The Belle vs. The BDOC: A Bend or Break Novella by Amy Jo cousins

* * * 1/2

Love is a battlefield. 

Shelby Summerfield is a Southern belle at a northern college in 1993, which is a challenge to begin with. And yes, Florence Truong, the object of Shelby's lust and the only other woman on campus not wearing flannel, does catch her in what looks like a compromising position with a straight boy at pub trivia night.

But Shelby is a gold star lesbian and Florence's dapper fashion sense makes her weak in the knees, so her rejection stings hard. To exact her revenge, Shelby cheats a little when putting together her own trivia dream team, because nobody strategizes to win like a Southern girl on a mission. And if trivia can't settle their rivalry, then maybe the annual campus-wide game of assassin will do the trick.

Shelby's gonna come out on top of Florence—in bed or out, one way or another. Bless her heart. And her silk pocket squares.

Warning: Contains obscene pub trivia team names, paint guns, a Southern belle with an exquisite grasp of battlefield tactics, and one dapper dyke who's misjudged her. 

Source: e-galley received from author in exchange for an honest review

Review:

It’s no secret that I’m a huge fan of Amy Jo Cousins and, in particular, her Bend or Break series.   She writes human characters that I love because of their imperfections, not in spite of them and her writing covers the vast spectrum of genders and orientations.  When I found that she had written a f/f novella that takes place in the Bend or Break Universe I was ecstatic. 

Shelby Summerfield is the kind of girl that grabs your attention immediately.  Unfortunately, she doesn’t attract the right kind of attention from Florence, the hottest lesbian on campus.  Shelby’s master plan to get Florence to look at her romantically is thwarted by a male friend’s unwanted advances.  So what does Shelby do?  She sets up a ruthless plan B to show Florence that Shelby is a girl worth looking at twice. 

I enjoyed both Shelby and Florence’s characters but it was the vibrant Shelby that kept me fixated.  She’s comfortable in her skin, confident in her style and she WILL get what she wants, whether that’s an A+ on a test or if it’s the hottest girl at Carlisle College.   Her all-out war to win Florence over is both focused, complicated and hilarious.   

This is a feel good love story that is both fun and manages to touch on the important topic of gender stereotypes.  If you are looking for a short love story or looking to cut your teeth on the world of f/f romance, I can’t recommend this story enough.

Nat

Real World (Bend or Break #5) by Amy Jo Cousins

* * * *

When talking fails, it’s time to break out the big guns.

Five years ago, Tom Worthington busted his ass to overcome the fear and paranoia that led him to withdraw from the world and nearly lose his boyfriend. He never thought he’d find himself right back there, shutting Reese out, keeping secrets again.

Reese Anders is ready to try anything to get Tom to talk: if he can’t seduce his boyfriend with food, he’ll get Tom to open up in bed. But even Tom’s confession that his dad is getting out of prison soon doesn’t clear the air between them. And as the holidays approach, intensive mentoring from a new British boss creates more distractions, until Reese is keeping secrets of his own.

At a company Christmas party, it only takes Tom one look at Reese’s new boss to figure out how much danger their relationship is in. But he’s not about to let the connection that started all those years ago at Carlisle come to an end. It’s time to deal with their problems like adults. Face to face. Or back to front. Starting in the bedroom.


Warning: This book contains two adorable guys with way too many secrets, conciliatory rigatoni, a bedroom lesson on the power of multitasking, and indisputable evidence on what makes the perfect holiday HEA. 

Review:

I don’t think it will surprise anyone that I about lost my business when I found out that Tom and Reese were getting a follow-up story.  I’m pretty transparent about these things. 

It’s been five years between the end of Off-Campus and the beginning of Real World.  Both Tom and Reese are working and supporting themselves while Tom also puts himself through school to earn his MBA.  So, yeah.  Life is good.  Slightly stressful but good.  But sometimes events have the ability to make people regress in their behavior.  And Tom’s dad’s release from prison is one of those things.  Tom will finally have to face the guy that is responsible for the paranoia he worked so hard to beat.  Add that to some unexpected issues at work and the paranoia comes back in full force.   Unfortunately, so does his tendency to clam up and not tell Reese what’s bothering him.

