Reviewed by Amber
TITLE: Here For You
AUTHOR: Skylar M. Cates
PUBLISHER: Dreamspinner Press
LENGTH: 234 pages
BLURB:
Life is a thread connecting us. One pull and it all unravels.
Cole Gannon arrives in the seaside town of Ocean Vista to work as a bartender and finally find a place to belong. Determined to make a home for himself, Cole lives happily with his four colorful roommates, whom he considers brothers. The only problem is Cole’s attraction to Ian Stark—a guy all wrong for him. He wishes he didn’t keep running into the sexy lawyer.
Ian knows Cole is attracted to him, but the younger man keeps him at arm’s length. It only makes Ian more determined to be with Cole and learn all his secrets. But while Ian has built a successful law practice, he hasn’t done too well with relationships.
When a sudden and devastating tragedy occurs, it shatters Cole’s world and throws Cole and Ian together in unexpected ways. In an instant, everything between them changes forever.
REVIEW:
I liked several things about this book. I really enjoyed the writing style. I thought the friendships between the roommates were very nicely done, without a doubt I felt the love all 5 men shared. It was incredibly touching and it really made me long for those types of relationships. My biggest issue was how easily Cole wanted to martyr himself even after things changed when the “tragedy” occurred. I didn’t get that, at all. Obviously, everyone deals with grief differently and I can’t say what is right and wrong when one goes through that type of healing. What I did know was I didn’t understand Cole’s reactions which pulled me out of the story a few times.
Cole Gannon loves the life he shares with his 4 other roommates. He enjoys his no stress job as a bartender and the hookups the position throws at him. Having had a pretty rocky and unstable childhood he loves the sense of family he has with his roommates. He’s especially close with one of his roommates, Brendan. Brendan and Cole form a very strong bond more like brothers than best friends. Brendan is in law school and is interning at a law office owned by, Ian Stark. When Cole first met Brendan’s boss he felt like he was struck by lightning. It was without a doubt, instant attraction and possibly something more. He will not allow himself to explore that thought because Brendan has already confided in Cole that he’s in love with Ian but Ian doesn’t know.
Ian Stark has worked his whole life to be the successful lawyer that he is. He’s proud of his law firm and his employees. He also really likes his newest intern, Brendan. He admires his work ethic, his compassion, and morals. He sees in Brendan the great lawyer he could possibly become. Uncharacteristically, one night he takes Brendan up on his offer to come over to his house for a party. When he’s introduced to one of Brendan’s roommates, Cole he feels god smacked. He’s never been more drawn to an individual in his whole life. He’s also very perplexed as to why Cole avoids him but looks at him like he’s starving for his touch. He takes it as a challenge.
Tragedy does in fact strike and even though from the blurb I was expecting something, this really did hurt. And it was earth shattering for the whole house. Not surprisingly the roommates and their bond crumble.
Cole and Ian come together in their grief, both grieving a dear friend and a valued employee. More importantly they physically give each other exactly what the other wants. Unfortunately, Cole still runs and Ian still purses.
When Cole gave in, finally I thought him and Ian were beautiful and very HOT together. Like I mentioned earlier it was frustrating at times. The self punishment by denying yourself happiness drove me nuts. And the fact that it wasn’t just Cole but almost all the roommates went into this self-destructive spiral just added to the frustration.
Even though I didn’t love this book, I did think it was ok and I would read other stories involving these men because DAMN, there were a lot of loose ends.
RATING: 
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