it's about the beauty of our chosen families, the ones who are there to catch us when the others have failed. It's about trying to hold on tight to that love that makes everything better, perfect, and scary:“I love you,” Tate stated, as he brought Logan's fingers up to his mouth to kiss his knuckles. “So much that it sometimes scares me and sometimes makes me stupid.”Don't we all want a love like that? It was utterly romantic. In the best sense. I love how open Logan is, how naked in his emotions, on what he wants. I love how Tate is willing to lay everything on the line, lay himself open to and for Logan in every way possible. It was Logan after all, with his daring and persistence, who woke Tate to the life he now has and loves, it was Logan who fought for him, even wresting him from the jaws of death. It's Logan who will have him and in turn be his. Swoon. The rest of the beloved characters make an appearance and are wonderful as ever. We even get a visit from Diana and it's sweet. No harpies in sight. Speaking of harpies it's no secret for those who have been keeping up with this series that our guys each have mother issues and I'm delighted to say that [a:Ella Frank 6451816 Ella Frank https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1458548729p2/6451816.jpg] didn't go for the easy, Hallmark solution. She gave us truth. Sad. Disappointing. Perhaps infuriating. But truth.***I did this whole series with both books & the audio by [a:Shannon Gunn 6996772 Shannon Gunn https://s.gr-assets.com/assets/nophoto/user/u_50x66-632230dc9882b4352d753eedf9396530.png]. He is, at certain moments, a bit of an acquired taste, but I don't regret listening to him. As the series progressed his characterization of Logan, in particular, and most of the others has only grown and deepened. He's not just reading. He's doing a performance. And pretty unforgettable one at that.***

The two hottest men in Chicago continue on the journey of lust & love they began in [b:Try 17798649 Try (Temptation, #1) Ella Frank https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1375230186s/17798649.jpg 24898058] and what a sweet ride it has turned out to be. Happy DanceThough this book is presumably (see tittle) about Tate, to my mind this series is always more about Logan and his journey from a boy abandoned by an absent father and a feckless mother to a young man forced to make his way in the world shielding himself against its inevitable hurts & disappointments armored in snark & cynicism. He only had one chink when we first met him in [b:Try 17798649 Try (Temptation, #1) Ella Frank https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1375230186s/17798649.jpg 24898058], his brother Cole and by extension Rachel, Cole's wife. Little did he know that the dare he set in motion would become the biggest crack in his defenses and the thing that would finally make him a whole human being: his love for Tate. This book is all about Logan wanting to make that love, that bond he feels with Tate be something visible and tangible to the world and in no small measure feel the security of it for himself. Make Tate legally his. It may sound middle-class and maybe dated but to a man like Logan, who lives and breathes the law and who was set aside as a son because he didn't have the legal protection of his father's name it makes absolute and justifiable sense. I also found it romantic. Here's Logan, the romantic, talking to Tate:"I had a plan for my life. Rules and a motto I live by, because that's the way I am. I like to research things. I like facts. And I liked knowing where I was going. But after one conversation with you, those rules and motto, they changed. And after a month of knowing you, they no longer existed. Instead, you became my plan."Logan has come a long way from doubting his worthiness of love and this transformation is due in no small measure to Tate. Tate who has given himself utterly and completely to Logan. This gift doesn't mean that Tate has ceased to be his own person, on the contrary. The years with Logan have made him more confident in who he is and stronger despite the loses along the way. I don't think it's a surprise that Logan & Tate are heading towards weddingsville (see blurb) but of course there are some bumps in the road. Believable ones. I won't spoil the emotional highs & lows, they're beautifully done. Bring your tissues. Some of the things that I've loved throughout this series are that the “conflicts” are mostly internal and that our MCs are not ones to let things fester or linger. They fight, talk, have sex or usually all three and move on. That's one thing you should all be assured of: the chemistry between these two remains the same or rather greater. The years together have afforded them a short hand in understanding each other, sometimes with just a look, and this is one of those little details that gild this story with a nimbus of truth. Another thing that I utterly loved is that although Tate & Logan are the kick-ass uncles every kid wants to have they're not headed on the road to parenthood. [a:Ella Frank 6451816 Ella Frank https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1458548729p2/6451816.jpg] doesn't make them a cookie cutter couple yearning for the white picket fence and the 2.5 kids. That would've been disappointing, making them ordinary, something they've definitely and actively not been since book 1. I loved that the loose ends that are picked up from along the series are not tied up in a neat bow. Life isn't neat and sometimes crooked is the best thing you're going to get. For those interested I found a listing for Logan & Tate's new home in Wicker Parkhttps://www.redfin.com/IL/Chicago/1966-W-Evergreen-Ave-60622/home/14108829running off to book 6***As for the audio see my previous reviews. I'm perversely attached to [a:Shannon Gunn 6996772 Shannon Gunn https://s.gr-assets.com/assets/nophoto/user/u_50x66-632230dc9882b4352d753eedf9396530.png] and his narrative choices. The sex scenes can get a little crazy but the characterization of Logan in particular? Spot on.***

What a sweet, adorable, and utterly satisfying surprise. [a:Sarina Bowen 7737308 Sarina Bowen https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1402702789p2/7737308.jpg] released this in a serialized form, via weekly installments on her news letter. The length is really that of a short story but surprisingly it packs a punch. Josephine is your everyday, nerdy, non-glam heroine, shy but assertive about what she wants, even when nerves threaten to get the better of her. Pepe is an adorable mix of “man-puppy”, gentleman, and hockey player. Those who've read the rest of The Ivy Years will have come across him, though reading the series is not necessary to enjoy this blossoming story of young love. I loved it and hope SB releases it (maybe expanded?) at some point and in some form.