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lilybear's review against another edition
4.0
The book blew me away. It was amazing, heartfelt and sexy. The first chapter or so went by a little slowly but after that I was ready to devour this book!!! Playboy Levi loves fucking and surfing. He hates his Mormon family's constant judgement of his sexuality and lifestyle. When he is referred to a physical therapist for back pain he finds himself growing increasingly attracted to his therapist, Jamie, who has boyish good looks and and the most perfect round ass he's ever seen. But Jamie refuses him at every turn. Eventually curiosity evolves into genuine care and affection. A truly heartfelt story of two damaged men helping each other heal and love. I also loved Jamie's dark humor!! And his cute little doggy! The ending was a slight bit rushed, but still satisfying.
Warning: there are mentions of child abuse.
Warning: there are mentions of child abuse.
karlijnmerle's review against another edition
5.0
What can I say? I'm so glad Susan tipped me this book. Holy hell, this was a beautiful story!
From the moment I started I was hooked!
Why?
- Levi. From the beginning it was obvious that he had so much feelings, but tried to 'silenced' them with sex and his job. But it was so much more. He was hurt. Hurt from the past, but also hurting from the present day. Through the story you see him growing, feeling and loving.
- Jaime. When I read about his OCD, it was like I saw myself. His obsessions are similar to mine and although the reason is different, the actions are the same. So I was immediately drawn to him.
- The more I read about them, the more I loved them. Their banter is hilarious.
- The way Levi does everything slow for Jaime. He respect Jaime and that is beautiful to see (and read).
- How Jaime slowly learns to accepts his fears.
βHe'd tried so hard to fight his fear, but there was a something liberating about giving up the battle and recognizing his fear was part of him. It wasn't something to be exorcised. It wasn't something to be obeyed. It needed only to be acknowledged.β
- Levi's family. I didn't know much about mormons. I knew their believes, but that was it. This story have learned me a lot. I don't believe in anything, but it was nice to learn more. Although I don't agree with all their believes, it was nice to see how they were a family.
BUT
their firm believes about homosexuality makes me so angry. I don't agree with it and will never do agree with it. You can't deny your sexuality! That is ridiculous. Love is Love. And I don't care if that is with a woman or a man. When someone is happy, let them be happy.
βI think you want very much to make this black and white--to make us all out to be sinners or saints. But it's just not that simple. I think what you need to accept is that, just maybe, we're all something else. Maybe we're all something in between.β
-The end was beautiful to read, but it wasn't enough for me. I need more, so much more!
From the moment I started I was hooked!
Why?
- Levi. From the beginning it was obvious that he had so much feelings, but tried to 'silenced' them with sex and his job. But it was so much more. He was hurt. Hurt from the past, but also hurting from the present day. Through the story you see him growing, feeling and loving.
- Jaime. When I read about his OCD, it was like I saw myself. His obsessions are similar to mine and although the reason is different, the actions are the same. So I was immediately drawn to him.
- The more I read about them, the more I loved them. Their banter is hilarious.
- The way Levi does everything slow for Jaime. He respect Jaime and that is beautiful to see (and read).
- How Jaime slowly learns to accepts his fears.
βHe'd tried so hard to fight his fear, but there was a something liberating about giving up the battle and recognizing his fear was part of him. It wasn't something to be exorcised. It wasn't something to be obeyed. It needed only to be acknowledged.β
- Levi's family. I didn't know much about mormons. I knew their believes, but that was it. This story have learned me a lot. I don't believe in anything, but it was nice to learn more. Although I don't agree with all their believes, it was nice to see how they were a family.
BUT
their firm believes about homosexuality makes me so angry. I don't agree with it and will never do agree with it. You can't deny your sexuality! That is ridiculous. Love is Love. And I don't care if that is with a woman or a man. When someone is happy, let them be happy.
βI think you want very much to make this black and white--to make us all out to be sinners or saints. But it's just not that simple. I think what you need to accept is that, just maybe, we're all something else. Maybe we're all something in between.β
-The end was beautiful to read, but it wasn't enough for me. I need more, so much more!
scarletine6's review against another edition
1.0
All kinds of nope!
Anyone who has experience of working in Massage Therapy knows that they can find themselves in vulnerable positions and they need to stay safe. Working intimately with someone else's body in a therapeutic context can make some clients feel like the touch is sexual. Massage therapists have VERY strict boundaries. If a client starts to hit on them or touches them, they stop and leave the room. The client/therapist relationship is severed.
Massage Therapists are holistic professionals, not masseurs who offer happy endings! The observations of the therapeutic process in this story outraged me from the get-go.
Levi is a thirty-year-old. He is not just a promiscuous gay man with a pain in his back hitting on his much younger massage therapist- he is a sexual predator.
I was disgusted that he tried to hit on his therapist from the start of their professional relationship and every time Jamie said no Levi kept going. Levi is a disgusting character and I just wanted to slap him. He is exactly what the #metoo movement is all about- men not knowing- or caring about boundaries and abusing power so they can get off.
Jamie was a victim of childhood sexual abuse and this made the fact that Levi kept hitting on him in a therapeutic situation- and ignoring the rejection of his advances even worse. This was not a realistic, well-observed scenario, and I was appalled at Levi's behavior. I had to stop listening after an hour or so. I did not want to hear how these two got together because I would not want to know about how a promiscuous sexual predator seduced a young man recovering from sexual abuse.
I had to DNF.
Anyone who has experience of working in Massage Therapy knows that they can find themselves in vulnerable positions and they need to stay safe. Working intimately with someone else's body in a therapeutic context can make some clients feel like the touch is sexual. Massage therapists have VERY strict boundaries. If a client starts to hit on them or touches them, they stop and leave the room. The client/therapist relationship is severed.
