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3.67 AVERAGE
3.67 AVERAGE
funny
lighthearted
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
3.5🌶
emotional
funny
lighthearted
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Shawn & Paul
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
N/A
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
challenging
emotional
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
lighthearted
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
In the end, this book did not work for me. The chemistry just wasn't there and the angst felt superficial and forced. This book also treads precariously when it comes to inappropriate relationships ... I had a hard time reconciling the impacts of this on character development and how the story ultimately progressed. If you are bothered in anyway by inappropriate relationships (age/professional), I would probably give this book a pass ...
I also did not understand the connection -- other than both MCs being extremely attractive -- there really didn't seem to be very much else going for them and I struggled to remain emotionally engaged. I enjoyed the dialogue but thought that the inner monolog was tediously overdone. The tone of the inner monolog did not ring true for what you would expect from a Navy CO with an extensive and distinguished military career. Paul seemed quite insecure and lost given his "advanced" age and experience -- and yet, I also resented that mid-forties was considered to be "old" -- especially when they started talking about "heart attack" risks and retirement. Oh my! I know mid-forties is considered "old" for this genre -- but, this really did not help reconcile the age gap by making Paul appear so much older than he actually was. I would think being CO of a Navy base in your 40s is an impressive feat and young esp. someone openly LGBTQ ...
The tension suffered from a heavy-handed approach that leaned heavily on telling vs. showing. I also had concerns about both MCs motivations going into what was obviously an inappropriate relationship to begin with. I found the ending was a hard sell. I think that I'm a little too jaded to buy into the HEA ending without a bit more substance to carry the weight of the circumstances presented ...
I also did not understand the connection -- other than both MCs being extremely attractive -- there really didn't seem to be very much else going for them and I struggled to remain emotionally engaged. I enjoyed the dialogue but thought that the inner monolog was tediously overdone. The tone of the inner monolog did not ring true for what you would expect from a Navy CO with an extensive and distinguished military career. Paul seemed quite insecure and lost given his "advanced" age and experience -- and yet, I also resented that mid-forties was considered to be "old" -- especially when they started talking about "heart attack" risks and retirement. Oh my! I know mid-forties is considered "old" for this genre -- but, this really did not help reconcile the age gap by making Paul appear so much older than he actually was. I would think being CO of a Navy base in your 40s is an impressive feat and young esp. someone openly LGBTQ ...
The tension suffered from a heavy-handed approach that leaned heavily on telling vs. showing. I also had concerns about both MCs motivations going into what was obviously an inappropriate relationship to begin with. I found the ending was a hard sell. I think that I'm a little too jaded to buy into the HEA ending without a bit more substance to carry the weight of the circumstances presented ...
3.5 ish stars. I liked it, but it wasn't especially great, and in the end it felt more like an essay about how to deal with the situation at hand than an actual human conversation.
I'm a total sucker for a good military guys story and L.A. Witt writes fabulous ones, so it's no wonder I jumped at the chance to read this first book in her new 'Anchor Point' series.
Paul knows himself well and I appreciated that about him. He knows that his way of getting over the end of a relationship is to go out to get laid and find the next warm body to curl up with. That's how he and Sean end up having a whole lot of sex. Paul also knows he has a bad tendency to fall for that new warm body, but considering the age difference he's fairly certain Sean doesn't look at him that way. Except Sean does, so when they discover that Sean's dad is stationed at NAS Adams and Paul is the base CO, they're both disappointed beyond belief.
"I’d get over him like I’d gotten over every man I’d ever had to give up—or who’d given me up—because of the Navy. At some point, just like every time before, this would stop hurting. And maybe at some point, I’d figure out why it hurt so bad at all."
I really felt for both Paul and Sean during the weeks after they stopped seeing each other. In some ways Paul reminded me so much of myself with the ability to talk himself into things he knows are bad for him, but he does it anyway. That's why he's quit smoking four times but right now nothing sounds as good as a Marlboro. Luckily for Paul he discovers how rational and level-headed Sean is in comparison to Paul's impulsiveness. It doesn't mean that both of them aren't hurting and seriously missing the other.
"No wonder we both kept forgetting about our age gap—he was wise beyond his years, and I was the idiot who wouldn’t man up and be the voice of reason."
Huge kudos to the author for not making 'Just Drive’ stereotypically predictable. There definitely were things in the story that I expected to be there, but there was quite a bit that I didn't. More importantly, to me anyway, was the way the characters handled all of the ups and downs. I really liked both main characters and for once the older guy is more "jump in with both feet and to hell with it", while the younger one is more steady and looks at the big picture. A nice switch to the norm.
Very enjoyable and extremely hot! If you like older men with younger guys, some angst regarding real life issues, and some smoking hot between the sheets (and in the backseat) action, then this is your kind of book.
NOTE: This book was provided by Riptide Publishing for the purpose of a review on Rainbow Book Reviews
Paul knows himself well and I appreciated that about him. He knows that his way of getting over the end of a relationship is to go out to get laid and find the next warm body to curl up with. That's how he and Sean end up having a whole lot of sex. Paul also knows he has a bad tendency to fall for that new warm body, but considering the age difference he's fairly certain Sean doesn't look at him that way. Except Sean does, so when they discover that Sean's dad is stationed at NAS Adams and Paul is the base CO, they're both disappointed beyond belief.
"I’d get over him like I’d gotten over every man I’d ever had to give up—or who’d given me up—because of the Navy. At some point, just like every time before, this would stop hurting. And maybe at some point, I’d figure out why it hurt so bad at all."
I really felt for both Paul and Sean during the weeks after they stopped seeing each other. In some ways Paul reminded me so much of myself with the ability to talk himself into things he knows are bad for him, but he does it anyway. That's why he's quit smoking four times but right now nothing sounds as good as a Marlboro. Luckily for Paul he discovers how rational and level-headed Sean is in comparison to Paul's impulsiveness. It doesn't mean that both of them aren't hurting and seriously missing the other.
"No wonder we both kept forgetting about our age gap—he was wise beyond his years, and I was the idiot who wouldn’t man up and be the voice of reason."
Huge kudos to the author for not making 'Just Drive’ stereotypically predictable. There definitely were things in the story that I expected to be there, but there was quite a bit that I didn't. More importantly, to me anyway, was the way the characters handled all of the ups and downs. I really liked both main characters and for once the older guy is more "jump in with both feet and to hell with it", while the younger one is more steady and looks at the big picture. A nice switch to the norm.
Very enjoyable and extremely hot! If you like older men with younger guys, some angst regarding real life issues, and some smoking hot between the sheets (and in the backseat) action, then this is your kind of book.
NOTE: This book was provided by Riptide Publishing for the purpose of a review on Rainbow Book Reviews
emotional
lighthearted
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
The older man being the insecure one for a change was nice.