Reviewed by Becca

TITLE: Stand in Place

AUTHOR: Mary Calmes

PUBLISHER: self-published

LENGTH: 311 pages

RELEASE DATE: July 17, 2019

BLURB:

One summer won’t be enough…. 

Kaenon Geary was done fighting the small minds in his sleepy Texas town when he made his escape and never looked back. But now, for the first time in more than a decade, he’s returned to Braxton to spend the summer with his beloved grandmother—her final summer—and no longer recognizes the home he’d left behind all those years ago. 

Everything has changed. 

Everything but the man he’s never stopped wanting. 

Brody Scott was the local football hero who became a gridiron champ, but he retired from the fast lane to forge a new life as the Chief Constable of Braxton. He longs to put down roots in the community he is now sworn to protect. Though he’s not at all sure he can protect his heart from the quiet, earnest boy he once knew. The boy who has come back a man. 

Starting something would be a mistake. Kaenon plans to fly away at summer’s end, but his love is something Brody desperately wants to have…and to keep. Their days together are numbered. Unless some simple hometown magic can make all the right things bloom and show them the true definition of love.

REVIEW:

I don’t even know where to start with this book other than you need to read it. My goodness. Book hangover. Jo and Kaenon made this book with their bond, their love, and sense of family. But as fun as these two made this book, there are some serious messages in here. Forgiveness is a big one. Letting go and moving on. And knowing sometimes you just have to accept people are the way they are and are never going to change.

Kae’s life for a while was pure hell. Having such a great relationship with his grandparents and Aunt, he never thought twice when he came out to them, that the rest of his family would be any different. But they were. His own brother beat him, his sister turned away from him, his parents tried to ‘exorcise’ him with the preachers and we’ll as send him to conversion therapy. And it was about to get bad until his grandparents and Aunt stepped in and took over. And they held nothing back. His brother outed him at school, he was almost raped several times, beaten and much more, but people started stepping up and in and refused to allow him to be hurt anymore. After that, he just forgot anyone but his three family existed. Many tried to speak to him, but he couldn’t. He was numb. We he finally got out of there, he ran like hell was on his heels. Until his grandmother, Jo, needed him home. He didn’t want to be back home but for her he’d do anything. When he got home, he got the shock of his life. Things had changed. People had changed. They wanted forgiveness, to right the wrongs they did. Especially his brother and sister. And little by little, he starts to let go and heal. With a little help from a foxy constable. But the ultimate test would be seeing his parents again and that wound may never heal.

Hands down, Jo and Kae make this book. I laughed so hard so much, my stomach still hurts and my eyes burn from the tears of laughter. But they burn from sadness as well. Kae shouldn’t have had the life he did. No kid should. Kids should be loved no matter who or what they are and it killed me to see what he went through. Which made me love his grandparents and Aunt all the more. They folded him under their wings and taught him so much. They supported him, they loved him, and let him be who he was. Period. Which is how it should be. 

But what I loved about Jo as well, is in her sneaky ass way, she made Kae face his demons. Made him deal with the anger and all that was holding him tight so he couldn’t really put down roots or love. Kae knew when she meddled. But he couldn’t be mad at her. And he knew in his own way, it was time.

I wish I had a grandma like Jo. That woman is a pistol and don’t care who knows it. I love this story and you guys are in for a treat with it.

RATING: 

BUY LINK: 

amazon