Tag Team Review: Cancer Ships Aquarius (Signs of Love #5) by Anyta Sunday

Prepare to dip your toe into the biggest adventure of your life, Cancer. There’s romance in the air, and it smells deliciously salty.

Dumped by the fifth girl in two years and abandoned by his best friends, Reid Glover is alone and in need of a home.
Desperate, he interviews to become a live-in manny aboard widowed Sullivan Bell’s yacht, the Aquarian.
The job? Not to look after thirteen-year-old Joanna. No, this child-mastermind needs Reid to befriend her dad, urge him to participate more in family life, encourage him to date, oh, and become his closest confidant and help him unleash his bottled emotions.
No pressure.
At least he’s not entirely out of his depth.
Okay, so he may have a slight aversion to the ocean. And possibly attract more than his fair share of misadventure.
But he is a pro at crying.
Watch out, Sullivan. Reid is on his way with a family-sized carton of tissues. He will help Sullivan through his fears. Will help him find love again.
Will absolutely not fall for him in the process . . .

Caution, Cancer, how long will you fool yourself?

~ ~ ~

Cancer Ships Aquarius (Signs of Love #5) is an MM opposites-attract romantic comedy featuring a misadventure prone manny and a blunt widower.
More wit, banter and bad puns - and even more heart-stopping slow burn!
Can be read as a standalone.

3.875 average

Adam - 3.75 Hearts

After yet another break-up, the only bright spot for Reid is his new job as the live-in manny aboard a yacht.

Although ‘bright spot’ might not be the right term, as Reid’s terrified of water and wildly attracted to Sullivan, his still-grieving widowed employer.

Here’s the thing - Reid might not be the smartest cookie in the box. In fact, he takes the obliviousness trope of this series to new heights. And that’s entirely aside from his lack of basic survival skills.

But Reid is 100% a very compassionate cookie. A bit of a puppy in human form, really. I was all on board the Reid train from the start. He’s got heart in spades.

And he’s committed to his deal with Joanna, Sullivan’s daughter, to get her dad out of his funk - purely as platonic friends, of course.

But that doesn’t last long at all. Not with Reid’s attraction growing day by day, and Sullivan slowly caving to the warmth and sunshine he’d shut himself away from. Step by step, their friendship grows into something more.

I had some major heart eyes going throughout this book, as Reid slowly wooed Sullivan out of his cranky shell.

The UST was through the roof. And definitely worth it, once Sullivan and Reid finally give in!

The big roadblock is Sullivan’s broken heart after losing the first love of his life. I thought it was handled well, without becoming overly angsty.

My main issue though - Reid did all the heavy lifting. I would have liked Sullivan to put in effort and make a grand gesture at some before the epilogue.

That being said, the happy ever after was perfectly romantic. I loved seeing the small family and home Reid, Sullivan, and Joanna built on their yacht.

If you’re looking for an easy-to-read romance with strong themes of family and healing, and some killer UST, give ‘Cancer Ships Aquarius’ a try!

Lost in a Book - 4 Stars

Finally!!!!! I’ve been waiting since the dawn of time forever since the start of this Signs of Love Series for my sign. AQUARIUS!!! *twirls* I've enjoyed each sign and character featured throughout and this one was no different. Well, it was different in other ways; age gap, widowed MC, and a child is involved.

Reid is being dragged through difficult times after another girl dumps him. He’s looking for a place to stay and interviews to be a live-in manny for a 13 year old girl, Joanna, and her father Sullivan. To live on a yacht. Yes, please!

Sullivan is still grieving the loss of his partner and has checked out of many things he used to enjoy. Joanna’s his main source of light and when she asks for a manny, he can’t say no… even if he wishes he did.

Reid and Sullivan’s introduction starts off about as shaky as Reid’s sea legs. Which is definitely not good. Sullivan is determined to keep him at arms-length while Reid and Joanna conspire to get him to open up and become more of the man he used to be. Joanna is amazing. She’s a smart little firecracker that knows what she wants and isn’t afraid to play dirty to get it.

I really liked Reid and Sullivan together. There were more serious undertones to this read than the previous Signs of Love books but Reid’s cluelessness remains. The friendship and eventual relationship that they build is funny and sweet to read as Sullivan’s walls slowly come down. But… yes, there is a but. Sullivan is almost too bloody and standoffish while Reid is almost too clueless. I know, I know, I adore all of the clueless men from books past. Another thing that drove me crazy was Reid’s response to the issue. I just wanted to scream at him to grow a freakin’ backbone and make Sullivan work for once to make this relationship work. *stomps foot*

Alas, even though this wasn’t a favorite of mine, I still enjoyed it. I liked Reid, Sullivan, Joanna and the yacht life they have built. Recommended for fans of this series.

