Reviewed by Valerie
TITLE: Awkward Love
AUTHOR: Riley Hart
SERIES: Stumbling Into Love
PUBLISHER: Self-Published
LENGTH: 218 pages
RELEASE DATE: September 7, 2020
BLURB:
Jameson
Being a twenty-two-year-old virgin was not on my list of life goals. I don’t know how it happened. Well…I never date, dedicate all my time to college, and I’m awkward with a capital A around hot guys–okay, so I know exactly how it happened. When my best friends come up with a plan to make the most of this summer before grad school, I’m all for it. That’s how I end up at a charity bachelor auction, bidding on a date I hope will help me toss this V-card out the window.
What could possibly go wrong?
Will
Life is good. I love my new job as PA to the owner of a major production company. Being a prize in a charity auction and scoring the highest bid? Icing on the cake. Now I get to be the date of the most adorable, rambling, bow-tie-wearing grad student I’ve ever seen. Seriously, I can’t be within ten feet of this guy without a smile on my face. When he slips that he’s looking for a summer fling to experiment with, I’m game. Jameson is so different from anyone I’ve hooked up with before, so completely himself, I’m immediately smitten.
Oh, and did I mention we find out he’s my boss’s son?
Between keeping our fling-turned-relationship a secret from his dad and another little familial bombshell that gets dropped in our laps, I’m quickly learning that love is a whole lot more complicated than I thought.
REVIEW:
I love, love, love Awkward Love, book two in Riley Hart’s Stumbling Into Love series. It’s the most adorable book I’ve read in ages, and probably my favorite of Riley Hart’s. It fulfills the definition of romance – a feeling of excitement and mystery associated with love – that many books in the genre don’t. Maybe it’s because it’s young love – first love – that it fully encapsulates the excitement and mystery experienced for the first time. Jameson and Will are both so endearing. Jameson is adorkable, sweet, and so deserving but “when I thought of myself, I saw bow ties, nerdy, awkward, and different.” He believes he’s unworthy of Will, who is just the best damn man ever for seeing the wonderful beneath the awkward in Jameson. He’s gifted at putting Jameson at ease.
The dual first person narrative begins with Jameson and his two best friends, Kira and Ali, making a pact to have summer flings before beginning grad school in the fall. Jameson would love to “jizz his way through summer” and put his virginity in the rear view mirror. So the girls drag him to an LGBTQ+ charity bachelor auction to find him a potential date. They cough up two grand (!) to bid on his behalf and snag a date with Will, the cute and confident blond. Jameson sinks in his chair from embarrassment; little does he know Will is the last person who would ever laugh at him.
A disastrous first date – “I ramble when I’m nervous. Go me.” – leads to another and another and sexual adventures ensue. Will and Jameson continually tell themselves and each other that it’s just a summer fling, even though they’re both developing feelings and want something more long term. There are complications to come that neither is aware of, though – oh, it’s fun to be an omnipotent reader – since unbeknownst to either man, Will is employed as the PA to Jameson’s dad. How will this affect Will’s job, and how will this impact Jameson who has a somewhat bumpy relationship with his dad?
Awkward Love is more than just a love story. It’s about the confidence and comfort Will instills in Jameson, who has the social adroitness of a gnat. Will shows him that he’s worthy of whatever he wants. The book is also about strengthening and healing familial bonds for both men, dealing with paternal expectations, and seeing how Will and Jameson’s priorities play out. The plotlines nicely intertwine and are addressed perfectly.
The novel is full of story-enriching secondary characters, including numerous friends on both sides. I didn’t have the opportunity to read Elijah and Shaw’s book, Stupid Love, but I can see what a happy and loving couple they are. They pop up throughout this book. Jameson’s friends Kira and Ali are supportive and fun, and Jameson’s family have important roles. His parents are blessedly normal and he has a close relationship with his younger sister.
If you’re up for a completely sweet and endearing story, I hope you’ll grab a copy of Awkward Love. Now I’m off to read Stupid Love!
RATING: 
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