Quick Reads, Quick Reviews 44

  

• Something to Believe in, Sloan Parker
• Shark: Shifter Kings Nashville Book 3, Holly Gunn
• Sleepless in San Francisco, Ryan Field

This was a very short story with two young men who are beyond down on their luck and find friendship during hardship.   Their relationship took longer to come together (off page) and when they finally did, it was mostly awkward confessions and a physical connection.  There's nothing in the synopsis to hint at how they come into the money, and it's not an easy situation in the least.  I'm not too uncomfortable with their situation or how it was described, though it was difficult to "witness" the specifics of what they had to do.  The holiday and resolution to the story was full of sweetness and hope for a better future but a bit too ...sappy?... for the tone set in the beginning.  It did end on a very happy note with all the warmth of holidays, family, and love which provided a tender counterpoint to where we started.  3 stars.

Right from the start there's a whole lot of nerd.  I liked both Shark and Lexie right away because they were definitely unique and we were given a pretty clear picture of who each of them are and why we should like them.  The big reveal was a little awkward, to say the least, as was the first intimate moment between the MC's.  It's not that their sexy times didn't pack a steamy punch, it certainly did, but I think it was the lead up, it just didn't feel well timed.  As for the mystery surrounding Nashville's shifter population, there's not a whole lot of explanation or progress.  In a book this short it just didn't have enough page space to get things really rolling without giving us enough of a relationship build sufficient to carry the story.  What it did give, however, was a sweet, sexy, quirky romance, a great set up for the next story (hopefully Wolf and Sera's!!), and a general sense of the turmoil that's brewing and what we might expect as the series continues.  The dialogue was mostly incredibly quirky and sometimes cringey, but the whole thing was silly, sexy, and I found myself utterly charmed.  I'm definitely going to read more from this series.  4 stars.

Holy inappropriateness, Batman!  From their very first encounter there was all kinds of behavior that was shocking, to say the least.  I was so turned off that I was tempted to stop reading after chapter one.  But it had to get better, right?  Well, the sex became frequent, there was virtually no relationship building, no communication, lots of awkward dialogue and unmoving "confessions", no dealing with grief in a sustainable way, and a whole lot of questionable relationship statuses flying around everywhere.  I don't care if established couples want to add someone for a night or more, I don't care if non-exclusive couples see other people...what I do care about is when it's within the realm of cheating.  The dog drama was unnecessary, as was the East Hamptons scene and all the various sexual partners and situations surrounding them, the seeking of signs rather than pulling your own head out, not being honest with everyone, no discussion with the son about the relationship (even though we know the son would be on board, there still needs to be at least a talk of some kind)...  I'm just so thoroughly and immensely dissatisfied by the entire story.  At least it was short.  1.5 stars.