Him by Elle Kennedy and Sarina Bowen Review

25686927

5 Smooches

kis34-1-3-4 kis34-1-3-4 (1) kis34-1-3-4 (4) kis34-1-3-4 (3) kis34-1-3-4 (2)

Synopsis

They don’t play for the same team. Or do they?

Jamie Canning has never been able to figure out how he lost his closest friend. Four years ago, his tattooed, wise-cracking, rule-breaking roommate cut him off without an explanation. So what if things got a little weird on the last night of hockey camp the summer they were eighteen? It was just a little drunken foolishness. Nobody died.

Ryan Wesley’s biggest regret is coaxing his very straight friend into a bet that pushed the boundaries of their relationship. Now, with their college teams set to face off at the national championship, he’ll finally get a chance to apologize. But all it takes is one look at his longtime crush, and the ache is stronger than ever.

Jamie has waited a long time for answers, but walks away with only more questions—can one night of sex ruin a friendship? If not, how about six more weeks of it? When Wesley turns up to coach alongside Jamie for one more hot summer at camp, Jamie has a few things to discover about his old friend…and a big one to learn about himself.

Warning: contains sexual situations, skinnydipping, shenanigans in an SUV and proof that coming out to your family on social media is a dicey proposition.

Review

“I have the same damn weakness I’ve always had. It’s still there as I stare up at the big screen. As I watch up at that big screen. As I watch Jamie Canning stop another dizzying slap shot. As I admire the grace and deadly precision with which he moves. My weakness is him.”

OH MY .  . . . This book was HOT! But it was also so much more than that. Sweet and fun with a dash of drama and angst, Him by Sarina Bowen and Elle Kennedy was a perfect lazy day read that had my heart constricting, my belly sore from laughing and in desperate need of a fan to cool off. I loved every moment of this m/m book and the moment it was over wanted to relive it all again. In my opinion the best m/m books are those in which friends become more, they have depth and and emotions and if even just one of them could be straight well then I am hooked! Add to that the fact that they are both sexy hockey players who are both about to go pro and there was no way I could not read this book.

“But holy fucking shit, I want it. Rain pours off the awning and slides over our heads as my best friend’s lips latch onto mine.”

 Wes and Jamie had been best friends for years having met at hockey camp and continued to stay close all year till they would meet up again, that is until one sinful night before college changed everything. Wes is gay and scared that one drunken, yet oh my god HOT, night with his straight best friend had ruined everything he walks away from the friendship and Jamie. But four years later when they meet up at a championship it is clear that Wes’ feelings for his straight best friend have never gone away and more that the desire he feels for him the root of their friendship is still intact. Soon, both boys find themselves roommates while coaching at the same camp that they grew close at and it doesn’t take long to realize that Wes underestimated how Jamie would react to their night and how much even Jamie was starting to desire a repeat.

“Jesus Christ. This man is wrecking me. I’m wrecked.”

But balancing being a gay upcoming pro player and keeping up family expectations has Wes hesitant to become more with the one man he has always been weak for. Unwilling to let down his new team and live up to the expectations his dad has placed on him lead him to make some choices that while were frustrating for a reader also understandable for his situation. I loved how not everything was cut and dry for these two. They had to truly work at becoming who they were and watching them develop as both people and as a relationship was a joy.

“Good thing he’s not a traffic cop, because he’s sending enough mixed signals to cause a ten-car pileup.”

So  many beautiful amazing blow jobs. Does it make me a complete horn-dog how happy that made me? But this book was so much more than the panty melting sex. The root of it all was that Jamie and Wes’s friendship could withstand anything. Them being open and honest with each other was a struggle at times but watching them open up to each other and be honest about what they were feeling made the book so much more. I absolutely loved how much these two truly cared for each other, even before they became more and I wish every person coming to terms with their sexuality had a family like Jamie’s.

“Our mouths fit together so perfectly. Every time we kiss, I fall even more in love with him, and it has nothing to do with sex or lust. It’s him. His closeness and his scent and the way he soothes me.”

Hockey books are a weakness of mine and add that to two sexy men, some amazing writing and a story that made this more than just a book about sexy men getting it on and this is definitely one book I hope everyone takes a moment to read!

~miranda

Buy It Now