Reviewed by Sadonna
TITLE: Keeping Promises
AUTHORS: Jodi Payne & B.A. Tortuga
NARRATOR: John Solo
PUBLISHER: Tygerseye Publishing LLC
LENGTH: 6 hours and 52 minutes
RELEASE DATE: November 1, 2021
BLURB:
Jeremy M. Dunn III has the single dad thing down, so the last thing he wants to do is call his ex-husband to ask for help with their two kids. They didn’t part on good terms, and they’ve barely spoken since the divorce. But with a cast on his arm that goes up past his elbow, Jeremy has no choice. He needs a few days to figure out how to bathe their daughter, make school lunches, and parent their son one-armed, and there isn’t anyone else he can ask for help.
Former rodeo cowboy West Belen was already on his way back to his kids, and to Trey (“the third”, his nickname for Jeremy). He made a promise to try again, and he means to keep it, so when he sees his chance to move back into his family’s life, he grabs it like the brass ring he knows it is. He’s determined to be more than an “every other weekend” dad to his children, and he doesn’t want to keep on living with regret about how he and Trey ended.
Jeremy still desires West, but he isn’t sure he can trust West to be responsible and available. West still thinks Trey is the hottest thing he’s ever seen, but he has no idea how to convince the man he’s ready to settle down. The two of them have never had trouble butting heads, but now they need to learn to work together to make a home for themselves and their kids where they both belong.
REVIEW:
This is the first book by BA Tortuga and Jodi Payne that I have listened to. I’m not wondering what I was waiting for. This low angst second-chances story of two divorced men who find their way back to each other was an absolute treat. Trey and West have been through hard times – as evidenced by the fact that they aren’t together anymore. West is the every other weekend and vacations dad while he’s been on the rodeo circuit and Trey is the custodial parent who makes sure they eat their vegetables. Lucas and Ava are their adorable and someone precocious children who are “used to” the way things are. I really liked how the writers took the children’s feelings into consideration – especially the 7 year old who would have been dealing with various feelings since the family hadn’t been together for a while. It’s clear that these are two very good men who are devoted to their children who ran into trouble because of their different goals at the time and their ability to communicate. They certainly love each other – they just couldn’t figure out how to live with each other for a while. When West finds a way to work his way back into the family – because of Trey’s injury – the timing is finally right for them. West is retired and able to devote the right kind of time and energy to his family and Trey is willing to take a look at his part in their breakup as well.
My favorite part of this book is the conversations where Trey and West get real about whey they broke up. West had a hard time expressing his feeling and how Trey made him feel – that he wasn’t enough and that he wasn’t contributing enough to their family life. In retrospect, Trey feels bad that he didn’t realize what he was doing to West by making him feel like he needed to give up what he loved and was good at and was providing for his family. West’s surrogate father Hank is the impetus behind West doing the right thing and fighting for his family and it’s clear that he has always done his best for West since taking him in as a young man. His loss is hard for West and it takes a while for him to grieve that loss, but when he’s finally able to do that and be completely honest about everything with Trey, they are able to see each other with clear eyes and find their way back to each other fully.
I was really impressed with John Solo’s narration of this story. I thought his energy and performance for all the many characters was the icing on the cake of this sweet story. The children, the cowboy friends, West, Trey and Hank were all pitch perfect. This was a wonderful and beautiful story of second chances. Highly recommended.
RATING: 
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