Reviewed by Annika
TITLE: Blindside
SERIES: Blind Faith #3
AUTHOR: N.R. Walker
NARRATOR: Michael Pauley
PUBLISHER: Love Lane Books
RELEASE DATE: July 22, 2019
LENGTH: 6 hours, 56 minutes
BLURB:
Mark Gattison has avoided love and commitment his entire adult life. Not interested in more than a one night stand or a brief encounter in a bathroom stall, he is the epitome of a good time.
Will Parkinson is the guy who defends him, the guy who puts up with him, the guy Mark calls his best friend.
When Will becomes unsettled and a little distant, Mark takes it upon himself to find Will a boyfriend. Not familiar with the concept himself, Mark thinks Will needs someone to make him happy.
What Mark doesn’t know, is that he’s about to get blindsided. He’s about to get knocked off his feet by the one thing that’s been right in front of him the entire time.
REVIEW:
Blindside is the third and final book in this series. Contrary to the first two books this one focuses on Mark, Carter’s best friend. It can also be read as a standalone if you haven’t read Carter and Isaac’s story yet.
There are different ways to be blind and in Marks case his eyes does work – but he tends to miss what’s right in front of him. Will and Mark have been best friends for about a year. Only for Will it’s always been more than friendship, he’s always wanted something more from Mark. But Mark was oblivious to that fact.
However he wasn’t too blind to see that Will was becoming restless and increasingly unhappy. So, afraid to lose another friend Mark embarked on a new mission – to find a boyfriend for Will in order to keep him from leaving Hartford. So Will starts to date. Only now Mark is the one that’s increasingly unhappy. Standing on the side-lines looking at Will with other men, missing his friend and loathing the other men in Will’s life.
There is some angst in this story, but it wasn’t overdone. More than once I really wanted to hit Mark over the head to make him see what, and who, was right in front of his eyes. I mean it was obvious from the beginning that Will and Mark belonged together. That they already were a couple in almost every sense of the word. Everyone could see it – but Mark.
Michael Pauley did a great performance of Blindside. With his distinct voices for the different characters and great pacing and enunciation he makes this listen effortless and pleasant. Sure, there were a few instances where the voices were mixes up, but they were minor and easily overlooked. The story is told solely from Mark’s POV, and Pauley so wonderfully makes the listener feel his confusion when his relationship with Will changes, the desperation to keep things as they were, not to lose him. He brought them both to life and made you a part of their story.
This audiobook also included the novella Twelfth of Never that showed the boys during Christmas a couple of years later. We get a small glimpse of their future working in their café. We see them (mostly) happy and settled and so much in love, and true to form with big gestures and surprises. Their happily ever after was beautiful. Their official relationship might have started slow, and they sure have had their ups and downs, but it was also just right for them.
Sometimes all you need to do is open your eyes to see what’s right in front of you – it might just be the best thing of that ever happened to you.
RATING: 
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