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REVIEW: Sweet As Honey by Lucy Lennox
Aster Valley: Sweet As Honey – Lucy Lennox
When I rode my bike into Aster Valley, it was supposed to be temporary. A quick, relaxing visit with friends. No entanglements. Zero drama.
But then I saw the bumblebee being harassed on the side of the highway.
More specifically, I saw Truman Sweet, Aster Valley’s resident botanist, spice merchant, and bee-costume enthusiast, being harassed. And the second I got involved, all my plans for a quick departure scattered like pollen on the breeze.
It turns out that Truman—adorkably shy, relentlessly sunshiny, hot as all heck, reluctantly-still-a-virgin Truman—has secrets. Secrets someone in this charming small town doesn’t want brought to light. Secrets that rouse every one of my protective instincts just as surely as his kisses rouse… other parts of me.
And before I know it, I’m thinking being entangled might not be so bad… if it’s Truman I’m tangled up with.
I’ll do whatever it takes to protect Truman from the dangers in his past, but after a lifetime of loneliness and disappointment, how can I possibly convince him to trust me with his future?
Time for another much anticipated visit to Aster Valley, a small town in the Colorado Mountains that’s big on charm and personality.
The second full-length novel, Sweet As Honey, delivers a delightful love story between an adorkable plant geek and his adoring bad boy biker.
It all started with a bumblebee.
So Sam Rigby was cruising down the highway, minding his own business, when he spotted a bumblebee being harassed. He comes to its rescue and discovers it’s the friend of his bestfriend Mikey, the spice shop owner Truman Sweet. Then a truck comes barreling down the road and crushes his bike. They go to the town to report the incident, only for cops to surround them. Truman faints and Sam ends up looking like the bad guy.
As Sam and Truman got to know each other better and become progressively closer, Sam learns that that incident was one of the many, many harassments Truman had endured under the hands of a pair of brothers. Their uncle is the town sheriff so good luck reporting that. All because of a shared past that Truman kept secret throughout most his life.
This series has some of the worst villains out there. Give me blood and gore chaotic evils and I could take them on any time. It’s the lawful evil that really, really gets under my skin. In Book 1, it was Mikey’s dad, the coach. A guy who pretends he’s okay with queers but works underhandedly to undermine his gay son. Here, it’s Truman’s friend, Barney, and Sam’s mother and his sisters.
Without giving too much away, these people pretend to look out for one’s own good then proceeds to gaslight, manipulate, spout biblical references even fake a medical emergency just to get their way. I hated them. They almost made me quit. I felt they belong to darker books. They are effective emotion-wise and plot-wise but they don’t encourage re-reads simply because I don’t want to meet them again.
Happily, the good guys were awesome and they are most definitely worth the stay. I really enjoyed going through each MC’s thoughts. Truman is strong and brave, brilliant and funny. He had me chuckling in a couple of scenes. At times, very awkward but when you hit upon something relevant to his interests, off he goes talking non-stop about one trivia after another. I loved it when he’s on a roll. And Sam adored it too.
We first knew Sam as Mikey’s bestfriend from Right As Raine. He owns a construction business. He doesn’t consider himself a relationship kind of guy. But the thing about Sam is that he’s very protective about the people he cares about. And his family is also shit. That’s why he and Mikey always looked out for each other. Then he found Truman, realized this was his person and grabbed on tightly.
This book is one of the most wonderful and fluffily sweet romances out there. I lived for those heart-melting scenes! Sam and Truman were just perfect together. I loved the way they instinctively knew what the other needs without trampling all over the other person’s self-worth and autonomy. This was especially relevant because of the way Truman was treated by other people. I also loved how they used their brains, trusted one another and held on even as bad guys attempted to tear them apart again and again.
I know I said the antagonists almost pulled me out of the story but this book is really more fluff than drama. It’s made up of a cast that I loved seeing again and again (except the bullies, of course). Tiller and Mikey played prominent roles throughout the story and Gentry and Winter also made appearances. So I recommend reading all the books in order, including the prequel.
Sweet As Honey is a story about small towns secrets, family drama, building friendships, knowing who to trust and finding that person who feels like home. Overall, I had a great time with Sam and Truman. Aster Valley proved, yet again, it’s the place to be.
P.S.
Yes, the first two books are not to be missed. Witness a magical rockstar moment between folk rock superstar Gentry Kane and the titular Winter Waites in the prequel novella. Squee every time multi-million-dollar football receiver Tiller Raine calls his chef/coach’s son, Michael Vinning, my Mikey in Right As Raine.
