Category: Established Couple

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Forever for Now-Scotty Cade

Dreamspinner Press

Blurb: 

Leeland Jeffers is a contented single man with a thriving career in Atlanta. He’s had a few unsuccessful relationships over the years, but no one has even come close to his first love, Harrison Rhinehart. They met in college when a mutual friend, Suzie Garrison, introduced Harry into their close-knit group. When the supposedly “straight” Harry made a move on Lee, the two men entered into a tumultuous secret love affair. In their senior year, the relationship finally ended when Harry informed Lee he was marrying Suzie.


Since graduation, the college friends have drifted apart. However, an unexpected invitation to a destination wedding seems set to reunite them all. Lee’s speculation on whether Harry and Suzie will make an appearance threatens to derail his attendance. But Lee decides the hell with it and makes plans to go, Harry Rhinehart or no Harry Rhinehart.

  

Kiwi’s Review:

There are several things you can always count on when you’re reading anything written by Scotty Cade. You’re going to get the beautiful covers, you’re going to get a book that is well written, well researched; the smooth flowing storyline, interesting characters, well written dialog, and editing that is on point.  And again, you’re going to read books featuring mature men and not ‘twinks’. What you get is a nice, contemporary read that is geared toward readers like me who are of a particular age who appreciate reading about two mature men in love and experiencing the ups and downs of a relationship. 

This one tells us about two men who like most of us, made mistakes when they were  in college. Here, you have Harry, a young man who wasn’t ready to own up to his sexuality, has a secret relationship with Lee but because he wasn’t ready to be himself ends up marrying a woman. Lee never really gets over in and I think that it affected his decisions as far as the type of relationships he wants and has. I feel that Lee put up this facade of being this slightly campy, funny, sassy type of man who enters into no strings sexual relationships with men from time to time. I think he does this because he really doesn’t want to invest his time and feelings into a relationship that he feels may not work and he wasn’t over Harry. Lee was Hurt and angry so he wasn’t going to admit his feelings for Harry. 

Meanwhile, Harry’s made a complete mess of his life. Harry’s bad decisions have led to him hurting first Lee, then his wife, and ultimately himself. Now that’s not to say that it was all Harry’s fault. Susie, Harry’s wife, has to take some responsibility for the mess of their marriage. I don’t understand how women marry a man who they know may be conflicted about their sexuality or gay but marry them or enter into relationships with them anyway thinking he will change, that they will  be the ones to change them or the man will change for them. I don’t know if it’s ego, desperation or a combination of the two that makes some women do that. Whatever the reason is they must bear some responsibility when the marriage going awry. Cade approached this issue with in a mature manner.  When Susie made the decision about her and Harry’s marriage she did so in a calmly when he could’ve written it in a way that made her look vindictive and petty. I really appreciate  how he refrained from doing that. He never demean or vilify the female characters in his books and I find that refreshing.

This story was a little shorter than I’m used to from this author but it worked well. The pace was fast but smooth. If you’re looking for a book or an author that specializes in writing books featuring grown and sexy man then you should definitely get this author a try. This novella is definitely worth picking up. 


❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️

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Deception (Vampires of America book 9) by DB Reynolds

ImaJinn Presents http://www.imajinnbooks.com/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=90&products_id=237

Deception - 200x300x72Blurb
Book Nine of The Vampires in America Series
Kauai, Hawaii—tropical paradise, vibrant jungle, turquoise sea… and sensuous nights that hide vampires so powerful they can change the world.

Raphael—powerful, extraordinary, arrogant. He’s been eliminating rivals and gathering allies, determined not just to survive, but to demolish the Europeans who think they can steal what he’s worked for centuries to create. In a final bid to avert a war that seems inevitable, Raphael agrees to meet an enemy he knows of old. She is formidable, wily, and not to be trusted. But in his arrogance, Raphael believes he can foil whatever treachery she has brewing.

