Reviewed by Sadonna

TITLE:  His Haven

SERIES:  His

AUTHOR:  Con Riley

PUBLISHER:  Self-published

LENGTH:    322 pages

RELEASE DATE:  April 21, 2021

BLURB:

Once jilted, twice shy…

Keir Brodie is a lawyer with good reason for his trust issues. A year after his groom didn’t show up at their wedding, he’s still heartsore and hurting. Work has been his saviour, but a new project sets alarm bells ringing — his favourite client wants to buy a house for someone Keir thinks is a liar.

Mitch’s nice-guy act doesn’t fool Keir, and he can’t let sparks flying when they’re together distract him. That’s just the flare of opposites attracting, not the lifelong connection he misses. Besides, no amount of passion is worth risking his heart, especially with someone only down for onetime hook-ups.

Their shared project chips away at Keir’s first impressions. As the truth, and Keir, unravel, Mitch pieces him back together in ways Keir couldn’t have predicted. Trusting Mitch with more than his client’s money will take a leap of faith, in himself, and in a man Keir hopes won’t leave him waiting.

♥ Featuring opposites who attract, and passion in close proximity, His Haven is the third shared-world novel in the His Contemporary MM Romance series. Featuring a different couple each time, these books can be read alone, or enjoyed together. ♥

REVIEW:

Note:  This is the third book in this series.  While it can be read as a stand alone, I feel like reading at least the 2nd book, His Compass, would really add to the enjoyment of this story.

Keir Brodie, the lawyer of Nick from the previous book, and Mitch, the carer for Justin, brother of Tom from the previous book, are on a sailing trip with Nick, Tom and Justin.  Justin has suffered a traumatic brain injury and lives at a group home, The Haven, where Mitch is his primary carer.  He’s a nurse who has specialized in brain injury and recovery.  While Tom and Nick are getting Justin used to sailing with them and have retrofitted the yacht to standards that will allow Justin to sail safely, it’s still a lot for Justin to process.  So Nick has decided that they need to get a house closer to the village where they dock.  Keir is entirely skeptical of this venture and ascribes greedy motives to Mitch in this idea.  His job is to look out for Nick, and when Mitch flirts with him while wearing a silver band on his wedding ring finger, Keir is outraged and even more convinced that Mitch is a liar and not to be trusted.

When Keir returns to Cornwall from London the following week to help conduct the search for a suitable house, he’s surprised when Mitch meets him at the airport and he’s also suspicious.  But when he ends up having a bit of a crisis and Mitch takes care of him, he begins to think that maybe he’s wrong about the guy.  And when he proposes a no strings attached sex only relationship, Keir, who has cut himself off from everyone except work and Charles, his best friend and current erstwhile flat mate, he thinks maybe that will get him out of the funk and rut he’s been in since he was left at the altar nearly a year ago.  And when the sex is off the charts, he can’t help but think that maybe this is just what he needs.  And also he may have been wrong about Mitch.

Upon his return to London and work, Keir also begins to take control of his life and steps to put the past behind him, starting with dealing with his wedding detritus, etc.  But there is much to ponder here and he realizes that maybe it’s not so much the ex as the being humiliated and left at the altar that is so upsetting.  Much of this abandonment issue becomes clear as we learn more about Keir and his life and his relationship with Charles, his best friend since age 7 at boarding school.

The next trip to Cornwall includes a stay at The Haven which Mitch while Justin, Tom and Nick are on a longer sailing trip.  Keri stays at the Annexe at the home and enjoys his time with Mitch and the other residents.  He comes to see Mitch in a whole different light – one that convinces him that Mitch is not motivated by any selfish desires in finding a place for Justin to be comfortable near the port.  Mitch challenges him and pushes him to take control of his life and go after what he really needs and wants.  Keir ends up confessing all about his disaster of a wedding day and also shares his childhood trauma.  They end up having a wonderful week together and finding a possible house as well 🙂   They even have an unexpected reunion with someone who helped Keri accept that he’s not the cutthroat he likes to think himself 😉

When Keri returns to London though, something happens that trips his usual distrust and fear of not being enough.  Well two things really.  And so he makes some foolish assumptions and decides not to communicate with anyone.  Luckily, Mitch is not so easily dissuaded.  More true confession time and thankfully Keir is ready and wiling to listen.  And in return, Keir comes up with a plan – one that will hopefully work out for everyone 🙂

This story!  I know it’s only April, but I’m confident that this is definitely going to be in my top 10 books of the year 🙂  I really don’t know how I could love this story more.  Keir is so guarded and skeptical and suspicious when this book opens.  He distrusts pretty much everything and everyone except for Nick, his client, and Charles, his BFF.  And while he has had love and support in his life, he’s also dealt with a lot of trauma and loss.  Charles has been his one constant, but that relationship is fraught with other issues as well 😉  I boy I CANNOT WAIT for his story so I was thrilled to read in the author’s note afterward that it’s coming this summer 😀  Mitch has dealt with his own losses and traumas and we learn why he decided to go into the field he’s in.  I absolute adored the way the author constructed the reveals in this story – BRILLIANT!  Everything is organic to the story – there’s no info dumps or early on oversharing.  The pacing was perfect and the relationship between Keir and Mitch builds and builds as Keir’s trust in both Mitch and himself grows.  Of course he does trip himself up a bit with his jumping to conclusions – he’s so ready to believe the worst about people.  Mitch’s response is amazing.  And then Keir’s response is epic!  I loved how Keir came to accept people and their motives – not looking for the worst in people, but instead believing the best.  The epilogue is absolutely breathtaking.  And for those fans of Riley’s Seattle Stories, the crossover here is lovely 🙂  So so so good!  I cannot recommend this book highly enough.  It’s beautiful and swoony and happy tears worthy.  BRAVA Con Riley!!

RATING:

BUY LINKS:

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