Reviews of Winter Waites and Right As Raine here.
Rating:
4 Stars – minor quibbles but I loved it to bitsSoundtrack: Honey
Artist: Boy Pablo
Album: Wachito Rico!
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RIGHT AS RAINE | SWEET AS HONEY
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SERIES REVIEW TOUR: Desire by Ty Debauchee (Excerpt)
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NEW RELEASE BLITZ: Cat’s Got Your Heart by Jem Zero (Excerpt & Giveaway)
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BOOK TOUR: Improbable Bonds by Lily Michaels (Excerpt & Giveaway)
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NEW RELEASE BLITZ: Big Love by Rick R. Reed (Excerpt & Giveaway)
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REVIEW: Pretty Pretty Boys by Gregory Ashe
Hazard and Somerset: Pretty Pretty Boys – Gregory Ashe
After Emery Hazard loses his job as a detective in Saint Louis, he heads back to his hometown–and to the local police force there. Home, though, brings no happy memories, and the ghosts of old pain are very much alive in Wahredua. Hazard’s new partner, John-Henry Somerset, had been one of the worst tormentors, and Hazard still wonders what Somerset’s role was in the death of Jeff Langham, Hazard’s first boyfriend.
When a severely burned body is discovered, Hazard finds himself drawn deeper into the case than he expects. Determining the identity of the dead man proves impossible, and solving the murder grows more and more unlikely. But as the city’s only gay police officer, Hazard is placed at the center of a growing battle between powerful political forces. To his surprise, Hazard finds an unlikely ally in his partner, the former bully. And as they spend more time together, something starts to happen between them, something that Hazard can’t–and doesn’t want–to explain.
The discovery of a second mutilated corpse, though, reveals clues that the two murders are linked, and as Hazard gets closer to answers, he uncovers a conspiracy of murder and betrayal that goes deeper–and closer to home–than he could ever expect.
I think this really couldn’t have worked.
You got a married man with a kid who cheated on his wife. CHEATED!! which is a total deal breaker for me. I don’t care if he was set up, he could always walk away no matter what honeyed trap was dangled in front of him. Also he’s a drunkard. A coward. And too good looking.
Then you have a surly, stubborn detective with zero people skills who rubbed everybody the wrong way. Who was bullied by said married man when they were in high school.
This is not your standard recipe for an MM romance. This sounds more like that dish best served cold but, with Gregory Ashe’s magic, makes for a truly engrossing enemies to lovers(?) story. Question mark because they were barely even friends at the end of the first book. This is as slow burn as it can get, as per other reviews, they didn’t become a couple until a few more books. Which is totally fine by me because I tend to complain about things going too fast anyway.
But how can you make a set-up that screams lose-lose work?
John-Henry Somerset pushed Emery Hazard down the stairs when they were in high school. He is now married to his HS sweetheart, albeit estranged because, as MM writers love to say, he was betrayed by his traitorous dick. Emery went back to his hometown to solve an old mystery of why his HS boyfriend committed suicide. Facing old bullies is painful and awkward and I feel for Hazard right there. To be fair to Somers, he knew he fucked up and he really did try to make it up to Hazard. Somers is the type of person who wants to be liked by everybody so of course he practically begged Hazard to like him.
Hazard and Somers’ interactions go from
“You touch me again,… you shake my hand, you grab my sleeve, you so much as bump me in the mother-fucking hallway, and I will kill you. Do you understand me?“
to Somers’s smiled his normal frat-boy smile. “So,” he said, drawing out the word. “You like me?” “God, you’re a fucking moron.”
to “Just like fucking high school“
Always with a smattering of USTs bubbling just below the surface. The chemistry is fantastic! I don’t even actively like these two men but yeah, go for that second chance!
USTs are all good but they can only take you so far. What really made this stood out is how well the author fleshed out the complicated and not necessarily romance-related relationships between these flawed, complex characters in a way that just draws you into them. Many times I want to smack them in the head. Sometimes I feel sorry for them. Once in a while I could say they’re OK. There were no neatly tied conclusions. Things will continue to remain awkward and unresolved for a while.
Nico deserves a mention. He was the grad school student who pursued Hazard and they were kind of cute together so I imagined a parallel universe called Nico & Hazard.
