Reviewed by Valerie

TITLE:  The Warmth of Our Closest Star

SERIES:  Enzo and Peter #2

AUTHOR:   Chase Connor

PUBLISHER:  The Lion Fish Press

LENGTH:  421 pages

RELEASE DATE:  July 8, 2022

BLURB:

If Enzo were to list his problems, being sad would not be one of them any longer. Almost two years after his one perfect night in Montreal with Peter, he is still alone, but the future now holds promise. After starting a job, finding financial stability, and getting his life in order, he is ready to make his first trip to the U.S. His only concern is whether or not Peter has held him in the same regard as he has held Peter. Will their one night in Montreal two years prior translate to something more meaningful?

When they meet at the Minneapolis airport, Enzo gets his answer. And his life finally begins.

Over the next ten years, Enzo experiences love and heartbreak, sickness and health, wins and losses, extraordinary friendship, the world changing forever, and an unimaginable miracle he wouldn’t have hoped for in his wildest dreams. In the end, he finds that the only question he has left is: What is a life without possibility?

REVIEW:

This beautiful, epic love story – spanning ten years – goes far beyond Enzo and Peter reuniting and solidifying their relationship. Throughout this novel, author Chase Connor has his young hero contemplate his life’s purpose. What is the meaning of life, he questions? What is hope without possibility? How do you discover your mission? This is a profound, character driven story.

“My future was opening up wide, waiting for me to decide how to give myself a purpose. To find the meaning of my life. To live with a belief in possibility.”

The Warmth of Our Closest Star begins two years after Between Enzo and the Universe ended with Enzo visiting Peter in Minneapolis for the first time. They stayed in touch during the interim by texting, calling, emailing, and writing letters. (It’s not clear why Peter never visited Enzo in Montreal during that time.)

Twenty-two year old Enzo is over the moon fulfilling his life long dream of visiting America and, of course, being able to kiss Peter again. All is okay in the world when Enzo holds Peter’s hand once more. There’s complete ease between the men as they flirt their way through the activities of every day life. They delight in the simple things because they’re doing them together – conversing, dining, sightseeing, and intimate moments exploring each other’s bodies. The joy of just being together imbues everything they do. As sublime as their time is, they’re both aware that a two-week vacation is no guarantee of a future together; there are considerable barriers including living in different countries.

“I knew that when my eyes met Peter’s, it would most likely be the last time we saw each other’s eyes. I hadn’t been ready for that, and Peter had given no indication that he was prepared for that final look either.”

Goodbyes can be grueling. This one didn’t break my heart… it smashed it on a rock. I cried. And cried and cried.

Once Enzo has everything he’s dreamed of, the hard parts of living together kick in. While dealing with self-hatred, sustained grief over his family’s deaths, survivor’s guilt, and other seemingly insurmountable conflicts, he struggles with an existential crisis.

This is a gloriously long book at over 400 pages. In the hands of a lesser author, the story might have been concluded in half the length shortly after the men’s reunion as they settle into life together and are rewarded with a happily ever after (unlike the tearjerker HFN in Enzo.) Mr. Connor takes this book much further, creating a complex narrative with outstanding, fully developed characters and plenty of conflict. The highs are transcendent; the lows are gut wrenching. I applaud authors who take the time to conceive a book that delivers such depth and an emotional punch.

I have to be forthright – before embarking on this read, I couldn’t image how this sequel would hold a candle to its predecessor. In my review of Enzo, I said it was one of the best novels I’ve ever read. I had no need to worry…The Warmth of Our Closest Star is another exquisite book. I learned things from this book that I will apply to my own life. If you’ve already read Enzo, this book is a must. If you haven’t, this is not a standalone. I implore you to put both on your TBR pile. You won’t be sorry.

RATING: 

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