A trip that he thought would bring him only pain is about to present him with the greatest gift of all.
For three years now, Cabriolet Vermat has put off, wiggled out of, and outright lied to get out of making this dreaded trip east. The owner of Cabriolet Chauffeur Services in Los Angeles has avoided the yearly invitation to the small town of White Bridge, New York, to speak at their alumni winter gathering but this year they’ve outfoxed him. They’re throwing a dinner to honor his late partner’s dedication to his alma mater and have asked Cab to speak. This time he has to go no matter how much pain it will stir up. Arriving in the picturesque small town beside one of the Finger Lakes, Cab is treated to a special performance of holiday songs and there he sees Julian Gabriel Baez for the first time.
The young singer captivates him immediately, and he finds himself seeking out the much younger man after the performance. The pull he feels toward Jules is unlike anything he’s felt since he met his partner years ago. Confusion and desire war within him, but the outgoing young tenor wins him over with his engaging smile and kind heart. A two-day trip soon turns into an extended holiday vacation. Cab worries that the magic of Christmas will quickly fizzle out and he’ll be alone once more. Or will this festive season bestow a blessing of the heart upon a man who thought he would never love again?
The Christmas Tenor is a standalone small-town gay Christmas romance with a beautiful May-December relationship, a lonely widower, a rising opera star, loving families, and plenty of holiday joy.
Amazon
This book had several captivating dynamics. A very large age-gap, with the younger man being the more dominant of the two, not allowing Cab to pull back even when all of his natural instincts were to stay away from Julian. A widower who still very much missed his husband, feeling some guilt about trying again. A young opera singer about to break open his career…once he graduated from college. And of course, the magic of the holidays.
The age gap was quite large, so that led me to question how moving forward would work in their particular situation…fortunately a beautiful epilogue gives the reader a peek in what that looks like. Julian definitely knew what he wanted, and wasn’t afraid to go for it, while Cab was hesitant, as someone in his situation would be, of course.
I loved how supportive Julian’s family was of him. They cheered him on in all his endeavors, and were encouraging in his new relationship. Cab’s twin brother was also just as supportive of him, wanting only the best for him, even if it meant he wouldn’t be seeing as much of him. It was clear how much they adored each other.
It was an good book, hitting all the Christmas highs. I think, for me, the large age gap seemed to be too much for these two men to find much in common after just a few years together, so I struggled with feeling like the HEA was there for Cab and Julian.
3.5 pieces of eye candy
USA Today Bestselling Author V.L. Locey – Penning LGBT hockey romance that skates into sinful pleasures.
V.L. Locey loves worn jeans, yoga, belly laughs, walking, reading and writing lusty tales, Greek mythology, Torchwood and Dr. Who, the New York Rangers, comic books, and coffee. (Not necessarily in that order.) She shares her life with her husband, her daughter, one dog, two cats, a pair of geese, far too many chickens, and two steers.
When not writing spicy romances, she enjoys spending her day with her menagerie in the rolling hills of Pennsylvania with a cup of fresh java in one hand and a steamy romance novel in the other.
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