second chances at love – Scattered Thoughts and Rogue Words

Rating: 4 stars out of 5

Staff Sargent Elijah Jackson, EJ to his friends, joined the Air Force hoping for refuge from the mess his life had become. For almost ten years he enjoyed new life, success, and love, in spite of the closet he was forced to hide in by the Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell military policy. One day it all comes crashing down around him. Now he’s back home with serious decisions to make and a very short time to decide how to salvage his life while healing his heart.

Betrayed by his lover and partner, Dr. Dale Chenault left California and his fledgling practice behind. In Sayville, he’s found a home for his counseling service, and on the surface, seems to have his life in order. The truth is some of the decisions Dale made have become a stumbling block in his ability to rebuild the breach in his heart and by extension, his life.

When Dale and EJ meet the chemistry between them is hot but the pain of past betrayals is strong, and trust seems impossible to build. Will they be able to move past what has been to create a future together?

Don’t Ask Don’t Tell is a story of love, trust, betrayal and second chances with an HEA.

I liked this story. EJ is lucky to have such supportive friends and family, even if it takes him a bit to open up about what is going on. I loved Dale’s never-ending patience which was exactly what EJ needed at the time.

I loved watching the snippets of these guys building a life together and how unlikely connected their families were. I liked seeing the different perspectives throughout the book and that it wasn’t just the main characters. I have to say though that the ending was not what I would prefer, I understand it was meant to have meaning but it just killed it for me.

The cover art is nice and I liked the visuals of the characters.

Sales Links: Amazon

Book Details:

ebook, 110 pages

Published: August, 8, 2018

Edition Language: English

RATING 2,75 out of 5 stars

murmuration In the small mountain town of Amorea, it’s stretching toward autumn of 1954. The memories of a world at war are fading in the face of a prosperous future. Doors are left unlocked at night, and neighbors are always there to give each other a helping hand.

The people here know certain things as fact:

Amorea is the best little town there is.

The only good Commie is a dead Commie.

The Women’s Club of Amorea runs the town with an immaculately gloved fist.

And bookstore owner Mike Frazier loves that boy down at the diner, Sean Mellgard. Why they haven’t gotten their acts together is anybody’s guess. It may be the world’s longest courtship, but no one can deny the way they look at each other.

Slow and steady wins the race, or so they say.

But something’s wrong with Mike. He hears voices in his house late at night. There are shadows crawling along the walls, and great clouds of birds overhead that only he can see.

Something’s happening in Amorea. And Mike will do whatever he can to keep the man he loves.

My review on Murmuration by TJ Klune will be brief. You want the truth? I don’t have a lot to say. I could have given it 5 stars because in a way it deserves the highest rating but I can’t and I’ll try to explain why without spoiling it. Basically I’m not sure what to make of the plot. I found the relationship between Mike and Sean sweet and cute. I liked the story. I found it mysterious, it intrigued me since I read the blurb and it kept my interest through a long part of it. I had no idea what was going to happen, where the author was going to take the MCs, but I wasn’t worried because I knew I would have an HEA.

I liked the writing, it’s easy and great and brought me to Amorea and its sceneries and habitants. It brought me on a balcony, it brought me on a sterile room. I appreciate the author’s talent, his invention, he loves words and he knows how to use them to create unique and awesome sentences. I have to give it to TJ. The book is amazingly written and well done, really really well done. Unexpected as everything TJ writes. I’m blown away but still not in a good way.

That said I can’t give it 3 stars. The problem is I’m so disappointed and angry. This story was hard to take to me and I can’t overcome the bitter taste if left on my heart. I could have so loved Murmuration but TJ ruined everything. He destroyed what I loved, who I loved, all the people I met in Amorea, in the last part of the book. And to me is unecceptable. And the ending? That was supposed to be a HEA? It wasn’t.

The cover art by Reese Dante is amazing, one of the best covers I saw this year.