Review: The Mysterious and Amazing Blue Billings (Black and Blue #1) by Lily Morton

Levi Black is at a crossroads. After suffering a loss and breaking up a long-term relationship, he’s looking for a change. When he receives the news he’s inherited a house in York, he seizes the opportunity to begin a new chapter in his life.

However, when he gets there, he finds a house that has never kept its occupants for very long. Either through death or disinclination, no one stays there, and after a few days of living in the place, Levi can understand why. Strange noises can be heard at all hours of the day and night, and disturbing and scary things begin to happen to him. He never believed in ghosts before, but when events take a sinister turn, he knows he must look for help. He finds it in the unlikely form of the blue-haired leader of a ghost tour.

Blue Billings is edgy, beautiful, and lost. Utterly lost. He conceals so many secrets that some days it’s a miracle he remembers his own name. He knows that he should ignore Levi because he threatens the tenuous grip Blue has on survival. But there’s something about the kind-eyed man that draws Blue to him. Something that demands he stay and fight for him when he would normally run in the opposite direction.

As the two men investigate the shocking truth behind Levi’s house, they also discover a deep connection that defies the short length of time they’ve known each other. But when events escalate and his life is on the line, Levi has to wonder if it was wise to trust the Mysterious and Amazing Blue Billings.

Wtfffff… where did all these creepy ass ghosts come from Lily? I chose this thinking it would be full of snark, funny ghosts, some suspense, and main characters having a merry ol’ time. Yeah nah! This was creepy AF, and I was unable to read it at night because #wimp. However, this nightmare inducing read was done really well even if it’s worlds away from my other favorites she has written.

Grab your snuggie and buckle up because there’s a serial killer ghost on the loose and he wants what’s his.

The blurb sets the story up rather nicely so we start as Levi has given up the London life for York after some rough times. The expensive house he inherits is just the ticket to smooth the way for him to start anew. Everything is going amazing as he gets the key to his new house and gets ready for demo day. Well, as amazing as it can with a house that makes noises, feeling like you’re being watched, doors slamming, windows opening, and many of creepy things that can’t be explained. Luckily there are ghost tours taking place in York and it’s there that Levi meets Blue, the tour guide.

Blue is homeless, has an awful past, and knows how important it is to rely on himself and no-one else. As the blurb mentions, he’s broken and Levi’s kindness throws him for a loop. What begins as Levi offering Blue a place to live in exchange for information on the possible ghosts residing in his house, turns into a sweet relationship that has a solid foundation. Levi and Blue move slowly through each phase of their relationship as Levi shows Blue how he deserves to be treated. Gahhhh they’re so sweet and funny together, when they aren’t running for their lives. Don’t get me wrong… along with creepy ass ghosts are moments laced with humor, chemistry, and imperfect characters finding their way to a little bit (or a lot) of happy.

I’m not sure I want to encourage Morton to continue writing ghost stories with this creep factor but this is enjoyable during the daylight hours. *shrug* There was a friendly ghost without many boundaries that made me cackle so I suppose that evens it out a bit. Anywho, clearly I’m along for the ride on Morton books and this one was no exception. I love Levi and Blue. Recommended.

An ARC was provided in exchange for an honest review.

Review: That Time I... Survived My Teens by Craig Barker

The Saturday prior to starting this memoir, my ex-fiancé and I had two of his work friends over for an old-fashioned games night. And when I say “old-fashioned,” I’m talking about dice, cards, racking up your points on an abacus, etc. You know, the things people entertained themselves with before politicians blamed every violent fart that wafted their way on video games.

Stop doing that.

Anyway, seeing as I didn’t know who these people were and would’ve much rather spent the evening on the sofa with our dog, I was less than optimistic. If anything, the whole ordeal was going to be like sitting through a Christopher Nolan movie. Sure, I’d say I was having a great time to fit in, but in all honesty, I wouldn’t have a clue what was happening, and I’d probably need to take a nap midway through.

Hours before they arrived, just as I’d started to have those “what if I accidentally say something so obscenely offensive or mind-numbingly stupid, I’ll be haunted by the memory of it for years to come” thoughts, my ex ran down into the basement in which I dwell, his eyes frantic, and begged—

“Please don’t talk about choking on dicks when they get here.”

Come again?

“Please, Craig. That kind of talk makes them uncomfortable. Don’t do it.”

