Review: A story of friendship, self-discovery and compromise
Rating: 4 out of 5
Date: 11 28, 2012
3.75 starsEric is a loner. He keeps to himself and he likes it that way. A self-confessed slut, he prefers his encounters with his men to be impersonal and without expectations. Then his world is turned upside down when, after returning from Christmas break, he finds himself with a roommate. A very handsome, football-playing roommate. And from then on he knows he is a goner.Nick is an attractive jock who lives in denial and fear. He seems like your typical college junior, with a former girlfriend as a best friend and a football scholarship. But he is much more than that. He is an adorable, young man who fears giving in to his desires to be with a man. He doesn't want to disappoint his parents and suffer the ridicule from his teammates. It isn't until he meets Erick that he starts thinking about giving into to his desires, but even after sharing a kiss, he fights it.I liked that Nick and Eric's relationship started as a friendship. It added to the credibility of the story. From the outside it looked like any college friendship, but in reality these two were in constant fight with their emotions and desires, until that moment when Nick couldn't hold back any longer and gives in. What develops next is a journey of new found affection and lust with heartbreak lurking in the corner.I love to connect with my characters and although I did get to know them, it wasn't enough for me to connect fully. I enjoyed the interactions between them. However, I wanted more more about the 'in between'. I wanted to see more of them as friends and then as lovers. I wanted the tender moments and the laughs and the getting to know each other. I wanted to know about their heartache in the time they were apart, feel their regret and see their growth, so that when they got back together and they made their apologies and grand gestures it would have felt more real to me.The writing was good although it left me wanting to get to know more about the characters and the pace felt rushed at times. As I understand it, this is a revised edition of a book  from the first series the author wrote. She admitted in an `Afterword' included in this edition of the book that she was "still too green back then" to properly present what she had in mind, so I can overlook most of my pet peeves since I have read some of her later work and can attest to her growth as an author.Also, this was originally the third book of the series so I understand why I am not getting a complete insight into these characters. I imagine this was given in previous books at the time, so I expect more character development in the installments to come and a more thorough exploration of this relationship. I also enjoyed the back story of the girlfriend, Ally, and how she interacted with both men and the family conflict presented in the story.  It is my understanding that these will be explored further in the next revised books, so I am looking forward to reading more of this series. I am especially eager to learn more about Eric. His pain was very palpable and my heart went out to him the most.All that said, I still think it was a very good story with great follow up potential. So I encourage you to give it a try because after all is said and done, these are great characters and their first foray into a meaningful relationship was a treat to read.