Review: Within Reach

Within Reach by Kaje Harper

My rating: 5 of 5 stars



AMAZING!
I was holding my breath for the last third of the story.
Kaje Harper has a very unique way to write about feelings, sensations, and for this book in particular that is very important.
As I read the last paragraph my skin was cover in goosebumps, that's how good it was.
Short, sexy, angsty enough, perfect.



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Review: Men of Smithfield: Adam and Holden

Men of Smithfield: Adam and Holden by L.B. Gregg

My rating: 4 of 5 stars



Again, another surprise from LB Gregg.
This one is completely different from the other books in the series.
I wouldn´t call it a romance at all, even though there is a relationship between Holden and Adam, but that relationship is not the main focus of the book.
The story goes around a dead body found in Holden´s back yard by Adam, his gardener.
Holden suffers from agoraphobia, meaning he hasn´t step outside his house for several months.
He just can´t do it.
That little detail puts him out of the suspects list, but other coincidences and random people in common with the deceased make up for the mystery and the "Who did it?" question.
When it comes to the romantic relationship in the book, Adam is a great MC. HE is very different, he is unsure, maybe shy. But is that type of guy than when he speaks you have to listen because is totally insightful. When he need to step up and defend the one he loves he will do it without second thoughts.
I really enjoy the story, the drama, the murder mystery. I also liked seeing Tony again, one of my favorite characters in the series.
Holden is a very particular guy, but once you get his sense of humor you are in for some good laughs.
Enjoy!!!




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Review: Happy Ending

Happy Ending by L.B. Gregg

My rating: 4 of 5 stars



I'm so glad I gave LB Gregg another chance!
Happy Ending is an amazing book.
I love the innuendo of the tittle for starts.
David is such a likeable character, so funny, smart and sweet. I really liked his sarcasm and the way he relate to the kids in this story.
He was to complete opposite from Seth, and that completely worked.
Seth life has been upside down for the last year. Losing his twin sister and being left alone to care for his 6 years old niece was not part of his plan, but it happened and he has to deal with it.
The word family takes a whole new meaning when he meets David and learns that all families are different and opposite to common believe you can chose your family too.
If I have one thing to say about Happy Ending is that is was too short, or at least it felt like that because it was all happening at once.

I received an Advanced Readers Copy from the publisher through NetGalley



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Review: The Road To Byron

The Road To Byron by Isabelle Rowan

My rating: 4 of 5 stars




This review can be found in http://heartsonfirereviews.com/?p=15746

[a:Isabelle Rowan|2457566|Isabelle Rowan|http://photo.goodreads.com/authors/1322528593p2/2457566.jpg] is a favourite author of mine, but I have to be honest and said that The Road to Byron left me wanting more.

The writing is flawless, just like in all her other works. Isabelle Rowan manages to transmit the characters emotions and get the reader involved with their feelings.

In The Road to Byron we have Craig and Matthew, who have been best friends since they can remember. As a “rite of passage” they decided to take road trip to Byron beach. Together with Kelly, Craig´s girlfriend, they embark on the trip of their lives.

Matthew´s background is pretty simple, his mom died a couple of years ago and he´s been living with his dad and his dog ever since, right next door to Craig´s family.

Craig´s family is a very different story. Coming from an abusive home, Craig has always counted on Matthew´s family to be his safe haven. No one knows the real extent of the abuse, not even Matthew. Some things have been left unsaid between these two friends for too long. And without them even knowing they come to an agreement not to discuss them.

So, the trip to Byron will push the secrets out of the closet, in more ways than one.

I really like the dynamic between the three characters on the first part of the road trip. Kelly is absolutely in love with Craig, and is also very sensitive to Matthew´s feelings towards his best friend. Call it female sixth sense, but she is the first one to notice that is more than just a brotherly bond what Matthew feels for Craig.

After a beach party, Matthew meets Damien on the beach. This is a boy he saw from afar the night before but couldn’t gather the courage to go talk to. Light conversation, a swim and some under the water light touches…a kiss, and things changed for Matthew in a way he wasn´t expecting.

Over the next few days, Matthew and Damien share more and more time together, stolen moments and kisses.

Matthew´s discovery of his sexuality is all done in a very sweet, intimate way. Damien is so patient with him and always very concerned about his feelings, never pushing. But there is still one thing that is always in the back of Matthew´s mind, and that is how will Craig react when he finds out.

