Derek is facing yet another Christmas where his life feels out of control. He has a new career that doesn’t feel like his, and parents who would just love to see him settled down. All he needs is a temporary buffer for the parties he has to attend, and for his parents to leave him alone. Enter, Luke.
Luke is twenty-thousand dollars short for the renovations on Halligans; his family’s bar in New York’s Financial District. A favor for a buddy has him agreeing to play the part of boyfriend to a guy with more money than sense.
But when the spirit of Christmas works its magic on the two men, and they begin to fall for each other, Derek runs scared, and Luke needs space.
It doesn’t matter what obstacles you throw in the way of love, or how much you run in the other direction, because, when you’re least expecting it, whether you want it or not, love happens anyway.
Narrator: Sean Crisden
Listening Length:3 hrs 42 min
Very much so like the snowman on the cover, this book is cute and full of Christmas fluff.
I’ve listened to Sean Crisden’s audiobook narrations before, so I knew I’d have no reason to worry. He always manages to keep me engaged and entertained. The audiobook for ‘Love Happens Anyway’ is very well done.
I had no trouble just relaxing and listening to this sweet holiday novella.
High-powered yet lonely marketing exec Derek offers to pay Luke twenty thousand dollars to pretend to be his fireman boyfriend for the holiday season.
Luke, who needs some cash to finish renovations on his family bar, agrees to go along with the ruse despite his misgivings.
What starts off as a business transactions quickly turns into something more.
I’m a fan of the fake boyfriend trope. The set-up in this book was pretty funny - Derek had already spun a background story for his parents well before he’d met Luke. And poor Luke had to keep track of the story while playing Derek’s lover.
But Luke was more than up to the challenge. He was definitely a sweetheart, so willing to put up with Derek’s demands.
Derek’s likeable too, but his uptight personality did get to be a bit much at times. I also wasn’t entirely sure why he was so tense about his parents. Their meddling in his life didn’t seem to be that excessive at all.
But regardless, the transition from fake boyfriends to real boyfriends was adorable. Between holiday engagements and parties, Derek developed a respect for Luke, and Luke’s protective side started to come out.
And neither man could deny that he found the other very attractive. This isn’t a particularly steamy book, but the sexy times didn’t leave any doubt about the MCs’ physical chemistry.
The story progressed in a fairly predictable manner, ending with a cute happy ever after (with a mistletoe on top) for Derek and Luke.
Overall, I enjoyed ‘Love Happens Anyway’. If you’re looking for an easy-to-listen-to holiday MM audiobook, give this a try.
