Two Chicks Obsessed with Books & Eye Candy

Sharing our love of M/M Romance

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What If? (Lost and Found) by Barbara Elsborg: New Release Review

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When 16-year-old Crispin stumbles across Kennedy’s Emporium, he’s transported into a magical world of the impossible. Unicorns, snow globes where the snow never stops falling, bubbles that never pop, paper fireworks that explode and refill, and most magical of all—Garrett Kennedy, youngest son of the owner, who makes Crispin’s heart leap in new and exciting ways. Crispin promises he’ll never forget Garrett, but when he loses Garrett’s gift of a jewelled bee, he also loses his memories of the time he spent with him.

Eight years later, the bee is returned to Crispin, along with memories of Garrett and his amazing world. But how can any of what Crispin now recalls be possible?
And yet…

What if it wasn’t a dream?
What if Kennedy’s Emporium exists?
What if magic is real?
What if Garrett’s been waiting, wondering why Crispin never came back?

And what if Crispin takes a chance on the best thing that’s ever happened to him, assuming he can find Kennedy’s Emporium again?

Amazon – Kindle Unlimited

Book 2 in this new magical/paranormal romance series. You don’t have to read book 1 as this stands alone.

I had just come off of reading two highly emotional, angsty reads. So I say to myself, yes this one will be good. It’ll probably make me giggle a bit like Jonty did. It’s Christmas-y, it won’t be sad. FALSE! Sigh.

Don’t get me wrong, it isn’t ALL sad and there is definitely a happily ever after but getting there led to tears. Many tears.

The book is set in modern day London, but faeries, shapeshifters, werewolves, etc are all real. But regular people don’t know they are real. A human, Crispin, stumbles across a shop he shouldn’t have been able to see but he did. And he spent 24 hours immersed with Garrett in that world. When he left, the shop disappeared, everyone thought Crispin had disappeared and he was left with no recollection of what had happened.

Crispin’s life isn’t fabulous. His family is wealthy, but his mother is very cold and his older brother tortures him, even as adults. The only family member he is close to is his father. And his father tends to hover because he had a brain tumor as a child and he is always worried that it will come back.

Through a series of events, Crispin gets his memory of those lost 24 hours back and is determined to find Garrett again. A little magic helps him find his way back.

Garrett is ready to leave the fae world behind to stay with Crispin. But Garrett believes that Crispin must have some fae in him that let him see the shop all those years ago.

While Crispin and Garrett unravel a mystery with many connected threads, they are inseparable. Love at first sight, soul mates, whatever you want to call it. It is so sweet how Garrett wants to figure out a way to be together but Crispin wants Garrett to go back to Fairyland and forget him. I won’t say why. But remember all the crying I did? Uhuh

I want to hug Crispin’s dad and smack his mother and brother. As well as Garrett’s brother. We did get to check in with characters from the first book which was fun. And at least that part made me giggle.

All of the tears were redeemed although there were quite a few twists that I didn’t expect. What started as a sob fest ended up being a feel good Christmas story. Mostly.

4 pieces of eye candy

Christmas Mountain: A Christmas Gay Romance by Garrett Leigh: RB, New Release Review and Giveaway

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The probation officer caring for his dead brother’s baby. The wounded gentle giant with the biggest softest heart.

Rami: Sweet Fen Hawthorne is my favourite thing about working in the prison. His broad shoulders and sunny grin. His twinkly flirtation. And he likes me as much as I like him. More seems inevitable until life happens.

One day I’m there, then I’m not, and second chances don’t really happen when your car breaks down halfway up a snowy mountain, do they?

Besides, I don’t remember flirting with a bearded lumbersexual, only dreaming about one.

Fen: Do dreams come true?

Christmas Mountain is my home. But it’s the one place on earth I never imagined seeing Rami Stone again, and now I’m snowed in with him. Trapped, with only a roaring fire for company, and it’s a fantasy come true. The air is thick with more than snow and the eighteen months we’ve been apart fades away.

