Tribute Act

Tribute Act was a perfectly fine entry in the Porthkennack series, but I never truly felt that our narrator Nathan really was 100% head over heels, I'm going to be miserable without him, in love with Mack. I really enjoyed Joanna Chambers' Enlightenment trilogy (starting with [b:Provoked 34933997 Provoked (Enlightenment, #1) Joanna Chambers https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1492846745s/34933997.jpg 24803651]), but I think her voice might be better suited for historical romance than contemporary. Nathan and Mack have a hot one-night stand, only to find out the next day that they are stepbrothers and that Nathan plans to stay in Porthkennack only long enough to donate part of his liver to his half-sister Rosie . Nathan is an easygoing “fixer” who always solves people's problems, and it seems to cause him more anguish that he can't fix Rosie's health problems or Mack's relationship with his father (Nathan's stepfather) Derek than the fact that Nathan is planning to leave as soon as he recovers from the donation surgery. The family dynamics are sharply portrayed with a great deal of nuance. I wanted to hate Derek for his parenting failures and general laziness, but he has some good qualities too and makes a genuine effort to connect with Mack. Nathan's mother Lorraine is a tower of strength considering her youngest child is seriously ill, and Rosie herself pretty much steals the book by being wise beyond her years but also somehow a typical bratty adolescent.The historical characters in the Enlightenment trilogy had to keep a closer reign on their emotions given the dangerous conditions they faced if their homosexuality was revealed, so Chambers' somewhat reserved style was a perfect match for their narrative. In Tribute Act, I sometimes felt like Nathan was describing his feelings more than he was actually experiencing them. I still rooted for him and Mack and were glad that they got their HEA, but I didn't find the book or relationship to be memorable. ARC received from NetGalley etc.