Reviewed by Cheryl
TITLE: Damaged Hearts
SERIES: The Boys of Venice Beach #1
AUTHOR: Jan St. Marcus
PUBLISHER: Self Published
LENGTH: 469 pages
RELEASE DATE: December 6, 2019
BLURB:
A chance encounter connects them.
Their tragic pasts bond them.
An unexpected love surprises them.
An unseen danger stalks them.
Love doesn’t have a chance…or does it?
When 19-year-old military veteran Brandon Hawkins is attacked on Venice Beach by a gang of frat boys, he is saved by Michelangelo Curtis, a passerby.
Michelangelo was roaming the boardwalk grieving the death of his twin brother six months earlier. The two men’s unexpected encounter forges a strong bond between the damaged and lonely men.
Inviting the homeless Bran to his place for some food and a shower, 25-year-old Michelangelo finds himself drawn to the younger man. Neither of the men is gay. But before long, their friendship morphs into something like love and takes them both by surprise.
And they have something else in common:
The frat boys are out for revenge!
REVIEW:
This was an interesting book. In some ways, the characters were a study on opposites, but in others they were very much alike. Both have been through trauma and have lost people they care about. Michelangelo lost his twin brother, Leo, and Brandon, a former soldier, lost contemporaries in battle, particularly a sergeant who he had a strong bond with and who was shot in front of his eyes. He still carries a watch given to him by the sergeant.
At the beginning of the book, Brandon was homeless and Michelangelo, responding to some deep call, offered him first a hot meal and shower, then a home.
The road to romance was rocky and started off on the back foot. Michelangelo saved Brandon from torment by a group of frat boys and as a result was catapulted into a merry-go-round of unwanted notoriety and subsequent danger from the same frat boys.
On the whole, the book was engaging, realistic and well written. The two main characters were, basically, well rounded and relatable. They were real in their physical manifestation. Bran was more gritty and grounded in substance and we get to see a great deal of his inner workings and the horrors of his past that have brought him to here he was at the start of the book. The camera is less focused on Michelangelo and this might be a deliberate attempt to show that he is still only half a person after the death of his twin, his new solo persona not yet solidified.
The main issue I have with the book, and it isn’t devastating, is that I didn’t entirely buy into Michelangelo’s job and its effects on their lives. Michelangelo worked for the government, designing algorithms and other maths stuff. I understand that it was highly classified work, but there were times when it was a tad overdramatic, and not so realistic, I thought. However, I was more than happy to suspend my disbelief on the basis that the rest of the book was so consistent and relatable.
I will definitely recommend this book as an easy read, despite its length, and a slow burn romance with danger and adventure to spice it up. The trope of trauma from the past had been given a nice twist with different kinds of trauma, and threat has a realistic source and course. The characters are engaging and consistent and the story arc is smooth as is the dialogue, which keeps the voices separate and was my favourite part of the book.
RATING: 
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