Reviewed by Sadonna

TITLE: Where you Are

AUTHOR:  Felice Stevens

NARRATOR:  Declan Winters

PUBLISHER:  Self-published

LENGTH:  8 hours

RELEASE DATE:  November 1, 2022

BLURB:

Former model and B-list actor (B meaning really bad) Isaac Seidel is now a NYC firefighter on special assignment in the one-horse town of Serenity, Pa. But all work and no play makes Isaac a dull boy, and when he hooks up with the most explosive one-night stand he’s ever had, it looks like country life might not be so boring after all.

Especially when the guy he thought he’d never see again turns out to be one of the volunteer firefighters he’s expected to train.

Levi Everett is a master at pleasing everyone—except himself. He’s spent his whole life hiding who he is and what he wants. It’s a lot more complicated now that he’s going to be seeing gorgeous Isaac Seidel every day. How is he supposed to pretend he’s straight when he and Isaac can’t keep their hands off each other?
Isaac has made it clear he’s only interested in friends with benefits, so when he returns home to NYC, Levi knows he’s gone forever.

Until he isn’t.

Trust doesn’t come easily to Isaac—he’s been hurt and used before. But Isaac is unable to forget the man he left behind, and in a shocking move, he makes Levi an offer that could change their lives forever. Now it’s up to Levi to put himself first, risking the love of his family, to go after his dreams—dreams that were unimaginable before Isaac but are now within his reach.

Because love is wherever Isaac is, and it’s the only place Levi wants to be.

Where You Are is a sweet and steamy, age-gap MM romance featuring two smoking hot firefighters who can’t seem to keep their hands off each other or their clothes on whenever they’re together. It’s filled with found family, first time love, a swoony happily ever after, a well-meaning but nosy mother, and plenty of good old country fried chicken.

REVIEW:

At 27, Levi Everett can now confirm that he is 100% gay.  But he’s already lost so much – his parents have deserted him and his older brother after they rejected their conservative and isolationist upbringing.  He has his Aunt Daisy and Uncle Hank and his brother Jacob.  He runs a local bar with Jacob and also is a volunteer firefighter.  His days are busy but he’s doesn’t love the bar business.  He does love his brother though.

Jacob and his fiance are constantly trying to fix him up.  He had a girlfriend but they broke up because he couldn’t continue to lie to anybody he really cared about and mislead them into thinking he could be something he’s not.  Then he has a one-night stand with a super hot guy a few towns a way.  Whew.  Yep.  Definitely gay.  But he just about passes out when that guy shows up to be the Trainer from the New York who is going to help the local volunteer fire department.

Isaac Seidl is a New York City fireman.  He was a former actor/model but he’s been with the FDNY for years now.  He’s used to being the pinup boy for the fire department and the PR face of the department as well.  What he doesn’t like is being used for his supposed connections to the entertainment world which he doesn’t even really have any more anyway.  After a particularly disgusting incident with a fellow firefighter who gets caught trying to use him, he needs a change.  He’s offered the role of training local fire departments and he takes it.  He’s looking forward to a break from the city and the jerk who tried to use him.   On his way to Serenity, the small town he’s going to be training, he stops and he ends up having a one night stand with a gorgeous young guy – who leaves without giving Isaac any contact info.  Imagine his surprise when he sees the guy at the training kickoff 🙂  The guy pales though and runs off like a scared rabbit.  It soon becomes clear to him that Levi is not out and he’s scared to death that Isaac will out him.

Levi and Isaac are thrown together in the training and it’s clear to Isaac that Levi both loves and is very good at the firefighter thing.  He also sees that he’s nervous about anybody finding out that he’s gay.  Isaac observes Jacob trying to set Levi up repeatedly.  He also gets why Levi is afraid – although he pushes his boundaries quite a few times.  They agree to a friends with benefits on the DL for the six weeks that Isaac is in Serenity.  Then when there is a mishap at an actual fire and Isaac saves Levi, they are even more intertwined.  Levi’s family is also immensely grateful for what Isaac did as their family is small to begin with and they can’t imagine what they would do if something happened to Levi.

Levi has his own dreams but he’s supplanted them for Jacob’s happiness.  Jacob is about to get married and Levi doesn’t want to rock the boat.  Then there are the little digs at gay people that Jacob throws in all the time and his questioning of Levi’s friendship with Isaac and so Levi just knows he can never come out 🙁  Then there is the fact that Isaac will be leaving soon and damn it if Levi hasn’t gone and fallen in love with him.  Isaac is slightly oblivious to Levi’s feelings – even if his friends try to point it out to him.  He starts to get it when he leaves town, but he’s been good at compartmentalizing his life after the issues he’s had in the past with being used and not that anyone would want him for anything other than his looks or what he could do for them.

Both Levi and Isaac miss each other like crazy.  When there is an opportunity to bring Levi to the big city, it’s a big deal.  What does it mean for Levi and Isaac?  What does it mean for Levi’s family?  Is there a way for them to really be together and can Isaac figure out his feeling about Levi if they spend more time together?

Oof this was an awesome story.  I absolutely adored Isaac and Levi and I really wanted them to be together.  The chemistry between them was smoking hot.  Levi has finally found what he has always wanted, despite having hidden his true self his entire life.   Isaac is guarding his heart like Fort Knox after being burned twice before.  He’s got the opposite experience with a wonderfully supportive family and he can’t imagine what Levi has dealt with given his unaccepting family.  Then there is Jacob who with his offhand comments has deeply wounded Levi without even knowing it.  If Levi loses his brother, he’s not sure that even having Isaac is worth it.  Levi has seen himself as less than for so long.  He has to weigh whether it’s worth it to potentially lose his friends and family to be himself and love Isaac.  Isaac may be older but in some ways he’s not any wiser.  His best friend Gabriel and his boyfriend as well as his parents (especially his wonderful and ever so slightly pushy mother) have to force Isaac’s eyes to open.

Another thing I loved about this story is the small town/big city vibe.  New York is always a character in whatever book takes place there.  If you’ve ever been there, you can’t help but feel that in this book.  The small town vibe of Serenity, the setting for a previous book from Ms. Stevens, Influenced,  is also a distinct character in this story.  The everybody’s related, everybody knows your business, trying to pair everybody up mentality is very true to life 🙂  I loved getting to revisit this setting and some of the characters from this town again.  Plus the food descriptions made me want some good homecooked comfort food!

Declan Winters is quickly becoming a favorite narrator.  Having met him at GRL last month, I can say that he is also a lovely person!  His performance here raised what was already an emotional and engaging story to another level.  Levi’s conflict in hiding his true self is painful.  Mr. Winter’s ability to convey that pain and true suffering as well as the fear he has of losing what is left of his family was masterful.  Isaac, as the older and more experienced MC who has been through some stuff himself, is at once oblivious to some of what Levi is going through while simultaneously understanding his fears.  Only when they are separated does Isaac being to open his eyes to what was really between them and this was clearly portrayed by this talented narrator.

At the end of the day, this was one of my favorite audiobooks of the year.  I really look forward to more books from Mr. Winters and Ms. Stevens.  If you’re a fan of friends with benefits to something more and hard won HEAs for two men coming from such different places, then I think you’ll really enjoy this engaging and outstandingly performed audiobook.

RATING: 

BUY LINKS:

Amazon

Audible