Sarina Bowen

4.5 Stars!

Once again, there's not much I can add to the dozens and dozens of reviews who have already raved about this book.

What I can say is that I appreciated this. I appreciated that the angst was well thought out and not gratuitous or overly torturous. I appreciated the wonderful chemistry between Jamie and Ryan - that the evolution of their feelings were again realistic and not too fast or too slow, definitely building upon a strong foundation that was years in the making. And of course, I absolutely appreciated the seriously scorching UST, toe curling sexual exploration and the well varied, holy mother, hot as hades reciprocation. Mmm hmm.

It doesn't hurt at all either, that both these characters were so easy to like. Jamie, with his sweet laid back attitude; his only desire is to reconnect with his long lost friend, having missed the seamless camaraderie they easily shared. Ryan, so appealing in his carefree, cocky, confident demeanor that really, only mostly serves to hide his secret yearnings and insecurities. Both of these guys were wonderful, and their interactions were fun, funny, intimate, vulnerable - and in case you weren't paying attention in the beginning - absolutely yummy.

Extra bonus points for the hockey trope. There's just something about these types of players and their mentality surrounding the sport that appeals so much! Bring on the recs please! Unf.… (more)

4 Stars!

Bowen MM = Hell Yeah!!

Start with taciturn, extremely introverted, awkward gentle giant Kieran, who’s all sorts of manly farmer goodness. Pretty much his whole life Kieran has felt like an outsider, and he’s torn between forging his own path and helping his family at the detriment of suppressing who he truly is. Life has gotten awful stifling, and Kieran is at his rope’s end.

Then there’s Roddy, a spontaneous, live life to the fullest, extroverted baker with little filter who has returned home to Vermont after devastating heartbreak and sadly, his parents aren’t welcoming him back with open arms. When he crosses paths with Kieran, it brings up a salacious history from high school that Roddy can’t help but poke, while Kieran wishes the ground would swallow him up.

This is quite the slow burn, but the characters and their struggles are real and organic. As Roddy and Keiran get to know each other through being awkward coworkers first, and then reluctant roommates second, the reader also gets to discover the many layers of these two as each evolves to carve out a new life together and apart.

It will come as no surprise that I loved Kieran hard. Good, thoughtful, with plenty of self induced turmoil, he had the most growth to do, and his sexual awakening was deliciously oh so very nice. *winks* Bowen is that rare author who can get me to read their MF stuff too, and the fact that she’s inspired several planned spinoffs for other authors to contribute to, all of which connect to her True North series (alerting all Griffin lovers!) is just really more for us to enjoy!

I’m always on board for Bowen and only hope there’s more from this author soon!! Fans should embrace her latest offering with no problems! Cheers!
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I know there are readers out there who are hesitant to read this.

Are you totally justified? Is there angst?? Yes.
Is some of it unnecessary? Probably.
Did it go on for too long? Maybe.

Regardless, the angst is plausible and realistic. So just brace yourself for the most absurd, man-child of a teammate Blake, who takes cockblocking to a whole new level of unbelievable proportions. Be prepared for a crazy, media frenzy that hardly lets Jamie and Ryan breathe. And know that you'll be driven bonkers by the inevitable lack of communication between these two.

Having said that, I never once doubted the love that they had for each other. Sure, they may have doubted the other's feelings, but Ryan and Jamie never, ever wavered in their own conviction that being with each other was the only thing going for them in the midst of their fucked up situation. This was sweet and painful and I wanted to beat the hell out of pretty much every character at some point in the story. Take solace though, that their chemistry was still off the charts, and the smex remained at a high level of yummy goodness.

So despite all that pesky drama, their happy ending was resolved perfectly and left me in a nice puddle of goo. Jamie and Ryan just entered my very exclusive, small pool of favorite couples I hold dear, and for me, that says it all on how I felt about this book.
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