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iam's review
3.0
Very sweet and low on angst, if lacking a bit of poise. The writing is simplistic and might come across at awkward, but I didn't mind too much.
What weirded me out was how weirded out people (both in the book and in some reviews) got by Mark's family's living situation. He and his ex-wife, who's also his best friend, live in houses next to each other so that their daughter has a big shared backyard and can switch between going to her dad and mom + stepdad. I thought that was super cute and worked perfectly for this family.
What weirded me out was how weirded out people (both in the book and in some reviews) got by Mark's family's living situation. He and his ex-wife, who's also his best friend, live in houses next to each other so that their daughter has a big shared backyard and can switch between going to her dad and mom + stepdad. I thought that was super cute and worked perfectly for this family.
haletostilinski1's review
DNF @ 6%
I've never DNF'ed this quickly but those were some of the worst written pages I've read in a published book in...like, ever.
It felt like I was reading my 14-year-old first bumblings at fanfiction. Bad punctuation, very stilted dialogue - things we'd never actually say in real life but what we think we'd say so we write it when we're 14 into our crappy first time fics. I remember doing that. Already all showing, no telling. Here is a sample from the beginning:
“So, can I get you something to drink?” I asked her, hoping to delay what was coming.
“No, I’m good. I just want to say this and get it over with.” She sat down on the couch, took a deep breath, and braced herself. “Mark, Tom has been offered a promotion. A good promotion. But it’s in Austin, and we’re moving. We’ll be leaving in around a month. Sooner if possible. It’ll be great. Better schools for Emma, more culture...”
“Whoa. Just let me stop you right there. You think you are taking Emma and moving hours away from me? What the fuck, Suzanne! You can’t take my daughter away from me. You have no fucking right. None. We share custody. You can’t just pick up and fucking leave.”
“Dammit, Mark! I knew you’d react this way. I knew you wouldn’t even listen to me before you got upset.”
“Damn right, I’m upset. None of this is my doing. We would still be a married couple raising our daughter together instead of fighting about where she’ll live if you hadn’t turned your back on our marriage,” I yelled.
“I can’t believe you are still holding that against me. It has been over a year, Mark. Seriously, it isn’t like you were happy either. It’s not like you actually loved me,” she yelled back. “It’s not about that.”
That old feeling of loss and failure washed over me, taking some of my anger with it.
“Well, then what is it about.”
As an English major, this hurts to read. Like I'm fine with grammar mistakes and everything but this is beyond that. Ugh, just no. I can't. And I know it's going to continue to go on like this and I was already getting a headache.
This is not for me, I knew it after like the first page. And I just wasted 3 bucks, so I'm here to tell you guys, don't waste 3 bucks on this.
I've never DNF'ed this quickly but those were some of the worst written pages I've read in a published book in...like, ever.
It felt like I was reading my 14-year-old first bumblings at fanfiction. Bad punctuation, very stilted dialogue - things we'd never actually say in real life but what we think we'd say so we write it when we're 14 into our crappy first time fics. I remember doing that. Already all showing, no telling. Here is a sample from the beginning:
“So, can I get you something to drink?” I asked her, hoping to delay what was coming.
“No, I’m good. I just want to say this and get it over with.” She sat down on the couch, took a deep breath, and braced herself. “Mark, Tom has been offered a promotion. A good promotion. But it’s in Austin, and we’re moving. We’ll be leaving in around a month. Sooner if possible. It’ll be great. Better schools for Emma, more culture...”
“Whoa. Just let me stop you right there. You think you are taking Emma and moving hours away from me? What the fuck, Suzanne! You can’t take my daughter away from me. You have no fucking right. None. We share custody. You can’t just pick up and fucking leave.”
“Dammit, Mark! I knew you’d react this way. I knew you wouldn’t even listen to me before you got upset.”
“Damn right, I’m upset. None of this is my doing. We would still be a married couple raising our daughter together instead of fighting about where she’ll live if you hadn’t turned your back on our marriage,” I yelled.
“I can’t believe you are still holding that against me. It has been over a year, Mark. Seriously, it isn’t like you were happy either. It’s not like you actually loved me,” she yelled back. “It’s not about that.”
That old feeling of loss and failure washed over me, taking some of my anger with it.
“Well, then what is it about.”
As an English major, this hurts to read. Like I'm fine with grammar mistakes and everything but this is beyond that. Ugh, just no. I can't. And I know it's going to continue to go on like this and I was already getting a headache.
