Orphan Jackson Murphy just staked his legacy on a bet.Holy shit, his impulsive ass is in trouble.Bring a guy to the fraternity formal? Pfft. Easy. Won’t be him kicked out of the house. So what if his luck with guys on campus has been shitty? Ed Knowles is Jack’s winning ticket. Tall, handsome, hardworking—and he doesn’t go to Harrison.With every stolen look, every secret kiss, every clandestine … stolen look, every secret kiss, every clandestine touch Ed becomes more than just an answer to a bet.
These cloak-and-dagger meetings that set Jack on fire? They mask one tiny, enormous obstacle: Ed’s not out. Can’t attend the dance.
What does Jack do now?
Hold on to his legacy… or his heart?
“Better Be Sure” is a sweet, slow burn M/M romance with a heart-pounding HEA. This New Adult, college, opposite sides of the tracks novel can be read as a standalone and in any order.
This is a previously published title, first released in 2019. The publisher has changed.
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I will admit, not long after starting chapter one, I wondered if I finally reached the age of being too old to read about college kids, fraternities, and college drama. Not long after that, though, the fraternity became more of just a background to the real story, and it became a non-issue. Dating, getting to know another person on a deeper level, and romance is not limited by age. The characters were likable, minus a couple of knuckleheads, and there was an easy flow to the story.
I once read that grief is not linear. Even when you leave the initial state of mourning, the loss doesn’t just disappear in thin air. It lingers, and it can be a companion for life. The authors did a great job with how they wrote Jack’s battles with the loss of his parents. I liked how they didn’t sugarcoat things and had everyone magically fix things for Jack. Ed’s character even states how he doesn’t know how Jack feels, but he offered his support. It gave a realness to the story that I really appreciated.
This is book one of the series, and I really enjoyed it. I am looking forward to reading the next book. They are connected by characters we met in this story, so it will be good to catch up with them again. If you’re looking for a fun story, some steamy bits, and low angst, this is your book. I think you’d enjoy it as much, if not more, than I did.
***Copy provided to Bayou Book Junkie for my reading pleasure. A review wasn’t a requirement. ***
I loved seeing a bully get karma in spades, and it was so well deserved!!! I liked that Jack had so many supportive friends to help him. I was happy Ed found the strength to be himself and follow his heart. I loved it and highly recommend it. I listened ti the audio version of this and it was fantastic. The narrator was brilliant!
Better Be Sure is the first book in the Harrison Campus series and features Jackson Murphy and Ed Knowles. Jack is a fraternity brother at the same fraternity his father went to. Tragically, Jack’s parents passed away in a boating accident, so being apart of the fraternity with his best-friend and adopted brother, Marcus, means everything to Jack. Ed Knowles works hard to help support his family while also attending the local community college. Although he’s gay, he’s still in the closet because he can’t risk losing his job and putting his parents and sister in a bad financial spot.
Jack and Ed first see each other in one of the most adorable meet-cutes ever. From there, their relationship blooms and everything is perfect. Except, Jack is in a bind. He’s made a silly bet with another fraternity member; Jack has to bring a date to the formal or he’s out of the frat house. But Ed’s still in the closet, and unwilling to make such a public appearance. Jack finds himself between a rock and hard place: does he get someone else to go with him to the formal and risk breaking Ed’s heart, or does suck it up and leave the frat house?
This was a sweet book with an even sweeter romance. Although there was angst and some tension, there’s was definitely a lot of fluff and cute moments that helped to smooth over those sad moments. I really enjoyed this book, and although I knew there was going to be a happy-ever-after ending, I was still intrigued on how Jack and Ed would make it work.
Nick J. Russo narrated the audiobook and did a fabulous job. His voice was smooth and pleasant, and really complimented the sweet and fluffy atmosphere of the book. I could easily tell which character was talking and never felt lost in the narration. The audiobook production was well done with no mistakes.
I’ll be honest, I jumped at the chance to read Better Be Sure because of one of the authors listed. I’ve only read a handful of Miss Sunday’s books thus far, but I love her style and characters and I was hoping Better Be Sure would be another winner. Honestly, it took me a while to settle into the story. The characters were good, if a little immature, and the story was solid, it just didn’t grab me at first. Eventually, I did become more invested in Jack and Ed’s story.
Jack has a sad but sweet story and I loved his bond with his best friend Marcus. I enjoy when romances have stories outside of the love story and that was present in Better Be Sure. I also liked the opposites attract vibe between Ed and Jack. That said, there were some hiccups that threw me off- namely the flow felt stiff or awkward at times, with sequences not quite adding up. Additionally, I struggled a bit with the way Ed was viewed because of his financial status or where he went to school. Though class prejudice is a definite reality, it gave me a bad taste for some characters. My other issue was solely a personal feeling. Young adult is not my genre of choice because to be authentic, authors have to allow for immature characters. There were aspects in Better Be Sure that felt really immature and it elevated the conflict more than seemed warranted. So despite being an accurate portrayal of young, inexperienced men, it simply didn’t endear me to the characters. As I said, I did like the bones of the story and the characters were well flushed out, this just might not be the series for me.
All in all, Better Be Sure is a good opposites attract, new adult romance best suited for readers who enjoy the YA/NA genre and don’t mind some drama and pining in their stories.
*eARC copy received via Gay Romance Reviews. The authors and PA had no influence over this review*
Now this is a college romance!!
