Sand & Water

Sand & Water

by
3.61 of 5 stars 3.61  ·  rating details  ·  163 ratings  ·  43 reviews
Widower John McConnell gets along fine raising his daughter on Georgia's Tybee Island, though he wouldn't exactly say he's happy. Haunted by the memory of his dead wife, John hasn't considered dating again until he meets Bryan Simmons in the park. It isn't long before John realizes that what he feels for Bryan could be something real, but how will he know he's ready to mov...more
ebook, 250 pages
Published August 15th 2011 by Dreamspinner Press

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rameau
Review edited as per request of the publisher on February 29th. See the comments for more.

I admit I'd be heartbroken if I ever found out this was one of those plagiarised works.

Because I really, really liked this story.

I liked the sweetness of it. I liked it even when it bordered eye-roll-inducing sappiness.

I liked how everything was so delightfully normal. I liked how family and friends didn't just disappear when the crushing started.

I liked how John never forgot to put his daughter first. I...more
Arthur
A very moving story about two men whose lives were suddenly taken from them.

(view spoiler)[John's life was taken when his wife, Liz, died from giving birth. Bryan's was taken when he and college boyfriend were attacked outside a gaybar, leaving the boyfriend paralysis and emotionally broken beyond repair. Just like that, their lives changed. Until they met each other...but, could they move on beyond their respective exes?


Things I like from the book:

- The slow development of the characters and t
...more
MandyM
Gentle story of a widower taking a chance on love the second time around. John's wife died in childbirth 4 years previously leaving him with his lovely daughter Beth. He meets Bryan in the park when Beth and Bryan's nephew strike up a friendship. Initially neither man sees their meeting as anything more than an acquaintanceship moving gradually towards friendship. But slowly John starts to find Bryan more and more attractive. The emotional baggage they both carry makes them decide to move cautio...more
Suze
Whew! Sweet relief. Mea culpa: I'm a fairly new MM reader (first book I read was Bareback in December 2010) but I am SO sick of reading about guys with no self-control. Yes, most books in this genre are short but must there be a sex scene 5 minutes after the two leads meet? What happened to character development? Luckily for me, I was able to get this book with a discount code offered on the publisher's Facebook page.

Sand and Water is a sweet and well-paced book about a widower and single fathe...more
Tina
Jan 25, 2013 Tina rated it 3 of 5 stars
Shelves: m-m
This was a solid 'meh' for me. I mean, I liked it - the writing was solid, the story was good and I connected with the characters. It was a slow burn romance with the actual smex not happening until about 50 pages from the end. And I liked that - both characters had issues that needed dealing with before jumping into sexy times.

I guess what kept this from being really good for me was the fact that there was very little conflict outside of the two personal issues both characters had. While this...more
Tracy
Sweet, But Too Simple
Widower John McConnell still grieves the love of his life, the woman he was lucky enough to marry but lost during the birth of their daughter. Five years has given him some perspective, though, and he's just as likely to wake up smiling from memories as he is to wake up aching with loss - which is a major improvement - and there's no doubt their daughter is a source of joy to him. After the first year, a dark time John would prefer to forget, he hasn't given thought to any s...more
Mackenzie
Two men's deliciously UST-filled progress from being complete strangers to being the sweetest of couples? With two small kids around providing much-appreciated adorableness? Sold. I have officially found another go-to author for "relaxing Sunday afternoon reading". Shae Connor, you make my Sunday afternoon more beautiful!