Reese is pretty intuitive.  After five years he knows Tom better than he knows himself so he immediately notices that Tom has withdrawn.  When he finds out from a friend (and not from Tom) that Tom’s dad is being released he decides it’s time to soften up his boyfriend and make him realize that non-communication is not an option in their relationship.  And his campaign to wear Tom down works.  Sort of.  Tom may have come clean about his dad but there are other things he’s not sharing and Reese notices.  Reese needs Tom to be the one to open up and he can only do so much to make that happen.  The rest is on Tom.

A financial investigation at work has Tom more paranoid than ever.  Understandable considering his father’s history.  But when you keep all that stress in and start hiding away emotionally and physically you start to lose the connection to the ones you love most.  And Tom realizes that in a frightening way when he senses the attraction between Reese and Reese’s boss.   And his action is instant and memorable and really makes the story. 

This is a novella so I really can’t say too much more about the story without giving anything away.  I can say that this was a highly satisfying sequel to Tom and Reese’s story.  It is a beautiful and honest romance about relationships – how it’s easy to fall back into old patterns and how it requires constant work to keep a relationship going.  Their issues are real which in turn makes their love story relatable and real too.  If you are a fan of the series you will also enjoy following up with Cash, Steph, Denny and Rafe.  And, if you are fan of contemporary and realistic romance this entire series wins hands down.  

Nat

The Girl Next Door by Amy Jo Cousins

When it comes to love, go big or go home.

Charles “Cash” Carmichael traded his high-rise condo and family-firm career for a job coaching soccer for Chicago’s inner-city kids. He’s adjusting to living on minimum wage when his young cousin, newly out and running away from home, shows up on his less-than-luxurious doorstep.

Angsty teens definitely aren’t Cash’s thing. He needs local backup, and there’s only one name he can think of: Stephany Tyler. Back in the day, the bisexual Steph was the perfect friend with benefits until she fell in love with a woman.

To his relief, his former friend steps up to the plate. Soon, though, Cash finds himself feeling the familiar need to keep her in his bed, and in his life. But Steph, burned by the ex-girlfriend and by the absentee dad she’s been trying to connect with, won’t risk her heart again.

Good thing Cash believes in leaving it all on the field. If he can just convince Steph to get in the game, there’s a chance they can both win.

Warning: This book contains ex-friends with benefits crossing boundaries a second time, several steamy encounters on staircases, copious discussions about gay sex from a “straight” guy, a shout-out to magic buttons, and an especially memorable going away threesome. 

Review:

I had to laugh at the warning for this book.  One, because most of the warnings that come on books published by Samhain make me giggle, and two, because it gives the idea that this book is all sex.  And it’s not.  There are some steamy scenes in it for sure.  And I can’t say that I’ve read a threesome in any other New Adult novel (or adult novel for that matter outside erotic romance). But Amy Jo Cousins fits it in seamlessly without ever making the reader feel like they’ve crossed into something unexpectedly steamier.

If you’ve read Off Campus (by now we all know I’m a huge fan) you are familiar with Cash Carmichael.  The clueless kindhearted friend that insists on staying in Tom’s life and who effortlessly draws Reese in too.   It’s been a few years since graduation and Cash has chosen to ditch his comfy parent provided job for a minimum wage non-profit position bringing sports to inner-city kids in Chicago.   A huge adjustment but Cash adapts easily.  Which is a good quality to have when his 17 year old cousin, Denny, shows up at his apartment looking for a place to stay.  Denny has just come out to his parents and they think he is just looking for attention.  The one person that Denny thought might take him seriously is Cash.  Cash wants to give Denny what he needs but he’s not quite sure what that is. So he brings in the troops.  The troops being his best friends Tom and Reese.  But they are still in Boston and can’t come out to help for a couple weeks.  In the interim, Cash enlists the help of the one person he’s been avoiding since he found out she moved to town.  His bi-sexual friend, Steph.  More memorable to him as his former friend with benefits.  Also the girl that got away.

