Reviewed by Dennis
TITLE: Thirty Things
AUTHOR: Cate Ashwood
PUBLISHER: Dreamspinner Press
LENGTH: 209 pages
BLURB:
All their lives, Finn and Nate have been inseparable, sharing everything, and when a childhood accident left Finn broken, Nate stood by his side as all his other friends left. After all their years together, there’s one secret Finn still hasn’t revealed: he has been in love with Nate since they were eight years old. Hiding his feelings for twenty-one years—terrified of what might happen if Nate ever found out—has been difficult, but losing his best friend would be worse than living with a bad case of unrequited love. Unfortunately for Finn, Nate doesn’t make it easy.
Nate believes there are some things that just have to be done before your thirtieth birthday. As a gift to Finn, he plans an adventure to check off a list of thirty things to experience before hitting that milestone. Starting in Crawfordsville, Indiana, they tour the country, trying new things and meeting interesting new people. Nate’s having the time of his life, but he can tell Finn is holding something back. As the days count down, navigating the back roads suddenly seems easier than figuring out where their relationship is heading.
One thing’s for certain. There will be no turning back.
REVIEW:
Finn and Nate have been friends all their lives and have been inseparable, even after Finn had an accident and left him broken, Nate stuck by his friend. Now as adults they are still inseparable, living together. Even the jobs they have chosen are close, as Finn is a book editor and Nate is a writer. Although they have been together for twenty plus years and have shared all their experiences, Finn has had a secret that he’s been hiding from Nate, he is deeply in love with him.
Nate is a good friend and has stuck by Finn through his accident as a child and now as an adult. Now that Finn’s thirtieth birthday is looming near, Nate feels before Finn turns the big 3-0, he needs to fulfill thirty things and to do this that a month long road trip is necessary.
While on their trip it’s getting harder for Finn to keep hiding his feelings and even harder just being around Nate. He doesn’t know if he should bite the bullet and tell Nate how he feels and deal with the consequences or just keep his feelings hidden and deal with the pain of loving his best friend. Nate has planned the best road trip ever with thirty things for them to do while on this cross country adventure. Of course to keep Finn guessing what these things are, Nate has put each task in a separate envelope for Finn to open but only when the time comes. This is killing Finn because he is like a child waiting for a surprise, impatient. While doing one of the tasks something between the two happens and Nate takes the initiative and kisses Finn that blurs the line from friendship to more than friends. While Finn is in heaven over this new found interest that Nate has started between them, it also kind of confuses him. Is this something that Nate is just doing because of the idea of the road trip and trying new and adventurous things or is this something that Nate is serious about? Will their friendship be able to sustain this new adventure or will Finn end up broken hearted and without his best friend Nate?
OMG I really enjoyed this book! I love when an author can grab you from the beginning and just keep you wanting to know what’s going to happen next, and Cate did just that. She has written a wonderful story that just plays out in your head and you don’t want to stop. Cate has painted a picture for you to visualize while reading the words on the page. You’re not just reading the story but rather like a third party in the road trip. I would definitely pick up Thirty Things by Cate Ashwood and enjoy the ride!
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