Releasing 13 December
Buy: Amazon
Blurb
Every Friday night, Alex goes to the infamous sex club, Kink World, to perform. He goes in, takes his money, and gets out. No complications and definitely no touching. It’s in the contract. Unfortunately, things don’t always go as planned, and one night’s incident pushes him into a chance encounter with a man who is the very epitome of the word ‘safe.’
After years of focusing on being a single dad to his adorable baby daughter, Sigh is venturing out into the world of dating, starting at his brother’s club on Friday night. He’s not too excited about any of it until a chance encounter with a man covered with vine tattoos reminds him of the needs he has ignored for far too long.
Will Alex be able to let someone touch him? Will Sigh break through Alex’s defenses and learn what exactly happened to him? Will the two men be able to start again?
Review
3 stars
This is a short read, an emotional m/m, age-gap romance between a single dad with a huge heart, and a troubled, traumatised younger man.
Alex is a loner, both by circumstance, and by choice. A young gay man, he experienced a horrific assault which left him deeply traumatised, and ever since he has lived a mostly isolated life, not wanting to be touched by anybody. He performs solo at a gay sex club to help him get by, and he’s not in a good place.
What must it be like to see life as a fun adventure and not some kind of sadistic nightmare that never ends.
Sigh (nickname for Cyrill) is a 40 year old bisexual man, and a single dad to an adorable 5 year old girl. Having been focussed on his daughter for the last few years, he’s starting to venture out socially again, when he runs into Alex out the front of a club. He’s instantly intrigued by the gorgeous young man, they chat, and when he gets a glimpse of the realities of Alex’s life, he offers him work at his charity foundation, supporting struggling LGTBQ youth.
The two men are attracted to each other, but Sigh can recognise that Alex is not ready for all that he wants to offer. Sigh is a carer, he has a huge heart and just wants to help Alex and make things better, and though Alex’s walls are high and his issues are significant, Sigh is up for the challenge.
…The broken boy whom I just want to embrace and never let anyone close to ever again. I want to keep him away from everything bad in the world, even though I know I can’t, and even though he won’t let me.
Alex’s story is so sad, and I felt for him and all that he had been through. I could understand Sigh wanting to be there for him, and loved how he took his time getting to know Alex and slowly and patiently building trust between them.
I will hold his hand as long as he needs me to, and long after that if he’ll let me.
Being around Sigh and his daughter, Emma, is an entirely new situation for Alex. He’s never really had a family, yet he fits with them, and finds peace and contentment for the first time in his life.
I never wanted this life, but I got it anyway, and now it has changed me.
The story is fast moving, but the romance has the feel of a slow burn, with Sigh and Alex slowly opening up to each other and sharing what they are feeling. Once they do take the step towards more, the romance progresses quickly, and though the feeling are intense, Sigh is measured with everything, working with Alex to overcome his demons and supporting him through his first real relationship.
“Alex, I promise, I’ll help you through this, all right? Please, if you just explain what’s wrong, I can help you.”
“You shouldn’t have to try so hard,” I mutter.
“I want to. For you, I would do anything.”
Well, fuck.
I enjoyed this book. I was immediately intrigued by these two characters, I liked watching Alex become a part of Sigh and Emma’s lives, and I liked watching them come together. The second part of the book moved a bit fast for me. The relationship feels really full on, really quickly, and the story felt a bit rushed as they worked through those final issues and settled into life together.
Sigh is such a sweetheart, but early in the book there is mention of him exploring and loving “daddies and their boys”. I’ve never read a book with ‘daddy kink’ (and it’s not usually something I’d choose to read), and I’m not even sure if this is what that was? But I wasn’t expecting it, and the mention of it in this book took me by surprise. (In fact – full disclosure – when I read the blurb for the book and it mentioned that Alex ‘performed’ at a sex club, my mind automatically went to him being a musician of some sort (*facepalm*), so there was quite a bit I wasn’t expecting in this book!) But it did make me wonder… did Sigh love Alex for who he is, or because he has some sort of fetish for younger, troubled boys? I prefer to think of it as just a coincidental age gap, but between that and the way their relationship progressed so quickly, I didn’t feel the love story as much as I was hoping.
There’s a great bunch of side characters, and little Emma is adorable and a complete scene stealer, and I enjoyed watching Sigh and Alex work through so many hurdles, both within and external to their relationship, to find their happy ending.
“Loving you is the easiest thing I’ve done in my life.”
This is a good read, and though I went in a bit naively, I enjoyed the story.
3 stars.
Excerpt
Chapter 1
It’s Wednesday, my night at Kink World, and I’m running late. I have to speed my bike through a couple of intersections, but I come out unscathed. I could die about a dozen ways riding like this. I know it won’t be that easy, though. When I go, it won’t be soon and it won’t be easy. It’s someone else, who is lucky. I’ve never been lucky in my fucking life.
I almost crash into the building’s entrance, regain my balance, and tie the bike to a nearby rack. Quick as lightning, I sprint to the entrance and knock three times. A small window opens. “Pass?”
I roll my eyes. “It’s me, Frank, open up.”
The window closes and the big gate opens, revealing a smirking individual. “Oh, you’re still with us, are you, Shade?”
Shade is my pseudonym at Kink World. My stage name, if you will.
“As long as there are greedy, horny fuckers in the world, I’ll always be employed, my friend.”
About the Author
Vivi Anne Hunt writes steamy m/m romance books about men who love and protect each other fiercely. She’s a big fan of age difference and hurt/comfort, so you will often find those elements in her books.
As a proud member of the LGBTQIA+ community, she advocates for more diverse representation in books. As a proud self-published author, she supports the indie author community however she can.
Vivi lives with her cat and her bossy muse. You can find her tweeting obsessively @ViviAnneHunt. Come say hi.
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Email: hello@viviannehunt.com