roryta86reads's review against another edition
2.0
I mostly found this annoying. I listened to the Audio version. I didn't like either characters. I kept waiting for either of them to become endearing.
myzanm's review against another edition
4.0
Sweet and uncomplicated.
Vince's family was less of a problem than I thought they would.
Trey got a bit too cynical at times, which could have been annoying if Vince hadn't been there to level things a bit.
Vince's family was less of a problem than I thought they would.
Trey got a bit too cynical at times, which could have been annoying if Vince hadn't been there to level things a bit.
the_lady_reads's review against another edition
3.0
3.5 Stars
I really liked this one. Short, sweet, and just what I needed after a hectic week.
The pov switches threw me off, and I think it would've been better had the authors stuck to one kind. Either way, I still enjoyed reading the story. The characters were sweethearts, and their problems were very realistic. The story as a whole was pretty cheesy, but in a goofy, romantic way rather than amateur and annoying.
I love when Heidi and Marie work together, and will definitely read more of their books!
I really liked this one. Short, sweet, and just what I needed after a hectic week.
The pov switches threw me off, and I think it would've been better had the authors stuck to one kind. Either way, I still enjoyed reading the story. The characters were sweethearts, and their problems were very realistic. The story as a whole was pretty cheesy, but in a goofy, romantic way rather than amateur and annoying.
I love when Heidi and Marie work together, and will definitely read more of their books!
bfdbookblog's review against another edition
3.0
3 Stars with an **
I’m pretty torn on this book. I’m a fan of both authors so I was excited to read it but I had a few issues with it while I loved parts of it.
Let me first start with some of the topics tackled in the story. Vinnie is closeted still at almost 40 and he is really struggling to come out in his big Italian catholic family. Trey has major mom issues which include alcoholism and neglect/borderline abuse…both of which were very well written. One or both of the authors either have experience with these issues or did really good research. There are a handful of church/religious stereotype references that were not overwhelming but noticeable.
Now before I get to what bothered me about the story, let me tell you what I loved. I loved Vince and Trey’s friendship and eventual love story. This is clearly a May/December story…there is a 14 year age gap…but that wasn’t an issue for anyone and really was barely mentioned. Vinnie comes from a big, loud, super involved Italian family where Trey comes from a very small very dysfunctional family. Trey is out and proud, Vinnie is, as I mentioned, still in the closet and has dead bolted the door. Their 2nd non-date is pretty perfect. Their patience with each other is endearing. The way Vinnie and his family take care of Trey and his small family is amazing. The way they just naturally fell in love was heart melting and the last scene was absolutely perfect. If you could strip away my issues listed below, this would be a 5 star read.
However, those issues remain. I don’t ever read reviews prior to reading a book – partially because I don’t want a prejudiced opinion going into it and mostly because I’ve found that not everyone is honest in their reviews so the public opinion is pretty skewed. Because of that, I didn’t know about the POV issue until I was about 20% in and had to go back a couple of chapters to make sure I was actually seeing what I thought I was seeing. And I was…conflicting/dueling points of view. Vinnie’s POV was in the 3rd person and Trey’s was in the 1st person. That this was published by a fairly big publisher - twice - with that on the pages is mind boggling to me. Were two different editors used? Did anyone read it entirely before it was published? If so, how was it decided to keep it as is? If the love story hadn’t been so great, I would have abandoned this book right then and there. I’m usually not a huge fan of co-authored books because 1) I can usually tell which author has written certain parts of the story and it doesn’t feel like collaboration or 2) the entire book feels like only one person wrote it which means it wasn’t truly collaboration. I’ve never experienced the dual points of view and I’m just confused.
Another big issue for me is the reference to one of the guys ‘being the girl’ in the relationship. This was mentioned in conversation 3 times. This is a book about 2 men becoming lovers/partners. There is no girl in the relationship. That statement is absurd and pisses me off. At one point, Vinnie mentions being more worried about being thought of as a lesser man because of his positional preference than about losing his family when coming out. Neither of those is OK with me.
A minor issue for me involved Trey’s 3 friends - Tara and Dillon and Josh. We meet them at 56% when Trey mentions them being his family. How are they so close he considers them family and we didn’t meet them for half the book? Not a huge deal I guess, but it threw me for a loop and I was already a bit of a mess because of the POV issue so I’m including it here.
A second minor issue is we never see Trey deal with his overwhelming issues with his mom. It took him a really long time in the story to even admit those issues and to finally shed a tear over. He cannot ignore them...so I'm going to assume his healing happened off page.
Honestly, this book is worth the time because of the love story. If it weren’t for that, I wouldn’t have even finished. Some of you may not have the issues I do and may love it. Some of you might not like the love story enough to get past the issues. I’ll leave that up to you.
