Israel Ingham’s life has never been easy. He grew up in a house devoid of love and warmth. Nothing he ever did was good enough. The fact Israel is gay just added to the long list of his father’s disappointments.
Then a letter from Eastport Children’s Hospital changes everything.
A discovery is made, one of gross human error. Twenty-six years ago two baby boys were switched at birth and sent home with the wrong families.
Sam, Israel’s best friend, has been his only source of love and support. With Sam beside him every step of the way, Israel decides to meet his birth mother and her son, the man who lived the life Israel should have.
Israel and Sam become closer than ever, amidst the tumultuous emotions of meeting his birth family, and Sam finds himself questioning his feelings toward his best friend. As Israel embraces new possibilities, he needs to dissect his painful relationship with his parents in order to salvage what’s left.
Because sometimes it takes proof you’re not actually family to become one.
Amazon
Why do I continue to allow N.R. Walker to surprise me? There has not been one of this author’s books that I have been disappointed in, even ones that I would likely not have picked up if someone hadn’t said “read this!” And yet, I continue to be surprised by this author each and every time I read her books. She writes with such passion, and shows such character growth, that I wonder if she has a degree in human psychology, and if not, then she truly understands human emotion.
This book could have easily been a trope of “man finds he’s switched at birth, and falls in love with the man he was switched with”, which would have left me the feeling of a Hallmark movie. Instead, it was a story about family. It was about how one event, more than two decades before can determine family, how you see family, and what makes a family whole.
Switched was not your average male/male romance. It was a story focused on the growth of one character, Israel, after a circumstance that is almost impossible to understand all of the ramifications of. It also happened to have a hot, sexy lawyer who Israel realized he was in love with…and damn, those were some HAWT sex scenes.
In the end, though, to see how Israel found a way to love his parents, and to love himself, as well as letting in the love of another family, was heart warming. Israel worked hard to get there. It wasn’t a snap fix, as can sometimes happen in similar books. He was willing to put in the effort, and believe in what he could see of himself, and his family. The author gave the reader what they needed to really understand this character, time to learn where he came from, time to see where he was headed, and how he made himself get there. The journey the author brings you on sets you up from the beginning to understand how much change Israel needs in his life to feel whole, and to feel loved.
I cried several times in the book. Sometimes happy tears, sometimes tears of sadness, but as always the tears that N.R. Walker can so often bring to my eyes. She works magic in books that I only find with a few authors. I promise I will NEVER doubt again!!!! 🙂
5 pieces of eye candy!!!!
