This was by far my favourite book by the incredibly talented @jayhoganauthor. It had two strong protagonists with amazing friends and family. It had angst. So much angst. It made me laugh out loud and cry my eyes out. It was gut wrenching and well written.

Reasons I Recommed:

1) A cocky cop arrests a midwife who then turns him down when he asks for a date (cocky cop never gets turned down and is confused)

2) Carmen Bendover, best drag queen bestie extraordinaire is there to keep things entertaining and

3) Grief. Loss. Pain. Angst. Heartwarming moments. Over protective feels. Learning to trust again and falling in love.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

#briereads #brierecommends #goodreads #bookworm #idratherbereading #goodreadsreadingchallenge2022 #mmromance #jayhogan #diggingdeep #diggingdeepbyjayhogan

This is review based on solely listening to the story.


This was a very interesting story as I feel like strangers to lovers is a bit rare in this genre but this was a meet ugly to insta love of sorts.

We meet Drake who is a midwife and dealing with a major autoimmune illness Crohn's. This depiction was extremely accurate as I have several family members who deal with this and levels of daily fear are very real. His Crohn's gets him in literal trouble and puts him on an unexpected path with Caleb.

Caleb is a policeman who is all about the rules and keeping the rules for himself. His rules include no relationships just in and out, no feelings. Until he has a run in with the grumpiest grump Drake who broke in to go to the bathroom during a protest in an off limits location.

These two seem unlikely as a pair but Caleb is so drawn to Drake that he tells his very best friends right away and they work to give him a swift kick in the butt to pursue. Drake is wary with good reason about pursuing anything with anyone as he has never would someone who can actually tolerate flare ups and public changes in health status. However Caleb is committed to Drake no matter what. Though Drake cannot deal and pushes Caleb away.

This is where my review loses stars. I really do not like 3rd act breakups and this one is frustrating at best, at worst almost DNF worthy. Caleb who was a stalwart then needs time, I can understand to an extent but at the same time you've been waiting and hoping for this moment so you've had time.

This book is emotional and tough but the characters really make it worth it. This is a book to dedicate your full attention to not to do other things around the house. You'll need to really hone in on the story elements and the love that develops with Drake and Caleb. It really is a great story but with personal gripes it is lower in the review scale.

3.5 stars, rounded up to 4 only because I appreciate this author's writing style and the inclusion of Crohn’s disease and the Korean heritage, the plot in this case was not as enjoyable as other books of hers. This was mainly because of the extra angst from re-evaluations of the relationship which seemed to go in cycles, so for a long book I felt it repeated itself, plus the supporting characters were somewhat 2 dimensional at times, i.e. Carmen and the unstinting love and support from the other characters, without a lot of shade. Worth reading for me but can understand why other readers struggled to get through it because of the cycling angst.

I was interested in reading this book because it's a M/M romance, but also because Drake has Crohn's disease. I was intrigued because I suffer from stomach issues myself so I could do sympathize with Drake. What I really like about this book it doesn't sugar coat anything and gives it to you real. I enjoyed the chemistry between Drake and Celeb. They navigate through a relationship. There is also a good amount of humor in this one. That's one of my favorite things about the book. I gobbled up this book and was hooked up right from the start. If you're a fan of M/M romance then I highly recommend this book.

Drake is a hippie midwife who lives with Crohn’s disease. At a protest, he needs a washroom, causing Caleb to have to arrest him. But Caleb is intrigued, and turns up his romantic gene to convince Drake to go out with him.

Drake’s been burned before by someone who couldn’t handle his Crohn’s, so he’s gun shy. Caleb also knows he’s never been in a relationship and has his own doubts about hurting Blake.

These two are careful, but once they start dating, their analysis gets in the way of things. I like that this book tackles a debilitating chronic illness with understanding and sensitivity, but it also takes this couple too long to realize there are no guarantees in any relationship.

KU

I enjoyed this story especially the characters and their situation. The set up was great but around the middle it started to drag for me. I liked the situation flip but the repercussions felt repetitious and threw the pacing off. There was too much taking time away from each other followed by communication silence for me.

This book was SOOOO long. I thought it was almost over and I looked at it was like 42%. UGH!

Neither Caleb nor Drake were one for relationships and then BOOM! They both changed their lives for one another. The length of this book took away from my enjoyment because a lot of it was just filler.

I did really liked how Hogan didn't shy away from the difficulties with Crohn's.

Listened to the audiobook and it was another exceptional performance by Gary furlong. This was a really great relationship read in that it examined the hardships of dealing with chronic illness, self-confidence, self-worth, challenges with sexual health and relying on a network of support to survive. It takes a village, and I love reading books that have characters who realize that they can’t do things on their own and that the love they share is also the foundation that helps them survive, no matter how vulnerable it makes them feel. This is exactly where Jay Hogan shines and Drake and Caleb are wonderful to read, and it comes off as genuine as honest. It’s obvious there’s a great deal of research involved and considering I too have a chronic illness, I felt very seen.

Docked a star for the 3rd act breakup, because I didn’t think it was necessary. But otherwise, it was a wonderful read. I always consider a Jay hogan book whenever I need a cathartic cry.