I’m pretty torn on this book. I’m a fan of both authors so I was excited to read it but I had a few issues with it while I loved parts of it.
Let me first start with some of the topics tackled in the story. Vinnie is closeted still at almost 40 and he is really struggling to come out in his big Italian catholic family. Trey has major mom issues which include alcoholism and neglect/borderline abuse…both of which were very well written. One or both of the authors either have experience with these issues or did really good research. There are a handful of church/religious stereotype references that were not overwhelming but noticeable.
Now before I get to what bothered me about the story, let me tell you what I loved. I loved Vince and Trey’s friendship and eventual love story. This is clearly a May/December story…there is a 14 year age gap…but that wasn’t an issue for anyone and really was barely mentioned. Vinnie comes from a big, loud, super involved Italian family where Trey comes from a very small very dysfunctional family. Trey is out and proud, Vinnie is, as I mentioned, still in the closet and has dead bolted the door. Their 2nd non-date is pretty perfect. Their patience with each other is endearing. The way Vinnie and his family take care of Trey and his small family is amazing. The way they just naturally fell in love was heart melting and the last scene was absolutely perfect. If you could strip away my issues listed below, this would be a 5 star read.
However, those issues remain. I don’t ever read reviews prior to reading a book – partially because I don’t want a prejudiced opinion going into it and mostly because I’ve found that not everyone is honest in their reviews so the public opinion is pretty skewed. Because of that, I didn’t know about the POV issue until I was about 20% in and had to go back a couple of chapters to make sure I was actually seeing what I thought I was seeing. And I was…conflicting/dueling points of view. Vinnie’s POV was in the 3rd person and Trey’s was in the 1st person. That this was published by a fairly big publisher - twice - with that on the pages is mind boggling to me. Were two different editors used? Did anyone read it entirely before it was published? If so, how was it decided to keep it as is? If the love story hadn’t been so great, I would have abandoned this book right then and there. I’m usually not a huge fan of co-authored books because 1) I can usually tell which author has written certain parts of the story and it doesn’t feel like collaboration or 2) the entire book feels like only one person wrote it which means it wasn’t truly collaboration. I’ve never experienced the dual points of view and I’m just confused.
Another big issue for me is the reference to one of the guys ‘being the girl’ in the relationship. This was mentioned in conversation 3 times. This is a book about 2 men becoming lovers/partners. There is no girl in the relationship. That statement is absurd and pisses me off. At one point, Vinnie mentions being more worried about being thought of as a lesser man because of his positional preference than about losing his family when coming out. Neither of those is OK with me.
A minor issue for me involved Trey’s 3 friends - Tara and Dillon and Josh. We meet them at 56% when Trey mentions them being his family. How are they so close he considers them family and we didn’t meet them for half the book? Not a huge deal I guess, but it threw me for a loop and I was already a bit of a mess because of the POV issue so I’m including it here.
A second minor issue is we never see Trey deal with his overwhelming issues with his mom. It took him a really long time in the story to even admit those issues and to finally shed a tear over. He cannot ignore them...so I'm going to assume his healing happened off page.
Honestly, this book is worth the time because of the love story. If it weren’t for that, I wouldn’t have even finished. Some of you may not have the issues I do and may love it. Some of you might not like the love story enough to get past the issues. I’ll leave that up to you.
nasaje's review against another edition
3.0
I like Vinnie's wooing and the slow build-up. Didn't love the family drama that took a lot of the focus throughout the book.
moviemavengal's review against another edition
4.0
Three and a half to four stars.
M/m melodrama set in Chicago. There are two women authors, and the POV changes with each chapter from one man to the other in the relationship. I downloaded this because it is the Smart Bitches book club choice for April.
Three times divorced Vince Fierro is a macho Italian working class guy who after fixing the garbage disposal of a loving gay couple, comes to the realization that he may be a closeted gay. He's terrified that his controlling nearly suffocating interfering family will find out and ostracize him like his Uncle Hank. He finds he's attracted to Trey, a mid-20's college student from the family neighborhood. Trey has his own issues, he's out to his small family, which consists of his grandmother, and his alcoholic mother. Trey works two jobs and attends school, supporting his family. (Why a kid with all that would choose English as a major, even if you want to teach, is a question that perturbed my mind.) Trey tries to hide from everyone around him his issues with his agoraphobic cough syrup slugging mother.
Vince's sister says he should test himself by going to a gay bar. He's about to leave when he runs into Trey. The relationship evolves fairly slowly for most m/m books, with each man having their own obstacles. In all it was very sweet, and when Trey's family spins out of control, that is the catalyst for Vince to step up to his family, and to be support to Trey.
Really enjoyed it, and it kept me up reading, unlike the other book I've been reading this week!
