Guest Review: Defined By Deceit by A.E. Via

Life isn't always fair, and that’s something that Llewellyn Gardner knows about first hand. His life was on the fast track until one night of extreme passion changed everything. Now eight years later, he’s still living with the aftershocks of that night. Everywhere he turns or runs, there’s another reminder. What the hell do you do when you try to drown your demons only to find out they can swim?

Shane Smith, Jr. owner of Smith Construction, could see the emotional turmoil within his new employee — it’s why he hired him. There was something about the gorgeous, misunderstood man with the overly expressive eyes that came to their small town with a past no one was willing to overlook. Shane could see the good in Llewellyn, and those eyes of his were a clear window to his soul. Shane wasn't going to let the man live a future of solitude because his past had been plagued with deceit.

Llewellyn wasn’t sure what to think about Shane. After years of protecting himself from being tricked twice, he was now faced with worry again. What would happen to him if Shane didn’t believe his truth, and walked away? Llewellyn wasn’t sure he'd be able to survive being left alone. Again.

Reviewer: Shee Reader

Oh my word, I adored this book. It’s a long one and I’ve still read it twice! Llew has had a rough childhood, losing his parents and being raised by his older brother. Llew’s ‘boyfriend’ is keeping his sexuality a secret, so they are totally in the closet so his mayor father and upper-crust mom don’t disown him. This low down, yellow bellied fool abandoned Llew when he needed him most and Llew faces jail time. Lots and lots of jail time that he does not deserve.

On getting out of prison, Llew is starting again but needs to make a clean break and go somewhere new. Unfortunately, his horror follows and this has an impact on him making new friends.

I adored this story from start to finish, although some parts were really hard to read. I loved how a few of the new people Llew met saw past his history and treated him how they thought he should be treated. Llew has been through so much, it was lovely to see him regain his future and find his spot to thrive and grow and live!

It's kind of tricky to review this book and avoid spoilers, but to summarise, I loved it! The writing is emotional and engaging and the characters are largely charming. I adored Shane and was so glad Llew found him. The delightful Miss Pam was also adorably wilful.

Highly recommended.

I was given a free copy of the book in exchange for an honest review.