When Cash meets Steph for dinner he finds the friendship that was so strained before naturally reappears.  Steph doesn’t hesitate to help out and it doesn’t take long before she and Cash are re-instating their friends with benefits relationship.  The difference is that Cash doesn’t want a casual thing.  For him this is the real deal.  But he knows Steph.  And he recognizes her issues with abandonment.  Mix that with Cash’s fear of being cast aside like last time and he decides to slowly work his way into her heart.  He just needs the time to convince her that he’s worth forever.

There are so many things to love about this book.  The biggest thing being Cash himself.  The story is told from his POV (third person) and he is just such a….DUDE.  And when you read it you will understand why that is hilarious.   He’s funny, kind and completely aware of his cluelessness.  This might be my favorite quality of his.  He KNOWS that it sometimes takes him longer to process information.  And he’s so embarrassed by it.  But he has a few tricks up his sleeve to hide that from people and I found it endearing.  His relationship with each of his friends (Denny included) really shows that he’s the glue that holds them all together.  Really there is nothing to dislike about the guy. 

Steph is amazing.  I loved her since the moment she threatened Tom in Off Campus.  She’s feisty and she has a huge heart.   A huge heart that’s been broken a few too many times.  She’s also naughty.  Much like her BFF, Reese, Steph is a bit of an exhibitionist, which allows for some fun steamy scenes.  It definitely helps that Cash is pretty much open to anything and everything.

If you’ve been following this series from the beginning you’ll enjoy the reappearance of Tom and Reese.  And if, like me, you started this series by reading Level Hands (Bend or Break #4), you’ll enjoy seeing how Denny and Rafi meet each other.  It was adorable to witness the start of their relationship through Cash’s eyes.

This series has been a joy to read and The Girl Next Door was the perfect sweet and happy remedy needed after experiencing the angst of the first two books.  Each one of these books have made it to my comfort read shelf.  I am not ashamed to admit I’ve read Off Campus three times in the past three months.  If that’s not a comfort read I don’t know what is.  It just hits the spot.  The best part is that the series isn’t over.  Look out for our review of Real World (Bend or Break #5) which comes out in November.  If you are a Tom/Reese fan you will love reading this novella about them 5 years post-graduation.

Nat

Nothing Like Paris (Bend or Break #2) by Amy Jo Cousins

* * * *

Humble pie wasn’t supposed to taste this sweet.

Jack Tarkington’s life is in the toilet. He was supposed to be spending his junior year studying someplace cool like Paris or Rome. Instead, after taking out his anger on the campus “golden boy”, whose dad ripped off his parents, Jack is facing possible expulsion.

Sure, it’s all his own fault, but coming back to the small Iowa town he thought he’d escaped, after crowing about his admission to a prestigious school, has been a humbling experience.

When he runs into Miguel, Jack braces for backlash over the way he lorded it over his old friend and flame. Instead, Miguel offers him friendship—and a job at his growing farm-to-table store and café.

Against the odds, both guys bond over broken dreams and find common ground in music. But when Jack’s college gives him a second chance, he’s torn between achieving a dream that will take him far from home, and a love that strikes a chord he’ll never find anywhere else.


Warning: This book contains a humbled guy who’s on the brink of losing it all, a determined entrepreneur who seems to have it all together, apologies issued through banjo-picking duets, and two lovers who can play each other’s bodies like virtuosos.

Review:

If you have read Off Campus, the first in the Bend or Break series, you are familiar with Jack Tarkington.  He’s the bully that made it his mission in life to make Tom and Reese’s life a living hell.  I love Tom and Reese so I was happy to see Jack disappear towards the end of the first book.  But when I saw that book two was about Jack, I was intrigued.  Because, as I’ve mentioned many times before, I love when an author takes the hero or heroine I hate and turns them into someone I love.  Take Me On by Katie McGarry being my favorite example.

Jack Tarkington has a huge chip on his shoulder.  A natural self-preservation technique he has perfected through the years.  Add that chip with a tendency to mouth off and cause trouble and you have a recipe for disaster.  His anger over the loss of his father’s investments and savings (and in turn the possible loss of his enrollment at Carlisle) leads him down a path that may very well get him expelled.  After being caught making Tom Worthington’s life a living hell, he is sent home for the rest of the semester until the Dean makes a decision on his acceptance the following school year.

So Jack heads back to the small Iowa town he grew up in.  The town he couldn’t wait to leave and never wanted to see again.  The town that contains not only his highly dysfunctional family but also the best friend and lover he left behind because he had to escape. 

