Review of Playing for Keeps (Glasgow Lads #1), by Avery Cockburn

by Avery Cockburn

4.5 stars

Rule One: No Drama!

Fergus Taylor is damaged goods. Reeling from a brutal breakup, he’s determined to captain his LGBT soccer team out of scandal and into a winning season. For that, he needs strict rules and careful plans. He does NOT need a brash, muscle-bound lad messing with his head and setting his body afire.

John Burns has a rule of his own: Don’t get attached. Boyfriends are for guys with nothing to hide. Nobody—not his university mates, not the men he beds—knows his family’s shame. Now his double life is starting to unravel, thanks to a certain Highlander whose storm-riddled eyes turn John inside out, who wears a kilt like he was born in it.

Fergus is the first man John wants to share his secret with—but he’s the last man who could handle it. John knows the truth would shatter Fergus’s still-fragile heart. But how can he live a lie when he’s falling in love?

We have fallen in love with the Lads of Glasgow.  Playing for Keeps is a different sort of sports romance; a rugby romance, with sexy accents and men is kilts – all good good things!

Fergus Taylor is reeling off a horrendous break-up, and wants nothing more than to forget his pain and focus on mending his broken rugby team.  Love isn’t for him, and he is fine to lick his wounds by himself.  But, while planning a charity rugby match he happens upon John Burns a closeted man, living a double life.  John is struggling with the pressures for his father, being closeted to almost everyone and how to be the man Fegus needs him to be.

What do we love about this series?  Avery Cockburn doesn’t shy away from real life, particularly topics that are relevant in today’s Scotland.  Religious differences, independence vote and the violent fervor of sports team dedication.  It is fascinating, and we loved it.  It felt like these are real men, living real lives, with real everyday struggles.

This is so much more than a sports romance.  Fergus is Catholic and John is Protestant, and even though we think that’s not such a big deal, but for them it is a big deal, religious differences and hatred are a reality of their loves, Catholics vs. Protestants.  We loved that Fergus and John are born to hate each other, born as essentially rivals, but because John essentially hides who he really for fear of losing Fergus, they see past what they are born to hate about each other.  And although the first rule is; no Drama, this book gives it to us in SPADES.  It is masterful how Avery has woven a love story of 2 very different men, born to hate each other, and with even all the road-blocks in their way, they still find love.

Fergus and John are smoldering together, they are sweet, sexy and ignite the pages.  Seriously, if you have every had a men-in-kilts fantasy than you NEED to read this book.  The sex is molten, and you can feel the passion between these men. 

So things that may turn you off reading?  The language – they is quite a bit of local Scottish words.  A few times they left us scratching our heads.  But all in all they tended to add to Playing for Keeps, they immersed us in Fergus and John’s world and made us believe we were really in Glasgow.  And one of our most hated tropes – hiding something important, because really what makes for drama other than keeping the truth from your lover to find out about and break up with you.  But, we digress.  John keeps who he really is locked away from Fergus for fear Fergus will walk away. However, we didn’t hate it.  John has so many things stacked against him, not only his family and his religion, but Fergus has been badly burned before and is so wary of letting him in.  Although still not our favorite, it worked here, you can see why John is keeping secrets and you feel his strife, angst and disappointment in himself in not being able to tell the truth.

This is our first Avery Cockburn book and we LOVED it.  LOVED!  Canna say enough – see what we did there?  Playing for Keeps tackles hard topics, religion, politics, family expectations, all things that aren’t romantic, but truly makes this book a real look at 2 men form very different world, and against all pressures falling in love. This is the first of a long series that is as great as the first book – spoiler – we loved it so much we devoured the rest of the series already!

Review of Covet thy Neighbor by L.A. Witt

 

by LA Witt

4 stars

 

Tattoo artist Seth Wheeler thinks he’s struck gold when Darren Romero rents the apartment across the hall. The new guy is gorgeous, witty, and single, plus he’s just the right blend of bold and flirtatious. Perfect.

Except then Darren reveals that he moved to Tucker Springs to take a job as the youth pastor at the New Light Church. Seth is not only an atheist, but was thrown out by his ultra-religious family when he came out. He tends to avoid believers, not out of judgment but out of self-preservation.

