Week of June 16, 2025

I have a confession to make. It dawned on me as I was reading Whit, book #5 this week. I started reading Whit about 18 months ago and I returned it to KU when I was about 30% into the book. As I read it this time, I did remember starting it, but I didn’t remember specifically why I didn’t finish the book. But after finishing it this time, I’m pretty sure I realize why I didn’t: I think I was embarrassed to tell anyone what I was reading. I’ve clearly overcome that fear. I think Whit was one of the very first MM romance books that I picked up as I very tentatively dipped my toe into that pond. I’ve since fallen in love with the MM genre, as you know, and have no issue telling people about the books I read now. I’ve been met with some pearl clutching and a few wide eyed stares, but I truly don’t care anymore. And as I read Whit this time around, I almost felt a weird sort of kinship with Caleb as he came to the realization that Whit, though he was a man, became the only person to provide the comfort that he so desperately needed, and he didn’t care who knew it. Seeing him live and love so freely was really beautiful, and the thought that somehow I couldn’t come to terms with my own willingness to admit that I found it “acceptable” to not only read about it but LOVE the story seemed wrong. As with so many of these stories that I read, I feel so proud of these characters as they grow and fight back against the crushing weight that their families or society places on them about what’s right or what’s wrong. And it ultimately became too much for me not to want to share. The redemptions are just too good. 🙂 

• As always, here’s my rating scale for your information:

  ⭐️ Did not like this book, would not recommend. Lots of errors, plot holes, not worth the effort to read, most likely didn’t finish. But I’m giving this author a single star for making the effort to publish a book. Not everyone’s even gotten that far, so yay for you.

  ⭐️⭐️ Didn’t really like it, multiple issues with style, plot, syntax or characters. Most likely forced myself to finish it. Would consider other books by the same author but I might have to be convinced.

  ⭐️⭐️⭐️ Enjoyed the book. Perhaps there were issues with plot or style but it was an enjoyable read. I could see recommending it if it were of a specific genre or trope or series. Most of what I read could easily fall into this category and I’d be a happy camper.

  ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ This was a good book. Like a really good book. I will think about this book when I’m finished, and there’s a really good chance I’ll buy it for my personal library if it was a KU read. I’d recommend it to other readers of the same genre or trope. I’ll definitely search out other books by this author, probably as soon as I’m finished reading.

  ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ Wow. Just wow. Amazing book, amazing story. If there were flaws in the book I’m completely overlooking them because in my mind the book was sheer perfection. I didn’t want the book to end and I’m immediately adding it to my favorites and my re-read pile. And if there’s an audio version I might have to buy that, too. I have a book hangover, I miss the characters, and I feel actual, physical loss in my life when this book is finished.

Thanks for joining me this week! Let’s dive in!

1. Off Limits, by Riley Hart. ⭐️⭐️⭐️

   Kindle Unlimited, 272 pages.

   Genre/tropes: MM romance; forbidden; friends to lovers

   This is book 1 in a 2 book series of interconnected standalone books. This one was a little complicated, but the two main characters, Riley and Hutch, were nicely written. Each very vulnerable in their own ways, each had their struggles to overcome. Growing up family friends, Riley was best friends with Hutch’s little sister Madison, and they eventually married. But Riley had mistaken best-friend love for romantic love and realized he was gay a few years into their marriage. Their divorce tore apart both families, and Riley left town to create a new life for himself. When he returns 5 years later, a fully out gay man, and connects to another man via a dating app, he never in a million years expected it to be his former brother in law. Chaos ensues, but love is love, right?

2. When Life Happened, by Jewel E. Ann ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️.5

   Kindle Unlimited, 429 pages

   Genre: Contemporary romance

   The last book I read by this author left me completely underwhelmed, even though I had read others by her that I enjoyed. This one I think may have been my favorite by her so far. I felt all the emotions during this read. I liked everything about Parker, about her morals, about her struggle with accepting her sister after the infidelity that wrecked their relationship. I liked everything about her own reluctance to embrace her feelings for Gus. I liked everything about her hesitance about telling Levi about her relationship with Gus. It all made perfect sense to me. I loved Levi, I loved how he loved Parker. He was a swoon-worthy partner for her and she for him as well. (How lucky was she to have found Gus and Levi within weeks of each other???) This was a really lovely book. If you want to get in your feels but still kick up your feet too, this is the book for you.

3. The Rebuilding Year, by Kaje Harper ⭐️⭐️⭐️.5

   Kindle Edition, $0.00, 256 pages.

   Genre/tropes: MM romance; friends to lovers; gay awakening; single parent

   Ryan and John each had a lot going on, and the title was definitely appropriate. Ryan, due to injuries sustained in the line of duty, gave up his career as a firefighter and is a first year med student at age 30. John is the 37 year old divorced father of two who is the head groundskeeper at the university where Ryan attends classes. The two meet through coincidence, and Ryan ends up renting a room in John’s house because they strike up a friendship due to their common age compared to Ryan’s other classmates. Though neither has ever considered dating a man before, both start looking at the other through a new lens, and feeling start to emerge. Aside from the blooming romance, John’s teenage kids come to live with them and weird things start happening at the campus which create all sorts of plot twists. All in all, this was a decent book. It was part 1 in a series, and I’ll move on to part 2 to see how it all plays out.

4. Life, Some Assembly Required, by Kaje Harper ⭐️⭐️⭐️

   Kindle Edition, $4.99, 320 pages

   Genre/Tropes: MM romance

   This is the follow up to The Rebuilding Year and it was ok. This book focused on the personal struggles that Ryan and John had to deal with in their coming out journey, and the bigotry that they were facing in the world. Ryan seemed more flustered throughout this book whereas he seemed really steady in the first book. And John seemed to let his ex-wife Cynthia in a little too much for my liking in this one, as well. All in all, I liked this book but it was just kind of a simple continuation of their story with no real direction.

5. Whit, by Cora Rose ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

   Kindle Unlimited, 308 pages

   Genre/tropes: MM romance, gay awakening, hurt/comfort

   As you could tell from the paragraph above, I loved this story. A lot. Caleb so willingly admitted he needed comfort and happily sought it from Whit and let his feelings follow. It was a slow burn in some ways, but when they finally let their feelings get involved there was nothing slow about it. Caleb’s family accepting Whit provided both of them the safe landing they both needed - Caleb needing the support and Whit needing the love he never had. This was a very sweet story and I really did enjoy it a lot.

6. Sem, by Cora Rose ⭐️⭐️⭐️

   Kindle Unlimited, 294 pages.

   Genre/tropes: MM romance, bi-awakening.

   This books follows two of the characters from Whit, Sem (Caleb’s cousin) and Magnus (Whit’s friend). These two couldn’t be a more unlikely pair and maybe that’s why this entire book felt forced. Sem was described as a Viking, long hair, muscled, huge, hulking, etc. And Magnus was called tiny, a twink, hairless, Sem carries him everywhere. I had trouble wrapping my head around the relationship. That’s the only reason I couldn’t give this a better rating I think. Their story was very captivating, a slowly developing obsession with each other that turned very sweet. But I have to say I liked Whit and Caleb better.

That’s it for this week! As always, you can keep up with all of my reading on my Goodreads if you want to. https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/12921106-karen

Love, Karen