Guest Review: Only You by Kay Doherty

Case Holden hates his life. Made rich at a young age, he slipped into a lifestyle of partying with multiple boyfriends who only wanted to be with him for what he could give them. After confiding to his aunt that he’s miserable, she extends an invitation for a visit. Case plans to spend the time in small town Clover City to reprioritize and plant his feet on the road to happiness. He does not expect the Clover City sheriff to step into his world and wreak havoc on his emotions.

Two years ago, after the death of his partner, Rawley Kane moved to Clover City, trading the painful memories and big city madness for a less stressful existence. Even as sheriff, his life is uncomplicated and quiet. That is until Case Holden rolls into town and reminds Rawley just how lonely he is, and of everything he’s been missing.

Case is everything Rawley shouldn’t want. The man has six boyfriends and a life back in Denver, not to mention he’s quite a bit younger than Rawley. No matter what he tells himself, he can’t get enough of the young man. And Case has made it clear Rawley is the only one he wants. Now if they could just get past Rawley’s guilt and Case’s insistent boyfriends, they just might stand a chance.

Reviewer: NeRdyWYRM

Oh Case ...

You are kind of an asshole. Thankfully, you know this and don't like it. Otherwise, I wouldn't know what to do about this review of the book about you and your hot sheriff.

Party-boy Case has fallen into every trap the "trust fund rich guy" trope has to offer. He essentially parties, does drugs, drinks a lot, and fucks anything that moves. Well, sort of. He's limited himself to a select group of people he has sex with, but there's more people in that group than I have fingers on one hand. Seriously.

Enter Sheriff Rawley, "the monogamy guy" whose grieving a lover who died. And he's hot. Did I mention that. Holy *fans self* hotness, Batman^©. Yep. Sheriff Rawley's hot. And he's the type of alpha male who would have made a good hero in an m/f title as well. Hetero females dropping panties everywhere. Yep. Well, he's perfect for this genre, too.

Once I got past the rampant fuckery of Case's bed-buddies dripping out of the woodwork, I was rooting for him to get with the program and take a risk on something worthwhile with Rawley. Conversely, I was rooting for Rawley to be willing to take a risk, period. Once burned and all that.

And let's be honest, Case the party-boy wasn't exactly a safe bet for a solid, pragmatic guy who'd already had his heart shredded by loss. Promiscuity and apathy aren't usually my cup of tea, but something about those things in this story did it for me. I think Case had a redeemable quality from the beginning, which was helpful. I disliked the fact that he went back on a promise to himself within days of hitting town on his 'sabbatical', but I get it.

I will say it shows a lack of commitment on his part that I just realized is what bothered me about his character throughout and made me worry about his worthiness for a guy like Rawley. I am intimately familiar with the particular brand of 'tired' Case was living with, so maybe there was some commiseration there. I know nothing whatsoever about being rich though, so he kind of lost me with the materialistic stuff.

Thankfully that was only a small portion of who he was as a 'real boy'. There was a lot of immaturity on the part of both MCs, and that was a bit aggravating. I actually dinged it quite a bit solely based on that. Case broke up with his boyfriends—yes plural—via text. Rawley's little green monster was unbecoming of a man with his stoic demeanor. Things like that.

There were some minor "hmm ..." moments, like a supposedly closeted Rawley answering Case's phone 'morning after' style, and a few more instances where I rolled my eyes almost out of my head, but I focused on the overall journey instead of getting bogged down in the niggles. It worked for me to read it that way, but others might find some of it off-putting or childish.

What else can I say? There's some personal growth, some redemption, some hurt/comfort, a second chance at real love for one MC, and a whole lotta hotness goin' on. There is, however, no cheating. I wanted to make sure there were no misinterpretations. Yes, Case was promiscuous, but before he ends up in Hottie McLawman's town. He was trying to make a change, or at least tired of what he had been doing, so ...

In general, the book was well-written. I read an ARC copy, of course, so I tend to not pay much attention to editing, etc. unless it's atrocious and unlikely to improve. I didn't notice any glaring inconsistencies or holes in the plot and that was good enough for me. The author is new to me, and perhaps new in general, though I won't swear to it. In any case, she's one to watch for. I'd recommend this book to people who like contemporary themes in the genre.

More reviews by NeRdyWYRM can be found on Goodreads here.
Images (when present) may be subject to copyright.
Credit to Warner Brothers and DC Comics for Batman^©
An ARC copy of this title was provided for an honest review.