As the snow clears, though, so does the haze. Rami says he comes with baggage.

But so do I, and I’m here for the heavy lifting.

I’m here for forever.

A Christmas MM romance from Garrett Leigh. Expect: Long lost friends-to-lovers, heart-warming found family, and the swooniest second chance at love with a healthy dose of sweet hurt/comfort. Gorging on mince pies and cinnamon-spiced doughnuts is optional, but deeply encouraged.

Amazon – Kindle Unlimited

So swoony!

We met Rami oh so briefly as Dante Pope’s probation officer. Turns out he has a crush on one of the prison guards and one of the prison guards has a crush on him, but life got in the way and they lost touch for about 2 years.

During that time Rami ended up being the caregiver to his nephew after his brother OD’d and the baby’s mother split. This poor guy is suddenly in charge of a toddler while trying to work and occasionally get some sleep. And then he kind of snapped. If you’re a parent, you have probably felt that way. Just completely exhausted and overwhelmed and if you start crying you might never stop. That’s real life. So in a fit of desperation he decides to go to his sister’s house. Except she lives on a mountain, it’s 2 hours away in good weather and oh, unexpected snowstorm. And then his car dies. In the snow. On a mountain road.

Don’t worry because a gorgeous hulking lumberjack rescues them. And that lumberjack is the prison guard.

Turns out their lives are entwined in a way they didn’t know. Rami decides to stay at his sister’s house with her brood for a bit to get some help, maybe relax a little and get some sleep. But Fen, the prison guard/lumberjack is part of his sister’s life so they see a lot of each other. And they flirt. Hard. Even when Fen says he doesn’t want to cross a line. He doesn’t do casual. And Rami has every intention of going back home to his life and his job.

Rami’s sister is amazing. I want to call her super mom, but her husband is just as amazing. They are fairly self reliant, they homeschool, etc. Rami didn’t think he could do it but he learns to slow down and live how they do. For now.

Fen has some demons and reasons for leaving the prison and going back to take over his father’s Christmas tree farm. And as much as he adores Rami’s sister and family, he is still pretty closed off. They all chip away at him- kids included. And especially Charlie, Rami’s nephew he is now raising.

It wasn’t just Rami and Fen falling in love that was swoony. It was Fen allowing himself to fall in love with Rami’s whole family. And letting them all love him back.

There’s a bit of drama toward the end that was unexpected. But you also know that everything is going to be ok.

Definitely worth the read if you are a fan of the author. Or even if you are new to their work. Or just want a lumberjack Christmas story. Or a single dad story. Or all of the above.

4 pieces of eye candy

Garrett Leigh is an award-winning British writer and book designer.

Garrett’s debut novel, Slide, won Best Bisexual Debut at the 2014 Rainbow Book Awards, and her polyamorous novel, Misfits was a finalist in the 2016 LAMBDA awards.

When not writing, Garrett can generally be found procrastinating on Twitter, cooking up a storm, or sitting on her behind doing as little as possible, all the while shouting at her menagerie of children and animals and attempting to tame her unruly and wonderful FOX.

Garrett is also an award winning cover artist, taking the silver medal at the Benjamin Franklin Book Awards in 2016. She designs for various publishing houses and independent authors at blackjazzdesign.com, and co-owns the specialist stock site moonstockphotography.com with renowned LGBTQA+ photographer Dan Burgess.

Website: http://www.garrettleigh.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/garrettleighauthor/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/Garrett_Leigh

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Never Fade Away by EL Esch: Blog Tour, Exclusive Excerpt, New Release Review and Giveaway

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Until death does us part, but it’s knocking on our door…

I’d had enough. That’s how I found myself in a dingy alleyway with my revolver in my hand. I was sick and dying anyway, and there was nothing I could do about it. Nothing except maybe taking back some shred of control by going out on my own terms.

One deep breath. Two… Three… Four…

Surrounded by the darkness of my own mind, this was the only solution I could see, but before I could do something I’d regret, rock star Anno Goodkind crashed into my life and flipped it upside down.

