Mended with Gold, Lee Welch

I really enjoyed the story overall.  There was a good sense of where they were going and each man was damaged, vulnerable, and in need of someone to understand them so they could find acceptance and healing.  Both of these men needed something the other could provide and I was so very hopeful for the outcome of their relationship.

I feel like we get to know Alex quite well and I like him as a person.  I see his faults and also see his road to recovery.  He's a full human to me.  I think the beginning was good because we got to know Alex quite a bit and he became crucial to the story's development and the way it felt to read about him.  I enjoyed the way we first meet Joe and see the comic Alex read and accurately interpreted.  From there I would have liked their interactions to be more frequent or at least described more.  It could have worked from only Alex's perspective if it had that.

Joe, however, is more on the periphery even though he's one of the MC's. We see him from the outside and have very, very few interactions with him. Most of what we get is from Alex's thoughts about him rather than experiences with him. If we knew more about him and about them together I'd be more likely to round up or even give it a full 4 stars or more depending on how they evolve together.

There's a great sense of HFN with HEA potential. I'd love an epilogue or maybe a bonus chapter or something because I'm curious as to how they'll bloom together with more time.  Their passion together is kind of like the start of a fire, like when you begin lighting the kindling.  There's more passion in how they talk about their art and that's actually fine for how the story ends, but I think with more interaction together we could see that they are truly well matched despite ages and life experiences.

Overall, they're a good pairing and I wish there were more of them together.

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