Interesting murder mystery where somebody in Walter’s family seems to be the guilty party. Joe is investigating the murder which leads to the first of many meetings. I enjoyed the time Walter and Joe spent together getting to know each other in more ways than one.
A wonderful friends-to-lovers story that really captured my heart.
Daniel Derenzo is an extremely wealthy and ruthless businessman. His dying father has finally convinced him that he needs to start living his life. His best friend and business partner, Nick Ross, was in love with Daniel when they went to college a long time ago. Nick is now in a bad marriage with two children. Daniel realizes that he’s in love with Nick, but they have so many obstacles to overcome.
I just absolutely loved this story. The characters were well developed, the plot was interesting, the resolutions were believable, and I found myself tearing up quite a few times. Daniel was such a stressed out man. He was extremely driven and calculating in everything that he did. At the same time, when it came to Nick and the kids, he had a heart of gold. I enjoyed Daniel’s visit to the sex therapist when he realized that he might actually be gay and wanted help to confirm it.
Nick was smart, hard-working and extremely nice. His kids came first, and he was concerned about what a divorce might do them. I actually enjoyed the kids in this story. They not only brought an emotional connection with them, but they also gave the plot its true conflict. This story is only loosely connected to the first in the series, but it was also a wonderful book.
A love story between friends with true complications in their lives that was both touching and beautifully written.
Originally reviewed for The Romance Reviews. Complimentary copy provided by author/publisher for an honest review.
Book Blurb
Emotionally heart wrenching, with a troubling look at the past treatment of people with mental illness, this thought-provoking story will stay with me for a very long time.
William Lyon has fought accepting his homosexuality his entire life. His deeply religious parents, who believed it to be wrong and unacceptable, went so far as to send him to conversion therapy. In trying to do what he thought was the right thing, he married a nice enough woman. Unfortunately, after 6 years of marriage, he finally accepted that he is gay and got divorced.
In order to work on his dissertation on memory, and due to his lack of a place to live, he takes a job as a caretaker at a mental institution. While working there, he discovers a tin box filled with letters from one of the patients. What unfolds is a devastating story of one man’s love for another man, and the despicable treatment he received by those trying to “cure” him. William reads each letter over a period of several months. During that time, his life is slowly mirroring many of the same concepts from the letters.
William, a very subdued but extremely kind person, meets Colby Anderson, one of the most jubilant people he has ever met. Colby is an amazing, sweet, and fun person. In addition to taking care of his grandparents, he also helps run their store. William and Colby form a wonderful friendship, and then start to become something more. I loved William and Colby and all of their interactions. These two were meant for each other and fit together perfectly.
There were some steamy scenes, but most of it was pretty mild. The epilogue at the end was truly beautiful and believable. In addition to the box of tissues I went through every single time William read a letter, I had to find a few extras for the happy tears at the end.
A truly memorable love story which also reflects on a history that I hope never repeats itself.
Originally reviewed for The Romance Reviews. Complimentary copy provided by author/publisher for an honest review.
Book Blurb
On the run from a killer, can these two guys find time to fall in love and deal with old wounds?
Damien Mitchell was in a horrible car accident and is now suffering from amnesia. He’s still pretty sure that there’s something wrong with the people who are supposedly his parents visiting him in the psychiatric ward. After escaping, he goes in search of his best friend and band mate Miki. While trying to find Miki, Damien meets the owner of a bar, Sionn Murphy, who over time becomes a good friend and lover. Now they just have to survive the multiple death threats to see if they can have a real relationship.
The romance between Damien and Sionn was done nicely with a lot of time spent developing their characters and relationship through action and conversations. Sionn was a nice guy surrounded by a large and wonderful family, and he just wanted to take care of Damien. Unfortunately, Damien was such a beaten down character that it was a struggle to enjoy his story. He was severely abused as a child, almost died in a car accident and suffered from severe amnesia, lost 2 of his best friends in the same car accident, and is now being hunted by a psychotic killer. Any of those could be devastating, but having all of them come into play got to be a bit much.
I had issues with the flow of the story. For instance, during their first sex scene, there was a break in the middle of it to take us to a gory crime scene. During the sex scene, we were reminded once again about how Damien was tortured as a child. Needless to say, this really eliminated my enjoyment of the first time they made love.
This story spent about half the time on the romance and the rest in the mind of a psychotic serial killer. The details surrounding the killings are very graphic and gory. The romance started out strong with the focus on Damien and Sionn, but then the focus moved to the murders. It wasn’t really a mystery as to why it was happening, since that was explained fairly early on. The biggest question was about who would get killed next, since everybody was up for grabs.
I liked seeing Damien reconnect with his best friend Miki from the first story and get a feel for how that friendship worked since so much was mentioned about it in the first book.
If you enjoy your romance mixed with evil, psychotic killers, then I think you’ll really enjoy this thriller.
Originally reviewed for The Romance Reviews. Complimentary copy provided by author/publisher for an honest review.
Book Blurb
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