GuestReview by Donna

TITLE:  Honestly Yours

AUTHOR:  Jaime Reese

PUBLISHER:  Self-published

LENGTH:  408 Pages

RELEASE DATE:  May 12, 2022

BLURB:

The truth hurts. But in the end, honesty wins. Or does it?

Warren Prescott loves a challenge. He knows how to play the game and adapts when necessary to succeed in his cutthroat world. Tired of pining for a man he’s wanted for months, Warren intends to seal the deal. Until that man throws him an endearing curveball…

Be honest.

Gian Benedetti doesn’t play games. Success has cost him the personal connections he craves, and he doubts he’ll take another chance on a relationship. Until the attractive, younger man with the brazen personality and confidence stirs his interest.

Except…someone else is playing games.
And threatening everything Gian has worked hard to achieve.

Warren won’t rest until he uncovers the new player and gets his forever with Gian.

But they’ll soon face a hard truth—
Honesty may be what brings them together…
Or it could be the one thing that tears them apart.

REVIEW:

I know that I say something like this every time I review a book written by Jaime Reese, but I do believe she is the queen of writing adorkably mushy characters who love each other in intensely, obsessively Romeo and Juliet fashion, without the whole story becoming a sugary lovefest. Honestly Yours introduces us to two brand new characters, who are not part of the Halfway House world, but keen-eyed fans will no doubt notice the reference to Jaime Reese’s previous, much-loved series.

Our two main men are the definition of same-same but different. Gian and Warren are both uber successful businessmen who enjoy what they do. Warren loves matching properties with the perfect buyer, and Gian loves buildings, particularly old, neglected buildings that he can remodel and re-energise. And both men are ever aware of their pasts. Gian is the poor kid done good, the new-money upstart who is the target of jealous rivals. His previous relationship ended when his girlfriend approached the press to find out how much money she could make off a ‘private’ photo of them together. So naturally, he has trust issues.

Warren on the other hand was born with the proverbial silver spoon lodged firmly in his mouth. Actually, it was more like a whole cutlery draw. But we all know that money doesn’t buy happiness and to say that Warren has daddy issues is understating that whole mess. In fact, Warren has gone so far as to hide his identity, he’s the Lord of Secrets (not an official title – I just made that up) which is obviously going to be a problem for Gian, the Lord of Honesty (again I just made up that title and I apologise to anyone reading this).

Our main men get together at the beginning of the story, and honestly, I did wonder why Jaime Reese chose to start their relationship right off the bat. I thought it was an interesting choice, to ditch the does he like me, does he not back and forth that usually precedes the couple getting together. And when I say they got together, it’s not just a random hook-up, but straight into ‘this is us dating’. Of course, it’s not smooth sailing for the rest of the book. Just because they commit to being ‘something’ early, doesn’t mean we miss out on any important getting to know you business, or new attraction awkwardness.

The secondary characters are just as interesting as the main characters. Gian’s parents were highlights for me, and those readers who love the meddling super loving, supportive family will be fans of the Benedettis. Even the characters who were way out on the periphery, such as the reporter who only makes a couple of appearances, or the abused wife of the archvillain, were somehow made interesting enough that I wanted to know more about them, and I enjoyed the interactions they added to the storyline.

While this isn’t part of the Halfway House series, the storyline and the main characters are exactly the sort that would fit into that world, the commitment to each other, the dedication to their families…just…neither has been in prison. So, if you have read and loved that series, then I’m pretty confident in saying that you’ll love this book too. But even if you haven’t read those books – if you like terrible pick-up lines, nervous people spouting random animal facts, and men who are complete cuddle monsters, then Gian and Warren’s story will be right up your alley.

RATING:

BUY LINK:

Amazon