It was supposed to be one casual hookup. No complications and definitely no feelings. No, the most logical thing to do would be to stuff my emotions down so nobody got hurt. Especially not him. But nobody told me that love didn’t give a damn about logic.

CONTENT WARNING: This story has a HEA but deals with heavy themes of illness, suicide, anxiety, and depression. Reader discretion is advised.

Amazon – Kindle Unlimited

I opened my eyes and turned toward Anno. He’d retrieved a guitar from the SUV at some point and was now plucking the strings gently with his fingertips. It was the same one he’d been playing at the concert.

“Haven’t heard this one,” I said.

The multicolored rubber bracelets on Anno’s wrists shook as his hands moved expertly in and out of notes. He rocked his torso to the tune as he played, humming softly. The soft light of the moon traced his face as he moved, accenting his nose and jaw. Looking at him, I felt happy. He seemed so content, so in his element that he radiated a contagious aura of tranquility.

But all at once he stopped, and then he swore. The aura dissipated.

“None of it feels right lately.” He reached into the back pocket of his jeans and pulled out a lighter and a pack of cigarettes. He offered me one, but I held up my hand in refusal. After a long drag on a cigarette, he sighed deeply on a puff of smoke.

“It sounded good to me.”

“Ha, thanks.” Another long draw on the cigarette and then he tossed it to the ground and stomped out any lingering embers.

“It was a nice riff. Comfortable, soft… sort of haunting. I dunno, I liked it. Made me feel good.”

“You really think?” He hopped back up on the hood of the SUV and turned on his side toward me.

Why did he sound so uncertain? He was a popular artist. People loved his music. Yet I could hear the quiver in his voice when he asked me if I really believed what I’d said.

“I do.” I nodded. “And I haven’t felt comfortable in a long time. But maybe that’s the booze.” I started to laugh, and then I noticed Anno leaning toward me.

His lips were inches from mine. I could smell the beer we’d been drinking on his breath. He tilted his head and our noses brushed ever so slightly.

Shakily, I slipped my hand around the back of his head. His hair felt freshly cut and prickled along my palm as I gently pushed to close the gap between us.

If you’ve read my reviews you know I love angst. I want to FEEL the emotions. Good or bad. But also, I don’t want to read about fabricated angst. Those dumb fights that the couple has so they break up for five minutes and it’s called conflict just so they can get back together. No. I want real. I want gritty. I want to cry because I am so in their world that it feels like I know them. It’s been a while since I’ve gotten that. Until this book.

Vincent is sick and dying. Although we don’t find out exactly what he has and what is killing him for quite a while. When Anno finds him, Vincent is about to take matters into his own hands. Knowing he is dying anyway, why make it drawn out? Instead Anno shows up…and basically never leaves.

Anno has his own issues. And while this could absolutely lead to some serious codependence, it doesn’t. They call each other on their crap. Vincent doesn’t care that Anno is famous. Anno doesn’t care that Vincent lives in a tiny apartment. They learn about each other, what their demons are and they don’t try to fix each other. I was waiting for that. Waiting for Anno to try to throw money at the “problem”. Wanting to send Vincent to the best doctors, second, third and fourth opinions. But he doesn’t. He respects that Vincent is a grown man who can make his own decisions about his own life.

And they are grown men. Mid- late 30’s and early 40’s. THAT was refreshing.

I almost- almost- hated knowing that this would be a happily ever after. Because, how? I looked down at the percentage left and wondered how. How was this going to wrap up and not be rushed? But the author did it. The epilogue was just the perfect ending. Realistic and not “omg a miracle!”.

So yes, I ugly cried while reading. A lot. A lot a lot. Which just shows how invested I was in these men. Not only as a couple, but individually.

Why I took 1/2 a piece of eye candy away below
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Silly things like Vincent and his bestie met in college and stayed besties. And I get it that whatever he was in college for he went into construction because he loved it. But his bff is a stylist. So…I don’t know what she was doing in college? Or what she did and then went to cosmetology school?

