Made our Badass Hidden Gem list..

http://badassbookreviews.com/badass-h...


First, I hate this cover. It seems cheap and not very appealing at first glance. It doesn’t do the book justice and that is a shame. So, to help this book along. I am going to put a guy on the cover much more suited for the story. I think the very beautiful (Rest In Peace) Matthias Streitwieser is perfect for the cover.



Ok, now onto the story

First, a few formalities to get out of the way. This book is not light and fluffy. You have a bunch of issues that are brought up in this book. For example, in this book you have male prostitution, rape, alcoholism, and abandonment. If you want a light, fluffy book, this is not for you. The above-mentioned issues are handled very well and are not just put in the story as filler.

Now really, about the story

Ryan-

Oh my god, I love Ryan. He’s the prostitute. You learn that he is a prostitute (escort) in the very beginning (prologue) so it isn’t a spoiler. He’s a prostitute because he doesn’t know any better. As a teenager, he was beaten, battered, abused, and manipulated (Catherine is the manipulator, basically his “pimp”). He doesn’t believe he can do better. You learn so much about him, and how he has one of the most enduring, loving personalities that I’ve ever read about.

Ryan has a menagerie of animals that he’s saved from the street. He spoils his dog Macy and loves his psycho bird and super shy cat without ever questioning the work involved with caring for these lost souls. I think since Ryan couldn’t save himself from his past, he tries to save others. I also believe he was lonely. Even though he’s with countless women as a high paid, high class prostitute, he never really is with anyone. It is all an act. With his animals, he can be himself.

Sara-

Sara is Ryan’s new neighbor. She is the insecure writer who was just canned due to decreased sales on her novel. She is older than Ryan and is intimidated by Ryan’s youth and good looks. Even though she is intimated, Ryan and Sara hit it off immediately. The author wrote their initial get-togethers as very intimate but also very innocent. They were two people looking for friendship discovering that they could easily talk to each other. It was clear they were also very physically attracted to each other. Sara was a nice character, she wasn’t a passive, pitiful creature, and she wasn’t a raging bitch.

Once Sara finds out about Ryan’s “job”, she isn’t very eager to get into a relationship with Ryan. However, Ryan and Sara are clearly in love with each other and so Sara has to figure out how to handle Ryan’s career choice with her growing feelings for him.

Ryan knows that Sara isn’t happy with his “job” but he feels obligated to Catherine (his pimp who supposedly saved him from the streets) and doesn’t think he can be anything else but a high class escort.
Ryan and Sara need to work through these issues, and they do it helping others, which in turn, help themselves.

Overall

I’m not a fan of contemporary romance but I absolutely loved this book. LOVED it. Did I mention I loved it?