I am a big fan of Anyta Sunday but have never read Andy Gallo before so I had to check out their collaboration. Let me tell you there are some serious feels here. At times it was cute and funny and others down right heartbreaking. And there were a few times I wanted to reach in and seriously smack someone… hard… with a blunt object. Let’s just say I loved Jack’s final toss!! Between their insecurities, doubts, and fears Jack and Ed did not have the smoothest journey but they had some awesome friends and family to help smooth out some of those bumps in the road. I adore Brittany and Nessa. Marcus is an amazing supportive brother. Seth and Billy are totally cute goof balls and Brant is a sweet guy. Darren was a nice surprise. I loved how the writers didn’t shy away from Marcus and Seth’s relationships. I hope we get more of all these characters in future books. Truly a great read.
I enjoyed this book. It is character driven which I really enjoy. It’s portrayal of grief and it’s mental health implications were really well done. It sometimes seemed to switch POV which threw me off. Overall, it was definitely worth the read!
Better Be Sure is a fun new adult romance, with all the tropey goodness of secret relationships and bets that seem like a good idea to start with… and then cause all kinds of problems. Jack and Ed hit it off with some instant chemistry, but Ed is so deeply in the closet which only brings about even more problems. They definitely have a tricky situation once they start something and as their feelings grow, it only gets bigger. Both Ed and Jack have their hearts being pulled into two directions, and it does create some miscommunication and frustration before they finally reach the same page. It is a fun and very sweet journey though, with some great supporting characters and excellent writing and dialogue that fit the story perfectly. Looking forward to more in the series!
Edited 9/22/20 to add my comments on the audiobook:
Audio Review:
Overall – 5
Story – 5
Performance – 5
Loved the story, loved the audio performance!
I loved this book when I read it back in June 2020 but now, I love it even more after listening to Nick J. Russo’s performance of the audiobook. Often when I listen to a book that I’ve already read (especially if it hasn’t been long since I read it), I don’t pay super close attention to the audiobook because I already know the story. That wasn’t the case with Better Be Sure. Nick’s voice captured and held my attention from beginning to end.
Below is what I wrote when I reviewed the book back in June.
Such a good book!
I’ve gotten behind on reading Anyta Sunday’s last few releases and I’ve never read anything by Andy Gallo. I’m so glad that Better Be Sure changed all of that. It brought me back to Anyta Sunday and also brought me to a new-to-me author, Andy Gallo.
New Adult stories have kind of become my MM romance crack lately. Maybe it’s so that I can vicariously re-live my experience of falling in love through them; who knows? Anyway, it doesn’t really matter. What matters is finding a good book to sink my teeth into and having it engage me to the point of getting lost in the story. Better Be Sure did that and more.
I felt so bad for Ed. He really wants to be with Jack but he is afraid of what will happen to his job if he comes out. Jack is still having trouble dealing with the loss of his parents and he is pleasantly surprised at how supportive Ed is when he loses control of his emotions; other boyfriends were definitely not supportive.
This story really tugged at my heart and had me in tears more than once (that means I really liked it). There is so much depth to the MCs, and the secondary characters of Jack’s best friend, Brittany, and his brother, Marcus, that I couldn’t put the book down once I started reading it.
I am so, so much looking forward to reading more books in this series.
An advanced copy of this book was provided to me but my review was voluntary and not influenced by the author.
I enjoyed this book but I didn’t love it! It had some great parts and some parts I just wanted to tell Jack to grow up. Yes I know they are teenagers but still he just needed a bit more thought sometimes but overall woukd get recommend Jack and Ed story!
When I read the blurb for this book, I already started buzzing with excitement. As I began reading and saw the easy way Jack made the bet, I couldn’t wait for the moment he realized he was in love with Ed and I could snicker at the “ha, joke’s on you, buster! Let’s see what you do now!”. Thing is, the joke was on me, mostly, because I somehow expected belly laughs and instead got heartbreak. Doesn’t mean I didn’t like it, or that the story didn’t have its funny moments, it was just that Jack and Ed’s circumstances were no laughing matter. I found myself cheering from the sidelines and wishing for their happiness, believing in them even when they seemed to lose all trust in themselves.
This story took me by surprise with its intensity and I appreciated the emotional ride.
With Better Be sure, I had a good time with the two characters. I was deeply touched by Jackson’s grief and sensitivity. The authors brilliantly transcribed the emotions you feel, I suppose, because I luckily did not experience anything similar when you tragically lose both parents.
As with all Anyta titles, the relationship is of the “slow burn” type. Things take their time and feelings grow with the pages that scroll. It is not, however, the slowest of the author’s titles since the two young men get together early in the novel and get down to business pretty quickly. But hey, it does not spoil the work.
The character of Ed also touched me. Life has not been easy on his side and out of loyalty to his family he refuses to live fully and openly his sexuality. The authors have put forward the young man’s tension. His feelings for Jackson are growing day by day and he would like to be able to live his relationship fully, but refuses to do so. He will even push his limits at several times in order to make his boyfriend happy. And that, I found it super touching.
Question characters, the authors also worked on the secondary characters. I loved Jackson’s brother and his best friend, and I also appreciated the little tracks that the authors have posted here and there for the next volumes. I also appreciated the choice of authors for the second volume. In that same idea, call me maso, I like assholes, but I would love a tome on harper, Jackson’s tormentor. Yep, I’m like that, I like when the dirty guys are not as horrible as that and hide a more complex story than it seems. Clothes don’t make a monk after all.
Small negative point, if there is one, when you know the authors and have been following them long enough, you quickly feel that this is one of their first titles. The authors have since over their releases matured their style and we can easily feel the hesitations and small faults that they have corrected with experience. Again, that doesn’t bother reading, but I thought it was good to point it out so fans aren’t shocked and don’t hold it against their advice.
In the end, Better Be sure is a simple romance, with a classic theme for Young / new adult, but which is well treated and gives us a very good time to read. As I said before, I can’t wait to see what the authors will offer us for the rest of this series.