Yes, I am picky. That is well established. Sorry, not sorry.

4.5 pieces of eye candy

I’m a huge gamer, a lover of books and art, and have a fascination for lizards and other small critters that borders on an obsession. Which is probably why I already own 3 and have to actively stop myself from getting more.

I began writing because I always loved the idea that words can create entire universes and characters from nothing but a blank page and an idea. Like one day you have an empty Word document and then in as little as a few minutes—boom! You just created a snarky art school graduate with purple hair whose blood may actually be 90% coffee.

I write Male/Male adult romance. My books usually focus on realistic life topics—stuff everyday people go through and struggle with. I like when we as readers can feel connected to the characters we’re reading about. When we can understand their feelings and then suddenly they become truly human.

Please consider signing up for new release information through my newsletter at my website:
https://www.eleschbooks.com

Connect with Eryn:
Website: https://www.eleschbooks.com
Facebook Profile: https://www.facebook.com/author.elesch
Facebook Group – https://www.facebook.com/groups/elesch
Instagram Follow – https://www.instagram.com/e_l_esch/
Bookbub Follow – https://www.bookbub.com/profile/e-l-esch
Goodreads Follow – https://www.goodreads.com/e-l-esc
Amazon Follow –  https://amazon.com/author/elesch

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Not Until Noah (Star Crossed, Book 1) by Lisa Henry: RB, Exclusive Excerpt, New Release Review and Giveaway

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Carter Westlake is on the brink of being Hollywood gold. Cast as the lead in a highly-anticipated sci-fi trilogy filming in Australia, he’s primed to be the next A-list action hero: all-American, hot as hell, and straight. The problem is, Carter can only check off two of those boxes. But that’s okay—his bisexuality can remain a secret until these movies are behind him.

Childhood educator Noah Jones has a plan. Work as a nanny for six months, make some extra cash, and move to the UK to teach. He doesn’t expect his new boss to be a Hollywood star. And he certainly isn’t prepared to fall for the guy.

One kiss sends them tumbling into a secret relationship, even though they both agree it can be nothing more than a fling. Carter needs to stay in the closet for the sake of his career, and Noah’s leaving. But when their feelings continue to grow into something deeper, Carter has a decision to make. Knowing that exposing his sexuality could cost him his career, would he rather carry on living a lie, or risk it all to stand tall in his truth?

Not Until Noah is the first book in the Star Crossed series, where regular guys meet famous ones, and sparks fly.

Title: Not Until Noah

Author: Lisa Henry

Series: Star Crossed, Book 1

Genre: Contemporary.

Tropes: secret relationship/manny and single dad.

Amazon – Kindle Unlimited

Goodreads

Noah went into his bedroom and grabbed his bag of toiletries and the boxers and T-shirt he slept in. He bundled them all together and stepped back into the hallway, intending to head for the bathroom.

Instead, he almost stepped right into Carter Westlake.

He put up a hand to stop them colliding, his fingers sliding over the thin fabric of Carter’s soft shirt and into the dip of his sternum. His breath caught, and his face burned. He took a quick step back.

“Thanks,” Carter said. “For today. Emerson had a great time.”

“I did too,” he said, trying not to stare at the way Carter’s mouth moved. “She’s a great kid.”

“She doesn’t usually warm up to new people quickly,” Carter said. “But she loves you.”

There was something about the way Carter said it, something vulnerable in the slight hitch of his voice, that made Noah’s heart skip a beat. The moment was heavier than a compliment wrapped in a revelation about a child’s sociability should have been. Noah had no words, and the silence between them suddenly shifted and became laden with something that he was terrified to name, except he could feel it. Sudden anticipation in the air, sudden electricity. And Carter’s gaze was holding his as though it were magnetic. He almost forgot to breathe.