Except I didn't read this story on a Sunday afternoon. I read this at night, after a grueling day at work on Monday, and finished it during lunchtime on Tuesday (again at work),...more
Sandra "Jeanz"
REVIEW DONE BY ENA (MY MUM) FOR MY BLOG TOO
John McConnell is a widower and is getting along fine raising his daughter on Georgia's Tybee Island, though he wouldn't exactly say he's happy.John is haunted by the memory of his dead wife, he hasn't even considered dating again. All that changes when he meets Bryan Simmons in the park. It doesn't take long before John realizes that what he feels for Bryan could be something real. But how will John know when he's ready to move on?
Bryan carries his own...more
Marina
This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here.
Ami
I like Shae Connor's stories and this is her first novel-length title. When I see the word "daughter", I can't help to immediately jump on it. What can I say, I love single dads with kids. In this one, there is not only one kid but TWO. John's daughter, Beth, and Bryan's nephew, Jeremy. I'm a goner :)

Some technical information first: the story is written in 3rd person, but John is the main narrator (no alternate point of view). John is a bisexual. He was married to a woman for seven years before...more
Kerry  sullivan
This book was reviewed for musings of a bookworm

The synopsis
Widower John McConnell gets along fine raising his daughter on Georgia's Tybee Island, though he wouldn't exactly say he's happy. Haunted by the memory of his dead wife, John hasn't considered dating again until he meets Bryan Simmons in the park. It isn't long before John realizes that what he feels for Bryan could be something real, but how will he know he's ready to move on?

As John soon discovers, Bryan carries some heavy emotional...more
Laura
I would like to start by saying I am not a fan of the Slow Burn romance. I have no patience and would like instant (or at least near instant) gratification when it comes to romance. Up until around the 80% mark the characters did little more than kiss. There was a lot of backstory told (the characters both had romantic tragedies in their past) but I just couldn't get myself interested enough in the backstory, or if I am being honest in the current romance. It seemed too long in the telling, almo...more
Vicktor Alexander
Aug 27, 2011 Vicktor Alexander rated it 4 of 5 stars  ·  review of another edition Recommends it for: Katharina, Kate B, Luci, Thorny, Matt, Brad, M/M Romance Group
This is a M/M family story that really focuses more on family and healing from past hurts and disappointments than the romance aspect.

First we meet John, single father of Beth, who lost his wife five years before this book begins. John works from home so he can raise "Bethy" with the assistance of his young aunt Meghan. Beth is probably one of the cutest little girls that I've ever read in a family story. The scenes with her always made me smile, even if she was whining or sick. Mrs Connor wrote...more
Anya
Sand and Water is a gentle love story staring two lovelorn heroes. John McConnell thinks his life is great even though he is raising his daughter alone ever since the death of his wife, Elizabeth. He has no time nor thoughts of dating any time soon… That is until an ordinary day spent at the park with his daughter he meets newcomer, Bryan Simmons. He likes what he sees and the more time John spends with Bryan the more he realizes just how much John wants more. No matter how much he tries to go s...more
Heather
I loved the story of John and Bryan. Both men have a lot of issues that could drag them down, but Connor does a great job at pushing them forward. I haven’t read any novels previously where a man discovers his bisexuality later in life, and I wondered how the author would get me there – could I believe that he could fall in love with a man, considering his love for his wife? How would they deal with the community’s expectations? Et cetera. And for me, I’m not all-for romances with children. But...more
Sharon
Review found at:
http://www.rarelydustybooks.com/2011/...

John lost his wife during the birth of their daughter five years ago. He spent the first year trying to drown his sorrows in meaningless sexual encounters with men and women. He finally decided to make a new start and moved in with his aunt on the beach. He deals with his pain by keeping busy with work and raising his daughter Beth.

