More than Everything: Family Collection
- Narrated by:
- Length: 7 hrs and 46 mins
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SYNOPSIS
Time might not heal all wounds, but with two motivated and strong-willed men on a campaign to win him back, Charlie will get more than he ever thought possible.
As a teenager, Charlie "Chase" Rhodes meets Scott Boone and falls head over heels in love with the popular, athletic boy next door. Charlie thinks he's living the dream when Scott says he feels the same way. But his dreams are dashed when Scott unexpectedly moves away.
Years later, Charlie meets brash and confident Adan Navarro, who claims all he wants is a round between the sheets. After eight months together, Charlie is convinced Adan returns his love. But when the opportunity comes to be open about their relationship, Adan walks away.
Time passes and life moves on, but when Charlie learns the only two men he's ever loved are now in love with each other, his heart breaks all over again. Scott and Adan tell Charlie they want him back, but Charlie doesn't know if he can trust two people who have hurt him so deeply. Time might not heal all wounds, but with two motivated and strong-willed men on a campaign to win him back, Charlie will get more than he ever thought possible.
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ebook links
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My Review
The way the story is told, with Charlie explaining everything as his scrapbook of their lives that he has put together, is unique...and while I wasn't sure that I liked it at first, by the end I was really enjoying the story being written in this manner.
One of the great things about this story is that you get fantastic character growth for all three main characters, and the way they are written makes you feel so much for all three of them...but especially Charlie. Oh wow, I felt SO much for Charlie. To experience love not once, but twice, and to lose it both times...the sympathy factor was off the charts. He is so sweet and giving, that you can't help but feel for him.
Another thing I liked about this story is how it makes the connection between the other books in the series more obvious since we got to see Adan and Scott earlier on, as well as Daniel. It helps to tie everything more closely together, and appreciate that connection between the characters.
You'll also find plenty of heat and steamy sex scenes, this time giving things a bit of a twist by introducing the threesome of Charlie, Adan and Scott. The three of them also work amazingly well together in everyday life once they are finally united, and watching the three of them work to come together has you hoping that everything can work out...because even though three together is unconventional, with the emotions involved between them you won't be able to see any other way for them to work out other than together.
One of the great things about this story is that you get fantastic character growth for all three main characters, and the way they are written makes you feel so much for all three of them...but especially Charlie. Oh wow, I felt SO much for Charlie. To experience love not once, but twice, and to lose it both times...the sympathy factor was off the charts. He is so sweet and giving, that you can't help but feel for him.
Another thing I liked about this story is how it makes the connection between the other books in the series more obvious since we got to see Adan and Scott earlier on, as well as Daniel. It helps to tie everything more closely together, and appreciate that connection between the characters.
You'll also find plenty of heat and steamy sex scenes, this time giving things a bit of a twist by introducing the threesome of Charlie, Adan and Scott. The three of them also work amazingly well together in everyday life once they are finally united, and watching the three of them work to come together has you hoping that everything can work out...because even though three together is unconventional, with the emotions involved between them you won't be able to see any other way for them to work out other than together.
Being able to listen to More Than Everything being narrated by Ezekiel Robison was fantastic. He did a truly outstanding job of bringing the characters to life, injecting such emotion into the story that I adjusted my review of the story itself upward after finally getting to listen to his narration. It actually made me care for Charlie even more after listening, and the scene when Charlie sees Adan and Scott for the first time after his initial relationships with them are over is absolutely brilliant thanks to Robison's performance. The separate voices he uses for the characters are consistent, not just here in this audiobook but also across the rest of the books in the Family Collection since there is crossover of the characters in the other books.
Story: 4.5 stars, recommended for 18+ for adult language and explicit M/M sexual content. Audiobook: 5 stars...a simply phenomenal performance!
Story: 4.5 stars, recommended for 18+ for adult language and explicit M/M sexual content. Audiobook: 5 stars...a simply phenomenal performance!
The One Who Saves Me: Home, Book 6
- Narrated by:
- Length: 6 hrs and 45 mins
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SYNOPSIS
At 14, Andrew Thompson and Caleb Lakes become best friends. As the years pass, they stand by each other through family trauma, school, and the start of their careers. They share their first sexual experiences, learning and experimenting, and they talk each other through countless dates and breakups.
Decades of trust and loyalty build a deep and abiding friendship, one that surpasses any relationship in their lives. But when the parameters of their unique friendship change, neither man knows how to break out of their established roles to build something new. After all, boyfriends come and go, but best friends are forever.
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ebook links
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My Review
I am a huge fan of the friends to lovers trope, and The One Who Saves Me is an excellent example of it. Caleb and Andrew meet as kids, then again as teens (where their story actually begins) and we get to follow them from the time they are fourteen every year for the next twenty years. Each year gives us a glimpse into their friendship as it grows and flourishes, and eventually as it turns experimental when they start exploring their sexuality. It continues with their unique and unconventional arrangement when it comes to sex and intimacy when they are not involved with other people, but that arrangement actually serves to further strengthen their bond and intricately weave their lives tighter and tighter together.
I loved both of their characters, and if asked to choose a favorite there's no way I could do so. Though both of them fully support each other, Andrew seems to need more support than Caleb with his truly bad luck with relationships, especially after having to endure what he experienced with his parents. Caleb is Andrew's rock through everything, just as Andrew is always there for Caleb as well. I actually grew a little impatient as the years progressed wanting them to just wise up to what they truly felt. Even their friends could see how they fit together.
We only get intimate scenes between Andrew and Caleb, never with any other partners either of them had throughout the years...and that is just fine with me--their sexual chemistry rockets clear off any chart I know, and those scenes are positively explosive.
Andrew's quirk of how he deals with his relationships as they each end is interesting, and when Caleb calls him out on it when they finally come together in the end shows just how well the two of them know each other...and how the only logical way for them to be is TOGETHER, not just being emotionally and physically supportive best friends apart. In the end when they finally realize and admit they only want each other, I was breathing a HUGE sigh of relief and thinking "FINALLY!"
The narration of the audiobook by Alexander Collins is done in such a soothing, consistent voice that it makes you feel comfortable and relaxed. He does an excellent job of bringing the characters to life and helping you feel as they feel with every emotion the characters experience. He also did a great job of giving all of the characters both main and supporting their own individual voices.
The One Who Saves Me was a 4.5-star read for me-if I wasn't so impatient for Andrew and Caleb to finally get together, I would have given it 5 stars. The audio was also 4.5 stars and was a really good performance. Recommended for those 18+ only due to adult language and explicit M/M sexual content.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Cardeno C. - CC to friends - is a hopeless romantic who wants to add a lot of happiness and a few "awwws" into a reader's day. Writing is a nice break from real life as a corporate type and volunteer work with gay rights organizations. Cardeno's stories range from sweet to intense, contemporary to paranormal, long to short, but they always include strong relationships and walks into the happily-ever- after sunset.
Cardeno's Home, Family, and Mates series have received awards from Love Romances and More Golden Roses, Rainbow Awards, the Goodreads M/M Romance Group, and various reviewers. But even more special to CC are heartfelt reactions from readers, like, "You bring joy and love and make it part of the every day."
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