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Chances #1
Love by Chance
Restaurant Entrepreneur, Elian Whitman believes hard work and determination usually wins out in the end, but that theory is put to the test after meeting the handsome but reticent Martin Williams.
Martin knows better than anyone that relationships can fall apart when you least expect them to. After a nasty break-up he leaves his Texas home and restarts his life as a restaurant critic in Fort Lauderdale.
Just as Martin is coming to terms with the belief that he’s going to spend the rest of his life alone, he comes face to face with the sexy Elian who throws his perfectly controlled world into chaos.
Despite the roadblocks Martin throws up, Elian is persistent, but is persistence enough to break through Martin’s thick walls and give them both a chance at love?
Martin knows better than anyone that relationships can fall apart when you least expect them to. After a nasty break-up he leaves his Texas home and restarts his life as a restaurant critic in Fort Lauderdale.
Just as Martin is coming to terms with the belief that he’s going to spend the rest of his life alone, he comes face to face with the sexy Elian who throws his perfectly controlled world into chaos.
Despite the roadblocks Martin throws up, Elian is persistent, but is persistence enough to break through Martin’s thick walls and give them both a chance at love?
193 pages, ebook
First published July 2, 2020
45 people are currently reading
109 people want to read
About the author
Blake Allwood
33 books179 followersBlake Allwood was born in west TN, then moved to Kansas City MO after attending college in Lamoni, Iowa. He met his husband in 1995 and they officially married in 2015, once gay marriage was legalized. In 2017, he and his husband sold their home, purchased an RV and began traveling the country with their two dogs. Their travels provide the inspiration and settings for many of his novels.
Typically, Blake can be found relaxing in the RV or by the fire with his laptop and their Jack Russell Terrier, Buddy, curled up between his legs demanding attention. Denver, their Siberian Husky mix is often asleep at his feet or playing tug of war with Blake’s husband.
Aiden Inspired (Apr 2019) is his first published novel, featuring two disparate characters from New York and Washington State who meet and develop an unlikely bond. His second novel, Suzie Empowered (Feb 2020), is a followup featuring Aiden’s sister Suzie as she overcomes her fear of relationships with straight men due to a sexual assault in high school. In March, Blake returned to gay romance with his release of Bobby Transformed about an Iowa farm boy and a big city publisher. His first three novels share characters and can be read in order or randomly.
Typically, Blake can be found relaxing in the RV or by the fire with his laptop and their Jack Russell Terrier, Buddy, curled up between his legs demanding attention. Denver, their Siberian Husky mix is often asleep at his feet or playing tug of war with Blake’s husband.
Aiden Inspired (Apr 2019) is his first published novel, featuring two disparate characters from New York and Washington State who meet and develop an unlikely bond. His second novel, Suzie Empowered (Feb 2020), is a followup featuring Aiden’s sister Suzie as she overcomes her fear of relationships with straight men due to a sexual assault in high school. In March, Blake returned to gay romance with his release of Bobby Transformed about an Iowa farm boy and a big city publisher. His first three novels share characters and can be read in order or randomly.
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Displaying 1 - 21 of 21 reviews
July 20, 2020
What an amazing story this is I loved the way that Martin a restaurant reviewer and Elian a restaurant owner and the slow burn of a love story came together. Poor Martin had a horrible experience with an ex and was still damaged and was not willing to engage in another relationship.
I highly recommend this author.
I highly recommend this author.
July 12, 2020
Author
Blake Allwood is starting to be one of my favorite authors. I’ve read a few books before all of them five stars reads.
Story
This was a slow read for me, I’m normally a fast reader, but for some reason I had, I don’t know, linger at every word. That’s not a bad thing if you’re starting to think that, no. The story is very well written and I loved every bit of it, the flow is great and I love that you do not get the answers to all your questions until the end. Throughout the story you keep wondering what will happen between the two main characters, and let me just tell you, you do get your HEA.
Main characters
I can’t really figure out if there are two or maybe three mc’s. Mainly because Peter the ex keeps popping up throughout the story. But mainly it’s the romance between Martin and Elian. I find Martin sometimes too hard on Elian and that he’s holding a bit too much on to the past. He faults Elian for something that’s really not fair and makes too many rules in my opinion.
But it works for the story, though it’s a bit annoying.
Elian, if we all met an Elian I have no doubt that we would fall in love with him. He is so sweet and hot (according to Martin). At times I ask my self if a guy, in love or not, would take that many boundaries set up. But then again it works for the story.
Despite my reservations above I really did love the story and it a five star rating from me.
Blake Allwood is starting to be one of my favorite authors. I’ve read a few books before all of them five stars reads.