Miguel never thought he’d see Jack again.  And he probably would have been just fine if that had been the case.  Needless to say, when Jack shows up at his farm-to-table café he is more than a little surprised.  He should just turn him away. But Miguel is a nice guy and no matter how angry he might still be at how Jack left him he won’t leave him out in the cold.  He can at least give him a cup of coffee.  In a to-go cup.  Because he sure as hell can’t trust Jack to stick around to use anything more permanent.

But Jack is here to stay.  At least for the short term.  And he needs a lot of things.  A way to avoid the constant reminder of his mother’s alcoholism, a job because he’s broke, and a friend because he’s never really had one since he left Iowa.  Much to Miguel’s surprise, he’s willing to provide all three of those things.  He’ll just have to protect his heart and keep their relationship strictly in the friend-zone.  But as they spend more and more time together the invisible thing that drew them together in the first place becomes harder and harder to resist. 

Miguel is a steady forever guy.  He very obviously stays in Iowa, not because he doesn’t want to go away to school, but because he wants to be close to his family who he believes needs him more than he needs to pursue his own dreams.  And he makes the absolute best of it.  He’s happy with his accomplishments and his success and doesn’t feel the pull of wanting more.  Which makes starting a relationship with Jack all the more difficult.  Because Miguel knows that Jack won’t stay and Miguel has no intentions of following him.  I really loved Miguel as a character.  No surprise there since I love those forever boys.  I found his ability to protect himself endearing but I also found that ability being worn away over time to be believable as well.

Jack’s trip back home is life changing in so many ways.  He’s finally forced to address the things he ran away from.  His relationship with Miguel is the obvious one.  But he is also forced to accept the fact that his mother is an alcoholic and even though he can’t make her get help he can certainly get help for himself.  With an unsure future at Carlisle, Jack finds a community of support in the one place he never thought he’d find it. The small town that never offered him much before he left. Between Miguel and the opportunities he provides Jack, Miguel’s family, the high school kids who look up to him when he volunteers to be their advocate and his old high school counselor, Jack just might have a safe fall back plan if he can’t go back to school out east.  But if the Dean shows some mercy and allows him to attend school in the fall?  Jack will have to decide if he can leave everything he just found behind.   And if he does choose to leave it behind, can he convince Miguel to go with him.

As I mentioned in my review of Off Campus, Amy Jo Cousins writes amazingly realistic characters.  Jack isn’t always likable.  Especially considering his history from book 1.  But the humbling things he experiences coming home helps wear away at that chip on his shoulder so much that you just want to hug him and tell him he’s going to be okay and that he can make it through. 

This is another great m/m new adult title and as you can probably guess, I can’t recommend this series enough.

Nat

Off Campus (Bend or Break #1) by Amy Jo Cousins

* * * *

Everyone’s got secrets. Some are just harder to hide.

With his father’s ponzi scheme assets frozen, Tom Worthington believes finishing college is impossible unless he can pay his own way. After months sleeping in his car and gypsy-cabbing for cash, he’s ready to do just that.

But his new, older-student housing comes with an unapologetically gay roommate. Tom doesn’t ask why Reese Anders has been separated from the rest of the student population. He’s just happy to be sleeping in a bed.

Reese isn’t about to share his brutal story with his gruff new roommate. You’ve seen one homophobic jock, you’ve seen ’em all. He plans to drag every twink on campus into his bed until Tom moves out. But soon it becomes clear Tom isn’t budging.

Tom isn’t going to let some late-night sex noise scare him off, especially when it’s turning him on. But he doesn’t want any drama either. He’ll keep his hands, if not his eyes, to himself. Boundaries have a way of blurring when you start sharing truths, though. And if Tom and Reese cross too many lines, they may need to find out just how far they can bend…before they break.

Warning: This book contains cranky roommates who vacillate between lashing out and licking, some male/male voyeurism, emotional baggage that neither guy wants to unpack, and the definitive proof that sound carries in college housing.

Review:

After more than a summer of sleeping in his car and driving a cab to make cash and save money for school, Tom Worthington is excited to finally have an actual bed to sleep in.  But when he arrives at the off-campus housing he’s been assigned to, he finds his bed has been converted into a couch.  Apparently his new roommate wasn’t expecting company for the school year. 

