Reviewed by Roberta
TITLE: The Burnt Toast B & B
SERIES: A Bluewater Bay Story
AUTHOR: Heidi Belleau & Rachel Haimowitz
PUBLISHER: Riptide Publishing
LENGTH: 241 Pages
BLURB:
After breaking his arm on set, Wolf’s Landing stuntman Ginsberg Sloan finds himself temporarily out of work. Luckily, Bluewater Bay’s worst B&B has cheap long-term rates, and Ginsberg’s not too proud to take advantage of them.
Derrick Richards, a grizzled laid-off logger, inherited the B&B after his parents’ untimely deaths. Making beds and cooking sunny-side-up eggs is hardly Derrick’s idea of a man’s way to make a living, but just as he’s decided to shut the place down, Ginsberg shows up on his doorstep, pitiful and soaking wet, and Derrick can hardly send him packing.
Not outright, at least.
The plan? Carry on the B&B’s tradition of terrible customer service and even worse food until the pampered city boy leaves voluntarily. What Derrick doesn’t count on, though, is that the lousier he gets at hosting, the more he convinces bored, busybody Ginsberg to try to get the B&B back on track. And he definitely doesn’t count on the growing attraction between them, or how much more he learns from Ginsberg than how to put out kitchen fires.
REVIEW:
I had the honor of reviewing the first book in the Bluewater Bay series and I really liked the idea of coming back to series after a bit and see how different authors could collaborate and make a series work. I’m so glad that I have as this book was just in turns freaking sweet and frustrating!!
Ginsberg Sloan is the stuntman for Carter Samuels and while filming a stunt for the show gets hurt and he needs a place to crash while he’s not working that won’t kill his budget. Ginsberg’s life hasn’t been all happiness and joy. Ginsberg has kinda a secret…see Ginsberg has transitioned from female to male and that has taken lots of money for bills that need to be paid. Ginsberg’s family didn’t understand and he’s been on his own for years. Couch-surfing in order to be able to have a roof over his head. Trying to find work as a stuntman is hard and Ginsberg has learned how to pinch pennies. I really liked Ginsberg’s character. He was this really optimistic guy who even though life hasn’t been the most kind to him, he still has so much love and hope and faith in people.
Derrick Richards on the other hand…is this big lumberjack guy who has all of these kinda homophobic thought patterns in his head that keeps coming out of his mouth and in his behavior. Derrick’s parents ran the Bluewater Bay B&B and he worked there all of his life. He was teased because he worked there and he’s allowed those hurtful comments to color his life. Derrick is gay and yet, he seems to have trouble with other gay men. He’s got this Alpha Guy thing going on….he has an issue with bottoms and effeminate men, again…the crap that was thrown at him from other kids. Derrick was a hard character for me to get into. I really did understand where he was coming from, however, I just found him dislikable. I will say that I did find him better at the end of the story, but it took me awhile to warm up to him.
I have to say that Jim was the BEST secondary character that I’ve seen in a long while. That he was this GREAT FLAMBOYANT character who loved himself. Jim was Derrick’s ex and still his best friend. Even with the way that Derrick treated him….Jim was still there for him. I loved how Jim took to Ginsberg. That he helped him out and was just so freaking friendly….I loved it!!! Jim is such a great guy and I think that he deserves his own book. Jim deserves some man-love happiness too!!
There was a bit of sex in this book and the sex that was on screen (thank you Kindle) it was pretty damn hot!! The other times, it was mentioned but not on screen. I will say that the intimacy between these two guys… it breaks my heart. They way that these two pushed and pulled…sigh.
Now, there was only angst and drama coming at these two is because of Derrick’s BS and because of Ginsberg’s reluctance to give Derrick another chance. That’s the way is should be. Their story was really more character driven and not so much the outside influences.
This was such a well written, character driven book. I was hooked from the moment I picked it up until the moment I finished. I really liked Ginsberg. I loved his optimism and his ability to spread joy with just Ginsberg being himself. I’m so glad that I got the opportunity to read this wonderful story that made my heart in turns melt and harden, then melt again.
This is a great book for you to sink into. Have a great cup of tea and fall in love with Ginsberg and Derrick.
RATING: 
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