Story
This was a slow read for me, I’m normally a fast reader, but for some reason I had, I don’t know, linger at every word. That’s not a bad thing if you’re starting to think that, no. The story is very well written and I loved every bit of it, the flow is great and I love that you do not get the answers to all your questions until the end. Throughout the story you keep wondering what will happen between the two main characters, and let me just tell you, you do get your HEA.
Main characters
I can’t really figure out if there are two or maybe three mc’s. Mainly because Peter the ex keeps popping up throughout the story. But mainly it’s the romance between Martin and Elian. I find Martin sometimes too hard on Elian and that he’s holding a bit too much on to the past. He faults Elian for something that’s really not fair and makes too many rules in my opinion.
But it works for the story, though it’s a bit annoying.
Elian, if we all met an Elian I have no doubt that we would fall in love with him. He is so sweet and hot (according to Martin). At times I ask my self if a guy, in love or not, would take that many boundaries set up. But then again it works for the story.
Despite my reservations above I really did love the story and it a five star rating from me.
July 19, 2020
Love By Chance was my first book by Blake Allwood and I really liked it. The book is about restaurant entrepreneur Elian Whitman and restaurant critic Martin Williams. I love Elian and liked Martin, he did some things that made me angry with him. But I loved them together.
I really like this authors writing and can't wait to read more.
I really like this authors writing and can't wait to read more.
February 25, 2021
Such a great book. I was hooked from page one. I loved all the sexy playfulness and the thrill of the chase. Two lovable main characters you will long for them to get together. You will want to push them together. This book has all the feels. A pleasure to read from start to finish. I highly recommend.
July 19, 2020
Top-Notch Read
I was intrigued with the book synopsis. I enjoy reading about gays in successful business. This did not disappoint. Character development and interplay build as the story advances. Now I'm moving on to the next volume.
I was intrigued with the book synopsis. I enjoy reading about gays in successful business. This did not disappoint. Character development and interplay build as the story advances. Now I'm moving on to the next volume.
August 10, 2020
My Recommendation: This is an average read. If you enjoy MM romance you'll probably enjoy this one. I enjoyed it a little more than
Romantic Renovations
mostly because he stuck with just the romance genre and didn't try to incorporate any mystery/thriller plot lines. It was a quick read, but could definitely use a good copy edit and/or proofread.
My Response:Since I have ZERO sense of self-control these days as soon as I finished Romantic Renovations I immediately jumped into Allwood's Chances series, because why not?!
I did a little more digging and Allwood was planning to release a book a month starting in February 2020 with this being the fourth release and the next two in the series released fifth (Another Chance with Love) and sixth (Taking a Chance for Love) in June and July. As far as I can tell he has yet to release the July book so may be falling behind on his schedule or, fingers crossed, he's going back and getting them better copy edited and proofread (more to come).
Continue reading on my book blog at geoffwhaley.com.
My Response:Since I have ZERO sense of self-control these days as soon as I finished Romantic Renovations I immediately jumped into Allwood's Chances series, because why not?!
I did a little more digging and Allwood was planning to release a book a month starting in February 2020 with this being the fourth release and the next two in the series released fifth (Another Chance with Love) and sixth (Taking a Chance for Love) in June and July. As far as I can tell he has yet to release the July book so may be falling behind on his schedule or, fingers crossed, he's going back and getting them better copy edited and proofread (more to come).
Continue reading on my book blog at geoffwhaley.com.
January 22, 2022
Well I can't say it was ,"Top Notch"
Because it would be another unnecessary use of it, I understand when a character uses a phrase too often but when multiple characters are doing it, it becomes tedious. Typically I don't pay much attention to the location or setting of the story but when the author makes it such a big part of it, then it becomes almost like another character and if you're going to use a real place it needs to be accurate. It was clear that not much research was done about Ft. Lauderdale, may a cursory Google search. Additionally as a Latin man, I love multi cultural stories but again, the culture was not well represented, not every latin in South Florida is Cuban and we don't speak go around translating what we say in Spanish. Finally and probably the worse part was the weak reason for the Main character's trauma was so amazingly weak that I couldn't sympathize and it made him almost unlikeable.
Because it would be another unnecessary use of it, I understand when a character uses a phrase too often but when multiple characters are doing it, it becomes tedious. Typically I don't pay much attention to the location or setting of the story but when the author makes it such a big part of it, then it becomes almost like another character and if you're going to use a real place it needs to be accurate. It was clear that not much research was done about Ft. Lauderdale, may a cursory Google search. Additionally as a Latin man, I love multi cultural stories but again, the culture was not well represented, not every latin in South Florida is Cuban and we don't speak go around translating what we say in Spanish. Finally and probably the worse part was the weak reason for the Main character's trauma was so amazingly weak that I couldn't sympathize and it made him almost unlikeable.
July 13, 2022
This was a great book about two men who met by chance. They decided to have a sort of fake relationship for business purposes, which, of course didn't end up staying fake. It was nice to see how sweet Elian was with Martin. This is the beginning of a great series.