I felt a flurry of emotions in the picosecond it took for his words to register: amused, bemused, offended. It sounded like a joke, but his face was full of fear—a fear that I would be unequivocally crude to these complete strangers, and that my behavior would burn bridges he obviously wanted to keep erect (more on erections later).

That was when it hit me like a pair of loose-hanging nuts to the taint; a realization that I, Craig Thomas Barker, had a pattern of behavior that stretched across my life since adolescence—

I’m the person you get warned about before meeting. I’m the person that gets warned before going anywhere.

Like Carrie Bradshaw, “I couldn’t help but wonder” why that was. So, in order to understand who I am today, I decided to take a look at the years that shaped me. I spread my life out on the table, lubed it with the flare of artistic exaggeration, and went at it until I found my answer.

This isn’t so much a memoir as it is a gay’s journey to discover himself; don’t expect structure, coherency, or a thoroughly thought out narrative with a climactic closing paragraph that gives any of this dribble closure. I’m no one special, I’m not famous, and I don’t have much to say that hasn’t been said before, but I have lived a life, and all twenty-six years of that life has culminated in a single sentence—

“Please don’t talk about choking on dicks when they get here.”

This memoir explains why…
And it was cheaper than therapy.

I’ve been on a memoir kick for a bit and one thing I always struggle with is rating them. I mean, how do you give rating for someone’s actual real life moments? Luckily, this one is very readable, engaging, full of feels, and written in a casual way that is reminiscent of telling stories to my best friends… in between alcohol, drugs, sex, and all the other trigger warnings that are sprinkled throughout. That Time I… Survived My Teens is sad, soooo heartbreaking, and had me laughing as we follow the author, Craig Barker through his teenage years while getting a contact high and liver damage from reading about all his shenanigans.

My initial thoughts were that this would be a cheeky, fun, and lighthearted read about all the embarrassing moments that take place throughout the teenage years. WRONG. The bullying and homophobia Barker endured is disgusting and absolutely heartbreaking to read about. How can “teachers” turn the other way? Administrators? Friends? Adults? Who the fuck ever? Someone should have been able to step up and step their ass in to protect him. But nope… and holy shit was he terrorized. I hope you don’t let that dissuade you from reading this. I would imagine that reliving this was painful for him but finally telling his story to people that will actually listen might be therapeutic. Like lancing a wound and getting rid of the infection. I felt honored to share a fraction of this heartbreaking memoir and only wish I could have been his teacher so his path wouldn’t have been as broken.

Was Craig innocent and the picture of a perfect student, son, friend? Nope. Not even a little. He admits his pain-in-the-assery and selfish tendencies. Some reactions and actions are questionable but when you’re constantly backed into a corner/wall and the very people hired to care for and protect you only exacerbate the issues, it’s inevitable one would strike out at anyone and everyone.

Craig experienced a lot beginning at age 13 through high school and I’m glad I was able to read and feel his story, angst, anger, sadness, hopelessness, and moments of his escape. I’ll most definitely continue on this journey if he feels inclined to tell us more. Recommended.

Trigger- drugs, alcohol, mention of self-harm, bullying, homophobia, addiction, depression.

P.S. Fuck that school. Fuck the administrators and most especially Fuck the teachers. As educators we are hired to teach children not only academics but go alongside parents to model how to be good human beings and not tolerate this behavior. The assholes in this school (and any other school that allows bullying and homophobia to take place) clearly got into education for wrong reasons. On behalf of “mama/papa bear” educators who truly love their jobs and the students placed in our charges, I’m sorry. You are loved. You are valued. You are worth it just as you are.

Copy provided for honest review.

An ARC was provided in exchange for an honest review.

Review: Best Man (Close Proximity #1) by Lily Morton

Zeb Evans doesn’t do messy. 


The product of a disorganised and chaotic childhood, Zeb likes order and control, and as the boss of his own employment agency he can give that to himself. Life runs along strict lines and he never mixes business with pleasure. Everything in his life lives in neat, alphabetized boxes. Until Jesse.


Jesse Reed is Zeb’s complete opposite. He’s chaos personified. A whirling cyclone of disorder. He’s also charming and funny and a very unwanted distraction.


Which is why it comes as a complete surprise to Zeb to find himself asking Jesse to pose as his boyfriend for a few days in the country at a wedding. 


Zeb doesn’t do impulsive, but as the time away progresses, he finds himself increasingly drawn to the merry and irreverent Jesse. But can he bring himself to break the hard-won lessons he’s learnt in life? And even if he can, how could Jesse be attracted to him anyway? He’s so much older than Jesse, not to mention being his boss.