Cynthia Leighton—Raphael’s human mate, beautiful, smart, and deadly when threatened. She doesn’t trust anyone, much less a powerful vampire claiming to want peace. So while Raphael prepares to negotiate a treaty, Cyn is preparing for the inevitable double-cross that she knows is coming. Raphael worries about saving thousands of vampire lives. She only cares about one, and she will do anything to keep him alive and in her arms.

When Cyn is proven right, when it all falls apart and Raphael’s enemies draw on ancient magic to trap him, taking him away from Cyn and out of the war, it all falls to her—to find Raphael, to save the thousands of vampires who will die if she doesn’t succeed… and to kill every single being, human or vampire, who gets in her way.

Review

This is one of my favorite m/f romance writers and this series is amazing. In a nutshell we have a very, very tough Cyn mated to the uber-alpha Raphael, the most powerful Vampire in American and possibly in America. Throughout the series we have seen Raphael’s enemies fall as his allies have taken over the various parts of North America into Mexico and Canada as leaders, each time finding their own mates, always a powerful woman.

(In one case the woman was the vampire!)

What I love about DB Reynolds is that her women are tough but still feminine and the alphaness of the vampire does not require them to fold and quaver. The sex is really hot (and plentiful!) and the action is always exciting.

Cyn and Raphael have had several novellas and this is their second full length novel. Their relationship is not usually at question, but their safety is always at risk.

In this, the ninth book in the series, Raphael is facing off against the Europeans and has been taken captured by them. Cyn and the remaining vamps have to find him and rescue him and then defeat the evil vamps.

I love that each time Cyn and Raphael come together it’s like they’ve been apart for days. They are always so hot for each other, yet caring.

The final scene is an epic battle and victory for our team… but there’s the hint of the next phase to come…

4 of 5 hearts

4

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Saving Samuel (Manchester Ménage #1)-Nicole Colville

Publisher: Hidden Pleasures

Police officer Milo and Fireman Daniel have been dating off and on for six years, but it always seems more off than on. Just when their relationship reaches breaking point, someone enters their lives, unknowingly helping the confused couple work through their differences.

Falling in love with the man Daniel rescued and who Milo is investigating as a potential arson suspect isn’t a conventional start to any relationship, especially one which includes a mysterious blond who’s afraid to stop running. But they both see what didn’t work out as a couple, could work out as a ménage.

Daniel and Milo unite to help save Samuel, but quickly realise he’s not the only one being saved.

With so many obstacles in their way threatening to destroy the future they desire, all three have to fight to create a bond too strong for anyone or anything to break.

  
Let me start by pointing out how much I liked the cover. I don’t know if it was the color, or the fact that it was the fireman wearing his gear looking hot, but I really liked it.  The characters were wonderful, I just couldn’t get enough of reading about these characters. For some reason, Milo was my favorite of the three. Then it was sweet Daniel and even sweeter and gentle Samuel. 

These three men’s personality is so different from each other but they fit together perfectly. It was clear from the beginning of the story that Daniel and Milo are deeply in love with each other but their personalities caused these two men to bump heads.  Daniel wanted more from his relationship with Milo. It wasn’t that Milo wasn’t willing to give Daniel what he needed, he simply couldn’t because he didn’t quite understand how, you know? 

Then Samuel enters their lives. One would think that the timing was bad to bring a third into a rocky relationship but in this case, this particular third was exactly what the two men needed. They saved each other. Samuel endured a past filled with abuse, both physical and sexual at the hands of his kidnappers. First Daniel and then Milo became his saviors and gave him the newest, sweetest lease on life.

