This was a wonderfully written book. Your heart will go out to Jay and there will be nothing but admiration for Scott. They were both such very well thought out, planned out and portrayed characters. Jay was dealing with some very real situations that shouldn’t and couldn't be taken lightly... and they weren’t. I was glad to see that under the circumstances Jay and Scott didn't take their romance from 0 to 60 in just a matter of minutes. I was afraid that was going to happen, and it would have absolutely ruined the story if it had. They begin with a tentative friendship between two men and then evolves into love as the story progresses. The relationship in itself takes root quickly after Jay's wife dies, he and Scott only talk about Jays life with his wife and try to understand these feelings they have for each other that are quickly growing. Jay is grieving for his late wife, but still the story has a light heartedness to it and not the dark feeling that you might expect it to have. It's just sort of romantic and bittersweet. Scott and Jay are both believable characters with ordinary jobs and ordinary lives. They aren’t overly rich, and they both have such sweet and loveable personalities. There are eventually some steamy scenes that are amazingly hot and have just the right amount of romance...but no one says "hello" and then jumps into bed in the first 20 pages. L.A. Witt is a fantastic writer, and she created so well the thoughts that we "heard" in Jay's head when he was anxious or nervous. Anyone who had anxiety or panic will easily relate.... but it's not enough to cause a trigger effect. Some of Jay's thoughts we hear are especially common when he doesn't want to do something and is trying to think of anything he possibly can to get out of it, no matter how far-fetched his thought may seem. I'm a bit predigest when it comes to L.A. Witt's writing, and in spite of loving everything she puts on paper, I put off reading this one for quite some time, but I found that in spite of the sadness of the topic, this story turned out to be the absolutely perfect blend, of friendship and romance. ( )

I enjoyed this book, but not as much as I'd thought I would, given the premise. It covers some serious topics, including grief and self-honesty. While the characters handle the emotional arcs in believable ways, and while I liked all the characters, I found nothing particularly surprising or challenging even though the POV character was supposed to. That's a serious flaw. There is, overall, a lack of tension. We are too often told how Jay feels rather than shown how he feels. His is the only point of view, and while there are some clever alternate views shown in how other characters react to him, it wasn't enough.

The other major flaw is a weak ending, and a boring epilogue.

I'm not disappointed only because I'm a writer. Every book I read teaches me how to write better stories. If you're looking for wisdom in this tale that isn't found nearly everywhere these topics are dealt with, you may be disappointed. ( )

47 of 75 for 2015. Why are there so many women writing good Male on Male romance and erotica books? With that question in mind, I have to say that L.A. Witt does a good job, both in capturing male thoughts and emotions and the actual mechanics of male on male sex. As the son of a minister, I grew up knowing a good many morticians, but none quite like Scott Lawson. I've also known a good many gay men who have fought their natural inclination and followed society's dictates, marrying a woman and finding themselves in a position where both they and their wife are miserable. That's the background to this story, but the wife's death in the opening chapter leaves our hero free to follow his nature--if he can get over the guilt he feels for not being honest with the deceased. Enter the compassionate funeral director, who, surprise, surprise, just happens to be a gay man. Between our hero's guilt and the mortician's concerns about professional ethics, will this romance ever bloom? You'll have to read the book to find out, but fasten your seatbelts. It's a bumpy, if sadly enjoyable, ride. ( )

3.5 stars, review to come. ( )