From the bestselling author of the Mixed Messages and Finding Home series comes a warm and funny romance about one man’s fight for control and another man’s determination to circumvent it.


This is the first book in the Close Proximity series, but it can be read as a standalone.

Lily Morton has quickly become an author that I turn to for snark, banter, sassy characters, and comfort reads. Best Man fell right in line with having all of those components in heaps… just add in a 20 year age gap, hairy chest, and some OTT drama and we’ve got another enjoyable read.

The humor begins right away as Jesse and Zeb are introduced. Jesse is hired on at Zeb’s company and then they continue to work together for years. Jesse has a hopeless crush on Zeb while Zeb has slotted him under the employee category without any wiggle room. Nada. Well, that is until Zeb needs Jesse to escort him to a wedding where his ex-boyfriend is getting married. Cue silly shenanigans, uptight Zeb, carefree Jesse, and a getaway with one bed.

I really like the way Lily writes main characters with sass and snark. Jesse is a hilarious yet well-meaning HOT MESS! He has been giving Zeb headaches for years (although, secretly Zeb enjoys it) and has ramped up his PDA for the benefit of the jealous ex… and himself. When Zeb and Jesse finally get down to business, they’ve got some pent-up frustrations that need to be worked out and ohhhh boy do they work them out. Yowza!

Patrick the ex is an asshole. An OTT asshole. There are a few parts that are a tad OTT but things revolving around Patrick were off the charts and some of the drama felt a little unnecessary. Zeb and Jesse get their HEA and IMO, Mr. Spitfire Jesse needed a little more of a backbone when it came to overcoming his conflict with Zeb. Still, I enjoyed Best Man, especially Jesse and Zeb together, and will absolutely continue on with this new series. Recommended.

Copy provided for honest review.

An ARC was provided in exchange for an honest review.

Tag Team Review: Heartsong (Green Creek #3) by T.J. Klune

All Robbie Fontaine ever wanted was a place to belong. After the death of his mother, he bounces around from pack to pack, forming temporary bonds to keep from turning feral. It’s enough—until he receives a summons from the wolf stronghold in Caswell, Maine.

Life as the trusted second to Michelle Hughes—the Alpha of all—and the cherished friend of a gentle old witch teaches Robbie what it means to be pack, to have a home.

But when a mission from Michelle sends Robbie into the field, he finds himself questioning where he belongs and everything he’s been told. Whispers of traitorous wolves and wild magic abound—but who are the traitors and who the betrayed?

More than anything, Robbie hungers for answers, because one of those alleged traitors is Kelly Bennett—the wolf who may be his mate.

The truth has a way of coming out. And when it does, everything will shatter.

Averaged!

Annika - 5 Hearts

What an amazing world TJ Klune has created with this series. So vivid. Atmospheric and gripping. Heartsong was impossible to put down once picked up. Real life was not my friend while reading this wonderful book. Klune held me captive with his words. They all had meaning and together they created this amazing tale about a lost wolf finding his way back home.

The more time we spend in Green Creek the more intricate this world becomes, more layers are revealed. Wolfsong was kind of straightforward, Ravensong started to unveil the layers and complexity of this world, and Heartsong deepens it even more. Klune created a world so atmospheric and real that you could see and smell the trees, feel the sticky sap on your fingers and see the fireflies hovering before your face.

Heartsong wasn’t what I expected – but then again, when are Klune’s books ever predictable? The first thing that surprised me was the timeline. For a long time I couldn’t really get a grip on when this took place. It was surprising in a good way I might add. Personally it made me connect to Robbie in a new way. To feel the confusion that he felt, that things didn’t make sense or quite add up. That you were missing something, something vital. I loved it!

The majority of this book dealt with family. The fate and consequences of Robbie and what happened to him – and by extent the pack. The hurts and sadness but also the anger and mistrust. How they gathered together to start again, to rebuild what was lost and repair the damages. To reform those bonds that were missing. During all of this discovering and mushiness, there was this underlying sense of urgency. Building towards an epic show-down, with the alpha of all and her witch. A fight that would finish the wars once and for all – at least that was the hope. As always there were a few surprises along the way.

More than once I found myself wondering if Klune would break my heart. He is sneaky and I wouldn’t put it past him to kill off someone I’ve come to love. He never takes the easy road, that’s one thing that I know for certain. This suspense, the unknowing and uncertainty adds to the reading experience. I love that feeling of not knowing what to expect and that need to turn the page to see what happens next.

Heartsong was all about family. Pack. Brother. Love. Friend. Of finding your way back home. Starting over and anew. I still have a lot of questions, but I know one thing for sure; the release of Brothersong can’t come fast enough, because I haven’t gotten near my fill of the Bennett pack.

