"Us" by Sarina Bowen and Elle Kennedy

In this sequel to "Him," Ryan Wesley is in his rookie season with the Toronto Maple Leaves and lives with his boyfriend, Jamie Canning.  However, they have to keep their relationship secret to avoid any distractions to Wes and his team.  He's promised Jamie that they'll come out once his rookie season has ended, but the deception is taking a toll on them both especially after one of Wesley's teammates moves into their building and constantly bugs them.  This was a wonderful follow up to the first book, which I loved.  Wes and Jamie still have great chemistry together, and their texts to each other are hilarious.  The angst in the story is just right, and Blake, the nosy teammate, adds a lot of humor with his irrational fear of sheep.  Another winner from Bowen and Kennedy that I couldn't put down.  328 pages (Kindle edition).

"Lover on Top: A Firefighter Romance" by Kristine Cayne

Another "later in life" coming out story, this one features "Hollywood" Wright, a firefighter who seems to love the ladies.  When he accidentally sets his kitchen on fire, he moves in with his best friend's younger brother, Chad, an out and proud paramedic.  Confusion, denial, and misunderstandings ensue along with a dangerous situation.  It doesn't help that Hollywood's father is a rabid homophobe who holds a high ranking position in the fire department.  Even though the two main characters acted like brats sometimes, I still liked the story.  292 pages (Kindle edition).

"Absolution" by Sloane Kennedy

This is book one in The Protectors Series and deals with three men who've all suffered some form of trauma.  Jonas was kicked out of his home at age 14 for being gay and spent several years as a teenage prostitute before having even more tragedy befall him.  Mace's son was kidnapped and murdered by a killer.  Cole faced the traumas of war before losing his sister, who was Jonah's best friend.  Now someone has hired Mace to kill Jonah for bogus reasons, and Cole gets involved.  This novel was full of angst and heavy and was not quite believable at times, but it was a compelling story.  356 pages (Kindle edition.)

"Outing the Quarterback" by Tara Lain

Quarterback Will Ashford seems to have it all - a blue Lamborghini, rich parents, starting position on a well-known college football team, and captain of the cheerleader squad for a girlfriend.  The problem is that he hates it all and is afraid to be who he really is - a gay man who only wants to paint.  When he meets starving artist Noah Zajack, he realizes that he can no longer hide his true self if he ever wants to be happy.  (This is just a bare bones description since I don't want to give away any spoilers.)

I really liked this story, and the primary characters were fleshed out well.  There was plenty of angst, especially since not only is Will hiding his sexuality from most everyone but he also hides his desire to be an artist instead of following his father into business.  However, the angst wasn't overwhelming since Noah was fairly patient with Will and his fears.  This is the first book in the Long Pass Chronicles, and I hope to read more.  216 pages (Kindle edition).

"Dad is Fat" by Jim Gaffigan

This book is all about Gaffigan being a father to five children.  We learn their names, ages, how they were born (all home births), and how goofy they can be.  The comedian and his family live in a two bedroom, walk-up apartment in NYC and do not own a car, so you can imagine the craziness.  And he gives all the credit for making it work to his wife, whom he seems to worship.  Even though this book is completely about being a dad, his observational humor can still be appreciated by those of us without kids.  Gaffigan reads the audio version and has a great delivery technique.  I'd like to listen to more of his books.

Audio:  5.5 hours
Print:  288 pages

And the Mountains Echoed by Khaled Hosseini

This novel, set in Afghanistan, begins with a father telling his two small children a folk story about a child being stolen from his parents by a div (ogre).  The stolen child is found by his father, who has to choose between bringing the child home to poverty and want, or leaving him in a wondrous, magical place surrounded by riches.

The day after telling this tale, the father sets off for Kabul, pulling his young daughter in a cart.  There he gives her to a wealthy couple who can't have children. They will give her a good home, and they will give him money to help his family survive the grinding poverty that killed his baby the year before, and that he is afraid will kill the rest of them without some help.

But the girl's older brother is heartbroken; the two of them have been bonded together since her birth. There is a hole in both their lives that nothing ever quite fills. The story spans half a century, and spans continents. It is a series of stories within a story, and ends in a bittersweet reunion.


417 pages