Boring, if I’m honest. The core “conflict” between the two leads is paper thin: whether or not they can adequately take care of each other (they clearly can). Not much else is going on.
Martin has a serious illness that makes him sick a lot, although we barely see this. We get a glimpse and then we’re told it over and over. Will endured serious trauma in the navy and struggles to cope, although we barely see this. We get a glimpse and then we’re told it over and over. We’re TOLD so many things about these two that we never see. It’s frustrating because the serious issues they’re burdened with could make for a truly touching, deep story. But the majority of it happens off page, and the stuff that does happen on page is cut short. It seems wrong to put such serious topics into a story just to tiptoe around them.
I thought this might feel like a slow burn, one of my favorite styles of romance, but it doesn’t. They know they love each other and just wait on acting on it for extremely flimsy reasons. All of these are an extreme stretch unsupported by what we see in the story. For example, Martin fears Will will just go along with it because he does whatever Martin wants. He states it like that’s the established dynamic of their friendship. It’s hard to buy that Martin would feel this way, though, since we never see Will doing whatever Martin says. That’s not a thing for them.
Their motivations for delaying never feel believable, which chips away at how believable they are as characters. It’s like their thoughts are just copy and pasted from a character sheet rather than fit to match what’s happening (not that much happens). We spend way too much time in their heads as they ponder their slow-paced country retreat, and it’s through all this pondering that we learn what’s going on, rather than actually seeing it. They repeat themselves for pages and pages, and I was still never convinced that they’re fully developed characters. Learning to live without servants is not a personality.
After such an uneventful story, the moment they finally act on their romantic feelings was a bitter disappointment. I didn’t even realize they’d kissed because they were busy pondering air again. Gah! It’s so anticlimatic. I thought I’d appreciate that they were slow to explore the physical part of romance, but since I didn’t care about the characters, it was just boring. We’re told they cuddle in bed and spend wholesome time together, but we don’t really see any of that. Almost all their fluffy sweet moments that establish their deep friendship/love are skipped and just referenced later. The ones we do get are bland. Disappointing.
The physical side of their romance takes on a slant that doesn’t sit right. Will is widely experienced and honest about it. Martin is utterly inexperienced and fears ALL things related to physical pleasure (including acts done, ahem, alone). Sounds engaging, right? Unfortunately, no. It’s barely explored at all. Martin’s deep fears are “solved” by Will instantly. He figures out quickly (without much to back it up at that point) that Martin needs Will to express consent and desire repeatedly, as well as praise. And, god, that premise is so, so good. My favorite dynamic!! It checks all the boxes: wanting to be wanted, needing to hear it, needing enthusiastic consent and open desire, thriving on praise. What a bummer that the execution is so lukewarm. Not much actually happens and you kinda just get the gist of it told to you while Will and Martin do more PONDERING. Sigh. By this point, I had already detached from the story, though, so other listeners/readers may enjoy it more than I did.
I haven’t said much good, but there are some parts I like. The subtle opposites-attract angle, though underutilized, works well. Will is an adventurous social type while Martin is socially awkward after being shut away sick all his life. They care for each other deeply and are always there for each other at their darkest times. They both deal with a lot of jealousy even over friendships, and they’re refreshingly honest with each other about it. This made me actually find the jealousy sweet rather than gross since they simply tell each other. Their total honesty with each other is a huge win for the story.
The first two in this series are wonderful, and I highly recommend them. This one can be skipped. Joel Leslie does a great job as usual. Give it a listen if you’re desperate for more of the world, I suppose. Hart and Sam make a brief appearance. 🙂