It happens so fast, one moment Matthew is enjoying the feeling of Damien wrapped around him and the next he is trying to stop Craig from beating Damien. It all comes to the abuse Craig suffered as a child, and the memories were triggered by the image of his best friend with the other boy.

It is the moment of truth for Matthew, the moment his best friend finally knows who he really is. And even if it looks like it will be hard for Craig to accept it, it is not.

Will Matthew be able to embrace who he is and who he really loves, put his heart out there and show Damien he is ready? I really liked Matthew´s relationship with his father, and the way he finally gets to talk to him.

The angst doesn’t last long but it´s enough to have you worried for a minute.

Why did I want more? Well, this is a HFN ending and I was not ready for that.

It feels like it was too short, and a lot of things were left unsaid.

I wanted more, I wanted all the details on the HEA.

All in all a great coming out story, with a lot of potential.





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Review: After Ben

After Ben by Con Riley

My rating: 5 of 5 stars



I want more. More stars to begin with. More Theo, more Morgan, more lazy mornings in bed kissing...I just want it all.
Is not that it fall short by any means, is just that I grew so attach to this characters that is ridiculous.
I should start for the beginning, no?
Anyway, we meet Theo one of the sweetest guys I ever meet, who lost his partner for 15 years - Ben. The great thing about this book is that we don't get to directly meet Ben, but you see him through Theo's eyes, the eyes of love, and you totally fall for him.
Theo is at that point of the grieving process were you don't know if you should move on or not, his body is ready but his mind and heart are not.
In his real life he has Peter, a very cute paramedic and gym buddy who is the first one to test Theo, and kind of bring him back to the world of the living.
But Theo has a very active on line life, and here I want to comment on how much this comes close to our everyday life if you think about it, anyway Morgan is the one that challenges him on line. The thing with internet is that you can be whoever you want to be and Theo decided that Morgan was another single middle age man.
Here comes one of the main conflicts of this story, Ben was 9 years older than Theo and Theo feels that is a heavy responsibility to date someone younger and maybe leave him behind.
So when all the information he has on Morgan points to the fact that the man is younger than him by several years he feels like he can't have him and experiences another type of lost.
It is great to see how the many details of the plot get together and develop to sort out years of misconceptions and misunderstandings.
But just like Theo, Morgan has a past. Here I must say that Theo is kind of slow to notice, but I guess the important thing is that he finally sees it.
And Morgan is a AMAZING character.
Is a completely different type of relationship for Theo, the life he had with Ben was based on love, trust and companionship. Where he used to lean on Ben for almost everything now he has to step up and be the one for Morgan to lean on.
Morgan has to learn all that from start as he never had that type of love.
I could be talking here all day...and I haven't even mention Evan and Joel, who are another story completely. Young love FTW!
Go read it, enjoy it, cry over it, laugh over it - love it!






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Review: When Love Is Not Enough

When Love Is Not Enough by Wade Kelly

My rating: 5 of 5 stars



I’m still heartbroken.
A difficult book to read. A harder reality to face.
I don´t tend to read books with a heavy load of religion in them, I try to stay away from the whole controversy about how God sees gay people.
In this book it took me by surprised and I hated the characters that used religion to hide their own fears and hatred.
When Love Is Not Enough...so much can happen in 6 years of life.
The story is told from 3 different POVs; Matt, Darian and Jamie, the latest being the link between them three.
When Jim decided to take his own life, he left behind a grieving father, a broken best friend and a very lonely and lost fiancée.
Over the years Jim tried so hard to keep both his worlds apart, his straight world where his best friend Matt was his rock and his gay world where he was going to marry Darian the boy he was in love with.
Along the pages of this book, the story gets together between present, past events and diary entries.
What happens is that once Jamie´s world collide the outcome is pretty different from what he ever imagined, and the pull between his best friend and his fiancée is inevitable.
Yes, sometimes is hard to keep the timeline in order, but all the characters voices are pretty clear and once you get to know them is easy to switch from one to the other.
The main question in this book is Why? Why did Jamie did it? Why wasn´t he able to face his mother and tell her the truth? Why he couldn’t say to Matt what he was feeling?
Lots of question that get answered in Jamie´s diaries pages...over 6 years of thoughts, memories, feelings that come together in one last moment.
The writing is superb, the way Wade Kelly portraits these characters emotions, makes your heart ache.
This is one of those books that will stay with me for a long time.
I hope the sequel takes us to a happier place, one that does not include Jim´s mother.




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