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bibliophile24's review against another edition
5.0
I'm off to look up more books by Josephine Myles!
hartd's review against another edition
2.0
The blurb and the other reviews do a good job of describing this, so I'm not going to summarize the plot. I hovered between one and two stars and decided on two, because the book is well-paced and kept my attention. But I was rolling my eyes at it a lot. This review is mean, I'm sorry.
Age difference is not my favorite trope in general and I did not really get into the pairing here, but my two major problems with this book weren't about the age difference.
I really should've known I was in for something out-of-touch when the central premise is that a 33-year-old man is having porn DVDs delivered to his house. Would a young-ish guy who works in software really a) pay for porn and b) buy it on DVD? But maybe there are reasons people would do this that I don't understand.
Less forgivably, there are some off-handed comments that really made me uncomfortable:
Why would these things prevent someone from being a model? I don't think that's even true.
And then, later:
These are the only characters of color in the book, btw, except for Omar's wife, who has a wise-WoC thing going on.
My other major problem with this book has to do with the sex. The characters start hooking up fairly early into the book, but they don't have anal sex until the last sex scene, because of Ben's health problems. This kind of escalation of sex acts is normal in romance novels, but it's usually unspoken. It is not all that common to make it seem that the couple has not really had sex until they've had anal sex. However, in Ben's mind, and probably in Ollie's, anal sex is the only real kind of sex.
This concept is heteronormative, it makes me uncomfortable, and it isn't really romantic to me, especially because sex (specifically, having orgasms) is a risk to Ben's health. I think there was an opportunity here for something I would've really enjoyed: Ben pleasuring Ollie and both characters being satisfied with that, until Ben had his doctor's permission to do other things. Instead Ben's health needs drove some really ridiculous drama, and in the end they were both irresponsible about it.
I don't know. In my opinion, this book is pretty insensitive.
Age difference is not my favorite trope in general and I did not really get into the pairing here, but my two major problems with this book weren't about the age difference.
I really should've known I was in for something out-of-touch when the central premise is that a 33-year-old man is having porn DVDs delivered to his house. Would a young-ish guy who works in software really a) pay for porn and b) buy it on DVD? But maybe there are reasons people would do this that I don't understand.
Less forgivably, there are some off-handed comments that really made me uncomfortable:
Tall and dark-skinned, he looked like he’d have fit in better modelling than working as a lowly porter, if it weren’t for the gold tooth and long dreadlocks hanging down his back.
Why would these things prevent someone from being a model? I don't think that's even true.
And then, later:
A tall, dark-skinned bloke stood backlit by the hallway lighting—the same one I’d seen Ollie with that time I went spying at the ramps. It could only be Omar. He was wearing nothing more than a pair of baggy silk trousers and a ferocious scowl. With his shaved head and hooked nose, he looked like some kind of warrior out of the Arabian Nights.
These are the only characters of color in the book, btw, except for Omar's wife, who has a wise-WoC thing going on.
My other major problem with this book has to do with the sex. The characters start hooking up fairly early into the book, but they don't have anal sex until the last sex scene, because of Ben's health problems. This kind of escalation of sex acts is normal in romance novels, but it's usually unspoken. It is not all that common to make it seem that the couple has not really had sex until they've had anal sex. However, in Ben's mind, and probably in Ollie's, anal sex is the only real kind of sex.
This concept is heteronormative, it makes me uncomfortable, and it isn't really romantic to me, especially because sex (specifically, having orgasms) is a risk to Ben's health. I think there was an opportunity here for something I would've really enjoyed: Ben pleasuring Ollie and both characters being satisfied with that, until Ben had his doctor's permission to do other things. Instead Ben's health needs drove some really ridiculous drama, and in the end they were both irresponsible about it.
I don't know. In my opinion, this book is pretty insensitive.
karlijnmerle's review against another edition
4.0
This was a nice read. In the beginning I didn't know what to think about it. It was a bit to focussed on the dvd's but soon after it got better. I was intrigued by Bens' and Ollies story and I wasn't able to put it down. The end was beautifully done but I wish there was more to read about them. About the café, about Ollies family and about how the handle Bens' sickness.
suze_1624's review against another edition
4.0
4.5. I like Jo Myles books and this one didn't disappoint - well written, the story flowed, i couldn't put it down. Ben is dealing with diabetes and kidney failure, focussing all his fantasies on Ollie, the courier delivery guy. The storydealt with the kidney failure in a sympathetic way and it didnt overshadow everything. The story of Ben and Ollie's relationship developed slowly in line with Ben's recovery from surgery. I like the humour in Jo Myles' stories.