And then Carter was closing the distance between them again. “Noah, can I—”

“Yes,” he said, the blood roaring in his skull. It couldn’t be what he thought it was—it couldn’t be—but it also didn’t matter what it was. There was probably nothing in the world that Carter Westlake could ask him that Noah would refuse. Not in this strange moment where the rest of the universe had somehow ceased to exist.

Carter tucked a finger under Noah’s chin—Noah’s breath shuddered out of him—and leaned in to kiss him.

A million frantic thoughts sounded like klaxons in the back of Noah’s mind, all blaring the same urgent, panicked message:

Carter Westlake is kissing you!

Carter Westlake—the movie star—is kissing you!

And he had no idea what the hell he was supposed to do with that information, except maybe enjoy the kiss while it lasted.

He lifted his shaking hand and ran it through Carter’s hair, encouraging him to keep going, and shivered as Carter’s tongue slid along the soft seam of his lips. He opened his mouth, and the sensation of their tongues touching sent a thrum of molten heat through his body. He moaned into the kiss.

No, it wasn’t Carter Westlake the movie star who was kissing him; it was Carter Westlake the man. And he wasn’t sure why, but that suddenly seemed like an important distinction.

Carter drew back for a moment, and his heart seized at the loss. Carter only leaned in again, though, sucking gently on his bottom lip before releasing it and sealing their mouths together once more. Noah’s body thrummed with need. He twisted his fingers in Carter’s hair and shivered as Carter’s hands came to rest on his hips. He suddenly wanted to pull Carter closer, to bring their bodies together as tightly as he could—

His toiletry bag thumped to the floor as he released his grip on it.

The sudden noise broke the spell between them, broke the kiss.

Carter stepped away quickly. “I’m sorry. Shit, I’m sorry.”

The heat in Noah’s body transformed into burning shame.

“That was inappropriate,” Carter said. He wasn’t meeting Noah’s gaze. “I’ll…”

He gestured toward the stairs and then hurried past Noah toward them. He didn’t look back.

Noah’s hands shook. He leaned against the wall for a moment, fighting for breath. Then, his eyes stinging, he stooped and picked up his bag and his pajamas. He hurried to the bathroom, closing and locking the door.

He leaned against the vanity, his back turned to the mirror because he wasn’t sure he could look at himself right now.

And that distinction between Carter Westlake the movie star and Carter Westlake the man—the one that had seemed so significant while they’d been kissing—was a joke, wasn’t it? Because Carter Westlake was also his employer, and Noah was a fucking idiot not to have remembered that. Carter could fire him for this. Would that be better or worse than not being fired, but somehow continuing to stay here and pretend nothing had happened? He had no idea. Nothing like this had ever happened to him before. And he could wave any future contracts with CTL goodbye if Karen found out he’d kissed a client.

Stupid.

Stupid stupid stupid.

He buried his face in his hands, squeezed his eyes shut, and groaned.

Stupid, but if Carter knocked on the bathroom door right now and asked if he wanted to kiss him again, Noah wasn’t sure that he’d be able to refuse him. He wasn’t sure he’d want to because nobody had ever kissed him the way that Carter had, and even knowing it was the dumbest thing in the world, he wanted more.

This is the first contemporary book by Lisa Henry that I’ve read. However, considering how much I have loved the Lords of Bucknall series, I knew I wanted to jump into this one. I wasn’t disappointed with this one.

I always love when books are set in Australia, as I loved my brief time there, so it’s always fun to revisit mentally. Not that I was able to stay in a house quite like the one Carter Westlake was renting.

With Carter on the verge of his “big break” with a trilogy of action movies, he is still firmly in the closet, until Noah becomes a nanny for the five months they are expecting to be in Australia. What I loved most about Carter was his fallibility. He was a fantastic father…but still managed to disappoint his child on a few occasions, despite his best efforts. He wanted to be out of the closet, and yet knew he couldn’t until…whenever…and acknowledged that whenever will likely never come.