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


Lost in a Book - 5 Hearts


Ohhhhhhh, TJ… How have we gone from pinecones and epic and awesomeness to… this? I’m not mad at it. At all… but I could have used some pinecone moments when I was getting my ass kicked by your creative genius.

Not gonna lie, I started, Heartsong and had zero clue what was happening until…

And then it was all GASP. WtAF. And Rawwwwr. And more incoherent thoughts as I began piecing things together. Which turned into…

Then actual footage of me coping...

A lot happens in book #3 and giving spoilers or too much information would absolutely ruin the crazy ass (and totally amazing) dysfunctional, and horrific events that take place in Heartsong.

The love story between Robbie and Kelly is bittersweet and beautiful. I couldn’t help but feel ALL the feels while trying to calm the face leaking. Kelly is asexual and their love is sooooo pure and sweet. Don’t get all comfy cozy based on that description thinking that it’s smooth sailing. They get dragged through Hell and at the end of the day when that happens, you want your person with you through it all. Robbie and Kelly are just... so much green and then the deepest of blue and then green. packpackpack

TJ outdid himself with the horror creativity on this one. It's a freaking rollercoaster of events/emotions that left me hanging on for dear life and unable to put it down. With all the heaviness, heartbreak, hellacious moments, and holy-shit-gory-AF, there's comic relief with the Bennett pack that lets us catch our breath right when we are desperate for some air. Every. time.

With the direction of the series, everything in this book is necessary and masterfully crafted with the past and the future in mind. Definitely recommended while I figure out how to get a head start on Carter’s story… like yesterday.

Copy provided for honest review.

Review: Gentleman Wolf (Capital Wolves Duet #1) by Joanna Chambers

An elegant werewolf in Edinburgh...

1788. When Lindsay Somerville, the most elegant werewolf in Paris, learns that the man who held him in abject captivity for decades is on his way to France, intent on recapturing him, he knows he must leave the Continent for his own safety. Lindsay cannot take the risk of being recaptured—he may have been free for a century but he can still feel the ghost of his old chains under his fine clothes.

… on a mission...

While he’s in Edinburgh, Lindsay has been tasked with acquiring the “Naismith Papers”, the writings of a long-dead witchfinder. It should be a straightforward mission—all Lindsay has to do is charm an elderly book collector, Hector Cruikshank. But Cruikshank may not be all he seems, and there are others who want the papers.

… meets his match

As if that were not enough, while tracking down the Naismith Papers, Lindsay meets stubborn architect Drew Nicol. Although the attraction between them is intense, Nicol seems frustratingly determined to resist Lindsay’s advances. Somehow though, Lindsay can’t seem to accept Nicol’s rejection. Is he just moonstruck, or is Nicol bonded to him in ways he doesn’t yet understand?


Note: this is the first book of a duology – the story continues and will complete in the second book, Master Wolf.

Hrmmm… I liked it… I think?

Let’s get some warnings out of the way first. This ends on a massive cliffhanger. No HFN/HEA in this installment, everything will be revealed (hopefully) in the next book. Gentleman Werewolf didn’t really *feel* like a romance. More like a historical paranormal that happens to involve sex? Maybe? Also, there are some trigger warnings for torture scenes and a miscarriage of a baby mentioned that took place in the past.

From the very start, this book felt heavy and has that ominous feeling throughout with very little light hearted moments to take a breath. Lindsay’s cheeky personality and his valet are about the only light hearted parts of this story. You just know something is going to happen throughout and the whole escaping imminent danger overshadowed any chance for there to be a romance. There was insta-love/infatuation but I could toss that up to Lindsay being a wolf and the whole mate feeling. Possibly?

I love Joanna Chambers’ previous books and her writing style. She writes historical books that I can't help but devour and it worked for me in this one too. I even liked the characters by the end but there was zero closure and way too many unanswered questions with a perpetual heaviness that took away from my complete enjoyment of this book.

I’ll continue on with the series and hope for romance, some possible snark and/or lighthearted moments mixed in with the doom and gloom.

Copy provided for honest review.

Tag Team Review: The Doctor's Orders (Copper Point Medical #3) by Heidi Cullinan

Once upon a time Nicholas Beckert was the boy who stole kisses from Jared Kumpel beneath the bleachers. Now Jared’s a pediatrician and Nick is the hospital CEO who won’t glance his way. But everything changes when they’re stranded alone in a hospital elevator. Ten years of cold shoulders melt away, and old passions rekindle into hot flames. Once out of the elevator, Jared has no intention of letting Nick get away. He wants a full, open relationship, which is a step further than Nick is willing to go, and it looks like the same arguments that drove them apart in high school might resurface. Jared’s determined not to let it happen again. He won’t order Nick from his shell—he’ll listen to what he needs to feel safe. Maybe this time he can prescribe his lover a happily ever after.

