Book Reviews

Book Blurb

With all of his scratched and dented heart, Nate DeMarco wants to be two places at once, but he’s been forced to make an unbearable choice. Having barely survived high school, Nate and his boyfriends, Casey Minton and Zander Zane, are ready to move forward. Casey and Zander have left home to attend Boston City College. Nate remains in New Hampshire to protect his volatile younger sister from their increasingly violent alcoholic uncle. Nate suffers with anger, resentment, and loneliness as what he wants battles against what he feels he must do.

Separated, the young men fight to stay in contact. But they are faced with separate issues. Casey copes with residual fear from having been bullied in high school. Zander obsesses over the establishment of One Voice, the gay-straight alliance at Boston City College. And Nate fights for his sister’s survival. Meanwhile, the intensity of the boys’ relationship increases, both sexually and emotionally.

Nate’s effort to live two lives leads to tragedy, which threatens to blast their relationship apart before they can adjust to the changes in their lives. They must find their way back to a united path before it's too late.

 

Book Review

'Here Without You' is book two in Mia Kerick's series 'One Voice', and it follows the lives of Casey, Nate, and Zander as they move from high school to new adulthood. I fell in love with these boys in the debut novel 'Us Three', and I was so excited to see where the author was going to take me. The first journey was stunningly beautiful and I could only hope to be swept away again. I was thrilled to see the author kept the same way of relating each of these men's "voices" - Nate through his diary, Zander via private blog posting, and Casey in first person. Technically all three are in first person but this way separates it and doesn't muddle the writing.

Nate, Casey, and Zander learn quickly that adulting is hard work. Casey and Zander are off at Boston City College but Nate stayed in their home town to protect his little sister from their drunk uncle. I could already see that this was going to be very rough on all of them but hardest on Nate. I knew his insecurities would jump in and have him believing the other two didn't need him. Nate is such a gentle giant but he has a way of really messing with his own self that causes him to doubt everything.

The biggest problem this throuple deals with being separated is the fact that Nate's uncle has a bad tendency of taking his rages out on Nate and beating the crap out of him. Or his little sister would stir the uncle up and when he'd go for her, Nate steps in to protect her and gets the crap beaten out of him. Casey and Zander keep trying to convince Nate that this is a dangerous situation and that he needs to find a different place for his sister to live. They are fairly certain that Nate won’t survive another four years of this.

I was disappointed that I figured out the direction the author was going to go in. That doesn't mean I didn't enjoy this book, because I did, but predictability can be a good thing or a bad thing, and for me, it didn't work well here. That is, of course, only my opinion. Seeing the guys struggling to make a polyamorous relationship work at their young age was enlightening and I very much liked how the author handled the drama. All in all, a very good addition to a powerful series. Thank you, Mia.

*On a funny side note: I've lived in a dorm with those tiny twin beds. I can guarantee you that those three never fit comfortably and even if they did, they would have had to tie the beds together to have any kind of intimacy. It sure made me laugh remembering my own trials!*

 

 

 

 

DISCLAIMER: Books reviewed on this site were usually provided at no cost by the publisher or author. This book has been provided by Dreamspinner Press for the purpose of a review.

Additional Information

Format	ebook and print
Length	Novel, 216 pages/67915 words
Heat Level
Publication Date	16-February-2015
Price	$6.99 ebook, $14.99 paperback, $14.99 bundle
Buy Link	https://www.dreamspinnerpress.com/books/here-without-you-by-mia-kerick-3978-b