Reviewed by Valerie
TITLE: Unguarded
SERIES: Vino & Veritas
AUTHOR: Jay Hogan
PUBLISHER: Heart Eyes Press
LENGTH: 333 pages
RELEASE DATE: May 6, 2021
BLURB:
I fled Boston and my cheating jerk of an ex with three hundred dollars and a lip gloss in my pocket. Waking up the next day in Burlington, Vermont, with a crick in my back and a frozen ass wasn’t exactly in the plan. If there was one. Which there wasn’t. Story of my life.
Three hours later and I’ve been hired as temporary help in the local veterinary and grooming clinic, which is kind of impressive since I know zip about animals and even less about grooming. But one thing I do know—I’m crushing hard on the sexy, absent-minded vet I work for.
My life is a hot mess. The last thing I need is another relationship. Emmett pushes all my buttons, but he isn’t out. He’s overwhelmed with a business to run and a son to look after and the kind of domestic life I never thought I wanted.
I should walk away.
But Emmett believes in me, and I might just be starting to believe in myself. As different as we are, is it possible we’re exactly what the other needs?
REVIEW:
If it wasn’t love, I’d eat my fucking rainbow flag. And when I opened my eyes to find him staring right at me, I knew he felt it too.
Unguarded is an adorably scrumptious romantic comedy and my favorite book in the Vino & Veritas series thus far. Tai and Emmett are undeniably charming and made for each other. This is a journey of recovery for the two men, one who considers himself damaged goods, and the other, a single father still pained by the death of his wife four years earlier.
I knew Unguarded was in the running for 5 stars/hearts on the first page. Have your tissue box ready…for tears of laughter, that is. Never have I laughed so hard – or been scolded by my son because my guffawing was disturbing his peace – and I was still on the first page. This is where we meet Tai after he runs from his despicable cheating boyfriend. He’s sleeping in his car, dressed inappropriately for the cold Vermont nights in “a neon pink fishnet shirt that drew all the boys’ attention to my perky nipples but whose holes could’ve let a complete Iditarod dog team through with nothing but net.” That tells you almost everything you need to know about the delightfully quirky personality of this fragile man who’s about to bring sunshine to Emmett and his ten-year-old son, Leo.
Tai is a Kiwi by way of Boston where he was in an emotionally and financially abusive relationship with a man who considered Tai his property. Having just arrived in Burlington with no plan, no job, no money and no place to stay, he meets Emmett at the Vino & Veritas bookstore and learns that the veterinarian is in desperate need of a temporary receptionist. Emmett is bisexual, closeted, and bedazzled by Tai. In a word, he knows he’s fucked.
Lord, help me. I dragged my mind from the gutter where it was busy pitching a tent and smacked it hard…from the way my body reacted, he might as well have been wearing booty shorts and a collar and leash. Don’t ask where that came from.
The men start developing complicated feelings. Neither feels he has enough to offer the other, and despite falling hard for Emmett, the unapologetically, flamboyantly gay Tai has no interest in becoming a closeted man’s secret. The romance is strong, though. Maybe. If you consider their first intimate interlude in a vet clinic romantic – getting jiggy with it between oversized bags of dog food and an x-ray machine, all while pairs of sick animal eyes follow their every move. It certainly nails the comedy half of rom-com.
Thorough world building is something I relish in a novel. It makes all the difference in creating an immersive fictional world for the reader to enjoy. Ms. Hogan – who literally lives on the other side of the world – serves up a master class in how to create a visual feast of quaint New England villages and the beautiful Vermont countryside she wends her story around. She has clearly done her homework researching the area and fills her narrative with local landmarks. My brother’s family lives a hop, skip, and a jump from Burlington so I’ve been there many times, but even I delighted in vicariously crossing Lake Champlain on the ferry, picnicking among the green pastoral flats, and viewing picturesque bridges and church spies rising among the colorful fall foliage – all serving as a backdrop for Tai and Emmett’s love story. The author’s vivid world and lyrical writing are a gift to her readers.
…watching Vermont draw her pretty fall cloak over her shoulders and shrug against the cooling temperatures. The fresh scent of a cold wind blowing down from the north. The soft rush of leaves swept and cleaned as Burlington tidied house for the snow.
And if I may say, any book that references “It’s Raining Men” – and this isn’t the first gay romance that has, imagine that – automatically gets a bump up in the ratings. But since we’re already at 5 hearts, it goes toward good karma. (No other song captures the spirit of my high school self at the peak of my underage dance club years in the 1980s better than this Weather Girls song. Hallelujah!)
What I love about the ending of Unguarded is how Tai learns what real love is from observing Emmett and those around him. Emmett illustrates the power and joy of parental love, love among friends, even the love gifted by loyal pets. Then there’s the true, deeply affecting, romantic love Tai has never experienced before and now has with Emmett, who has taught him to only give his love to someone who will cherish it and keep it safe. Finally, Tai is bestowing himself with self-love (no, not that kind!) and self-respect. He feels alive for the first time, independent and standing on his own two feet and ready to give his heart to Emmett and Leo.
This is a not to be missed story with a heartwarming HEA and bonus epilogue.
RATING: 
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