Owen Hannity was nineteen when he lost almost everyone he thought he could trust. Each loss more painful than the last.
With the unwavering support of his best friend, Andy, Owen put the pieces of his life back together. Now, more than two decades later, Owen owns and operates a successful comic shop. Despite his modicum of success, he still feels like a shell of a man, carrying the emotional scars from his past.
Without warning, Owen’s past returns. Secrets come to light. Secrets that could either destroy Owen or finally give him the strength to re-evaluate everything he thought he knew about Andy, himself, and the way in which he views the world.
To see that he is truly worthy of loving himself and finally begin…
…Looking Forward.
Amazon
Oof. This is a tough one for me to write. This is Michael Bailey’s second book. I hadn’t read the first one because I tend to get nervous about new authors who are know readers of the genre. If that makes sense. But I read some of the reviews from the first book and thought- hey! let’s give this one a shot.
Again, oof.
What this story needed (besides several edits) was a hard assed beta reader. Or three. Sure, have your friend beta read it, but tell them to be honest. Like brutally honest. Sometimes honesty hurts when you put your heart and soul into something, but ultimately it will make it SO MUCH BETTER!
Because the bones were there for a good story. And there was a lot there. But it was too much because scenes weren’t long enough to really sink our teeth into and care about these characters.
It’s a love story with angst and pain. There’s a time jump from 1992 to present. I enjoyed seeing the references about how so many silly things were different in 1992. Land lines. Land lines and long distance phone charges. Writing a phone number down. On a napkin. Silly things, but they harken back to when I was in my late teens.
As much as I enjoyed those things, the first “half” of the book in 1992 was entirely too long. And the second half, set in the present, was too short.
I needed more. I needed to sink my teeth in. But there was no meat. Just bones and fat.
2 Pieces of Candy