Noah meanwhile was so good with Carter’s child, not just being a manny, but actually engaging with her, teaching her, showing her the world. It was a lovely relationship. And when things did not go down well between Noah and Carter, Noah deeply felt his love for Carter’s daughter, and how upset she would be. (And she was…and she let Noah know about it. Loved that!)

Side note…Noah’s brother, Dylan…he was a really good character. Written very well, and he was so supportive of Noah. I just loved Dylan.

All around a really good read, and a good start to a new series.

4 pieces of eye candy

Lisa likes to tell stories, mostly with hot guys and happily ever afters.

Lisa lives in tropical North Queensland, Australia. She doesn’t know why, because she hates the heat, but she suspects she’s too lazy to move. She spends half her time slaving away as a government minion, and the other half plotting her escape.

She attended university at sixteen, not because she was a child prodigy or anything, but because of a mix-up between international school systems early in life. She studied History and English, neither of them very thoroughly.

She shares her house with too many cats, a dog, a green tree frog that swims in the toilet, and as many possums as can break in every night. This is not how she imagined life as a grown-up.

Lisa has been published since 2012, and was a LAMBDA finalist for her quirky, awkward coming-of-age romance Adulting 101, and a Rainbow Awards finalist for 2019’s Anhaga.

To connect with Lisa on social media, you can find her here:

Website
Facebook
Instagram
Goodreads
Bookbub
Twitter

She also has a Facebook group where you’ll be kept in the loop with updates on releases, have a chance to win prizes, and probably see lots of lots of pictures of her dog and cats. You can find it here: Lisa Henry’s Hangout.

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Code Red by N.R. Walker, Narration Nick J. Russo: Audiobook Review

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Maddox Kershaw is the main vocalist of the world’s biggest boy band. He’s at the top of every music chart, every award show, every social media platform, and every sexiest-man-alive list. He’s the bad boy, the enigma, the man everyone on the planet wants a piece of.

He’s also burned out and exhausted, isolated and lonely. Not in a good headspace at the start of a tour.

Roscoe Hall is Maddox’s personal manager. His job is high-flying, high-demand, high-profile, and he loves it. Maddox has consumed his entire life for the past four years. Roscoe knows him. He sees the real Maddox no one else gets to see.

He’s also in love with him.

When the tour and stress become too much, when the world begins to close in, Roscoe becomes Maddox’s lifeline. But as Maddox knows already, and as Roscoe is about to learn, the brighter the spotlight, the darker the shadow.

Amazon – Kindle Unlimited

Audible

I admit that I am an NR Walker junkie. I just love how prolific she is, always writing LGBT (MM) romance, but the tropes are always different. This one is probably classified as a rock star romance, but it’s a group of 5 guys who make up the band. And besides Maddox playing guitar, I think on stage they sing and dance, no instruments. I hesitate to call it a boy band, but…

I read the book when it came out and really enjoyed it. So of course I had to listen to the audio version. Kind of an epic task for Nick Russo as there are 5 members of the band, 3 hands on management people, a couple of big wigs from the record label and a couple of security people who are in the background but still have dialogue. And it was really well done.

As for the story, the 5 members of Atrus are about to embark on a world tour. For the 5 guys there are 3 hands on managers/handlers. Maddox has been pushed to the forefront as the face of the band and as such has his own manager Roscoe. The other four guys are split between the other two managers.

Throughout the tour Maddox has really bad anxiety issues and Roscoe becomes his rock. Maddox also flirts shamelessly until Roscoe caves. Not that Roscoe wasn’t into it- but it is strictly forbidden and part of his contract.

We follow them on their tour, different cities and countries. Going out sight seeing, fighting jet lag, bodies pushed to the max. Roscoe really does try to do the right thing but can’t deny Maddox.

The book shows a pretty good glimpse into what celebrities go through. From how hard they really work to how they are stalked in real life.

As for the narration. As I said, he did a really great job. The nuances between the voices were subtle, but there. I knew who was talking easily but none of it was over the top. I have no idea how narrators keep all the voices straight. Amazing.

