Raine O'Tierney

Read Dec 2014 - 4 stars
Re-read Dec 2017 - 4 stars

Synopsis: Crowley was at the airport headed home for Christmas when his mother told him that there would be no one to pick him up if he came, because he wasn't welcome home until he changed his ways. When he gets back to his apartment, his roommate decides that Crowley will come to visit his family for Christmas. The only problem is that Crowley will have to get there a day earlier because Tyler's train is full.
Rell is kind of the family black sheep. He crashes at a lot of people's places and doesn't have a steady job. He comes home for Christmas and is blackmailed in to doing his mother's chores in return for a place to stay. One of those chores is to fetch his twin's roommate from the train station, which Rell is not looking forward to because he thinks that Tyler is annoying. It turns out, though, that Crowley is interested in a lot of the same things that Rell is interested in, and Rell can't help but become interested in Crowley, even though he's never really been in to guys before.

What I liked: How organic the attraction seemed between Crowley and Rell. They had a lot of interests in common, which gave them a good starting point. Rell saw who Crowley was, rather than who Crowley saw, and gave him confidence that way. The family dynamics were interesting, and Crowley getting a taste of a little of the holiday crazy that a loving family can provide was a nice touch after he had to deal with his mother. I also liked that Crowley didn't become bitter toward his mother, but that he was able to let her go.

What I didn't like: even though the relationship seemed to happen naturally, it still felt really fast, especially considering that Rell had never been with a guy before.… (meer)

Somebody Nice! was written for the M/M Romance Group’s 2014 Love’s Landscapes event. This story is told in third person through the eyes of Milo Swaisbrick, a school librarian, and Danny McCrea, a cop. Danny is the guardian of a young girl, Melissa, who goes to the school where Milo is a librarian.

This is an easy read dealing with the growing relationship between Milo and Danny. I believe Milo is twenty-four, shy and he’s never had a date. He’s gay, and Danny is bi, and Danny has never been with a guy, so they are both virgins navigating a relationship with another guy. There’s some sex, but not much.

The other character in the story is Melissa. I usually don’t like kids in stories because they tend to be too adult or too knowledgeable for their age. Melissa wasn’t too annoying, although I think that she was used as the action that moved the story along. She was involved in the story almost more than Danny and Milo were. I would have preferred less of Melissa and more of Danny and Milo. There’s a slight misunderstanding between Milo and Danny but nothing that Melissa can’t fix.

Somebody Nice! was an easy, quick read. I give it 2.5 stars because I’m not a fan of kids in stories, but up it to 3 Stars because the author donated her time and effort with this free story to this event.
… (meer)

Seamus Williams has returned to Ireland after spending several years in the States, leaving his brother, Patrick, behind. But Patrick has Aiden, and he's an adult, so he can fend for himself. Reconnecting with his homeland is just what Seamus needs--well, that and to get away from the one thing (read: person) who scares him more than anything else. And Seamus isn't afraid of much. Not even an ocean can keep him safe, though, as he gets a phone call from a U.S. number he doesn't recognize and answers it. It seems not saying goodbye to Chancey "Chance" Clearwater didn't mean he wouldn't find a way to track Seamus down, forcing Seamus to confront the feelings he thought he left back in Kansas. But it turns out Seamus might be eliciting some of the same feelings and fears in Chance, leaving both men to sort out what they want and how to get it despite living thousands of miles apart.

I'm sometimes a bit skeptical of stories where the relationship started and has already faced complications before the book starts. Too often authors use that as a device without having to actually deal with the issues that led to those complications in the first place. Or readers are left without understanding what brought the couple together in the first place, making it difficult to understand why they remain together and work past the problem. But neither of those cases are true here. Even though the relationship started and much happened before the first page of text, that doesn't mean we miss out at all on knowing Seamus and Chance both individually and together. And by no means are the complications over before the book starts, either. There is a slow but steady plot progression that meanders and builds toward a conclusion that seems real and right. In short, this is a heartwarming and enjoyable story, even if there are moments where one might want to reach through the page and give both men a hearty shake.

Definitely recommended for fans of m/m romance. Although this is the second book in a series, it's not necessary to read the first book before reading this one. I haven't read the first book and I had no problems following or understanding this one.

[Disclaimer: I received a copy of this book from the authors in exchange for an honest review.]… (meer)