Reviewed by Vicki
TITLE: Take Two
AUTHOR: Shira Anthony
PUBLISHER: Dreamspinner Press
LENGTH: 214 pages
RELEASE DATE: September 9th, 2016
BLURB:
Shiver me timbers! When Professor Wesley Coolidge accepts a summer job as a historical consultant to a pirate movie being filmed in North Carolina, the last person he expects to bump into is his soon-to-be-ex, movie star Sander Carson. Just like the flamboyant pirate he’s playing, Sander, aka Sam Carr, is used to getting what he wants, and he makes it clear he wants Wesley back in his life.
Sam acknowledges it’s his fault they split up. He lost Wesley when he left their life in New York City behind for a career in Hollywood. But Wesley has finally managed to put the pieces of his heart back together, and he isn’t interested in Sam and Wesley: The Sequel. Sam soon realizes that convincing Wesley to give their relationship a second chance will take much more than apologies and reminders of good times past. If he wants Wesley back, Sam will have to show Wesley that they really can sail into the sunset together—a real-life happily-ever-after that won’t end once the final credits roll.
REVIEW:
Awww… what a sweet story! It started off fluffy then turned into a deep story of reunited love.
This is the story of Wesley the history professor and Sam the actor. They have been married for many years, lovers since college, but secret. Sam wanted to focus on his acting career, and being a gay man starting as an actor seemed like a risky plan. So Wesley supported him from the background, staying at home while Sam traveled for work, watching the stories come out of him dating his costars, and growing more and more lonely. Eventually it became too much for Wesley, and he filed for divorce. Sam manages to not signed the divorce papers, and seems to be biding his time, maybe hoping to reunite with Wesley, who has no clue, and has moved on.
So Wesley’s current boyfriend Carl, is going to South America for the summer. Wesley, now a professor, is taking the summer off to spend with Carl. Until Carl un-invites him. Then Wesley gets a job offer he can’t refuse, the opportunity to consult on a pirate movie being filmed on Bald Head Island North Carolina. This seems like a better deal, work on a movie, maybe do a little relaxing, and make a bunch of money. Off Wesley goes…
Imagine his surprise when he finds out this has all been set up by none other than Sam, his ex-husband!
I’m not going to tell you what happens from here, you just have to read it! I will say that Sam works hard to win his man back. Wesley works hard to resist. There is humor, drama, and a bit of excitement, and a little sex. I can’t say that there were really any big surprises, I could see what was coming, but I didn’t mind that. I loved Sam’s commitment to his goal, and I loved that he sees his past mistakes and tries to win back Wesley’s love. He doesn’t always make the best choices in his attempt, but he has such a good heart that I could see what he was trying to do. I liked Wesley too, sometimes he seems strong and steady, then has moments of neediness. I liked the bits of drama, again no big surprises, but it worked for this story. At one point I realized there was no sex fairly far in to the book, but it worked so well when it finally happened that I didn’t miss it! Sam and Wesley are very well connected even without the physical part, and we get to see their good time and some bad through flashbacks. We even get to see a little glimpse of the pirate movie…
I’ve read lots of books by Shira Anthony, and I really enjoy her contemporary stories. This one had the perfect balance between fluff and drama, with a little humor thrown in. I know from Facebook that Shira is a boater, and is familiar with the area, so I assume the setting is accurate. I liked the main characters, but there was a couple of side characters I liked as well. One couple I wouldn’t mind seeing get their own story! The sex was late to come (Ha! No pun intended!), but was very nice once it picked up. The story was well written, enough details, good dialogue, and a great ending. I liked it all!
I totally enjoyed this story!
BUY LINKS:
Sounds delightful and now added to the never ending TBR pile. LOL!