Wow! The Doctor’s Orders is quite the interesting read but luckily we (Adam and Lost) didn’t endure the ride alone. So, sit back, buckle up and prepare yourselves for a joint review *gasp* from us, Adam and Lost in a Book.

With this installment being the third in Cullinan’s Copper Point Medical series, we are thrust back to St. Ann’s with the CEO, Nicholas Beckert and the pediatrician everyone loves, Jared Kumpel. What once was a high school romance between these two men turned ice cold with Nick not wanting to come out and Jared not accepting anything less.

Many years go by and they find themselves in the same hospital, lonely, hurt, and quietly longing for each other from afar. Until the elevator breaks…

It’s all quite dramatic. The elevator dangled precariously from the third floor, but given the uproar and health resulting health scares, you would think it was a twenty-story drop, at the least.

What follows the elevator incident is a rollercoaster of will they or won’t they, what will the townspeople think, shitty parents doing shitty things, a whole host of social ills, and *drum roll please* ‘is the killer inside the house?!’ (or the hospital, as it were). It was a lot.

Heidi Cullinan has a penchant for dramatic flair, which ordinarily can be quite entertaining. In this case, it quickly became too much. This time around, the plot was everything and the kitchen sink.

Inevitably, we found ourselves skimming to get to the point.

Jared and Nicholas are endearing in their own ways and even likable together at some points throughout. However, that gets lost in the soap opera shuffle that is rampant throughout The Doctor’s Orders.

Both men go through a lot, particularly with their families. Plus, being gay men, and one of them black, in a small town comes with specific challenges. It’ll make you indignant on their behalf, and root for the two to come out on the other side happy.

But neither of us really connected to Nicholas and Jared in book #3. It was good to see them finally get their happy ending, but it wasn’t particularly memorable and by that point we were no longer invested in the story.

Of course, your mileage may vary!

Tag Team Review: The Doctor's Date (Copper Point Medical #2) by Heidi Cullinan

Sequel to The Doctor's Secret
The hospital’s least eligible bachelor and its aloof administrator hate each other… so why are they pretending to date?

Dr. Owen Gagnon and HR director Erin Andreas are infamous for their hospital hallway shouting matches. So imagine the town’s surprise when Erin bids an obscene amount of money to win Owen in the hospital bachelor auction—and Owen ups the ante by insisting Erin move in with him.

Copper Point may not know what’s going on, but neither do Erin and Owen. Erin intends his gesture to let Owen know he’s interested. Owen, on the other hand, suspects ulterior motives—that Erin wants a fake relationship as a refuge from his overbearing father.

With Erin suddenly heading a messy internal investigation, Owen wants to step up and be the hero Erin’s never had. Too bad Erin would rather spend his energy trying to rescue Owen from the shadows of a past he doesn’t talk about.

This relationship may be fake, but the feelings aren’t. Still, what Erin and Owen have won’t last unless they put their respective demons to rest. To do that, they’ll have to do more than work together—they’ll have to trust they can heal each other’s hearts.

Averaged!

Lost in a Book - 3.5 Hearts

The Doctor’s Date is the second installment in Cullinan’s new series and I’m glad that I gave it a try. After the first book I was hesitant to dive in but this book has a little more depth to the characters. It’s still sweet with low angst but doesn’t flatline like the last one did for me.

The story starts off with Erin’s childhood background story that provides context on his behavior as an adult. Erin’s in charge of human resources for the hospital. He’s skittish, isolated, and has had a long life of intimidation and neglect from his father (who is also the president of the board). He has never done anything with another person (not even a kiss) and has been starved for affection, touch, and kind words. Erin has been looking for a mighty ogre to rescue him since he was boy and the ogre has a name, Owen. It’s always been Owen. Always.

Owen’s an anesthesiologist that has quite the reputation within the hospital as pretty much being an asshole. His glower sends the gossiping nurses scurrying but, with those he loves, he's loyal and a protector. His favorite past-time is rubbing up against Erin until they are both breathing fire… not in a sexual way, that comes later. Much. Much. later.