After a vicious on-campus assault the year before, Reese Anders was promised a private room in the off-campus housing usually reserved for adults.  Needless to say he was unhappy and extremely displeased to find an oversized jock standing in his doorway and expecting to sleep in his room.   

No amount of complaining will help the situation.   There is not enough available housing for Reese to have a single and Tom has nowhere else to go.  So they’ll have to figure out how to live together until the next school year.  Tom is cool with that.  He just wants to keep his head down and get through the next three semesters.  But Reese?  He is determined to have his own space.  His safety and peace of mind depend on it.  So what should scare off an assumedly homophobic jock more than anything?  Purposely bringing guys back to their room for a good time, of course.  But what Reese doesn’t understand is that Tom is not only not homophobic, he’s not all that straight either.   Tom knows what Reese is doing but he’s too desperate for a room and a bed to be scared off.  Plus, listening in is kind of hot.  Not that the very reserved Tom is going to admit that to anyone but himself. 

This book is told through Tom’s POV (third person).  Because of this, the reader becomes intimately aware of the kind of person Tom used to be and the young man he’s become thanks to the criminal actions of his father.  A once overly privileged and careless young man has become so careful and overly focused that his paranoia uncomfortably leaps off the page.  But that same watchfulness allows him to be super aware that his roommate is negatively reacting to their room situation because he’s afraid of Tom.  Mostly Tom’s size in comparison to Reese’s smaller stature.  And because Tom has become so much more conscious of others, he does everything he can to alleviate that fear.  Even to the extent of making himself physically smaller when he’s in the same room as Reese.  Reese is just as watchful as Tom in some ways.  And as he becomes more comfortable with Tom he also sees more of things that Tom doesn’t want anyone to see.  At one point Tom finds out that Reese had been purposely leaving apples on his desk because he saw that Tom was financially struggling and couldn’t always afford or fit in a healthy snack or meal.  It was a very short but sweet moment that said a lot about both of these characters.  As Tom and Reese get to know each other and eventually begin a relationship, it’s amazing and beautiful to see the lengths they will go to make the other feel safe.

Sweet moments aside, there has to be a conflict in every romance.  No relationship can survive the PTSD that both of these men are experiencing without some professional help.  The problem is that they are both resistant to that help. Tom especially since he is convinced reaching out will make him vulnerable to the press that hounded him after his father was arrested.  Tom’s acceptance of his issues and his fear of seeking help is more than a little frustrating.  Especially since Reese shows more willingness to face his fears and try.  The conflict in this story is honest and messy and sometimes unflattering.  Tom’s and Reese’s issues are the kind that they will be working on for a lifetime.  But, in the end, their willingness to do so is what makes their story so beautiful and so relatable. 

I’ve read this entire series (more reviews to come!) and I have found that Amy Jo Cousins has an amazing knack for writing characters with frightening realistic personality traits that will drive you nuts.  And yet you fall in love with those characters because they are so ridiculously human it’s impossible not to.  Off Campus is a great contemporary New Adult romance featuring two young men that are determined to make a relationship work in spite of and because of their individual traumatic experiences. 

Nat

Level Hands by Amy Jo Cousins

****

When it comes to love, there’s no such thing as smooth sailing.

Rafael Castro is so far out of his element he can’t even see it anymore. Carlisle College in Massachusetts is a long way from his Chicago home, even farther from his Dominican Republic roots. 

The only thing keeping him attached to his last nerve is the prospect of seeing Denny Winslow again. The first time they met, Denny taught Rafi to fly across the water, rowing hard in a knife-like boat. Now, two years later, on the wings of a rowing scholarship, Rafi is attending Denny’s elite college. 

Even before the excitement wears off, Rafi is struggling with classes and fending off rumors that Denny’s family, not Rafi’s talent, won him his spot. To quash the gossip, Rafi tries to steer clear of the man he wants. A plan that evaporates in the fire of renewed attraction.

But Carlisle’s academic pressure cooker has Rafi barely treading water. And when a family crisis hits, both Rafi and Denny must pull hard to keep their relationship from capsizing in rough waters.

