A Shot at Forgiveness by Cardeno C.
Sometimes to find love, you must first learn forgiveness.
A dozen years, two thousand miles, and a law degree after high school, Rafi Steiner continues to harbor resentment toward Isaac Jones, his childhood bully turned NBA star. When Isaac appears at Rafi’s favorite restaurant acting like a long-lost friend, Rafi bluntly dismisses him.
But Isaac is tenacious and h
e has his heart set on the grown-up version of the boy he always wanted and never forgot. The way Isaac sees it, he and Rafi are perfect for each other, if only he could sink the most important shot of his life: his one shot at forgiveness.
This started out feeling somewhat sad. Rafi, when he first sees Isaac after so many years, is filled with anger and hatred. Isaac had bullied him during their years in school together, relentlessly. Rafi saw no reason to reaquaint himself with the man who had tortured him for so many years.
Isaac, however, still had a relentless streak, but this time it was in his pursuit of Rafi. Showing up at his house, entering because he had seen Rafi enter the code, bringing food, and just finding ways to be sweet. And as they began to bond again, Isaac helped Rafi realize that maybe his memories were slightly skewed, and that there were many ways that Isaac had found to protect him.
Isaac was sweet and loving, and turned his life inside out to come back for Rafi. I truly enjoyed watching Isaac break down the walls that Rafi had put up all those years ago.
4 pieces of eye candy for me.
Places in Time by Cardeno C.
A relationship-challenged actor unexpectedly finds love in the arms of his childhood best friend.
“Sexiest Man Alive” and Golden Globe winning actor Ethan Baker lights up the screen but fizzles in his personal life. When his latest gi
rlfriend breaks up with him, Ethan turns to his one “forever” person—Jude Harrison. But as Ethan makes the familiar drive to his best friend’s house, an unexpected detour and a bewildering passenger take him through places in time he’d long forgotten. Suddenly Ethan sees Jude’s actions over the years from a different perspective, but it’s his own reaction that’s the biggest surprise.
Okay, I will admit, I have a super soft spot for stories that include time travel of some sort. And this hit all my buttons perfectly!
Ethan and Jude had been friends since they were teenagers, but had never ventured past that friend zone. Whenever something happened in Ethan’s life, Jude was the person he turned to. And as a lovely redheaded lady guides Ethan through visions of important events that happened during his life, Ethan learned how much Jude had truly sacrificed for him, and how much Jude truly loved him.
Ethan learned from this, and became aware of what Jude truly meant to him. By growing and seeing the sacrifices, he was able to bring himself to finally love Jude.
I rarely give novellas 5 pieces of eye candy. I am a full length novel kind of girl. That being said, for me a 5 piece of eye candy story is one that I will re-read again, and I imagine this will stay to the top of my TBR for quite a while as a re-read.
All of Me by Cardeno C.
To bond with his destined mate, an Alpha wolf must look past what he sees and trust what he feels.
Bonded by their parents before they were conceived, wolf shifters Abel and Kai adored each other since they were children. As teens, th
e two future Alphas took the next step in their bonding process and vowed to remain true to one another until Kai came of age. But when tragedy struck, Abel felt betrayed and ran from Kai instead of completing their mating.
Abel never stops yearning for the man who was supposed to lead by his side and after years without contact, Kai returns, broken and on death’s door. If Abel wants to fulfill their destiny and merge their packs, he’ll need to look past what he saw and trust his heart.
Lots of heart wrenching tears, anger and finally happiness for our Alphas. All of the characters were very likable, I just wish we could have seen more from Kai’s perspective. The story felt rushed and I feel it could have been even better if it was a bit longer, but it was a pretty intense little read. The romance was sweet and the story was very well written. I have always liked everything I have read from Cardeno C and All Of Me was a great little way to get though the afternoon.
4 pieces of Eye Candy from me.