REVIEWED BY CINDY
AUTHOR: Mia Kerick
PUBLISHER: Dreamspinner Press
LENGTH: 260 pages
Blurb:
Robby Dalton is the perfect all-American boy. He played the sports his father chose for him in high school, attended the college his father selected, and has worked hard to conform to his father’s macho views. But emotionally he doesn’t fit anywhere, and he can’t connect with a woman beyond a few uninspired dates. Robby’s not in the closet, because he’s never guessed he’s gay. Now he owns a small commercial construction company, and one night after work he runs into Savannah Meyers. He finds her fascinating and agrees to a date, thinking maybe this woman would be different.
But Savannah has her own agenda. She is looking for a love match for her roommate, Tristan Chartrand, whom she rescued from the streets years ago. He’s like a brother, and her only family, so she wants him safe and happy. Her plan seems to begin well, because when Robby meets Tristan, he’s surprised to find it’s Tristan he wants, not Savannah. But some people in Robby’s life don’t approve of Tristan’s lowly station in life, and some don’t approve of Robby being gay. Some people are full of hate and violence, and Robby and Tristan will need courage and strength if a loving future is to be part of the deal.
Review:
I’ll admit, I had a hard time getting into this book. I wasn’t sure where it could possibly go and it made me wary, but the premise was so intriguing, I kept reading. I’m glad I did.
The characters in this book are unique, complicated and interesting. I fell in love with Tristan right away. I have a soft spot for sweet, slightly broken men and he pushed all my buttons. I wanted to wrap him up and keep him safe even before I found out about everything that had happened to him.
Robby is a different kind of man all together, although still as broken in different ways. He works hard, is a good son and friend but he’s mostly coasting through life, not really able to make a connection with any of the women he meets.
Savannah is the kind of friend we all wish we could have. She’s loyal, smart and beautiful. She takes care of Tristian with a passion that will make you a little jealous and he takes care of her with the same amount of love.
Watching the relationship develop between these three people was absolutely fascinating, even if the writing style didn’t quite click with me. The story of Savannah and Tristan’s past is mostly told through a series of flashbacks told from Savannah’s POV and it’s truly heartbreaking.
The side characters are mostly predictable. Robbie’s father is a homophobic jerk and his mother is mostly a ghost of a person. His sister is a happy surprise and I was sad we didn’t get to see more of her.
Robbie’s best friend is a character of a completely different color. Within the first few lines of meeting Mikey, I wanted to slap him and that feeling never left. He’s crass, rude and just plain mean and I really did want to see bad things happen to him.
As I said, there were some issues for me. It was a little choppy in places and I felt that some things were a little rushed, but all in all, I liked this story. Once I got involved, I was swept away by Robbie and Tristan and their struggle to be together and I found myself cheering for them at the end.
I’m giving this story four stars mostly based on the interesting, original premise and the well written characters that stole my heart a little. I will be checking out more stories from this author soon
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