I loved this book, these characters. Ms. Colville did the best job of crafting them. Their dialog and the storyline was amazing. This is a new author to me, brought to my attention completely by chance. I truly enjoy the all male ménage storyline and she did a wonderful job of bringing these characters to life for me. I am really looking forward to reading the second book in this series. I was so excited to see that Dalton would get his story. I really liked his character. This is a great start to what to what is looking to be a brilliant series.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️AMAZING⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

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Cherish and Blessed (Faith, Love & Devotion books 4 & 5) Audiobook by Tere Michaels Narrated by JP Handler

Dreamspinner Presents

http://www.dreamspinnerpress.com/store/product_info.php?products_id=6328&cPath=1235

Cherish&BlessedAUDMEDBlurb

2nd Edition Faith, Love, & Devotion: Books Four & Book Five

Cherished

After several years of happy coupledom, Matt and Evan can relax in the knowledge that their little family has survived the worst of it. The two older girls are away at college, the twins have yet to fully hit teen angst, Matt is doing well with his part time security consulting, and Evan is about to be promoted to captain—it seems like things are calm and bright.

Until they aren’t.

As the holidays approach, Evan and Matt get a shock no parent is ever prepared for: feisty Miranda, Evan’s eldest, has a new boyfriend, Kent, and they are talking marriage after just three months together. In fact, Miranda wants to bring him to Thanksgiving dinner—along with his parents, Blake and Cornelia.

Blessed

Lives are in transition as everyone gathers at the stunning Hamptons beach home of Daisy and Bennett to celebrate the christening of their new baby. Griffin and Jim—secretly growing tired of their rootless lifestyle—are in a rocky spot in their relationship. And as the godfather, Griffin finds himself yearning for something he’s sure Jim won’t be interested in.

Fatherhood.

Matt and Evan are looking to reconnect during the long weekend, as their respective careers pull them in separate directions. With less time spent together, Evan grows concerned about what will happen when the last two kids leave the nest.

1st Edition of Cherish published as an eBook by Loose Id LLC, November 2012.

Review

This is definitely not a stand-alone and is the fourth and fifth books combined in one edition.

In Cherished we see Matt dealing with parenthood as Evan’s daughter really puts everyone through the wringer. I loved the look into the couple as they navigate more of the everyday realities of being a unique family. The fact that Kent’s parents were more bothered by the guns than the gay was a great twist and I thought the whole storyline was well done.

In Blessed we see all four couples (Evan’s partner and her new husband, plus Daisy and her new baby along with Griff and Jim) at the Hamptons for Daisy’s baby’s christening.

Though Evan is still dealing with being promoted to captain and put in a position more for diplomacy rather than danger, he and Matt are just so damn cute and in love! Griff and Jim, however, are smoothing out some of the rough edges of their romance and this is a nice sequel to their story.

Something very interesting happened though at the end… it seems left open for another installment! I am hoping that with the re-release of the original stories and their audiobook debuts that we will see another (final?) installment giving our guys some even more permanent closure. (Hint, hint… a wedding perhaps???)

(Update! Looks like I was right! http://www.dreamspinnerpress.com/store/product_info.php?products_id=6330 Coming May 1st!)

Audio

JP Handler has narrated this entire series. I think he’s one of those narrators who will either strike you as being perfect or not so perfect.

I think he did a better job with this than some of the previous books. His voice modulation was a little more solid, less “warbling” and emotional.

I love this series so much and I think, once you get used to it, his narration is adequate.

Overall 4 of 5 hearts

4

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Rack and Ruin Audiobook by Charlie Cochet Narrated by Mark Westfield

Dreamspinner Presents: http://www.dreamspinnerpress.com/store/product_info.php?products_id=6303

Rack&RuinAUDMedBlurb

New York City’s streets are more dangerous than ever with the leaderless Order of Adrasteia and the Ikelos Coalition, a newly immerged Therian group, at war. Innocent civilians are caught in the crossfire and although the THIRDS round up more and more members of the Order in the hopes of keeping the volatile group from reorganizing, the members of the Coalition continue to escape and wreak havoc in the name of vigilante justice.