21.8.15 reread : again, I do love Jo Myles' stories, especially the dialogue. She just makes the conversations seem very real to me. I had thought Ben's surgery was at the end of the book so I was more focussed on Ollie this time. The issue of his old boyfriend was resolved verbally but I thought he would make more of a physical presence because of the Ben/work connection. Whilst the post surgery wait meant they took their time, they did go from casual acquaintances to lovers quite quick. Would rate 4* now.
21.8.15 reread : again, I do love Jo Myles' stories, especially the dialogue. She just makes the conversations seem very real to me. I had thought Ben's surgery was at the end of the book so I was more focussed on Ollie this time. The issue of his old boyfriend was resolved verbally but I thought he would make more of a physical presence because of the Ben/work connection. Whilst the post surgery wait meant they took their time, they did go from casual acquaintances to lovers quite quick. Would rate 4* now.
ktomp17's review
3.0
I liked the concept of watching Ben deal with his kidney disease and how it affects his life. I liked how he had a crush on the younger delivery guy, and it eventually led to them talking and becoming an item. I liked seeing Ben overcome his physical and psychological challenges. With Ollie, I didn't quite understand his attraction at first. He seemed overly obsessed with sex (I supposed like many other healthy 20 year olds), but there was a big push for it even with Ben being ill/recovering. Their communication was poor, and Ollie seemed to have tons of secrets that only came out after having a tantrum. It was a little exhausting to read at times with their insecurities, but it was a sweet story in the end.
lillian_francis's review
5.0
LOVE LOVE LOVE this book.
It was so well done: the story, the characters, the research. I adored the amount of research that must have gone into this story. Yet at no point did I feel bombarded by it. It was simply and effortlessly woven into the very fabric of the narrative, so that I didn't even notice it as I read.
I will definitely be reading this again.
It was so well done: the story, the characters, the research. I adored the amount of research that must have gone into this story. Yet at no point did I feel bombarded by it. It was simply and effortlessly woven into the very fabric of the narrative, so that I didn't even notice it as I read.
I will definitely be reading this again.
saphirablue's review
1.0
*sighs* I'm not lucky with books at the moment. Yep, I didn't like this one. The characters didn't grab me, there were some medical things wrong that I just couldn't overlook and the plot itself was interesting but didn't manage to captivate me. :/
samanatha's review
4.0
3.5/5
I adore [a: Josephine Myles|3499509|Josephine Myles|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1272662984p2/3499509.jpg] books. She is able to weave together humor and romance in a way that I really like. While Handle with Care was not my favorite of her stories, it was really cute and well-done.
What I liked: atypical MCs (one has diabetes and liver failure and the other is a sk8er twink), realistic family relationship (sister can act bratty at times, but in a way that felt real), real talk about the dangers of alcohol and drug use, relationship built slowly (they were acquaintances for a while before the relationship began).
What I did not love: the angst and wishy washy behaviors, the 'secrets', the near constant self-doubting, not the same level of laughs as a JM book often holds
I purchased this book, which almost never happens, and so my disappointments curdled a little due to that. Normally I would have blamed myself for not getting a preview before buying, but the aspects that irked me wouldn't have appeared that early in the book. The story started how I had expected (quirky, funny, silly at times, thought sweet), but as we got further along, more and more kept not happening. In many ways it felt anti-climactic, though I truly appreciated there was none of that break-up and make-up back and forth crap that so often is used by authors to simulate literary action. It all just felt a little lackluster.
Nothing bad about the book, it was pretty good overall and I did enjoy my reading. Rounding up because of my love of JM.
I adore [a: Josephine Myles|3499509|Josephine Myles|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1272662984p2/3499509.jpg] books. She is able to weave together humor and romance in a way that I really like. While Handle with Care was not my favorite of her stories, it was really cute and well-done.
What I liked: atypical MCs (one has diabetes and liver failure and the other is a sk8er twink), realistic family relationship (sister can act bratty at times, but in a way that felt real), real talk about the dangers of alcohol and drug use, relationship built slowly (they were acquaintances for a while before the relationship began).
What I did not love: the angst and wishy washy behaviors, the 'secrets', the near constant self-doubting, not the same level of laughs as a JM book often holds
I purchased this book, which almost never happens, and so my disappointments curdled a little due to that. Normally I would have blamed myself for not getting a preview before buying, but the aspects that irked me wouldn't have appeared that early in the book. The story started how I had expected (quirky, funny, silly at times, thought sweet), but as we got further along, more and more kept not happening. In many ways it felt anti-climactic, though I truly appreciated there was none of that break-up and make-up back and forth crap that so often is used by authors to simulate literary action. It all just felt a little lackluster.
Nothing bad about the book, it was pretty good overall and I did enjoy my reading. Rounding up because of my love of JM.