My thoughts on Erin and Owen are a little confusing. I liked them together sometimes because there’s respect, patience, and a connection of building a deeper friendship. As I was reading though, I kept wondering if some chemistry would appear- I don’t think it ever really did. This lacking of chemistry has nothing to do with sex. I’m not sure where Erin falls on the sexuality spectrum but I would guess closer to asexual than not. I appreciated that they didn’t rush to sex and instead took little steps that added some depth to their friendship. The sex scenes are fade to black which doesn’t really bother me if the characters have a great connection and chemistry.

Owen’s a natural leader that takes charge and that’s no different when it comes to Erin. It takes a while for Owen to reveal himself and his childhood trauma because he’d rather be helping others. Erin lets himself be rescued with his backbone appearing a few times in his role as HR director and the auction. Other than that, Erin just goes along and enjoys the fruit of his ogre coming for him and fully caring for him (almost helpless at some points). There’s not many medical situations taking place in The Doctor’s Date but there’s an underlying mystery to solve that adds some suspense.

As I mentioned, I enjoyed this installment and will possibly continue with the next book. If you’re looking for a really sweet, low angst M/M romance, with a little bit of humor, this could be your cuppa.

Trigger Warnings for abuse.

Adam - 3.5 Hearts

Dr. Owen Gagnon and HR director Erin Andreas are notorious for their bickering and public battles. Owen goes out of his way to push Erin’s buttons, and Erin responds in kind.

That is until Erin bids $25K for a date with Owen. Erin’s father is shocked. The hospital is shocked. The town is shocked. Erin and Owen are..kind of shocked, but mostly down.

So begins the transformation of their relationship from enemies to friends, and eventually lovers.

Suspecting that Erin bid on him to escape his borderline-abusive father, Owen goes into protective overdrive mode, moving Erin into his home and telling the town that the two have been lovers all along.

And Erin, swept along in the moment, finds himself unable to tell Owen the truth - that he bid that much money because he’s been half in love with Owen since they were teenagers.

I thought the initial set-up, though definitely OTT, was very cute. The men put aside their previous animosity pretty quickly, with Owen making it his mission to look after Erin.

They’re cute and sweet. And when things move from friends to romantic, it’s fairly seamless.

But this is a very slow burn romance. As in, the heat is almost non-existent. It makes sense to an existent, given Erin’s inexperience, but I would have liked more physical chemistry.

Similar to book 1, the relationship itself is fairly low-drama. Yes, both men have their baggage and that affects how they approach love. But they aren’t huge insurmountable obstacles.

I loved seeing how Erin and Owen worked through their issues together, and how being together gave them the strength to be happier people.

The relationship develops in parallel to Erin and Owen’s investigation into the hospital’s shady board of directors. The plot was pretty interesting, and kept me entertained for most of the book.

My main issue - the damsel-in-distress routine got old pretty quickly. Erin, like Simon in book 1, was a bit too helpless for my liking at times.

Even so, I really liked ‘The Doctor’s Date’. Though I would have liked more heat, it still gave me the small-town romance feels that I always enjoy. If you like a slower pace and UST with a low heat level, this is the series for you!

Review: Gideon (Finding Home #3) by Lily Morton

Gideon Ramsay is so far in the closet he should be a talking faun.

A talented, mercurial, and often selfish man, Gideon has everything he should want in life. Fame, money, acting awards – he has it all. Everything but honesty. At the advice of his agent, Gideon has concealed his sexuality for years. But it’s starting to get harder to hide, and his increasingly wild behaviour is threatening to destroy his career.

Then he’s laid low by a serious illness and into his life comes Eli Jones. Eli is everything that Gideon can’t understand. He’s sunny tempered, friendly, and optimistic. Even worse, he’s unaffected by grumpiness and sarcasm, which forms ninety percent of Gideon’s body weight. And now Gideon is trapped with him without any recourse to the drugs and alcohol that have previously eased his way through awkward situations.

However, as Gideon gets to know the other man, he finds himself wildly attracted to his lazy smiles and warm, scruffy charm that seem to fill a hole inside Gideon that’s been empty for a long time. Will he give in to this incomprehensible attraction when it could mean the end of everything that he’s worked for?

From the bestselling author of the Mixed Messages series comes a story about a man who needs to realise that being true to yourself is really just a form of finding home.

This is the third book in the Finding Home series but it can be read as a standalone.

Soooo… in the previous book there was an element that was really off putting for me that centered around Gideon and I even mentioned it in my review for book #2. I was all wtf… grrrr…. Gideon sucks (even though the name is 🔥🔥).

Gideon starts off with a bang as he’s drinking, doing drugs, and all about sex with as many people as possible. All those vices at the same time with multiple partners is a bonus. He’s self destructing as rapidly as his declining health and he’s doing anything to remain in a state of numbness. This gets him in trouble and he ends up in the care of nurse Eli.

