Brandon is grateful to live above his cousin's garage and to help out where he can around the house. But when another child is on the way, it's clear the family needs to take on some extra help. And Brandon is supportive until he meets the prospective new manny, Taylor. Taylor doesn't seem like the type, and Brandon can't deny his own attractions to the man. But the two being in such close proximity helps them to see each other in ways they had not previously imagined. ( )

review to follow

So apparently this book is part of a series, and I didn't bother to read the first one (and I won't, either, because I have absolutely no interest in doing so after reading this book). Normally, I read series in order and give a little leeway in the rating to the few that I don't read in order, but...I really think the book would be something that I disliked intensely regardless of whether I had read the first book or not.

My first problem is that this book doesn't really feel like a romance. Oh, granted, there's some sex and they take the express train to InstaLoveVille, but I honestly came away from the book feeling as I barely "knew" the two "main" characters at all. I put quotations around main because this didn't feel like Taylor and Brandon's book; instead, it felt more like a book about two men who are "adopted" into another family because their families sucked. Much of the book focused on Nica and Jakey's (ugh god every time I saw the name Jakey I died a little inside because it's just so awful of a name) children and extended relatives.

So many characters were throw into the first few chapters (five children, their parents, the mom's parents and best friend and brother and brother's family and brother's kids, the dad's cousin, etc) that it was impossible for me to keep them apart. I kept forgetting who the main characters even WERE in the first few chapters because it was name overload. And a good quarter of the book progressed before we escaped from the new character onslaught.

And when we finally got to the romance, it was so rushed. They fell in love with one another only two weeks after having met. No. Please stop doing that, romance authors, because it is one of my most annoying pet peeves when it comes to romance novels. I love the slow burn, the subtle shifts, the build up. The "build up" here was that they had sex once and then Brandon pressured Taylor into moving in with him. They have sex another time or two and then it's the L word. The end. UGH.

I never really understood why Brandon disliked Taylor and then he got over it incredibly fast without much explanation either. Was it because Taylor (who is ex-military) is a hulking kind of guy with an eye patch? That's...stupid. I'll say it. That's stupid, especially since Brandon is also a hulking kind of guy (but without the eye patch). I also get that Jakey (ugh that NAME) didn't like Taylor, which may have caused a bit of distemper from Brandon, but Brandon's reaction to Taylor seems completely over the top. And then, poof, it was gone, never to be seen again.

The author's writing style just felt off to me, as well. I'm not saying it's bad, necessarily, but I found it impossible to engage with for the entire book. Everything felt flat, if that makes any sense, and they all sounded pretty much the same.

But the thing that I most disliked about the whole book is going to be under a spoiler tag. When Taylor and Nica (Jakey's - ARGH WHY - wife) were in high school, they were best friends. Nica also had a mad crush on Taylor, which Taylor knew about somewhat. Taylor, however, was gay and super deep into the closet. He didn't tell Nica that he was gay, but he did sneak out a bit and have sex with other men. He didn't tell Nica about that part, either. He kept his orientation and his sexual encounters to himself.

And for that, we are reminded throughout the book that Taylor was in the wrong for not telling Nica that he was gay and sleeping with other men. He should feel guilty and ashamed for not telling her, because his primary focus should have been sparing Nica any pain at all after she discovers that her crush on him is not reciprocated, that they are not going to be together, but without being explain to her WHY EXACTLY THAT IS TRUE. He should feel as if he committed a major sin in their friendship by not forcing himself to come out before he was ready. He should be reminded multiple times that she forgave him for this shocking act of betrayal on her part. He feels blessed that she found it in her overwhelmingly generous heart to forgive such a grave mistake on his part.

Are you fucking kidding me?

Oh fuck anyone who thinks this way, because you have NO idea what it is to be like in that situation. No queer person should EVER be forced into coming out and feeling ashamed if they don't to their best friends. And keeping that to yourself is NOT leading someone on or being selfish or morally wrong.

Did I have a best friend in high school?
Hell yeah!
Did I tell him that I was gay?
Hell no.
If I had been sexually active in high school, would I have told him about my experiences?
HELL NO.

And that's okay! I don't "owe it" to tell anyone else, even my best friend, even my family, even someone who has a crush on me, ANYONE, unless I felt safe and ready to do so. And that does not make me a bad friend or a bad person. But it was just harped on over and over in this book about how Taylor done Nica wrong in high school because he didn't tell her the reason that he would never be able to return her crush and so remained silent.

I've read critiques of m/m romance because it's geared primarily towards and written by heterosexual women (heh didn't fall into that niche, oops). I, personally, read it because I can find angsty characters and backstories easier and I feel like racial and social diversity is more prominent here (I swear, almost every f/f book I've read has been between white women of the middle to upper middle class). But this almost felt like it was a subtle warning: good best friends don't let us develop crushes on them unless they're going to love us back. If you're crushing on your best friend and he's still hanging around and hasn't explicitly told you he's not interested yet, you have every right to expect reciprocation if he's a good guy and not leading you on.

What the fuck.

And that is why I ended up giving this book one star instead of two. ( )