Reviewed by Susan
TITLE: Patchwork Paradise
AUTHOR: Indra Vaughn
PUBLISHER: Riptide Publishing
LENGTH: 275 pages
RELEASE DATE: March 28, 2016
BLURB:
Oliver and Samuel’s relationship is fairy-tale perfect. They share a gorgeous house in Antwerp, go out with their friends every weekend, and count down the days to their dream wedding. But their happy ending is shattered one late night, and just like that, Ollie is left bereft and alone.
The months that follow are long and dark, but slowly Ollie emerges from his grief. He even braves the waters of online dating, though deep down he doesn’t believe he can find that connection again. He doesn’t think to look for love right in front of him: his bisexual friend Thomas, the gentle giant with a kind heart and sad eyes who’s wanted him all along.
When Thomas suddenly discovers he has a son who needs him, he’s ill prepared. Ollie opens up his house—Sam’s house—and lets them in. Ollie doesn’t know what scares him more: the responsibility of caring for a baby, or the way Thomas is steadily winning his heart. It will take all the courage he has to discover whether or not fairy tales can happen for real.
REVIEW:
I normally shy away from stories that are major tear jerkers, but something about this book called to me, and I am really glad that I listened to that call. This is a touching story of love and loss and finding love again.
First let me say how wonderfully refreshing it was to have a story set in a European country other than England, France or Spain. We just don’t see that too often, and the little glimpses the author gives us of Antwerp add a nice atmosphere to the story.
You need to gather tissues before starting this book. We are given a brief glimpse of the perfection and happiness that is Ollie’s life with Sam. Then Ollie has his world torn out from under him. His grief is a tangible living thing. We see how at first he does not cope at all despite the best efforts of his friends and family. As he emerges from the fog of grief, we see him trying to move forward. Sometimes successfully, sometimes not. What he does have is the support of his friends.
One of those friends is Thomas. Thomas has always been in love with Ollie, but knew that he never stood a chance because of Ollie’s love for Sam. When Sam is tragically taken away, Thomas does his best to stand beside Ollie, setting aside his feelings for the sake of his friend. Thomas moves on with his life, trying to forget the love that he feels he will never have.
I liked how the story unfolds slowly as Ollie moves through the stages of grief with unexpected setbacks from outside sources and little victories in his goal to rebuild his life. This is a slow process,
but he gradually becomes aware that Thomas is a major part of his life and he starts to see him differently than he has before. When Thomas’s world takes a major change in direction, Ollie is determined to be there for Thomas as he was for him. Their path to happiness has many ups and downs, and develops over time. The ebb and flow of the story is told in an easy reading way that takes you along with them effortlessly.
There is a cheating tag with this story, but this does not take place between the main characters.
RATING: 
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