Worse yet, someone inside the THIRDS has been feeding the Coalition information. It’s up to Destructive Delta to draw out the mole and put an end to the war before anyone else gets hurt. But to get the job done, the team will have to work through the aftereffects of the Therian Youth Center bombing. A skirmish with Coalition members leads Agent Dexter J. Daley to a shocking discovery and suddenly it becomes clear that the random violence isn’t so random. There’s more going on than Dex and Sloane originally believed, and their fiery partnership is put to the test. As the case takes an explosive turn, Dex and Sloane are in danger of losing more than their relationship.

Review

Chaos in THIRDS land.

The Coalition has a mole from inside THIRDS and some Therian is killing humans. And if that isn’t enough, things inside THIRDS are in chaos as well.

Dex and Sloane are navigating their budding relationship. Sloane is trying to get the rest of his team to pull it together and leave personal business at home. Dex is trying to help Cael with his feelings for Ash. Letty and Rosa are … okay, they’re fine. Taylor is sexually harassing EVERYONE. The new guy Levi might be hooking up with Lou, and Dex has to plan for his pre-birthday-party-party. It’s a lot to deal with.

In this installment we get to see a lot of Sloane and Dex and most of it is really, deliciously, ooey and gooey. Sloane even purrs! (Wait til you read that part – so fantastic!) They seem solidly on the forward track until… well… Sloane runs … again. Dex inadvertently moves the relationship forward and Sloane isn’t prepared for it, so Sloane takes off for a bit, but eventually, with the help of Ash (of all Therians) figures out what a good thing he has in Dex.

The sex is super hot and Dex and Sloane as a couple are hilarious. (My favorite is the closet scene: “This isn’t what it looks like. I dropped some change, it rolled under the closet door, and when I went to pick it up, my clothes fell off. True story.”)

Ash has something going on in his life that is making him distance himself from Cael and Cael is heartbroken and making potentially fatal mistakes as a result.

When the dust settles and the bad guy (for the moment) is disposed of, we’re left with a cliff hanger. We’re going to have to wait til next YEAR to see what happens – that Charlie Cochet, she’s naughty!

Now, we can all probably guess the outcome, but in addition to the main worry, we also have to worry about Cael and Ash – will Ash ever figure things out and get it together enough to be with Cael?

And, really, what is going on with Calvin and Hobbs? Inquiring minds want to know.

Overall, this was a wonderful third installment to the THIRDS series and I really enjoyed it. There was lots of Therian shifting which I like, Sloane acting like a happy kitty, which I liked and some tricky spy stuff, which I like.

Audio

Mark Westfield narrates this entire series and I love his work.  I think it’s great how he augments the sound for microphone or telephone etc and his delivery is great.

5 of 5 hearts

5

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Spring Break at Villa Hermes (Brandt and Donelly book 4)by Xavier Mayne

Dreamspinner Presents http://www.dreamspinnerpress.com/store/product_info.php?products_id=6231

SpringBreakattheVillaHermesBlurb
Troopers Ethan Brandt and Gabriel Donnelly celebrate the one-year anniversary of their engagement by flying south for a week of calm relaxation at the Villa Hermes, a gay boutique hotel on the beach. But when the rest of the guests turn out to be college guys on spring break (unwittingly booked into a gay hotel by a passive-aggressive travel agent), their week turns out to be anything but calm.

Ted, one of the spring breakers, has harbored a crush on his roommate and best friend, Bark, since they met freshman year. Now, on their fourth and final spring break, Ted knows they must soon say good-bye. A lacrosse star and ladies’ man, Bark has no idea Ted has fallen for him—until a storm forces the entire group underground for twenty-four hours of stress and truth-telling. Bark doesn’t want to say good-bye to Ted at graduation either. He just didn’t know how to put his feelings into words or if he could face the consequences of speaking them. Brandt and Donnelly help the college guys through their crisis by showing them what love between best friends can grow into.

Review

Ted and Bark are friends and roommates in their last year at the university. This is to the their last “hoorah” and Ted plans to say good-bye to the man who’s been his unrequited love interest for the last four years. But when a manipulative travel agency books Ted and his friends at the same gay resort as Brandt and Donelly a lot of things happen that change that plan.

