Reviewed by Becca

TITLE: 45 and Holding

AUTHOR: Jacki James & Jill Wexler

PUBLISHER: self-published

LENGTH: 199 pages

RELEASE DATE: September 26, 2018

BLURB:

Empty Nest meets Mid-life Crisis

When widower Scott Anderson’s daughter goes off to college, he finds himself alone for the first time in as long as he can remember. With his primary role no longer being “Claire’s dad,” he realizes he isn’t sure who he is or what he wants out of life.
For Craig Baker, a mid-life crisis crept up on him in the form of restlessness that a new Jeep didn’t solve. Just as he’s contemplating getting a tattoo to try and shake himself out of this funk, he meets an old classmate who is in the same boat.
They’re both trying to figure out who they are at the age of forty-five. For one man, there’s a slow realization that maybe he doesn’t need something to cure the restlessness, but someone.
For the other man, it’s the discovery of a new side to himself and the willingness to embrace it.
And for both of them, it’s realizing that mid-life means you still have half your life left so you might as well live it.

REVIEW:

I adored this book. It has been so wonderful that, at least what I’m picking, is all about diversity. I’ve seen book with disabilities and different races, more trans, bi, etc. And now I’m seeing more older men like in this one and I love it. Don’t get me wrong, books with 20-somethings who are built, hung and sexy as hell can make for a good read, but it was nice to see someone my age, while being fit, they are sculpted. They have a little paunch. It made my day.

Craig is convinced he’s lost his mind. He sees a tat on this gorgeous man in his dog training class and he thinks he has to have one now. Maybe a motorcycle. Shouldn’t he have had that before now? Maybe this is what they mean by middle age crisis. Who knows. All he knows is he feels unbalanced like never before and don’t know how to fix it. And man do I know how he feels. You feel like your life should be different. It’s not necessarily that you aren’t happy but something is unsettling. And you have no idea what. But when he meets Scott, things begin to change. For one, he has a friend. And everything with Scott feels right.

Scott is dealing with empty nest syndrome. He lost his wife years ago and now his daughter has left for college. He feels alone and it’s taking everything he has not to call his kid every second. He’s such a sweet man too. He grew up fast when his wife died. He made sure he was the dad his daughter needed him to be. But now even his kid wants him to date. And she doesn’t care who. Even if it’s a man. Getting to know Craig has opened up some feelings for him, but he’s not sure if he’s ready. Or if it’s even what he wants. Until a sexy kiss turns everything upside down.

I love these two. They’ve spent their lives buckling down taking care of things. But both of them feel ready for more. I love that they aren’t perfect. They are every day 45 year old men who want more for the rest of their lives. But they aren’t too set in their ways to make a little change. To do something different. They are happy with each other the way they are. And I love it. Of course, everyone wants to make a great impression, but still.

This is such a sweet romance. It’s soft and not angsty. It’s endearing and loving and I adored it all. It’s a great read.

RATING:  

BUY LINK: 

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