M/m melodrama set in Chicago. There are two women authors, and the POV changes with each chapter from one man to the other in the relationship. I downloaded this because it is the Smart Bitches book club choice for April.
Three times divorced Vince Fierro is a macho Italian working class guy who after fixing the garbage disposal of a loving gay couple, comes to the realization that he may be a closeted gay. He's terrified that his controlling nearly suffocating interfering family will find out and ostracize him like his Uncle Hank. He finds he's attracted to Trey, a mid-20's college student from the family neighborhood. Trey has his own issues, he's out to his small family, which consists of his grandmother, and his alcoholic mother. Trey works two jobs and attends school, supporting his family. (Why a kid with all that would choose English as a major, even if you want to teach, is a question that perturbed my mind.) Trey tries to hide from everyone around him his issues with his agoraphobic cough syrup slugging mother.
Vince's sister says he should test himself by going to a gay bar. He's about to leave when he runs into Trey. The relationship evolves fairly slowly for most m/m books, with each man having their own obstacles. In all it was very sweet, and when Trey's family spins out of control, that is the catalyst for Vince to step up to his family, and to be support to Trey.
Really enjoyed it, and it kept me up reading, unlike the other book I've been reading this week!
crtsjffrsn's review against another edition
3.0
Vince Fierro is forty and still bouncing back from his third divorce. His job with a family plumbing firm is going well. But Vince knows something's missing in his life. And when he works on a job for a gay couple, he starts to wonder if there's a reason his marriages failed. Could Vince be gay? He doesn't think so. And he can't be. That doesn't jive with being an Irish Catholic, after all. After getting some advice from his sister, he sets out to explore the gay bars of Chicago to see if anyone stirs his interest. And no one does until he runs into someone he knows from his neighborhood.
Trey Giles keeps busier than anyone else he knows. He's going to school, working two jobs, taking care of his grandmother, and dealing with his alcoholic mother. There's no time for a relationship, or even a hookup, so he's never pursued one. But when he spots Vince Fierro at a bar in Boystown, he can't help but ask some questions. And even though Vince tells Trey he doesn't think he's gay, Trey sees something that makes him think otherwise. And he figures he can make some time to help Vince find his way.
But can Vince come to terms with who he is? And how will he reconcile it with his religion and his family? And even if he does, can Trey make time for the two of them to be together?
--
Taking a journey with these two guys was quite fun. And I enjoyed hearkening back to the year that I lived in Chicago with all the local references. Even better than they were all spot on.
I honestly had expected to see Vince do a bit more soul searching regarding his sexuality. We really didn't see too much struggling aside from a few moments or how it appeared to Trey without getting a chance to see things from Vince's perspective. And while I sympathized with Trey's position near the end, exploring his feelings a bit more from his perspective would likely help readers who don't have the experience of dealing with a loved one who is an addict or an alcoholic.
Overall, though, this is an enjoyable read and it warrants a recommendation from me!
Trey Giles keeps busier than anyone else he knows. He's going to school, working two jobs, taking care of his grandmother, and dealing with his alcoholic mother. There's no time for a relationship, or even a hookup, so he's never pursued one. But when he spots Vince Fierro at a bar in Boystown, he can't help but ask some questions. And even though Vince tells Trey he doesn't think he's gay, Trey sees something that makes him think otherwise. And he figures he can make some time to help Vince find his way.
But can Vince come to terms with who he is? And how will he reconcile it with his religion and his family? And even if he does, can Trey make time for the two of them to be together?
--
Taking a journey with these two guys was quite fun. And I enjoyed hearkening back to the year that I lived in Chicago with all the local references. Even better than they were all spot on.
I honestly had expected to see Vince do a bit more soul searching regarding his sexuality. We really didn't see too much struggling aside from a few moments or how it appeared to Trey without getting a chance to see things from Vince's perspective. And while I sympathized with Trey's position near the end, exploring his feelings a bit more from his perspective would likely help readers who don't have the experience of dealing with a loved one who is an addict or an alcoholic.
Overall, though, this is an enjoyable read and it warrants a recommendation from me!
dreamerfreak's review against another edition
4.0
This is a fun, flirty book about family and coming out. The biggest message in this book to me is all about trust, and it was so beautifully written! Vince and Trey are such big, bold characters. The take hold of the reader and don't bother asking for a ransom; they just want to tell their story!
The contrast between Trey's small family, broken, but still with some love in there, and Vince's big, in-your-face, caring clan was so well-drawn. I could just imagine the interactions between them so well. This is the first I've read by either author, but I'm pleased to say that it certainly won't be my last.
The contrast between Trey's small family, broken, but still with some love in there, and Vince's big, in-your-face, caring clan was so well-drawn. I could just imagine the interactions between them so well. This is the first I've read by either author, but I'm pleased to say that it certainly won't be my last.