Us (Him, #2)

by Elle Kennedy and Sarina Bowen

[stacey_is_sassy]

It was a shaky start but finished strong.

I was kind of hesitant to start Us. I really enjoyed the first in the series Him which was surprising at the time as I’m not really into M/M books. For me, I normally put myself in the shoes of the main character which is a little hard to do when there are two heroes and no heroine. I can’t relate. It’s that simple.

In this case, I have to be a voyeur and observe…like watching a movie. When there was talk that a second book was coming, I couldn’t help but get drawn back into comfort zone blasting. Would the second live up to the first? Would I enjoy stepping out of my comfort zone again? Would the fascination of watching two men form a relationship when one man is gay and the other is not, still be there?

Saying that, my observations are the same as the first…M/M is REALLY HOT!!! There just seems to be no hesitation with these guys. No self-conscious hiding under the sheets or worrying whether you look your best. It’s just an attraction that develops…and good times roll in.

Straight up…I enjoyed Us, liked getting to see Wes and Jamie again and getting to know more about the world of puck. But the highlight of the whole story –

* * * B L A K E * * *

Oh my lordy this guy had me busting out laughing more than once and his generous spirit and uncanny ability to read his friends made him my favourite by far. He was loud, uncouth and crazy, but so lovable. His fear of sheep had me cracking up laughing.

Back to the story…So, Wes and Jamie are living together and everything should be great but unfortunately, it is far from great. It is decided that they’ll keep their relationship on the down-low for a while. Both of them hate having secrets and exist rather than live together. Jamie feels like a dirty secret but knows that Wes loves him. He struggles at the best of times considering how much things have changed but is willing to let things be for Wes’s rookie year. Wes knows that he is hurting Jamie by putting his career first, but doesn’t know how else to handle things.

The first half of the story was a little hard for me. I did not like seeing Jamie struggling to live with his decision. He was practically left alone to deal with all his worries and concerns because Wes was on the road so much. Jamie is also having a few issues at work. All of these problems really made the story a little depressing. I know Wes was aware that he was upsetting Jamie and I knew he hated doing it, but I felt like he definitely got the better end of the stick. It was inevitable that things would eventually have to change.

It definitely got better in the second half of Us but I think that was mainly due to Blake. Yes, it was still HOT between Wes and Jamie and the storyline flowed really well, but Blake just really stood out for me. I really hope the authors decide to do a story for him…maybe with a certain sister (hint, hint, nudge, nudge).

The issues this couple had to face were a little hard to take, but in the end, it didn’t seem to be as bad as what I thought it would be. There were plenty of people who supported and loved them enough to help them through tough times.

Being an observer and standing on the outside looking in was still a little weird for me.

I don’t know what I would do in the same situation because I can’t really relate to having my relationship judged and commented on. For these guys to be in the spotlight while they are developing and strengthening their relationship was hard to watch.

I still stick to my – each to their own and all that jazz and find it unbelievable that people would comment on personal relationship choices.

Will I go back for more M/M? Not really sure, there's just something about it that's a little freeing. Men just look at things differently. If they come out with a story for my Blakey…I’ll be there with bells on.

Stacey is Sassy, received an advanced copy of this story. The copy provided is not the final copy and may be subject to edits and changes.