Rating: 4 stars out of 5
This story started slow for me. I got messed up by the out of order flashbacks until I got further in and was able to “anchor” the time in my own mind. I also wondered why anyone would be attracted to Dr. Grant Anderson, who, in his own words, was “…brusque. Rude. Insulting. Demanding. A perfectionist.” But by the end, I was Team Grant. I totally turned around and loved it. Apparently, I have a soft spot for crusty surgeons who only fall in love once and when they do, their insides turn to ooey-gooey love mush. 😀
Six years ago, Leo left town with his ex-boyfriend who promised him the world. Curtis had just gotten a lead role in what promised to be a smash hit and came back to take Leo with him. Turning away from his new love interest, Grant Anderson, he puts his eggs in what turns out to be the wrong basket. Now back in town, he’d like to get to know Grant better, but he has his daughter in tow and he has a major health issue he needs to deal with first.
Grant wants no part of reconnecting with someone who deserted him, but when he starts to see Leo around the hospital where he’s on staff as a surgeon, he learns what is going on medically, and it’s not good. More worrying, he gets to know Leo’s daughter, teaches her chess, and befriending the precocious five-year-old who has to wait while her dad gets dialysis. He’s finding a soft spot in his heart for her—and for Leo. Oh, oh, the great stone-faced Dr. Grant is headed for a downfall.
I love the way the author built Grant’s character and the way the past was woven through the story in flashback sequences, so we get to know the real men—both Grant and Leo, and we get to bite our nails during Leo’s surgery, hang out with Lucky, the little girl, as she comes to love Grant, and watch Grant have his emotional meltdown. There’s room for Leo’s ex in this story too and plenty of opportunities to fall in love with all the characters.
What struck me about a third of the way through, as I kept thinking this guy reminds me of someone, in that Grant is very much like Patrick in the Will & Patrick Wake Up Married series. And Leo, like Will, has a medical condition that the hard-shelled surgeon can’t fix. Very similar, and the author mentions this was written originally as part of a short story collection so I suspect Will and Patrick grew from these characters. I would have liked to have known that going into it but in any case, I fell in love by the end of the story and so did Leo and Grant. Tissues are highly recommended—both for tears of sorrow and tears of joy. A must read for those who enjoy opposites attract MM romance and, of course, Will and Patrick Wake Up Married.
Cover art is simply adorable and works for the story.
Sales Link: Amazon
Book Details:
Kindle Edition, 2nd Edition, 209 pages
Published January 9th 2020 by Leta Blake Books (first published February 28th 2018)
Original Title Stay Lucky
ASINB083QMBK7Q
Edition Language English
settingNorth Carolina (United States)
Scattered Thoughts and Rogue Words 