Reviewed by Kat

TITLE: What The H/e/art Wants

SERIES: May-December Hearts Collection (Book 3)

AUTHOR: Sam E. Kraemer

PUBLISHER: Kaye Klub Publishing

LENGTH: 322 pages

RELEASE DATE: November 21, 2023

BLURB:

Can he find love with a man younger than his son? 

Judge Jefferson Hart is hoping for a relaxed summer off while babysitting his grandson. Instead, a captivating young man reads him the riot act about leaving the boy in incapable hands. While Jeff isn’t used to anyone chastising him, the way the man goes about it ignites a dormant longing inside him.

Iggy Sampson has a to-do list a mile long: Take the law school admission test. Find an acceptable school that will give him a scholarship to avoid a crippling amount of student loan debt. Get over the guy who gave him his first kiss and then humiliated him at the tender age of fifteen.

Shrieks outside his temporary home aren’t on that list, but how can he not help the boy cradling his arm? What he hadn’t counted on was the boy’s attractive grandfather. Fireworks have nothing on the crackling between them.

Their attraction grows more every day, bridging the age gap and the fifty yards separating them. But can they give in to their desires without losing their loved ones in the process?

What the Heart Wants is a contemporary age-gap MM romance featuring a hard-working student who’s not afraid to speak his mind, a hot judge who isn’t looking for a new love, and an adorable six-year-old who will melt your heart.

REVIEW:

Wow! Just Wow! Didn’t see most of this coming. What a wonderful and powerful book! Just Wow!

Judge Jefferson “Jeff” Hart is in his fourth year as a judge in Family Court. It has its great moments like when he helps make a family legal during the adoption process. He knows personally how important that moment is. However not all moments in family court are that special. Like having to rip apart a family for the best interest of the child/children. And sometimes those decisions/actions can have personal consequences. But the highlight of this summer is having his adorable grandson Wally come stay with him for half the summer. He has taken time off but has one week to get through before they can have all the time together. Unfortunately the girl he chose to babysit was not as responsible as he hoped and the bike he tried to assemble didn’t stay together as he expected. Next thing he knows is there is an emergency phone call alerting him that Wally is being rushed to the hospital. When Jeff arrives he is not prepared for the tongue-lashing the gorgeous tall drink of water that rescued Wally gives. Iggy just wants a bit of peace and quiet while he figures out how to prepare and proceed with the next part of his life. What he doesn’t expect is the loud bloodily murder screaming coming from out in front of the cottage he rented. But finding a sweet boy in tears with something obviously wrong with his wrist wasn’t on his agenda for the day. Or the girl charged with watching the boy abandoning him after she calls the boy’s grandfather. Can a silver fox grandfather and a man younger than the judge’s own son make something magical happen or is the age gap just a bit to wide to make it happen?

This book is filled with all the big feels you come to expect in Sam’s books while a bit of danger and trust issues make for some very interesting moments for sure. I loved that Iggy was a much older soul but had the ability to relate to Wally as well as Jeff. And I get that he was burned hard when he was younger so trust was a big issue for him. Plus he knows who he is and what he wants but is far from that in his life. Jeff is secure in his position in life and is ready to take a chance with Iggy. It’s not a mid-life crisis for him but a look forward to what promises to be a happy and love-filled future. Sure they have a lot in their plates. And Iggy wants to make his own way on his merits instead of Jeff paving the way. I loved that Iggy wanted to do this and Jeff allowed him the space to do it while supporting his choices.

I didn’t see a lot of what happens coming so that’s always the sign of a well written book for me. The solution revolving around Lucas and his wife was bittersweet but made total sense. I never saw the resolution for the problems with Cody Williams going that way either. Sam E. Kraemer is never afraid to tackle the hard issues head on and this book proves that.

I haven’t had a chance yet to read either of the first two books in this series but I look forward to them and their reviews will be coming soon. I have been assured that they do not effect this book. This was a great book about overcoming adversities for the greater good and I highly recommend it.

RATING:

BUY LINKS:

Amazon