Ethan Day (1971–2018)

Delightfully funny, yet with enough conflict and angst to keep me interested, this story about Cain, an embattled apartment building owner, and Henry, the noble architect, this story is a mystery and RomCom all mixed into one. The secondary characters are as funny and quirky as the main characters, the setting is beautiful with enough descriptive details to make me feel I was there, and the unfolding drama of the bad guys about to take over had me wishing I could jump into the book and show more kick… some sense into them.

Cain may be desperate to save the building he has inherited from his grandmother, but he still manages to have fun. He is also an inspiration to his tenants, and never whines for a moment. I admired his tenacious willingness to try everything, his refusal to give up despite the odds being totally against him, and was happy for him when meets Henry. The man is clearly good for him, succeeding to make him laugh yet helping him to gain clarity about what he needs to do to save "La Terraza".

Henry is a great guy, even though it takes him a while to figure out what is going on. He is good for Cain, devoted and loyal, not to mention exactly what Cain needs between the sheets. His career as an architect is important to him, but it never seemed to overpower him. As soon as he figures out what is going on he does the right thing, and the fact that he prioritizes his relationship with Cain over everything else made me smile. He is exactly the guy Cain needs and deserves.

These two are hilarious together, yet they are also very clearly in love with each other, almost from the start. Cain just happening to be cleaning some drawers when Henry might need space for his "spare" clothes that seem to have taken up residence in Cain's apartment made me laugh. The pain each of them feels when it looks as if the bad guys will win and everything threatens to fall apart under the pressure Cain is under had me yelling at them not to be stupid.

If you like stories that make you laugh, if you enjoy reading about very lifelike characters who are not always as clever or well-spoken as you might expect, and if some underhanded manipulations from the bad guys are a s likely to make you laugh (once they have been vanquished, of course), you will probably like this book as much as I did.




NOTE: This book was provided by Resplendence Publishing for the purpose of a review on Rainbow Book Reviews. show less

I haven't read a book by Ethan Day that I haven't loved. This one is no exception. While the themes are serious, they are deftly interspersed with humour (thank you, Ollie), which prevents the book from becoming gloomy and morose.

It's the characters in Day's books that grab me every time. They pop off the pages, as real and fully formed as the people in my RL. They are people I would want as friends, idiosyncrasies and foibles included!

4.5 stars.

One thing I can be sure of with an Ethan Day story: I will be entertained. His stories always have the ability to make me feel good. They are comfortable and make me think of a warm, favourite jumper that just hugs you tight and keeps you warm. Probably a rather strange way to describe a book, but then again, I'm no author lol.

This book was all that and more. I loved the build of the story. The way the relationship unfolded between Levi and Jake. The integrity of both of these show more men... There was such a depth to both of these characters, and they both made my heart ache for the situation they found themselves in.

The main reason that I rounded this one down, rather than up was because of one of the "extra' characters. While we all have friends that seem to have no filter, that can be crude and honestly outright rude, Valerie went so far over the line that she actually managed to ruin the ending a bit for me. I understand wanting to have something to cut down the sappiness that could have occured, but I just couldn't understand how anyone could possibly put up with someone like her, no matter how long you've been friends for. show less

Sno Ho by Ethan Day is a romantic comedy told in first-person viewpoint that features comical dialog and numerous, explicit sex scenes in an opposites-attract story. The situations are exaggerated enough to seem funny, but realistic enough to hold your interest, and both heroes are appealing characters. Some of the viewpoint characters’ reactions felt a little over-the-top to me, but I enjoyed the sense of real affection between the two men even as they bickered and tried to outmaneuver show more each other. The question of whether to try a long-distance relationship was realistically handled with no sudden declarations of undying love resulting from a courtship of only a few days. If you like Sno Ho, there is a sequel, Life In Fusion.

The story opens in fictional Summit City, Colorado at a couples ski resort. Boone, an irrepressible and excitable writer (unpublished and insecure about it), arrives first, expecting his wealthy boyfriend (who paid for the vacation) to join him a day later. To Boone’s shock, the boyfriend calls and breaks up with him over the phone and Boone realizes he was manipulated into leaving town. Boone falls into a sparring flirtation with a local ski instructor, who is beloved by the town. As their bickering and frequent sex deepens towards a possible relationship, he finds himself in the awkward position of dating under the scrutiny of the entirely too interested townsfolk.

Val for AReCafe show less