Review: Contour (Shape of You #1) by Meg Harding

Jamie “Roxy” Albright has one great love in his life and room for no other. He lives and breathes makeup. Men are nothing more than temporary distractions and romance… well, that isn’t worth his time. With a burgeoning career as a YouTube makeup artist opening doors to never before dreamed of opportunities, time isn’t something Jamie has and distractions aren’t something he can afford.

Instagram model and shirtless wonder Tyler Jackson is quickly falling for elusive Jamie. How it went from a seemingly innocent message to feelings, he’ll never know. Their chemistry is instant and fiery hot, and Tyler’s never been that good at self control. The challenges are endless, though. There’s Jamie’s walls to break through and a country worth of space between them. And just when things are starting to look up, life throws a wrench in the works.

This is such a relevant read at the moment with how on fire YouTube and Instagram are. There are millions of people who are extremely loyal to their favorite online personalities that this read hit me in my happy place. Picture it… Male Youtube make up artist (MUA) lusting over an Instagram model. Add in a private message sent and buckle in for the delicious ride.

I may be a *tad* bit in love with Jamie “ Foxy Roxy.” He’s a 20 year old MUA with a sassy personality. He's honest yet evasive. Jamie's unapologetic and has zero shame. Oh, and he wears MANTIIIIIIIIES. Along with the satin and lace, he has an ass you can bounce a quarter off.

Where were we? Oh yeah, Jamie. He has commitment issues and never sleeps with the same man twice. Due to his past, his ideal gift is lube and condoms in lieu of flowers #practical. He’s also thirsty AF for Instagram model, Tyler Jackson and his two adorable dogs.

Tyler is a country boy at heart and “Instafamous” model by accident. He has dimples, tattoos and abs for days. *growl* Tyler is also really down to earth, caring, and becomes genuinely interested in the beautiful, Jamie. What started with a flirty private message became two different yet compatible men forging a friendship and then those pesky feelings just creep up.

The thing about Tyler is that he’s a serial monogamist while Jamie favors his one and done approach. Jamie is overly guarded for fear of giving away his power. He's closed up tighter than Fort Knox in a way that isn’t rude, just honest. He wants to be in charge of the power exchange that happens when you release the inconsequential and the important pieces of what makes up a person. Jamie has reasons and Tyler respects the boundaries while trying to find a way to chisel at the walls.

“I’m not asking you for forever, I’m just asking you for right now.”

I lovvvvvvvvvvved them together. Every time Jamie revealed a tiny piece of himself I wanted to cheer.

“Jamie was a secret I wanted to unravel. But if I pushed, he’d run, and that was the last thing I wanted.”

The messages they exchanged had me swooning and cackling at their banter. You can *see* how their relationship develops online and then when they meet in person it has a natural progression. The growth was realistic to their circumstances of living long distance. Tyler and Jamie actually communicated. *gasp* I know, I know... relationships are no place for communication but they were very adult about their boundaries, expectations, and who they are as people. Their personalities complimented each other and I was doing my happy dance all the way to an HEA.

The sex. The chemistry. The heat.

Y’all, it deserves its own paragraph. This book wasn’t a sexfest but when it did take place…

Their first time… HAWWWTT.

”I straddled his waist and started to pull my panties down. He stopped me. “Keep them on. Push them to the side.”

Not to discredit the writing of the sex scenes… but, I think what added the cherry on top for me (besides the lace thongs), was the connection and foundation they built before they had sex. They communicated for months and Tyler insisted on a date before they rode their way to orgasm.

With all this gushing over my love for Contour, I had to give it 4 stars. Why, you ask? The ending. This story drew me in right away with Jamie’s voice and had me hooked until the end. The last 10ish% left me scratching my head. The pacing throughout was great and then BAM, the end was rushed. Everything was just tied up in a fast little bow that altered my enjoyment. The “angst” and its resolution were unnecessary IMO and led to a disjointed ending where the MCs didn’t fully act like themselves.

Still, I enjoyed this book, the banter between Tyler and Jamie, and the secondary characters. This is my first book by Harding and I’ll definitely read more of her work as well as any additions to this series. Recommended.