4.5 pieces of eye candy

I’m Not Your Enemy (Enemies Book #2) by Cara Dee: Excerpt and New Release Review

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The line between love and hate has never been so thin, and Blake and Sebastian return in this sequel with bottled-up hurt that somehow just brings them even closer.

Sebastian was right. I was a coward. I ran my closeted tail all the way back to Georgia. Once I got there, I had no place left to hide. My life imploded. But when I was welcome nowhere, I still had to go somewhere.

I could barely look my sister in the eye, facing Sebastian didn’t even exist on my radar, and I was prepared for my brother-in-law’s protective hostility. I just didn’t have a choice. For once in my life, I wanted redemption. I wanted to belong somewhere, and I was ready to work for it.

Sebastian was the exception—hard no. I might have screwed up royally, but he wasn’t so damn innocent. He’d hurt me too, and he better not push me. In fact, it was best we avoided each other altogether.

So it didn’t make a lick of sense for me to seek him out to provoke a reaction.

This story takes place in Cara Dee’s Camassia Cove Universe, a fictional town where all books stand on their own, unless otherwise stated, and the reader can jump in wherever they want.

I’m Not Your Enemy by Cara Dee

Series: Enemies Book #2
Genre: Gay Contemporary Romance
Tags: #LoversToEnemies #EnemiesToLovers #BestUnclesEver #Family #OutForYou #SouthernBadBoy #BeachCowboy #OppositesAttract #CamassiaCoveUniverse #StandaloneDuet #Book2

Amazon – Kindle Unlimited

It was still weird for me to be part of a family dinner where no one said grace. It’d been the rule for as long as I’d lived. If dinner was among family and you sat at a table, someone said grace.

Fuckin’ heathens up here.

I removed my ball cap and left it on my lap.

“Momma, can we live in an RV?” Teddy asked.

“You think we have too much space at home?” Soph smirked.

Teddy grinned sheepishly. “No, but we could go anywhere!”

I chuckled and grabbed myself a Coke.

“Where would all your toys go?” Dylan asked.

Teddy hadn’t considered that. “Maybe in my room at Bastian’s house?”

Sebastian shot him a little grin but didn’t say anything. He was usually so vocal. Now, because I was here, shit was weird. He hadn’t looked my way once. Not a glance as far as I knew.

Isabella was getting fussy in Dylan’s arms, and Soph said she couldn’t put off feeding her any longer. She excused herself to head inside and nurse the little one.

“Don’t step on Oppy and Percy, please,” I said.

“Oh! I wanna see them, Uncle Blake!” Teddy pleaded and almost knocked back his chair when he stood up. As if I could deny him. “Momma, I go with you.” He grabbed a new pizza slice and tumbled toward Soph.

Dylan turned a perturbed look Soph’s way. “You’re leaving me with those two?” He just didn’t know how to whisper.

Soph thought that was hilarious and just giggled in response. Then she disappeared into the trailer with the kids, and the tension automatically turned awkward and agitated. The latter came from Sebastian, because without Teddy around, he didn’t have to pretend.

“Are you gonna fucking eat or what?” Sebastian asked irritably.

I glanced at Dylan, who was in the middle of finishing a slice, and it dawned on me that the question was for me.

“Huh?” I managed. Wow, he was talking to me.

Sebastian flicked me an impatient look. “You’ve lost weight, and you’re not eating. Are you sick or just dumber than you look?”

“This is nice,” Dylan said. “We should do this more often.”

I furrowed my brow and wondered what the hell Sebastian’s problem was. Okay, I could venture a guess, but if he wanted to avoid me, avoid talking to me, he didn’t have to worry about what I ate.

“I don’t know what you’re talkin’ about—I haven’t lost any weight.”

“Dumber than you look, then. Because yeah, you have.” He tossed a crust into one of the boxes and leaned back, his posture and expression saying he was letting it go. He didn’t wanna talk anymore.

“So how are the Pugs doing, Blake?” Dylan interjected. “Or was it Bulldogs?”

