Review of Depth of Field (Last chance #1) by Riley Hart

by Riley Hart

4 stars

Shane Wallace has made a decent life for himself in Last Chance. He built his own home on his mom’s property to take care of her, owns an automotive repair shop, and when he wants to get laid, Portland isn’t too far away. Not too shabby for the boy who spent his childhood getting bullied and feeling alone. Shane’s content to leave his past behind him...until one of his childhood tormentors comes back to town.

Maxwell Sullivan never planned to step foot in Last Chance again. Here, he was Maxwell, a teen who suffered in silence while everyone thought he had the perfect life. Now, he’s “Van,” the erotic artist and photographer. He’s only here to help his mom tie up some loose ends after his father’s death and to apologize to Shane. After that, he’s heading back to LA for good.

Shane never thought he’d have anything in common with Maxwell, but there’s a depth to Van that surprises him. Van knows what it feels like to be alone. He sees Shane in ways no one else does. There’s a shared connection neither can deny. Somehow, despite their rocky history, they get each other.

It’s not long before the two are so drawn to each other that they tumble into bed—sometimes with Van’s camera involved. Their chemistry in and out of the bedroom is undeniable. Except nothing is ever black and white. Shane can’t leave his mom and Van’s life is in LA. With two different lives pulling them in opposite directions, their picture-perfect ending might not be in the cards.

Riley Hart again nails a sexy enemies-to-lover romance in Depth of Field. She creates to main characters both hiding in their own ways who find that they fit so good together.

Maxwell Sullivan was the typical jock growing up, living what everyone assumed was the perfect life, but outside appearances can be deceiving.  Leaving his childhood town at 18 he shed that person and became Van, true to what he wants and who is really is.  Now 10 years later he is making his first trip home to support his mother in the wake of his father’s death, but he knows that he has so many amends to make – especially to Shane who he bullied most of his life.  Shane Wallace had always done the right this, instead of pursuing his dreams he has stayed in his small childhood home caring for his sick mother.  Shane is content in his life, he wants more, but as he thinks who doesn’t.  But when Van shows back up in his life trying to apologize, Shane thinks that he wants more than to just be content.

We really liked Depth o Field, it is an easy read, and although there is angst – cause really the bully coming back to apologize years later – it isn’t overwhelming, and adds to the push pull, enemies-to-lovers theme that Riley Hart masters so well. Shane and Van have this really amazing emotional connection, the history they share from grouping up in the same small town, that jumps off the page and won’t be denied.  There is like this string between the men that even if they try to fight it, it keeps pulling them together. Shane is a generous person, we don’t know if we would have been as forgiving as he was, and we wished that he’d have made Van work a little harder for forgiveness.

So can we say this book is smoking!!!  Burning, smoldering, scorching, intense, passionate we could go on and on.  Van is an artist and takes erotic photos – this ends up in the bedroom and adds this level of voyeurism to the sex between these men.  It is distractingly hot.

Depth of Field is a great read, exciting and moving and SO realistic! We really enjoy Riley Hart’s writing, and the way she creates her characters. She has an authenticity to her writing, these feel like real people in real life, just finding someone to love.