This book is really a murder mystery story. The detectives were working on a vandalism case and a homicide where one unidentified body was burned inside a trailer. Hazard, being Hazard, made himself a few enemies while Somers played the good cop, charming everybody with his megawatt smiles. The investigation introduced us to important personalities of Wahredua, among them, extremists at the polar opposites of the spectrum. Both were responsible for so much vitriol and trigger warnings. Their hate speeches could put off some readers but you can always skip these parts if it’s too disturbing. As for the mystery, it was obvious who the bad guy was but it was such a well-written book and well-narrated too (courtesy of Tristan James), I didn’t mind it. Then Hazard had to go be a distrustful fool and things went from pudding to poop real quick for him and Somers.
Apart from the obvious appeal of the MM romance angle, Pretty Pretty Boys has all the good stuff-of a great police procedural novel where there is a nice interplay between the police work and the personal issues, compelling main characters, tightly written prose and engaging storytelling that kept me glued to the book. It’s a solid start to an addicting series and I’m definitely excited to see how things will play out.
Rating:
4 Stars – minor quibbles but I loved it to bitsSoundtrack: Elephant
Artist: Tame Impala
Album: Lonerism -
Bet he feels like an elephant
Shaking his big grey trunk for the hell of it
You know that you’re dreaming about being loved by him
Too bad your chances are slimAnd it’s not like Mr. Shock
To get shy when I ask who always is on top?
There must be something deep down in the middle down there
He’s not too easily scaredHe’s got friends but they got the feeling
Wouldn’t care too much if he just disappeared
Oh, look, see there he is now coming down the stairs
(Here he comes)He pulled the mirrors off his Cadillac (yeah)
‘Cause he doesn’t like it looking like he looks back
He talks like his opinion is a simple fact
Somebody grabbed his collar
He cried the whole way home
He won’t remember a thing ’til it starts again
That’s how it is ’til the end (yeah) -
REVIEW: Key Of Solomon: Amber Moon by Hurri Cosmo
The Key Of Solomon: Amber Moon – Hurri Cosmo
Lucas has a low-paying, dead-end job, lives in a tiny apartment, and can count his close friends on one hand. Well, one finger actually, and for all the sympathy she has, it may as well be the middle one. No, Lucas’s life is not one any would truly strive for. However, it keeps him from thinking too much about his distant past and the one man who had gently held his heart… but then ripped it right out of his chest and crushed it under his expensive leather Gucci’s. As a teenager not even out of the closet yet, surviving the fallout became unbearable so Lucas did the only thing he could. He disappeared.
Fourteen painful years later and Lucas is ready to move on. He’s going to finally kill his unrequited love for Ryder once and for all.
That’s when the magic of Solomon and his galactic bar sweep in. Seems Lucas had the audacity to query the gods in the form of a fist to the sky. The cosmic bartender couldn’t resist taking up the challenge. Mainly because Solomon holds many keys and one of them just happens to be to Lucas’s happiness. He only needs to convince Lucas of that.
Shouldn’t be too difficult… right?
There must have been trigger warnings on bullying and homophobia somewhere or may I didn’t read the blurb carefully. The story was about putting the past behind and second chances. I know Lucas had a tough time in high school, I just wasn’t prepared for all the hate and negativity which significantly dampened my enjoyment of the story.
Lucas was miserable and I couldn’t blame him. He was putting himself down too much and I think he really deserved a clean break from the past. I’m not too sure whether it was Ryder he should be facing or Amber. Amber was the one who hurt him the most and who later became a sort of boogeyman, keeping him from doing what he loved. But a second chance was what he needed and that’s what he needed to let himself have.
With Solomon’s magic, mysterious objects appeared and their significance gradually unfolded. The ones with the artwork was particularly poignant especially when their meaning was later revealed. This was the part that finally convinced me 100% that Ryder does deserved Lucas.
I like the idea of Solomon and his magical bar which reminded me vaguely of the anime, Death Parade. Although, I expected there should be a prologue or a book 0 giving us an introduction to what the whole set up is all about because Solomon literally came out of nowhere. I suppose the mystery is part of his appeal but some backstory would be nice.
Overall, not the strongest first book but still a very interesting concept for a series. This is the kind of world where you can do all sorts of creative twists and I would love to see where the author would take us next.
P.S.
Thank you to IndiGo for providing a copy in exchange for an honest review.
Rating:
3 Stars – not exactly setting my world on fire but I liked itSoundtrack: Empire Builder
Artist: Laura Gibson
Album: Empire Builder
