Reviews with content warning for Sexual content - The Rest of the Story

Reviews tagging 'Sexual content'

The Rest of the Story by Tal Bauer

13 reviews

renrose03's review

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3.5

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jennp28's review

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dark emotional hopeful inspiring medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

Wow this book was a roller coaster. Dark and intense start, then a slow burn and a happy hockey story, then a mushy steamy happy part followed by a really dark part. There are some intense themes in this one, so reader beware, but mixed into that is THR sweetest instalove/slow burn HEA and a decent hockey story.

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nerdofalltrades's review

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emotional inspiring reflective medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

I went into this book not really knowing what I was getting into, and it ripped my heart out in the most eloquent of ways. I couldn't recommend this more, but definitely check the content warnings as things can be pretty dark.

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downtown_kb's review

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emotional funny hopeful inspiring tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

5.0

Morgan “Moogs” Elsher has been playing in the NHL since he was 18. He’s not bad but he’s not great and he might just be facing some of his final years. He gets traded to the worst team in the league and when he shows up to practice, planning on just retiring, he discovers there might be a very dark and sinister reason this team is so bad. And maybe he can turn the whole thing around.

I might have liked this one more than Gravity? I love an underdog story (not just the team but also Moogs) but mostly, damn if I didn’t fall in love with daddy Moogs! I loved being in his head. He was a chill fun loving guy, a bit of a himbo, but he had a giant heart of gold he had buried away and you got to find it with him. And he loved so, so, big.

This was over the top sweet, a whole lot of heart, and capital PINING. Not much of an actual age gap here but it felt like one because Shea just seemed young, sweet and innocent, and Moogs seemed older with how he was the team dad. The external 3rd act conflict here was a lot to take in. It was heavy and it really caused a sharp pivot in the story and changed the tone a lot. I think Brody's story needed more room but also, Moogs and Shea would have been front and center for him so it couldn't have been ignored either. It was interesting to see that T.B. didn’t do a lot of hurt/comfort like he did with Gravity, instead there was a bigger scope of caretaking with the whole team and Moogs. After I thought about it for a while, I don’t think I would have liked it if everything had just coasted to an easy finish either. So yeah, I still give this 5 stars. I savored this book, the pining was so good, and Moogs is going to be one of my all time favorite characters.

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kearstenkeepsreading's review

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challenging emotional funny hopeful inspiring reflective sad medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

5.0

Please check TW before reading.

“You showed up, Morgan, when you didn’t have to. That’s the finest thing a man can do in this life: be there for someone.”

The way this book ripped me to shreds and put me back together again. This is a book about surviving trauma and fighting and scratching for tomorrow. I seriously could not put this book down and simultaneously wanted to know how it ended but also never wanted it to end! Morgan and Shea have my heart and soul!!!

Not only because of their love for each other but for their team and how they brought this group of broken men together and built a family. I cried happy, sad, angry and broken tears while reading this book. The writing is so heartbreakingly beautiful and you feel the MC’s love for each other and their team so viscerally. Truly a beautiful book and now if you’ll excuse me I’m going to go read the entirety of Tal Bauer’s backlog!

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alexaeves145's review

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emotional funny hopeful inspiring sad medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

Honestly, Tal Bauer is a five star author. The stories he writes leave me enraptured and in tears (both happy and sad) every time. He puts in a lot of exposition and flowery language that, for someone who is a power-reader, can get a bit much but it’s always worth it.

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voracious_book_addict's review

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emotional hopeful inspiring medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.5

I went into this blind and right from the start this was unlike any M/M Hockey romance I have read previously. I like to keep as much content as possible from my reviews so as not to give anything away, but Morgan started out as an unlikely hero. A mid range player, not especially decorated or exciting who is traded to the worst team in the league. He walks in and completely upends the team and they build back stronger together. My favorite thing about this book is the camaraderie among the team. They feel like a college team in a great way. Because they are building strong friendships, the friendship between Morgan and Shea is full of piney yearning feelings. Shea is an older rookie who has a level of maturity and protectiveness that bleeds into his feelings of Morgan. He has some interesting and traditional views and I love how Tal Bauer developed a Hockey hero who deviates from the stereotypical expectation.

The first 1/3 and last 1/3 of this book had me hooked to where I couldn't put it down but for a section in the middle I found myself less engaged. This book caused my eyes to leak with both happy and emotional tears at different points. A really beautiful romance.

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