July 15, 2020
this was amazing... sexy and interesting.. fun and fast paced.. well written and i enjoyed it a lot.
May 17, 2021
3.75-4 stars
I read book 2 first and I’m kind of glad I did. I liked it more than this one. Don’t get me wrong, I didn’t hate this story, it just didn’t really pull me in for a while. While I liked the MCs, the story was a little boring in the beginning.
Once Martin and Elian kissed, the story picked up from there. Honestly, if I had read this one before book 2, I might not have wanted to read book 2 which I would have regretted.
There was a bit of drama around 70% that lasted until about 88%.
*****
POV… multi first person
Standalone or series… book 1 in series
Hangover… no
Recommend… sure
Reread… maybe
**
KU read
Martin
Elian
I read book 2 first and I’m kind of glad I did. I liked it more than this one. Don’t get me wrong, I didn’t hate this story, it just didn’t really pull me in for a while. While I liked the MCs, the story was a little boring in the beginning.
Once Martin and Elian kissed, the story picked up from there. Honestly, if I had read this one before book 2, I might not have wanted to read book 2 which I would have regretted.
There was a bit of drama around 70% that lasted until about 88%.
*****
POV… multi first person
Standalone or series… book 1 in series
Hangover… no
Recommend… sure
Reread… maybe
**
KU read
Martin
Elian
September 6, 2020
Great story but...
I really enjoyed this book but gave it 4.5 because of the mistakes throughout the book. Martin had been burned badly in a previous relationship and was very cautious going into new relationships. Elian is a family man and pulled Martin to know his family straight into their friendship which scared Martin. Most of the book is a slow burn as they grow from friends into more. I loved the settings in Ft Lauderdale, the restaurant and critiques and importance of family life. Really enjoyed it.
I really enjoyed this book but gave it 4.5 because of the mistakes throughout the book. Martin had been burned badly in a previous relationship and was very cautious going into new relationships. Elian is a family man and pulled Martin to know his family straight into their friendship which scared Martin. Most of the book is a slow burn as they grow from friends into more. I loved the settings in Ft Lauderdale, the restaurant and critiques and importance of family life. Really enjoyed it.
September 7, 2025
This is a new to me author. This e-book is a contemporary MM romance set in the USA. The main characters are Martin, a restaurant and food critic and reviews and Elian a rich restaurant owner. Martin has been hurt in love before and moves to Fort Lauderdale. Martin and Elian have many ups and downs, slow starts and halts to their relationship. Love wins in the ends and its a beautiful relationship.
December 17, 2020
Did not finish
The writing style didn't bring me into the story. It was like sitting on the end of the phone, being told a tiresome story. The plot had potential and if written in a different style, it would have been decent.
The writing style didn't bring me into the story. It was like sitting on the end of the phone, being told a tiresome story. The plot had potential and if written in a different style, it would have been decent.
June 5, 2021
Contemporary Gay Romance
My first contemporary gay romance but quite a decent story. Characters have flaws but learn to overcome them with.integrity but more importantly with love.
My first contemporary gay romance but quite a decent story. Characters have flaws but learn to overcome them with.integrity but more importantly with love.
March 16, 2022
We Need to Talk
Great plot!
A wide range of characters in both of the extended families.
Years pass when one relationship ends and another begins.
But unless they learn to talk to each other it will fail too!
Great plot!
A wide range of characters in both of the extended families.
Years pass when one relationship ends and another begins.
But unless they learn to talk to each other it will fail too!
April 10, 2023
A decent story about a heart-broken foo critic who leaves Austin Texas for a job in Fort Lauderdale and meets a sexy Cuban restaurant/business entrepreneur. One can't trust after his last love and the other isn't a dating type.
Guess what? They click and the rest is Gay Romance.
Guess what? They click and the rest is Gay Romance.
June 25, 2025
“Have you ever had something so profound happen to you that your broken pieces came together and fixed themselves? Even when, if only for a moment, you’re whole again?” This excerpt from Blake Allwood’s Cleats and Pumps largely captures the essence of this gay romance.
Three freshmen meet while rushing a fraternity at the University of Texas and become lifelong friends. Two of the young men are gay and out. The third, Amos, a giant of a man and a member of the school’s football team, has not had a lot of sexual experience—not because he is unattractive (he definitely is not) but because he has been singularly focused on pursuing a career in football--and hence he is not quite sure if he is straight, gay, bi, or pansexual. Through about half of the book, he seeks to find the answer to that question, and his uncertainty affects his relationships with others, including his two new friends and their larger circles of friends and family members.
Tommy, a journalism major, falls head over heals for Amos at first sight, but because of his uncertainty about his own sexual orientation, Amos suppresses his true feelings for Tommy and allows himself to see him only as a friend and roommate and not in a romantic or sexual way.