Warning: Contains a surly Dominican-American guy determined to show no weakness, a golden boy who knows his soft spots, some seriously dirty bachata dancing, and an excellent excuse for voyeurism in the locker room. 

Review:

The first time I had ever read anything by Amy Jo Cousins was when I read her short story, Five Dates.  After reading that, I jumped at the chance to read and review Level Hands when I saw it on Netgalley.  And not just because it was written by this author.  Because really, have you met me? Hey, Nat, do you want a hot gay New Adult romance with fit and sexy rowers and plenty of angst?  Well that’s a ridiculous question.  Of course I do!

Rafi first met Denny when Denny was just 17 and staying with a cousin in Chicago.  The attraction is mutual but Rafi has an overdeveloped sense of chivalry.  No way is he giving Denny his first kiss until he’s 18 and he lets Denny know this.  Of course, Denny holds him to his promise and what they experience is a kiss capable of setting off the fireworks at Navy Pier.  Sadly, Denny leaves the next day. 

Fast forward two years and Rafi is transferring to Carlisle College on a rowing scholarship.  A scholarship that he knows wouldn’t have been awarded him had it not been for Denny’s family.  A fact that makes him increasingly uncomfortable the closer he gets to his new school and Denny (who he hasn’t seen since that amazing kiss).  His plan?  To keep a distance from Denny so he can prove that he deserves that scholarship regardless of his connections.  The drastic change in academic expectations surprises Rafi and makes his rock hard determination to succeed in academics and rowing that much more difficult.  Sadly, Rafi has such a chip on his shoulder that he doesn’t realize that letting Denny in for the physical and emotional support he so desperately wants to give might just be what Rafi needs in order to succeed.  Instead Rafi’s anxiety and exhaustion over keeping up builds and builds until he periodically emotionally explodes.

Denny is a pretty patient dude. He’s been waiting 2 years for Rafi.  Well, sort of.  He DID have his share of boyfriends during that time.  But now that they are older and in the same place for the foreseeable future?  Once he realizes that Rafi wants to figure things out on his own, he’s hurt.  But Denny is a fairly balanced individual.  He tries to be understanding and give Rafi the space he needs while still pushing a little bit here and there.  But even he has his limits and a ton of self-respect to boot.  So when Rafael becomes too much of an ass, Denny has no problem giving him a piece of his mind and even dishing out ultimatums when it becomes necessary for both their emotional health.  But even while doing that, Denny is still there.  No matter how angry Rafi might make him, he still loves him and he doesn’t think twice to drop everything when Rafi needs him most. 

This story has a lot of emotional give and take and, in turn, a lot of angst. Because Rafi has such a hard time addressing his securities in a healthy way while Denny continuously tries to invade Rafi’s space and be the support Rafi so obviously needs.  But Denny brings a perfect amount lightness to balance out the story and keep it from becoming too heavy.

Ms. Cousins is an excellent writer.  Her style is fast paced and emotionally engaging.  She’s honest with her characters and doesn’t hold back even when it means making her MC’s unattractive at times.  And to be fair this honesty almost didn’t work for me.  Almost.  Why, you may ask? 

……Warning.  Slightly spoilery…..

Well, I had a hard time with Rafi and Denny’s Happy Ever After.  It’s not that I didn’t want them to have one.  I did.  I DO.  I was rooting for them the whole time.  I’m rooting for them NOW.  It’s just that I didn’t feel Rafi had quite got a grasp on his anxiety and subsequent anger issues.   I have my own strong opinions (based on personal experiences) about anxiety and anger management so I was internally screaming, “take care of you first, Rafi! THEN you and Denny can get together!”    And to be fair, by the end of the book, he recognizes his emotional and mental needs and he’s actively working on them and he has the support system of his teammates, roommates and, most importantly, Denny, that he didn’t have before.  So, in the end, I had to put my personal issues and rigid expectations aside temporarily and admit that the end of this story was perfect for Rafi and Denny.  It was uneasy and honest which was insanely fitting for these two young men.

I’ve really been lucking out on the great m/m NA I’ve been reading lately and this is no exception.  Another slam dunk for my favorite sub-genre.  I highly recommend it.

Nat