But Darren doesn’t give up easily, and he steadily chips away at Seth’s defenses. Darren is everything Seth wants in a man . . . except for that one massive detail he just can’t overlook. Is Darren’s religion the real problem, or is it just a convenient smokescreen to keep him from facing deeper fears? It’s either see the light, or risk pushing Darren away forever.

Start off by saying we love L.A. Witt!  This is a sweet, hot, angsty book between two unlikely men. We were a bit wary of the subject, because really who wants to be talking about God and romance, but we really enjoyed the balance of the two main characters beliefs.   And although this is book 4 in the series, it is the first on we read, so if you want to just pick up one title you can.

We first meet Seth, a tattoo artist who was thrown out of his family home in the name of religion when he came out to his parents.  Years later he still struggles with his faith, being shunned by his family and letting people in who could hurt him.  When his across the hall neighbor moves out, Darren moves in, and it is instant chemistry.  Darren is a new-to-town youth minister who is looking for a new start in a new town.

The chemistry between Darren and Seth is off the page, from the first time they meet, you can feel the pull of attraction between them.  And when they finally give into the lust, it is so hot.  LA Witt never disappoints with the bedroom material, and these boys couldn’t keep their hands off each other.  The sex in the book added so much to the believability that a minster and an Atheist could fall in love.

Now let’s talk the religion portion of this book, we actually enjoyed Seth and Darren’s discussions on their beliefs, and how coming together we could value each other’s view point.  How Seth’s past has put him so scared of getting close to religion again, and Darren’s vocation as a minister always put a strike against him, no matter who he is.  Their back and forth and finally seeing where each other are coming from is refreshing.  But, there is angst.  Seth specifically wrestles with who he believes himself to be as an Atheist and how can he forget what his old church and family did in the name of Jesus.  He struggles. 

In the end this is a really nice story of acceptance, and overcoming fears, and LA Witt delivers.  It is hot, sexy and a really great read.

Review of Goodbye Paradise by Sarina Bowen

by Sarina Bowen 

4 Stars

Most people called it a cult. But for twenty years, Josh and Caleb called it home. 

In Paradise, there is no television. No fast food. Just long hours of farm work and prayer on a dusty Wyoming ranch, and nights in a crowded bunkhouse. The boys of the Compound are kept far from the sinners’ world. 

But Joshua doesn’t need temptation to sin. His whole life, he’s wanted his best friend, Caleb. By day they work side by side. Only when Josh closes his eyes at night can they be together the way he craves.

It can never be. And his survival depends on keeping his terrible desires secret.

Caleb has always protected Josh against the worst of the bullying at the Compound. But he has secrets of his own, and a plan to get away — until it all backfires.

Josh finds himself homeless in a world that doesn’t want him. Can Caleb find him in time? And will they find a place of safety, where he can admit to Josh how he really feels?

 

This book took us by surprise, how much we loved it!  And honestly if not for a recommendation wouldn’t have been on our to-be-read list.  But there are so many good things about Goodbye Paradise, focusing around an interesting topic of Cults in America.

Josh and Caleb, both around 20 years old were born into a polygamist cult in rural America.  A male dominated society that regularly dis-owns young men they don’t deem valuable to their society.  Josh is one of those men, tossed out to fend for himself, but his best friend Caleb follows him to try and build a life together.

The love story between Josh and Caleb is so sweet.  There are 2 men struggling with what they were brought up to believe and the reality of their life going forward.  The set off to find Maggie, one of the cults runaway’s, to help establish a new life - Maggie gives them a place to live and a sense of family.  We really enjoyed Josh and Caleb’s  sexual experimentation, they both know what they want, but have no idea if the other is interested and must break the belief that being gay is wrong.  Because Caleb was allowed to go out into the real world he seems to acclimatize earlier than Josh.  Josh struggles with being tossed-out and unwanted.  It creates this push and pull, not angst, which is really interesting and kept us reading.  And really, Josh and Caleb are so loveable you really want them to have a happy ending.

The real treasure in this book is the subject.  We thought the religious pieces would be a bit much, but they really worked.  Let’s be honest, there is a fascination with cults, who belongs to them, why do they stay, what happens when they leave.  And Goodbye Paradise takes this subject and does it justice.  It is not a subject that is readily dealt with in m/m romance books, but Sarina Bowen takes the time to develop the topic, and doesn’t just ignore the elephant in the room after they have finally escaped the cult.  It is really fascinating.