I slid my stare to Dylan instead and let some humor seep in. Bless him. “You don’t have to run interference, buddy. When Sebastian’s ready to hash things out like a real man, these passive-aggressive little bitch fits will be history.”

“Boy, there’s nothing passive about my aggression,” Sebastian laughed. “Unlike that snide remark you just offered.”

“What was that, baby? Yeah, I’ll be right there.” Dylan abruptly left his seat and fled inside.

Christ. We knew how to clear a room. Or a patio.

“We might as well get this out of the way so we can move on,” Sebastian told me, and I lifted a brow, admittedly curious. “Soph told me you were building them a house, and it goes without saying that I will be here to help out whenever I can. But as far as I’m concerned, there’s no reason you and I gotta talk. We’ll act civil around Teddy, and then—” He shrugged. “I’ll just wait until you run back into your closet in Georgia again.”

Nice speech. He had it all figured out, huh?

“All right.” I nodded with a dip of my chin. “I take it you’re not interested in an apology for leaving the way I did.”

He smiled faintly, a humorless twist of his lips that left me a few degrees colder. “No, you can save your excuses for someone who gives a rat’s ass.”

“Got it,” I replied tightly.

You really have to read book 1. There’s no getting around that. Book one is A New Enemy. It sets up all of the relationships. It isn’t super long, maybe about 100 pages or so. And honestly, I think it should have been all one book. Splitting it up doesn’t make sense.

On to the review.

After Blake ghosting Sebastian at the end of book one, we pick up not long after that with Blake back home on the family ranch in Georgia. But after coming out to his parents, things are strained and Blake ends up back in Washington state. Except he is laying low and no one knows he is there until his brother in law sees him out getting coffee.

There are a lot of hurt feelings. With his sister, his nephew, and with Sebastian. He not only lied and withheld information, but he left without warning. Things are ugly.

Sebastian forgiving Blake isn’t instantaneous, nor does it drag on indefinitely. Sebastian doesn’t hold a grudge just because he wants to. It takes a minute, but he listens. And then they can’t help but be all over each other.

Most of Cara Dee’s books have an element of BDSM in them. And while this isn’t a BDSM book, there are definitely elements of it in the story. And I just think that just makes it hotter. It’s not labeled. Not what they are doing or what they are. It’s just totally natural and they feed off of each other’s roles. Without defining them.

I loved the portrayal of the relationships that Blake and Sebastian each had with Teddy- who is Blake’s nephew and Sebastian’s best friend’s son. He has Down syndrome and it was an authentic look at someone with the condition. Of course, there are a varying degree of Down syndrome and how it affects a person and this just showed one person, but it was done really well without being gratuitous.

There was one thing that I believe was a bit unnecessary. It didn’t move the story along or become a big plot point but it made my ugly cry. GAH!

Read both of these books, one after the other as it is a smooth continuation. And a nice addition to the Camissa Cove world.

4 pieces of eye candy

About Cara Dee:

I’m often awkwardly silent or, if the topic interests me, a chronic rambler. In other words, I can discuss writing forever and ever. Fiction, in particular. The love story—while a huge draw and constantly present—is secondary for me, because there’s so much more to writing romance fiction than just making two (or more) people fall in love and have hot sex.

There’s a world to build, characters to develop, interests to create, and a topic or two to research thoroughly.

Every book is a challenge for me, an opportunity to learn something new, and a puzzle to piece together. I want my characters to come to life, and the only way I know to do that is to give them substance—passions, history, goals, quirks, and strong opinions—and to let them evolve.

I want my men and women to be relatable. That means allowing room for everyday problems and, for lack of a better word, flaws. My characters will never be perfect.

Wait…this was supposed to be about me, not my writing.

I’m a writey person who loves to write. Always wanderlusting, twitterpating, kinking, cooking, baking, and geeking. There’s time for hockey and family, too. But mostly, I just love to write.

Find Cara on social media here: https://www.caradeewrites.com/cdwlandingpage