Bryan, who is openly gay, shows up in the small beach town to help his sister and her family, renovate an old...more
Librarian Kate
Sweet, a bit slow in the pacing, but that was partly because the writing was beautifully descriptive. I thought it was a bit rose-colored-glasses on the rather casual acceptance of John's bisexuality; I've seen some pretty strong negative reactions from gay men when they are told someone identifies as bisexual, and his straight friends seem even less shocked/judgemental. I totally wish the world was more like the people in John and Bryan's world, but the discrimination that bisexual men and wome...more
Terry
Nice slow build romantic story for guys who want something other than graphic couplings. Well written book which jogs along at a pace keeping you wanting to know more. My main grouse is that it ended when it did with so many incomplete stories - for example John's mother and her reaction to his relationship with Bryan, the dinner scene seemed odd apart from the fact that you could contrast her behaviour with that of Beth's other grandparents. Maybe Shae is planning a follow up book to continue t...more
Pam
I'd give it a 3.5
A sweet story filled with heavy emotional baggage by both John and Bryan. I liked that the guys started off as friends brought together by the two little kids Bethy and Jeremy. It was fun watching them interact and for the light to suddenly go on and for John to almost freak out when he realized he had romantic feeling for Bryan... feelings like he'd had for his deceased wife. I understood why the author chose to take their relationship slow but the details of daily life and inc...more
TJ
3.5 stars. I've not read anything by Shae Connor before, and from what I understand, this is her first full length novel. It's probably best described as a slow burn, as the two MC's take quite some time to admit their feelings for each other. There's nothing wrong with that, nor really with this novel, as it is a pleasant read. However, it did feel like it was on one level the entire time, that there was no upward momentum. Not a bad way to spend a few hours.
Aurora Alexander
I loved the author's voice. The characters are endearing and well written. However, the pace of the story didn't work for me. It becomes particularly difficult to ignore when the characters are frequently emphasizing how slow they need to go. A slow simmer story doesn't require the characters to say they are going to go slow...they just do, and if the story comes together just right, the reader doesn't even notice.
Jane
This story really was a "slow burn". I loved reading about the MCs relationship developed. Even though both MCs had a difficult past, I still thought this read was quite light. There was no angst, just a flow of words and sentences making up a very nice story. I do have to say that I felt like the story ended way too fast.
Meggie
Really sweet romantic story plotted in slow motion. I liked how the plot developed and how both main characters behaved around each other. In my opinion everything was left open and a lot unsolved, but then you can write whole life in couple of pages. In overall this story was truly well written romance with emotions and warm people.
Sarah
Just what I needed a fluffy book :-D

This story was great the relationship building and development flowed great and I spent most of the time smiling while I was reading this book.

It probably won't be for everyone. There was very little angst so if you have to have angst in your stories this probably won't be for you.

This is the first book I have read by the author but won't be the last.

I hope she revisits these characters again i would love to read more.
Edina Rose
3.5 stars

Emotional read. It's the love story between a bi guy who lost his wife and is bringing up their kid and a gay man who also has a tragedy in his past.

The story could have been intense and fast paced if it had focused more on the two heroes romance and less on family time with kids and relatives.


Recommended if you don't mind the slow pace and... the kids.



Angela
Sep 03, 2011 Angela rated it 4 of 5 stars  ·  review of another edition Recommends it for: m/m romance
This was a very sweet story. The two MC have both had a lot of pain in their past and in falling in love they help each other through the rough stuff. Add in two cute kids and you can't help but enjoy this story. I'll be watching for more by this author.
Karen
i liked this one a lot, although all of the wicked grinning and snickering got a bit repetitive. i am a big fan of sweet love stories with a lot of character development, and that is what this book was - even with the overuse of a few adjectives.
Kira

Cute little story. It didn't suck me in enough to get more stars than this, but the writing is very good and if you're looking for a nice family story to read, this might just be it. :)
Becky Mrs Condit Reads Books
I enjoyed this book. I wouldn’t say it has a HEA ending but it does have a strong HFN that hopefully is long lasting. Recommended for readers who love single father stories, m/m love affairs, and anyone who enjoys watching a relationship build to a love affair.
Manuela
First part is slow, too much for my taste. Second half gets better but I admit at a certain point I started skipping a few words here and there.
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Sand & Water (Paperback)
Sand & Water (Kindle Edition)
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Shae Connor lives in Atlanta, where she works for the government by day and reads and writes about people falling in love by night. She's been making up stories for as long as she can remember, but it took her a long time to figure out that maybe she should start writing them down. Now, she usually has far too many stories in progress, but when she does manage to tear herself away from her laptop,...more
More about Shae Connor...
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