Eli is a giant ray of sunshine in Gideons stormy world. He’s kind, funny, bossy, sarcastic, and has zero issues calling Gideon out on his behavior while he ignores his bastard persona. Soon, Eli becomes one of the very few people in Gideon’s world that cares and looks out for him; not their paycheck.

I adore Eli and Gideon together. They have great banter, lots of chemistry and heat. There’s some dirty talk, a bossy top, and some entertaining attempts to top from the bottom. This is a hurt/comfort that left me with all the warm/fuzzy feels. Gideon had an incredible redemptive character arc that was fully fleshed out. I was rooting for him very early on and he didn’t let me down.

The secondary characters in Lily’s books are always on point. Constance is a dream and the patchwork family that continues to build throughout each book in this series is highly entertaining and fun of warmth.

I really enjoyed Gideon but I had one niggle… where are MY LETTERS? Ahhhhhh!! I’m a HUGE sucker for written communication between MCs (whether it’s texts, emails, or actual letters). When they start writing letters I gear up to read a bunch of correspondence with witty lines and heartfelt sentiments. But I only got two? Total? One from each? That's it? #sadface #GIVEMEMYLETTERS

I was able to turn my frown upside down with the amazeballs epilogue. It’s full y’all. You’ll walk away with so many answers about the future and their HEA. I adore this series and will continue to read any that come out. Recommended.

Trigger Warning for drug and alcohol usage.

An ARC was provided in exchange for an honest review.

Review: Thirst for You (Beyond the Cove #2) by Jaclyn Quinn

What happens when thirst becomes an obsession that can’t be quenched?

Forty-year-old Zachariah Taylor prides himself on being the overprotective older brother of seven. He owns a successful bar, Zach’s Bar and Grill, in the quiet town of Riverside Falls and loves the life he’s built for himself. But as his siblings move on and find their forever partners in life, he’s starting to feel less and less needed—not to mention old. Suddenly, he’s finding it even harder to ignore the younger man who has pursued him for years, but the twelve years separating them is something Zach can’t seem to overlook.

Twenty-eight-year-old Drew Belford has been in love with the stubborn Zach Taylor for seven years. Sure, he was a kid when they’d first met, but what Zach is determined to ignore is the man Drew has become. Drew, however, is just as strong-minded and refuses to let Zach use their age difference as an excuse to disregard the attraction burning between them. He doesn’t need an overprotective older brother—he needs Zach.

When Drew begins to get unsettling messages from an unknown person, Zach feels helpless in a way he’s never felt before. How can he protect Drew from someone he can’t find? The thought of anyone hurting Drew unleashes years’ worth of pent-up desire Zach has had for the younger man. Is his thirst for Drew enough to protect him from the danger lurking in the shadows, or will the threat of the unknown be enough to dowse the spark of love between them—and silence Drew forever?

I’m going to start off with a warning: I didn’t read the first book in the series because this can be read as a stand-alone… at 2% I was confused and feeling like I should know some things. But, I kept pushing through.

Names were dropping faster than I could pick them up and it became clear that book #1 should definitely be read (or at least go on a review binge to gain understanding) before this one. However, I’m a special snowflake and decided to ignore this and thus it took a bit to get it all sorted. Luckily, after the first 25ish% the story picked up.

Drew is an extrovert with his sights set on his brother’s best friend A.K.A his boss and owner of the bar he works at. He isn’t shy about his interest much to the annoyance (and sexual frustration) of said owner, Zach. Drew has been biding his time in getting Zach to finally notice him as more than a kid and he expedites it in the most pleasurable of ways when he gets sick of waiting.

Zach is the boss and friends with Drew’s brother and therefore places him on the do not feel/fuck list… even if it’s pure torture to work with him each day and deny those feelings. Let’s not forget the age gap- Zach is 40 and Drew is 28. The way Zach acted, you would have thought he was 80. It’s constantly mentioned and I did want to scream *get over it* many times for this measly 12 year age gap. They have good chemistry and worked well together once they got on the same page.

Things really begin to pick up for Zach and Drew when a stalker is introduced. They come together for safety and comfort during a very scary time. The stalker plot is engaging and well written. I enjoyed the family aspect going on in Riverside Falls and would be open to continuing with this series. Some of the medical stuff left me scratching my head- not in confusion but with bafflement of actual medical policy/procedure/protocol in comparison to the events detailed in this book. Trigger warnings for one instance of homophobia and a stalker.

Recommended.

An ARC was provided in exchange for an honest review.