Review: So satisfying, a feel good read.
Rating: 5 out of 5
Date: 05 13, 2014
Rick R. Reed's stories have everything in them that a great story has. He writes strong characters with layers to them and they all have depth and dimensions that make them feel real. He also pulls out a full range of emotions from his readers. You laugh, cry, you get angry and sad. This is what a great writer can do, get you so emotionally invested in the story that you can't put it down.At the start of this story, you see Ollie's beautiful life blow up in his face. He loses his dreams, boyfriend, home and job in a matter of days. Where does he go from there? All he really wants is to have a love of his own. He's now at a crossroads in his life, he has decisions to make and now he has to make them alone. With some help in the form of questions from a Mister Right Now, Ollie figures out what his true passion is, cooking. And he finds the right niche to fill, catering home cooked meals at home. Now that he has that part of his life straight maybe the rest will fall into place.Hank is all things snarky and sassy, from his Goth type clothing and faux hawk hair. He's young and has survived his wild past, giving him a small amount of maturity beyond his years. With a chance to turn his life around at Haven, he's learning to cook. And just when he thinks life may work out, it throws him a major league curve. His mom reappears in his life and his niece is going to live with him. Okay, he can do this. But when he loses his short order cook's job and with his niece to feed, he desperate. How bad can it be if he steals for the right reasons?This is how Ollie meets Hank, with Hank scoping out things to steal from Ollie's car. And begins the beautiful journey for the two of them. I loved watching them come together in a very real life way, through all of the ups and downs, jealousy and small hurts. Real life is sometimes messy, and so is theirs. Just when life is going great, Hank's sister comes back into the picture and she's taking her daughter with her, breaking up Ollie and Hank's little family. How the two of them deal with this and get through it is the heart of the story for me.Adding to the family is Rose, who has her own emotional scars and story to tell. As with all of the secondary characters, she is so much an integral part of the story. Also an important part of the story are Hank's mom, his sister and even Mike, who asked the questions that moved Ollie to find his niche in life. They all add another layer to this story.Beautifully writing, at the end of this story, I just felt good. The bonus in this story are the recipes, I can see lots of cooking in my future.