**
This is an absolutely hysterical and lovely story. Ted’s friends are full of charismatic stories that get told one night as they all huddle against a storm.  Each striving to be their own man and to deal with their own sexuality in ways that none of the others ever guessed.

Xavier Mayne has given us more wonderful secondary characters with just as much flavor as Bryce and Nestor.  I also love that Xavier is not shy about letting the secondary characters sometimes steal some of the limelight.  In this case Ted and Bark’s story, though lovely and really sweet, has moments where it is eclipsed by the tale of the underwear model and the bear and a blossoming bi-sexual hippy.

I love that we continue to be awed by the love between Brandt and Donelly again – there are still layers to explore in their relationship- and it is always fun to check in on them as they get closer to marriage.

I have really enjoyed this series tremendously and I think that this comes in second as my favorite of the bunch.

I whole-heartedly recommend it and give it 5 of 5 hearts.

5

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Rare (Roads #2) Audiobook by Garrett Leigh narrated by Michael Lesley

Dreamspinner Presents
http://www.dreamspinnerpress.com/store/product_info.php?products_id=5791

RareAUDMedBlurb
Paramedic Pete Adams lived through the year from hell watching his lover, Ash, fall apart, and the precarious balance between work and home is becoming more strained. His heart is always home, with Ash, but the dark side to his job is weighing him down.

Tattoo artist Ash Fagin is recovering from a nervous breakdown triggered by revelations about his traumatic childhood. His battle with mental illness is far from over, but with Pete by his side, he’s feeling good again, so good he doesn’t notice something missing until it walks right into his living room.

Ash believes he’s had enough coincidence in his life, but when a voice from the past comes looking for him, it takes the devastating injuries of the one he loves most to convince him to let a ghost become the family he never knew he wanted.

Review

Ash is recovering from his breakdown and Pete is helping him as best he can while wrestling with his own demons.

Though Pete has been the strong one in the past, his job (in general) and some tough calls (specifically) drain his energy and force him to really rely on Ash for a change.

Things in Ash’s life are changing too.  A mystery woman enters his life who may or may not be significant in his past.

There is more drama and angst – as is to be expected – but overriding it is the love that Pete and Ash share. It only deepens and strengthens as each of them grows and heals.

**

I can’t say this is a “happy” book, but it feels lighter than the first. I was grateful to see Ash healing and moving on (mostly) from his past and I loved seeing more of Pete as a real person and less the idealized boyfriend.

I felt like I connected with the MCs more in this book and thus liked this book a bit more than Slide.

Garrett Leigh is a very good writer and I really appreciate her ability to create these very deep, complex, wounded characters. When you’re in the mood for angst and heart-ache but you need to know there’s light at the end of the tunnel – I’d turn to her for a sure bet.

Audio

For me, Michael Lesley turns this book from a good to great. I just adore his take on Ash. I can almost see and feel him through his voice alone. Michael does a tremendous job of giving us the emotion, the variation in characters and the timing to draw us deeply into the story and immerse us in the character’s lives.

4.5 of 5 hearts

4.5

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The Marrying Kind (Owen and Nathan book 2) by Jay Northcote

Jaybird press presents: http://www.jaynorthcote.com

TheMarryingKind_FINALBlurb

Nathan wants to put a ring on it, but is Owen the marrying kind?
Two years on from their first date, Owen and Nathan are living together and life is good—except they’re not on the same page about marriage.

A traditionalist at heart, Nathan wants it all: the wedding, the vows, and a pair of matching rings. Owen, on the other hand, believes marriage is old-fashioned and unnecessary. They don’t need a wedding to prove their commitment to each other. Love should be enough on its own.

All it takes is one moment of weakness on a night out to force the issue. Owen finds himself engaged after a half-drunk proposal, and Nathan’s enthusiasm sweeps him along. But as the big day approaches, the mounting tension finally combusts.

If he’s going to save their relationship, Owen will need to decide once and for all if he’s truly the marrying kind.