Owen, the third member of the trio, becomes a pre-law major and, eventually, a lawyer. He also finds himself in the middle of the love/not-love relationship between Amos and Tommy. Because Owen is such a good friend and, perhaps wiser than his years, he is able to speak more bluntly to his two friends, practically butting their heads together for their failure to see what is actually going on between them.
Besides being an exceptional football player, Amos is also a talented singer, actor, and entertainer, which leads him to get involved in performing as a drag queen, something that threatens to derail his career path. When Tommy writes an article about Amos’ sideline, the proverbial manure hits the fan, slamming a wedge between their friendship and, apparently, destroying any chance that they could ever become lovers.
Besides the intrigue of the topsy-turvy relationship between Amos and Tommy, the book is laudable for its multi-ethnic and multicultural flavor. Amos is black, Tommy is half white and half Hispanic, and there is even a Lebanese character who gets drawn into their circle. Being bisexual myself, I was pleased to see that topic dealt with in an intelligent manner.
The story is well constructed with a good sense of pacing. Once you start reading this book, you will find it difficult to put down—not that it is a nail-biter—but Allwood has created characters that we care about, and he has put them in situations that would challenge the best of us. We all want to see love triumph in the end, so we keep reading to see if it does.
Fans of good MM romances will find this book well worth reading.
Three freshmen meet while rushing a fraternity at the University of Texas and become lifelong friends. Two of the young men are gay and out. The third, Amos, a giant of a man and a member of the school’s football team, has not had a lot of sexual experience—not because he is unattractive (he definitely is not) but because he has been singularly focused on pursuing a career in football--and hence he is not quite sure if he is straight, gay, bi, or pansexual. Through about half of the book, he seeks to find the answer to that question, and his uncertainty affects his relationships with others, including his two new friends and their larger circles of friends and family members.
Tommy, a journalism major, falls head over heals for Amos at first sight, but because of his uncertainty about his own sexual orientation, Amos suppresses his true feelings for Tommy and allows himself to see him only as a friend and roommate and not in a romantic or sexual way.
Owen, the third member of the trio, becomes a pre-law major and, eventually, a lawyer. He also finds himself in the middle of the love/not-love relationship between Amos and Tommy. Because Owen is such a good friend and, perhaps wiser than his years, he is able to speak more bluntly to his two friends, practically butting their heads together for their failure to see what is actually going on between them.
Besides being an exceptional football player, Amos is also a talented singer, actor, and entertainer, which leads him to get involved in performing as a drag queen, something that threatens to derail his career path. When Tommy writes an article about Amos’ sideline, the proverbial manure hits the fan, slamming a wedge between their friendship and, apparently, destroying any chance that they could ever become lovers.
Besides the intrigue of the topsy-turvy relationship between Amos and Tommy, the book is laudable for its multi-ethnic and multicultural flavor. Amos is black, Tommy is half white and half Hispanic, and there is even a Lebanese character who gets drawn into their circle. Being bisexual myself, I was pleased to see that topic dealt with in an intelligent manner.
The story is well constructed with a good sense of pacing. Once you start reading this book, you will find it difficult to put down—not that it is a nail-biter—but Allwood has created characters that we care about, and he has put them in situations that would challenge the best of us. We all want to see love triumph in the end, so we keep reading to see if it does.
Fans of good MM romances will find this book well worth reading.
April 1, 2021
What happens when a restaurant owner falls for a food critic? Well pick this up and read it! Martin has a nasty break-up and packs up his life and moves. With a fresh start in life and work he is enjoying himself. Elian owns one of the restaurants Martin critics. They always say you find love where you least expect it. Enjoyable read!
July 4, 2020
This is a sweet contemporary romance between a food critic and a restaurateur. The two men meet under not brag of circumstances but agree to join forces to allow the food critic to do his work unrecognized and the restaurateur to acquire valuable feedback to improve his business ventures. The book has a bit of the fake boyfriend vibe that I so much enjoy. And these two guys were a pleasure to spend time with. If you like contemporary romance and the fake boyfriend trope that’s low angst you will enjoy this book.
June 24, 2025
Love by Chance by Blake Allwood is the first book in the Chances Series. This is the first book by the author I have read, and I really enjoyed it. This book is a M/M romance. Elian was my favorite of the two main characters. I wasn't too keen on Martin at the beginning. He started to grow on me as the story progressed. I thought Love by Chance was a well written book and it flowed very well. I thought it was a great beginning to the series.
July 4, 2020
Martin failed relationship made him jaded and wary about romantic relationship, comes Elian so persistent to pursuing him and what I like about Elian is, he's respected Martin's space, takes his time to win Martin's heart.
Displaying 1 - 21 of 21 reviews