Massage Therapists are holistic professionals, not masseurs who offer happy endings! The observations of the therapeutic process in this story outraged me from the get-go.
Levi is a thirty-year-old. He is not just a promiscuous gay man with a pain in his back hitting on his much younger massage therapist- he is a sexual predator.
I was disgusted that he tried to hit on his therapist from the start of their professional relationship and every time Jamie said no Levi kept going. Levi is a disgusting character and I just wanted to slap him. He is exactly what the #metoo movement is all about- men not knowing- or caring about boundaries and abusing power so they can get off.
Jamie was a victim of childhood sexual abuse and this made the fact that Levi kept hitting on him in a therapeutic situation- and ignoring the rejection of his advances even worse. This was not a realistic, well-observed scenario, and I was appalled at Levi's behavior. I had to stop listening after an hour or so. I did not want to hear how these two got together because I would not want to know about how a promiscuous sexual predator seduced a young man recovering from sexual abuse.
I had to DNF.
shile87's review against another edition
4.0
Audiobook - 5+++++ stars
Story - 4 stars
Marie Sexton and John Solo combo works every time. The story was amazing and the narration was perfect.
First of all screw Levi's family, and double screw Jamie's family.
MC 1 - Levi
MC 2 - Jamie
Levi, a happy go lucky out and proud guy with a very religious family. A little bit lost trying to find his way. I wanted Levi to tell those fuckers to screw it, but then again i understand the route the author took, at the end of the day they loved him and he loved them, it's just that their beliefs were different. I liked Levi from the moment he was introduced. His personality is so vibrant that you can't help but fall in love.
Jamie - Oh my heart, this sweet guy went through a lot. He deserves the world. He is a lonely lost soul, haunted by his dark past, trying to survive day by day. I loved Jamie, he has a unique sense of humor, i found myself laughing hard when he was on page and he also broke my little heart. I wanted to wrap him in a warm blanket. Thank the book gods for Dolly. Jamie's dog, she is a darling.
Levi and Jamie fit so well, and their relationship development was fun to follow. Something in the lines of strangers to friends to best friends to lovers. It developed so effortlessly and their chemistry was off the charts and believable. The slow burn is so well done and had me all squishy inside.
This book is heavy on religion, i wanted to smack the self righteous, all knowing servants of the good Lord hard. Honestly, religion is the worst thing that ever happened to human kind.
The writing is good without being preachy and in your face, this is what happens in real life. The author was able to provide a good balance and i did not feel suffocated by everything that was going on. That is a huge plus.
Overall, it was a wonderful, heartbreaking sweet story.
Story - 4 stars
Marie Sexton and John Solo combo works every time. The story was amazing and the narration was perfect.
First of all screw Levi's family, and double screw Jamie's family.
MC 1 - Levi
MC 2 - Jamie
Levi, a happy go lucky out and proud guy with a very religious family. A little bit lost trying to find his way. I wanted Levi to tell those fuckers to screw it, but then again i understand the route the author took, at the end of the day they loved him and he loved them, it's just that their beliefs were different. I liked Levi from the moment he was introduced. His personality is so vibrant that you can't help but fall in love.
Jamie - Oh my heart, this sweet guy went through a lot. He deserves the world. He is a lonely lost soul, haunted by his dark past, trying to survive day by day. I loved Jamie, he has a unique sense of humor, i found myself laughing hard when he was on page and he also broke my little heart.
Spoiler
He is a survivor of child abuse. He was raped by his uncle when he was a kid. Ugh! Pedos should be burnt alive, have their balls cut off first then be set on fire.Levi and Jamie fit so well, and their relationship development was fun to follow. Something in the lines of strangers to friends to best friends to lovers. It developed so effortlessly and their chemistry was off the charts and believable. The slow burn is so well done and had me all squishy inside.
This book is heavy on religion, i wanted to smack the self righteous, all knowing servants of the good Lord hard. Honestly, religion is the worst thing that ever happened to human kind.
The writing is good without being preachy and in your face, this is what happens in real life. The author was able to provide a good balance and i did not feel suffocated by everything that was going on. That is a huge plus.
Overall, it was a wonderful, heartbreaking sweet story.
jerseygirl2912's review against another edition
5.0
I don't know much about the Mormon faith and I've had my issues with religion myself so I wasn't sure how this would distract me reading this book.
But I loved the book. I loved everything about the book: the story, the characters, the family discussions, the struggles with religion and the abusive past. Well written, believable and insightful.
But I loved the book. I loved everything about the book: the story, the characters, the family discussions, the struggles with religion and the abusive past. Well written, believable and insightful.
elianara's review against another edition
5.0
When I realized religion would play a big part in the book I almost stopped reading, because as an atheist I tend to feel like books with religion as one conflict point are trying to convert me. But I would have missed a lovely book if had done that, and this time, the author handled the religion in such a way, I didn't feel any pressure for my choices.
I loved seeing the growth in both MC's, the slow build in their relationship. Absolutely lovely story
emmaleigh6692's review against another edition
3.0
I'll be honest my review is somewhat colored by the fact that that I went into this book expecting an erotic romance. That is partly my fault and partly goodreads. I was looks at the "Readers Also Enjoyed" section on a book that was MM erotic romance and I assumed that all the books in that would have fallen into the same category. It was a good story, I will give it that, but it was definitely not what I was looking for. I could be wrong because I don't read regular romance much anymore, but I did feel that even for that category the sex/page count ratio was low. And the book didn't need both plots. With both of them having such major issues the book was a real downer. If you're looking for a heart-wrenching friendship turned romance between two men, you'll probably enjoy it. Unfortunately it wasn't exactly what I was looking for.
regencyfan93's review
4.0
I was surprised and pleased about Levi's thoughts about God and about his own place in the world.