After the Crash: Small Town Hearts Book 1, Emma Alcott

Gah!  I'm not blind to some of the issues in the story, but I just don't really care in the end.  Marshall is quirky and nerdy and so strong.  Fox is vulnerable, suffering, and yet so determined.  Together they are definitely hot, incredibly sweet, and so perfect for one another.  Their journey wasn't easy, they had incredibly difficult moments, but what struck me was how truly together they were.  From the decision to be together until the end, they were one another's support, strength, and friend.  They fought and overcame all that was thrown at them.

The opening of the story set the scene for the kind of lives both Marshall and Fox were forced to live through and where they might go from there.  It wasn't an easy scene to "watch", but it gave insight into both boys, mostly Fox, and background to the men we are re-introduced to later.  When we dive into their adult stories it's clear that while one thrived, the other suffered, predictably the opposite of what we first saw in the prologue.  What was fantastic to me was the role reversal of savior.  It was absolutely fitting for who both men had become in their decade of separation.

Struggling with PTSD is exactly that, a struggle, and there is no cure.  What I liked about how it was included here was that the road to any kind of recovery isn't linear and Fox's wasn't any exception.  I would have liked some resolution to his relationship with his mother because the genesis of his and Marshall's meeting as adults was directly related to that.  It was left hanging while everything else was wrapped up nicely in a big rainbow colored ribbon.

The GFY trope can sometimes be unbelievable because many can argue that that doesn't really exist, to all-of-a-sudden be attracted to one and only one person of the same sex when there was no intimation of attraction at any other moment in life.  I just don't care.  Sexuality isn't ever truly clear for anyone because there are so many nuances.  In this case, I think there was a hint before about a feature that Fox appreciated and even another mention in his thoughts of recognition so it didn't bother me that he hadn't had any other "hands on" experience before Marshall.  I loved that he did all the thinking first and kept it all in perspective of his respect for life and in direct relation to his own happiness since that had been all but non-existent beforehand.  So once he was in he was all-in...metaphorically and literally =].

His chemistry with Marshall was definitely hot.  It served as a fantastic counterpoint to their nerdiness, the drama brewing with Sam, and their stability together to deal with all that mess.  Everything regarding that was wrapped up very nicely in a way that wasn't completely predictable, but not so out of the blue that it gave pause to the story's flow.  With an incredibly sweet and tender ending I was extremely pleased in the overall evolution of the story.  I'm absolutely a fan of the author's other works and under this new pen name you can guarantee I'll be in for a whole lot more, especially of this series in particular.

*$4.99 on Amazon!

Rule #1 Straight military men will always be straight, no matter how much you wish otherwiseRule #2 Being a billionaire won’t change that (probably)

Rule #3 The whole thing between you when you were in high school? It was only fantasy

Rule #4 One-sided fantasy

Rule #5 God, how great would it be if it was a two-sided fantasy?

Rule #6 Okay, getting off track

Rule #7 Hiring your hot high school crush is totally okay

Rule #8 If you don’t let your feelings get in the way, everything will be fine

Marshall Lloyd is about to be very not fine. Not only is his high school crush back in his life, but he’s matured into a gruff, brooding, drop-dead-gorgeous specimen of a man that makes Marshall’s wet dreams seem about as exciting as drying paint. The only problem: Fox Fraser, the individual in question, is straight.

Super straight.

The kind of straight that would make a ruler jealous.

But if what Marshall sees when he looks in Fox’s eyes is to be believed, he’s broken, too. There are scars inside of him that no one notices. No one but Marshall. It’s not wrong to want to help him, is it? To hire him to take care of things around the house so he can get back on his feet? It’s just work. Work that leads to lingering looks. To prolonged touches. To… mmph. It’s better not to think about it. Marshall’s fantasies aren’t real. A guy like Fox would never pin him to a wall and do things to him like that.

Maybe.

Probably.

Right?