Warning there are possible spoilers in this review. This book made me uncomfortable. Let me begin by saying I love m/m romances. They are by far my favorite genre and at least half of what I read is m/m stories. I also enjoy the GFY theme. That being said I was uncomfortable during this entire book. Til the very very end, Aaron keeps telling Vinnie that he is straight, that he’s not gay. This is reiterated over and over many many times throughout the course of the story. Aaron is not gay, he likes and dates girls. Yet Vinnie decides he is in love with his straight roommate Aaron and passive/aggressively manipulates the situation over and over to herd Aaron into intimate situations. He gradually breaks down Aarons protests and defenses, creating increasingly intimate encounters. I don’t like giving poor reviews, but this whole story had me thinking less romance and more relentless sexual harassment with a stockholm syndrome ending.
IE…"no, no this is not what I want….no wait….oh yes I think I do love you" There was also no mention of possible bisexuality as a rational for the romance which could have put a completely different spin on the attraction and making the story much more believeable.
I have read most of Renae Kayes books, love her style and love the splendid assortment of oddball quirky, loveable characters she creates within the LGBT genre. Her western Australia settings are great fun. But this books overall character development overshadowed the setting and also the fun of revisiting the guys from previous novels.
The narrator Joel Leslie was superb as always, he’s a terrific speaker.