Review

Just as we always suspected, it’s not always shiny-happy-dove-filled-moments when our MCs happy endings arrive. Such is the case with Owen and Nathan.

They are a typical couple who argue over the remote and the dishes, don’t always have super-star sex but really, really love one another.

When their friends get married it sets Nathan to thinking about his own wedding – to Owen. Owen, on the other hand, doesn’t have a great role model for marriage and isn’t quite ready to see himself march down the aisle.

However, in trying to make Nathan happy (so he thinks) he asks Nathan to marry him one night in a drunken bit of brashness and then lives to regret it over the coming months.

The dissonance between his actions and his feelings are felt by Nathan and the two grow apart – fortunately they realize the problem before it gets catastrophic and we do see the pair with their HEA, after all.

**

This was a very sweet, fun, more realistic look at love through the eyes of an established couple.

I loved how Jay Northcote managed to put in some of life’s realism into the fairy-tale romance. Owen’s job, his family, Nathan’s expectations… these are all things real couples have to manage, and sometimes love isn’t all you need.

If you enjoyed Dating Game you will want to read this and if you haven’t read Dating Game – you should!

4.5 of 5 hearts

4.5

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Black John Audiobook (Johnnies #4) by Amy Lane narrated by Gomez Pugh

Dreampsinner Presents  http://www.dreamspinnerpress.com/store/product_info.php?products_id=6302

black john audioBlurb

John Carey is just out of rehab and dying inside when he gets word that Tory, the guy who loved him and broke him, has removed himself from the world in the most bitter way possible—and left John to clean up his mess.

Forced back to his hometown in Florida, John’s craving a hit with every memory when he meets Tory’s neighbor. Spacey and judgmental, Galen Henderson has been rotting in his crappy apartment since a motorcycle accident robbed him of his mobility, his looks, and his boyfriend all in one mistake. Galen’s been hiding at the bottom of an oxy bottle, but when John shows up, he feels obligated to help wade through the wreckage of Tory’s life.

The last thing John needs is another relationship with an addict, and the last thing Galen wants is a conscience. Both of them are shocked when they find that their battered souls can learn from and heal one another. It doesn’t hurt that they’re both getting a crash course on how growing up and getting past your worst mistakes sure beats the alternative—and that true love is something to fight to keep if your lover is fighting to love you back.

Review

(Book reviewed on this site previously.)

Where to start….

Well, first we all know Johnnies right – the made up porn studio that introduced us to Chase and Tommy, Dex and Kane, Ethan and Jonah and in a related way, Alejandro and Donny.  We LOVE Johnnies.  John… we don’t love so much.  He was a coke head, douche in Dex in Blue and though he had glimmers of the kinda guy Dex might befriend, by the time we actually meet him, he’s gone over the edge.

This is his story.

We start out with John getting out of rehab, he’s still pretty shaky, but determined, only to find out that this newly sober John has to fly to Florida (across the world practically) to help clean out the apartment and distribute the remains of his first (and only?) love who has committed suicide.

Uh…Thanks Amy for taking it easy on us.  NOT!

Tory and John grew up together, realized they were gay together, started doing porn together but I can’t really say they loved each other because Tory never treated John like someone he loved.

As time passes Tory descends down a spiral of sex and drugs and after years and three trips to rehab John decides Tory needs to do it on his own, cause whatever John is doing, isn’t helping.

Thus the birth of Johnnies.

Flash back to today, John is at Tory’s apartment where he meets the neighbor, Galen.  Galen is a lawyer who had a terrible accident three years ago, and has since been caught up in a cycle of depression and pain med addiction.

So… of course John is super attracted to Galen, but really – can he? Should he? Is it remotely smart for him to take on another addict?

**

If I were to rank my favorite Johnnies books the order would be Dex, Super Sock Man, Chase, John, Ethan…. Black John is a good book, Amy doesn’t write anything bad.  The angst is so painful.  Tory hurt John so much.  Dex (inadvertently) hurt John so much.  But… the one piece I missed with Black John that Chase and Dex and even Super Sock Man had was a bit more of a connection between the lovers.

