Reviewed by Cindy
TITLE: Bedside Manners
SERIES: The Living Situations Book 2
AUTHOR: Ella Fenn
PUBLISHER: Self Published
LENGTH: 328 Pages
RELEASE DATE: May 10, 2022
BLURB:
A freak windstorm. A life-changing accident. An unlikely helping hand.
After years spent suffering under the weight of his father’s expectations, Max Castillo-Grant is celebrating his shiny new law degree by drinking, partying, and bed-hopping around Seattle. Max isn’t stupid—he knows the good times never last—but if the world’s going to bring him low, he might as well enjoy the high.
Six years ago, a broken heart and a deep loss turned Ben Greer bitter and reclusive. Formerly the life of the party, he quit his job, rejected his friends, and hid from the world. Now, he spends his days alone, working on occasional custom carpentry commissions, with only his dog, Judith, for company.
Two severe weather events conspire to leave Ben in need of a full-time caretaker for his injuries, and Max in need of a respectable job. Despite a rocky start, Ben is begrudgingly won over by Max’s good humor, and the two form a lasting connection. But emotional wounds leave deep scars, and both Ben and Max are damaged. Can they find a way to heal hurts that go far beyond the physical before it’s too late?
The second book in the Living Situations series, Bedside Manners is a gay romance featuring an age gap, light BDSM, and 4-6 terrible puns about woodworking. If you like steamy situations, hurt/comfort, and grumpy mountain men, then you’ll love Ella Fenn’s latest novel.
REVIEW:
What Max lacks is someone who has confidence in him. He know’s he needs to do something to get his life back on track. He needs to figure out how to live his own dreams, not those of his father’s. To do that, he needs to be able to stand on his own two feet. That opportunity comes when Ben needs help to get his own feet back under him.
Ben has given up on love. He retreated to his home in the mountains and was determined to stay there until fate pulled the rug out from under him. Max steps up to help for his own reasons but it doesn’t take Ben long to see that everyone is underestimating Max.
Max starts out as Ben’s annoying, unwanted helper, but soon becomes someone Ben may not be able to live without. Watching Max grow under Ben’s watchful eye is very enjoyable. Ben does some growing of his own and the author does a great job of showing us how it all plays out.
Ben can see what so many others have overlooked. That when Max wants something bad enough, there’s nothing he won’t do to make it happen.
The bdsm aspects to this story are well written and this would be a wonderful story for someone who’s exploring this genre for the first time. Things get very steamy in the bedroom (and other places) but I liked that the sex didn’t take over the whole story. This really is a story about two men who help each other learn to live the lives they’ve been denying themselves. It’s a kind of “coming of age” attitude, even though both men are at different places in their own stories.
This is the second book in this series and I very much enjoyed the little bits we got to see of Simon and Colin from the first book. It’s always nice to see the glimpses of the happily-ever-after that some much loved characters earned.
I enjoyed this author’s writing style. The story keeps a good pace, not moving too fast or lagging and losing my interest. I’m having a hard time staying invested in stories these days so this was a very pleasant surprise. I will keep looking out for more stories by Ella Fenn as I think they have a very good voice.
RATING: 
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