WHEN HE WOKE

TITLE: WHEN HE WOKE

AUTHOR: TAYLOR BROOKS

Pages: 117

Date: 02/05/2014

Grade: 3

Details: Received from the Siren

            Through Love Romances and More

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The blurb:

“Matt Caynor's whole world turned upside down two years ago when a car accident left his partner, Aaron Mayburn, in a coma. For months he remained vigil by his bedside, hoping for a miracle the doctors told him would never come.

Steve Pierce met Matt three months ago and took an instant liking to him. After a whirlwind romance the two find themselves falling in love and planning for a future together until a phone call comes in from the hospital that changes everything.

When Aaron wakes from his coma, Matt is forced to let go of the man he's falling in love with to be with the one he thought he'd lost. With each passing day he finds himself walking a tightrope between gratitude and despair, not knowing that he might just be given everything he wants. If only he's brave enough to take it.”

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My thoughts:

It’s been two years since the accident that left Aaron in a coma the doctors say he would never come out of. For most of those two years Aaron’s partner Matt has been holding a vigil by his bedside while fighting the medical staff who urge him to turn life support off.

Three months ago Matt met Steve and from the very first moment something special existed between the two men. They’ve spent little time apart over those three months although Matt does occasionally disappear for a few hours without explaining why or where he goes.

When Aaron wakes up from his coma it is the miracle Matt has been waiting for. It is also the moment he has to say goodbye to Steve, the man who didn’t know Aaron existed, the man he’s fallen in love with and the man who now feels betrayed and abandoned.

Aaron’s awakening leaves three man less than happy. Matt is delighted to have the love of his life back while a part of him yearns for Steve. Steve is heartbroken and feels betrayed. And Aaron, while delighted to be back home with the man he loves, knows Matt is hiding something from him.

Something will have to give.

I’m not sure what to say about this book. I liked the idea behind the story. It must be a terrible dilemma for those who have partners in a coma; when do you allow yourself to move on even though the person you love is technically still alive? What do you then when you fall for someone while the person you’ll always love is in hospital, unable to respond to you? And if this book had gone a little bit deeper into that issue I would probably have ended up loving it.

As it is the story, while touching on Matt’s dilemma, seemed to almost gloss over it. In fact, the story seemed to gloss over almost everything except the sex. Please don’t get me wrong. I liked reading the sex scenes and they were hot. But I can’t help feeling that this was too weighty a theme to use as a vehicle for steamy encounters.

I also didn’t get any real insight into those three men. I felt there was very little to distinguish them from each other. Matt gets a bit more attention than the other two men and is therefore a bit easier to identify but not well enough for me to be able to picture him in my head.

Matt. I disliked him. First he kept secrets from Steve and when that spectacularly backfired and left both of them hurt he turned around and did the exact same thing to Aaron. In fact, this may be one of the few books were the happy ending didn’t feel right because I just couldn’t convince myself Matt deserved it.

I can’t help feeling that this novella would have made a great novel. If it had been longer, with more character background and growth, more time for situations to be created and resolved and more insight into Matt’s turmoil during the two years Aaron was in his coma this could have been one of those books that break your heart only to leave you uplifted and happy in the end. Instead this was an enjoyable and hot but rather superficial story. There was nothing wrong with the writing and it was a very easy read. I just didn’t like the disappointed feeling the book left me with.

ROBIN

TITLE: ROBIN

AUTHOR: SEAN MICHAEL

Pages: 56

Date: 13/02/2014

Grade: 3+

Details: No. 6 Shibari Auction House

            Received from New Changeling Press

            Through Love Romance and More

Own / Kindle

The blurb:

“Best friends and high school sweethearts, Robin and Sam are looking for a Dom who can give them both what they want. They've done a lot of reading and some experimenting, but nothing has worked. Neither of them has what it takes to top the other, and the online hookups and club visits have been a total disaster. Putting themselves up for auction at the Shibari Auction House is their last attempt at finding something that even comes close to matching the things they've read about.

When Master Renard sees Robin and Sam on the night's auction block, he decides he must have them and makes a pre-emptive bid, wanting them in his playroom sooner than later. He's intrigued by the two boys who look so different and by the idea of having two boys at once to dominate.

Can all three men find exactly what they need in each other? Or is it all just a lovely fantasy?”

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My thoughts:

I don’t like starting reviews like this but it has to be said: reading this story almost broke my heart. Not because of the content, it is in fact a fun and rather sweet story, but because it could have been so much more.

I loved Robin and Sam. The two young men were so sweet together and constantly looking out for each other; putting the other’s comfort and pleasure before their own. Their curiosity was cute as was their innocence and willingness to learn. I had to laugh at Sam’s chattiness and Robin’s silence and liked the way their Master for a week dealt with that difference. In fact, I loved Renard too. He really tries to get to know Robin and Sam in order to find out what they want and need from their week long introduction into the world of BDSM.

The interactions between the three men were hot and exciting as well as sweet and funny. In fact, this novella contained everything I’m looking for in an erotic story. But...

The story was too rushed. Time and again I would find myself really getting into a scene only for it to be over. Everything happened too fast. The various scenes came and went too quickly, issues were solved almost before they were recognised and the switch from Robin and Sam not knowing Master Renard to the moment they had accepted him as their master also happened too fast. In fact, all we get is one night with the three men and I would have loved to witness the whole week.

This is of course the sixth title in a series and it is quite possible that if I had read the previous instalments I would have known what to expect and wouldn’t have been surprised or disappointed by the speed at which this story unfolded.

I can’t help feeling that this novella was a missed opportunity. It is obvious that Sean Michael has it in him to write a great story about wonderful characters. It is also clear that this story has all the elements it needs to be really good. I just feel it needed more; more character development, more insight into the thought processes, more detail in the description of the scenes and less haste when it came to feelings developing. I was thoroughly disappointed when the story ended and could happily have read on about Sam, Robin and Master Renard for another few hours without getting bored.

Mind you, having said all of the above I do have to admit that I will more than likely go back and read the previous five titles in this series. I like the idea behind this story and enjoyed the smooth writing and interesting characters.

If you are looking for a short but hot and sweet erotic romance, ‘Robin’ may be exactly what you need.