Dreamspinner Presents
http://www.dreamspinnerpress.com/store/product_info.php?products_id=6753
Blurb
Life is a thread connecting us. One pull and it all unravels.
Cole Gannon arrives in the seaside town of Ocean Vista to work as a bartender and finally find a place to belong. Determined to make a home for himself, Cole lives happily with his four colorful roommates, whom he considers brothers. The only problem is Cole’s attraction to Ian Stark—a guy all wrong for him. He wishes he didn’t keep running into the sexy lawyer.
Ian knows Cole is attracted to him, but the younger man keeps him at arm’s length. It only makes Ian more determined to be with Cole and learn all his secrets. But while Ian has built a successful law practice, he hasn’t done too well with relationships.
When a sudden and devastating tragedy occurs, it shatters Cole’s world and throws Cole and Ian together in unexpected ways. In an instant, everything between them changes forever.
Review
Cole’s biological family was never there for him, so he created his own family with a group of friends in a house of their own. It wasn’t always easy but they were there for one another.
Tragedy strikes and Cole loses one of his “family” – Brendan. He takes the loss hard. As does the rest of the “family”.
Ian was Brendan’s boss, and is older than Cole or his friends. Complicating things is that Cole had a crush on Ian, as did Brendan, before Brendan passed.
Ian, however, has only ever had eyes for Cole.
When Cole turns to Ian for comfort, the couple begins their long dance of courtship. It’s a slow burn, there are a lot of emotional hurdles to be jumped before they can achieve their HEA. But… they do.
This is the first in a series and there are many roommates who undoubtedly will have their story told in the future, they are well developed and each add their own unique flavor to this tale.
**
Skylar Cates is a phenomenal writer. Her prose is crisp and clear, without a lot of unnecessary clutter. I enjoy her characterizations and she has a real knack for the “slow burn” style of romance. By the time our MCs finally “commit”, the reader is as invested as they are!
I do recommend that you prepare for the long haul, because there is all that sadness to wade through – it’s not a quick, light or fluffy read. For me, I had to be in just the right frame of mind and so it took quite awhile to get through. (And I was listening so that made things more complex – see Audio part of review.)
I also warn that since it is the first in a series be prepared for a lot of background information – there are a lot of guys we need to meet.
That being said, it’s a really well done book about love and loss and friendship and family.
Audio
I love Paul Morey. I think he’s one of the better narrators out there, and I always enjoy his reading style. This book definitely challenged him because there are so MANY characters and he has to keep in mind that they are gonna keep showing up. I think he did a valiant job in giving them distinguishing voices, though I did have to go back and forth between book and narration if I stopped for any stretch in time to get re-acquainted again with who is who.
I also didn’t like Tomas’ “voice” it was a bit like a mix between a Hispanic accent and Paul’s Russian accent.
For the Audiobook I’d give this a 4 of 5 hearts, with the book maybe earning a 4.5 on it’s own.