I loved that John could finally help Galen and that Galen wanted to be strong enough to show John he deserved someone whole.  But I didn’t see them as a couple long enough to feel as attached to them as I have in other Amy Lane books.

On the other hand I absolutely loved that we got to see more of Dex and Kane again!

There is a bonus epilogue found here:  http://lovebytesreviews.com/2015/02/02/bonus-epilogue-for-black-john/  that really wraps things up nicely – Thanks Amy!!!

Audio

Gomez Pugh is amazing!  I love this new addition to the Johnnies series!  Gomez has a great voice and does a tremendous job at differentiating the different characters.  OMG! I was cracking up at his version of Tommy and Kane.  Tommy has this great Boston accent and Kane has a sweetly Hispanic lilt.  John is dry and self-effacing, Galen is deliciously southern, Dex is quiet and stern, Ethan is deep and rumbly… it goes on and on.  Though I loved the narrator for the previous books (Sean Crisden is one of my favorite narrators!) I really loved these added touches.  It absolutely bumped this great book to amazing and I highly recommend listening to this if you are a fan of the series.  It was delightful!

 

6 of 5 hearts!

amazing

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After the Sunset Audiobook (Timing #2) by Mary Calmes Narrated by Sean Crisden

Dreamspinner Presents:

http://www.dreamspinnerpress.com/store/product_info.php?products_id=6134

after the sunsetBlurb

Two years after riding off into the sunset with ranch owner Rand Holloway, Stefan Joss has made a tentative peace with his new life, teaching at a community college. But the course of true love never does run smooth. Rand wants him home on the ranch; Stef wants an exit strategy in case Rand ever decides to throw him out. Finally, after recognizing how unfair he’s being, Stef makes a commitment, and Rand is over the moon.

When Stef gets the chance to prove his devotion, he doesn’t hesitate – despite the risk to his health – and Rand takes the opportunity to show everyone that sometimes life’s best surprises come after the sunset.

Review

Now that Stefan and Rand are together we get to see just how they manage to make things work between the city-boy Stefan and the recently-gay-rancher Rand.

This is a great look at a couple after the “happy ending”.  With Rand and Stefan there was so much keeping them apart that you have to wonder how things are going after the last kiss.

Well, it turns out that life hasn’t been that easy.  Stefan is still keeping himself distant and not fully committed to Rand and Rand senses this.  Rand is still being a controlling a**hole and driving Stef nuts.

When something comes up, taking Rand out of town, Stefan is left to handle some important ranch details and WOW does he screw up!  He ends up in a fight, riding a bronc, showing up on YouTube, and scaring Rand half to death.

Meanwhile, Stef is also finding out some “truths” about Rand’s history that just might shake up the entire family.

Interestingly, Rand isn’t in this story very much and though it’s all about him and his family, Stefan plays the more important role throughout.  In my mind there was too much time with them apart to call this story absolutely perfect, but since it’s Mary, it’s pretty damn close!

If you enjoyed Timing you will HAVE to read/listen to this as it absolutely cements the love Rand and Stefan share and gives you a much needed glimpse at their future.  I don’t think it’d make much sense as a stand-alone.

Audio

Sean Crisden narrates this and Timing.  He does an absolutely amazing job with Rand’s growly Texas drawl.  I adore Sean’s take on the Alpha Male and like I said, Rand is oh so Alpha.  I’m not sure if it was supposed to be this way or not, but Sean continually pronounces Stefan’s name as Stef-awn, where I always thought it was Stef-en.  In either case, he’s consistent, and I ended up finding it endearing!  The sex scenes are scorching and Sean does a great job differentiating all the other voices as well.  I particularly loved the Foreman’s voice – very, very sexy.

The listening definitely adds to the overall enjoyment of this story.

4.5 of 5 hearts

4.5

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