I have a lot of thoughts about Adrianna and Kova, yes folks a lot, but before I continue I'd like to commend the author for breathing life into her characters, so few romance authors do this and their stories suffer as a result but in this case after reading over 500 plus pages of drama and gymnastic technicalities I wasn't bored once and that is impressive so kudos.
Based on the premise, I would assume Adrianna and Kova indulged in a taboo relationship, we have Kova who's this volatile, intense, overachieving ex gymnast turned coach who we learn has a volatile past and is years older than his love interest Adrianna. While Kova has some likeable traits many of his decisions in this story were questionable and if you're averse to cringe worthy moments well...there are quite a few between these two lovers however they're easy to overlook as the story progresses.
Adrianna comes from affluence, she's young with gymnastic Olympic aspirations and only the best will do, hence her decision to train at one of the best facilities suited for her, she meets Kova they build rapport which leads to touching which leads to excessively long stares and ultimately a saddle ride on an eggplant...
Despite Adrianna being a seventeen year old her demeanor was mature, for once our heroine wasn't a simpering, cowardly, damsel in distress mess although there were moments of all those characteristics sprinkled throughout I wasn't overwhelmed with cheesiness of it all and for that I am grateful.
Was this perfect? No. Could it be better? Of course. However I accepted this plot for what it was, the flaws in human nature.
In this follow up instalment of Him, it's six months later after declarations of love were made, the guys have settled into their new lives and things seem to be looking up. Wes is doing exceptional things in his rookie year, he's living the dream, to the rest of the world he's the incredible "straight" rookie athlete and his team's star player. Jamie's coaching gig is taking up a lot of his time and both men rarely find time for each other. This problem becomes even more challenging with the arrival of Blake, Wes' team mate and pushy next door neighbour (a man after my own heart).
As things move along, Wes' insistence that they keep their relationship a secret begins stirring feelings of resentment and frustration within Jamie which only worsens as Wes' busy schedule allows for little time for relationship related activity.
With the break down in communication between the two they go about their days in awkward spurts each man unwilling or unable to resolve their issues. Eventually Jamie falls ill and here we see things go to shit. I mean really...
Wes becomes Jamie's emotional punching bag, something I was disgusted with really. Wes exhibited no desire to defend himself or deal with Jamie, it's like the authors forgot to give Wes a backbone. For each verbal attack and conscious withdrawal Jamie's character displayed, Wes became more flustered and inept until eventually things fall apart right before our eyes. Jamie runs away to California and Wes sulks in despair leaving us readers to endure their painful seemingly irreconcilable differences.
This truly was a fascinating follow up to Him that I didn't expect but appreciated nonetheless. It showed how quickly things can sour in a relationship and the steps some can take to resolve their problems. It also touched lightly on depression which made the plot more engaging in my opinion. Ryan and Jamie did not have it easy but realistically that's how relationships goes sometimes.
Blake was the highlight of this book for me, I just loved his character, I hope he gets his own happy ending in his own story but that's left to be seen.
I got this as an ARC in exchange for an honest review....but do I really want to be honest? I'm not sur......Dearest me, where do I begin.
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I got this as an ARC in exchange for an honest review....but do I really want to be honest? I'm not sure. As with the previous installment I found that this one also failed to impress. Dante and Mitch were such saccharine characters. I mean....who really behaves like these guys? Do men really react to things the way they did? DO young adults maturely discuss problems and resolve miscommunication and make declarations the way these two did in this book?
In a nutshell, False Start was about two football players, one thought he was straight the other knew he wasn't. Both are from opposite ends of the social spectrum - rich vs poor, privilege vs underprivileged, black vs white, yada, yada. For at least 80% of the story there's the great debate about entitlement as opposed to hard work. Dante is the unlucky stereotype and Mitch is the idiotic rich kid and maybe if this was taken from a different angle, inclusive of doses of realism, angst and hot fucking I would have been gaga about it all but...........alas it's another "meh" read from this author in my opinion.
They were people who existed in completely different worlds yet still they found a way to make it work and I was glad I decided to give their journey a try.
Socially things are tense in Scotland, poverty seems to be a burden for most and the upper class are committed to having things remain the same. Driven by his political crusade for Scotland's independence, Colin has intense disdain for the conduct of the upperclass thereby hating everything they stand for. He's poor, witnesses the desolate struggle within his impoverished community and is desperate for change that may be imminent with the country's upcoming election.
Andrew is the epitome of privilege. He's spoiled by the riches of his "blue blood" lineage and has little sympathy for the poor, or at least that's how it started out in the beginning. Andrew's character experiences the most growth in this plot in my opinion. Thanks to Colin, Andrew was allowed to experience the world through a different lens and he came out better a man as a result. Not gonna lie I hated his ass initially but Avery Cockburn's well done execution of character development endeared me to him.
Together these two have a tough time balancing their budding relationship and their opposing political views. They fight, make up, fuck and eventually come to a resolution. It was all bitter sweet really.
Overall I enjoyed this one and it's a book I can definitely recommend.
Considering the many "Gay for you" romances there are out there and the many that I've read I think "Given the Circumstances" was a nicely written verConsidering the many "Gay for you" romances there are out there and the many that I've read I think "Given the Circumstances" was a nicely written version of an oft times poorly executed plot. I mean it wasn't perfect but what book is? My level of enjoyment while reading this in relation to other books with similar storylines far surpassed the norm (which in itself was something) hence my rating. Authors tend to butcher their stories when they force affection in characters that barely exuded any to begin with, whereas Brad Vance took his time with Roger and Brian. Their emotions didn't suddenly fall from the heavens, dropping on their heads like an epiphany. It was a slow buildup, a bond coated in friendship and camaraderie and it was an aspect that I greatly appreciated. I don't have the time nor inclination to write an excessively long review therefore let me just state that this book definitely has my recommendation as 'good' reading material and has made it into my very short list of favorites. The End.
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