Reviewed by Valerie
TITLE: Cameron Wants to be a Hero
SERIES: Love, Austen #2
AUTHOR: Anyta Sunday
PUBLISHER: Self-Published
LENGTH: 302 pages
RELEASE DATE: May 17, 2021
BLURB:
Lake: Did you get his number this time?
Cameron: Yes. But I’m not sure I should use it so soon.
Lake: What’s soon? Didn’t you last see him yesterday?
Cameron: I thought you’re meant to wait three days? Otherwise it looks desperate.
Lake: You are desperate.
Cameron: Thanks.
Lake: From everything you’ve told me, sounds like this could be something.
Cameron: You think?
Lake: Message him. Keep it sexy.
~ ~ ~
When it comes to romance books, Cameron Morland can always read between the lines. When it comes to real romance, he may need a dictionary.
Or Jane.
~ ~ ~
It’s Northanger Abbey, complete with a neo-gothic mansion and charming misunderstandings. But contemporary. And gay.
REVIEW:
Trigger Warning: This book contains quotes from The Wizard of Oz. (Okay, in fairness I know my phobia of The Wizard of Oz and flying monkeys is irrational, but on the off chance another reader suffers the same malady, I have to do the reasonable thing and add the warning.) 😂
Cameron Wants to Be a Hero is the second book in Anyta Sunday’s Love, Austen series. Each book is a contemporary, gay retelling of one of Jane Austen’s classics; this volume is based on Northanger Abbey. We met Cameron as Lake and Knight’s lovable next-door neighbor who lacks confidence in Emerett Has Never Been in Love. Henry’s outgoing personality counterbalances Cameron’s shyness and lack of confidence. He’s immensely charming, genuine, forthright, and teasing. From the moment Henry waltzes into Cameron’s office, the sparks begin to fly. And then they bond over their shared love of books and Happy Socks. (As a fellow aficionado, I approve.)
“That’s what makes the book so powerful. It becomes a part of you, and in random moments, the emotion of reading it rises like full tide threatening to spill over a bank.”
While Anyta Sunday follows her usual slow burn formula – which I’m a big fan of – the romance gets underway early on in chapter two when Cameron and Henry first meet. And later on, I was swooning just because they intertwined their pinkies and then held hands. Pinkies! Gah! I was a goner. Any writer who can cause pinkie swooning knows how to write romance.
The secondary characters are a mixed bag. Cameron has a horrid, hateful father, but his brother, Brandon is a wonderful. Henry’s sister, Georgie, is a darling, yet his brother is gross. And then there’s the brother and sister pair, Isabella and John, who are both obnoxious and despicable. This is a difficult book for me to rate in part because of how much I was turned off by John’s behavior and Cameron’s inability to stand up to him. I haven’t read Northanger Abbey, but I assume Ms. Sunday followed the plot closely. Therefore, I can’t fairly find fault in these maddening characters since they’re not originally Sunday’s conceptualization. But since I haven’t read this book’s inspiration, I can only judge it by my level of enjoyment. John incensed me and I wanted to slap Cameron for how his actions were hurting Henry.
Cameron is a sympathetic character, though. He grows a backbone and shows growth. He begins his journey in the book “fated to serve as a footnote in all the stories around him.” As Henry points out in his critique of Cameron’s script, a story cannot have a hero who stays static and fails to grow. The progression of Cameron’s character arc makes for good reading. He starts out bashful around Henry, and for much of the story, he was only able to express his feelings through the recitation of quotes or his own written word. In a lovely scene, Cameron’s not shy at all when he tackles sexting with Henry. It’s more beautiful than filthy.
“He marveled at the power of words and how they’d made Henry respond. He threw the blankets over his head, burying a series of astonished expletives. He’d finally let his words flow.”
And thank goodness he finally stands up to John.
Emerett appealed to me more than Cameron, mostly because of how humorous the former is, but the latter is a welcome addition to the series, largely because of its endearing leading men and sweet HEA. So, if you can get past The Wizard of Oz references, I happily recommend this book.
RATING: 
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