Giveaway and Review: No Big Deal by Danni Keane

Still reeling from his father’s death and stuck in a job he hates, the only moments of happiness in Josh Roberts's life are those he spends with his boyfriend, Bradley. The boys are inseparable, and when they lose their virginity together, Josh feels closer to Bradley than he ever imagined.

But Josh’s mum, proud of her son and his biggest supporter, expects Josh to go to university after his year off. He doesn’t want to disappoint her by telling her he’s changed his mind, and struggles to find a solution.

When Bradley moves in with Josh and his mum, Josh truly believes life can be perfect again. But before long, their still-fragile feelings of connection and intimacy are tested when Bradley becomes secretive and distant. Anxious and confused, Josh is desperate to find out why Bradley is rejecting his affections. Bradley finally opens up, but what he reveals will change every aspect of their young love and quite possibly the rest of their lives.

Lori's Review:

What can I say - I loved this book. J and I are both Danni Keane fans so decided to buddy review this. I frankly just love this author's style, she writes in a straight forward way, introduces fabulous characters and manages angst without wallowing in it unnecessarily - it all adds to the story.

This story of first, true love, is wonderful. Since his dad died, Bradley has become the centre of Josh's world. In fact they were the centre of each other's worlds, time together is everything. God I can remember that feeling so well. Seventeen years down the line it's different, not less, just different, but I can clearly remember those days when being apart was awful, where every feeling I had was so intense. My world revolved around Big G - right or wrong, it did - and so I can completely understand how Josh and Bradley felt about each other.

The thing Danni Keane manages so well is to write about real life, without it being boring. Well,obviously it's fiction but it's real. I can utterly relate to the characters. Being a Brit too may help, as I recognise the actions and traits and they have a feeling of familiarity about them - the Christmas scene, yes, a million times yes. THAT is Christmas.

She manages to write that fine line between mundane/real without ever tipping into boring. I adored Josh, I loved his slightly selfish edge. Not horribly selfish just eighteen selfish. I'm in love selfish. I lost my dad selfish. In many ways he was all about protecting himself and his emotions. His love for Bradley just gave me goose-pimples, and his worries and fears, I felt them all.

Josh's mum is also one of my favourite characters. She is just...perfect in a completely unperfect normal way. I want to be just like her! She rocked. His sister is also a fab character and I liked the insight into her life and marriage. Don't judge a book and all that.

Bradley. Bradley was just right for Josh. and I can see how he was trying to hide his fears, trying to protect Josh, trying to deny that anything could be wrong. Sometimes you can have all the logic in the world but feelings don't correlate.

This story was just brilliant. The writing style thoroughly appeals to me and I don't think there was one thing about it I didn't like. Highly recommended.

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Justin's Review:

I’ll admit I was pumped to read this book. I’ll also admit to being a Danni Keane fan. My expectations were high but I was optimistic. Pfft, I should have known. Danni nailed this one! I’m talking ‘knocked it out of the park’.

"No Big Deal" is the continuation of Josh and Bradley’s story. It picks up right where "Not Letting Go" left off. If you’re not familiar with the series “Sunshine and Buttercups (Not Letting Go 0.5)” & “Not Letting Go (Not Letting Go #1)” precede this story. The new edition combines both of those stories into one book; “Not Letting Go”. It’s FREE on Smashwords and ARe. Although "No Big Deal" could be read as a standalone I think you’d enjoy it much more if you had the backstory provided in “Not Letting Go”.

Danni Keane can write a kick-ass romance. Her characters immediately work their way into your heart and you are drawn into their lives. You feel their love for each other and you feel their struggles like they are your own. The struggle here are "real" & relatable and are not overly dramatic like some YA/NA books tend to be. There’s a bit of angst but it’s not overkill and it does not drag on and on.

Something else you should know about Danni Keane is that she does not shy away from sex in her stories. Our MCs are 18 in “No Big Deal" so sex is definitely on their minds. It’s not the focus of the story but it does play a role in it. Everything on the page is done tastefully, seems real & age appropriate and makes you squirm just a tad.

The supporting characters in “No Big Deal” are just that, supporting characters. This is especially true of Josh’s mum and sister. They meddle just enough and it’s done with love and concern not to create drama.

Danni lives across the pond and it’s evident in this book. The setting is very British and the writing is too. That’s NOT a bad thing and in fact was part of the charm of this story.

If you haven’t read “Not Letting Go” what are you waiting for, it’s Free! I’m serious, go read it NOW. Then go purchase your copy of "No Big Deal". It’s romance done right!

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Danni is kindly offering up an e-copy of "No Big Deal" to one lucky winner. The drawing will take place on Friday, February 20th. Please comment below & remember to leave a way for us to contact you (e-mail, twitter, facebook etc). Good Luck!

A copy of this book was given in exchange for an honest review.

Find more info on Goodreads