This is not for me, I knew it after like the first page. And I just wasted 3 bucks, so I'm here to tell you guys, don't waste 3 bucks on this.
suzy76's review
3.0
Yeah, this was cute enough, the story kinda jumped so quick from the first 'love you" though. The dialogue was kinda stilted and uncomfortable at times. I assume Nathan and Linc will get a book too so I'll continue the series.
ktomp17's review
5.0
This is Jacki James' debut novel, and much like with any new author, I was intrigued but hesitant. Boy did she impress me! I absolutely loved each character in this book. I was grabbed right from the beginning with the prologue, and she held my interest and love throughout.
Mark is a divorced dad of an amazing 4 year old little girl, Emma. He has finally come to the point in his life where he is able to live fully as a gay man, but is sick of the constant hook ups. While out with his friends, he meets Justin, a man with rules: no repeats, no relationships, and no kids. He is completely attracted to Mark, and they have great chemistry, but they decide to move forward as friends instead of hooking up.
The book moves through the friendship and relationship of Mark and Justin as they move from strictly friends (but complete attraction) to friends with benefits and an expectation it will end to realizing that relationships aren't scary after all and they actually have been dating, even if they didn't want to admit it. Once Mark and Justin put words to what they feel and decide on a future together, everything moved fast, but it made sense.
I was totally in love with all of the characters. Mark and Justin were such a sweethearts. Emma was an adorable and amazing kid. Suzie and Tom were the best ex/new husbands, and I loved their relationship to Mark. It was so refreshing to see a divorced family keep the friendship and function in such a positive and healthy way. it worked for them and Emma, and it was perfect. Justin fit right in.
I absolutely loved this, and I really hope there will be a lot more books by Jacki! I'd really love to read about Matt and Linc!
Mark is a divorced dad of an amazing 4 year old little girl, Emma. He has finally come to the point in his life where he is able to live fully as a gay man, but is sick of the constant hook ups. While out with his friends, he meets Justin, a man with rules: no repeats, no relationships, and no kids. He is completely attracted to Mark, and they have great chemistry, but they decide to move forward as friends instead of hooking up.
The book moves through the friendship and relationship of Mark and Justin as they move from strictly friends (but complete attraction) to friends with benefits and an expectation it will end to realizing that relationships aren't scary after all and they actually have been dating, even if they didn't want to admit it. Once Mark and Justin put words to what they feel and decide on a future together, everything moved fast, but it made sense.
I was totally in love with all of the characters. Mark and Justin were such a sweethearts. Emma was an adorable and amazing kid. Suzie and Tom were the best ex/new husbands, and I loved their relationship to Mark. It was so refreshing to see a divorced family keep the friendship and function in such a positive and healthy way. it worked for them and Emma, and it was perfect. Justin fit right in.
I absolutely loved this, and I really hope there will be a lot more books by Jacki! I'd really love to read about Matt and Linc!
isalaur's review
4.0
Cute and Uplifting
I really enjoyed this story from a new to me author. I look forward to reading more from her. The characters were well created, well developed and had emotional depth. I could totally relate to the, and wanted to cheer for their HEA.
The secondary characters were also well done and I felt like I knew them too and that they were an integral part of the story. I love the family dynamic created here.
I’m guessing, from the hints thrown out here, that we are going to get Matt and Lincoln’s story next?
I really enjoyed this story from a new to me author. I look forward to reading more from her. The characters were well created, well developed and had emotional depth. I could totally relate to the, and wanted to cheer for their HEA.
The secondary characters were also well done and I felt like I knew them too and that they were an integral part of the story. I love the family dynamic created here.
I’m guessing, from the hints thrown out here, that we are going to get Matt and Lincoln’s story next?
n_hasek's review
3.0
It was a good book, with decent characters, but at times it felt too fast paced for the setting, as if it was trying to rush towards the finish.
Every moment with Emma was absolutely darling though. I have a soft spot for books featuring men with kids.
One thing I noticed is that there were too few commas. A few times I had to stop, and reread a sentence three or four times to get the meaning since it wasn't separated from the rest of the sentence with an extra comma. This may be because I'm a non-English speaker though.
Every moment with Emma was absolutely darling though. I have a soft spot for books featuring men with kids.
One thing I noticed is that there were too few commas. A few times I had to stop, and reread a sentence three or four times to get the meaning since it wasn't separated from the rest of the sentence with an extra comma. This may be because I'm a non-English speaker though.
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