Bully & Exit (The Midwest Series, #1)

This is the first book of Brigham Vaughan’s I’ve read. I’m impressed how she makes you fall in love with these guys, and understand their thoughts and emotions. I’m really looking forward to the next book in the series to see what’ll happen with their best friends!

Caleb is a month away from starting a new life in Chicago. He graduates from college and will move there for a theater job. Time to start living for his future, and his dreams. Too bad a blast from his past didn’t get the memo.

Nathan and Caleb crossed paths their senior year in high school. They began to hang out in the props room, and it became more. Under the guise of tutoring, they secretly met up on a regular basis. Young love blossoming as time went on…until Nathan shattered Caleb’s heart.

Fast forward four years, and a random encounter at a party, and Nathan wants to start over. Caleb wants to forget. Nathan is determined to change his mind, and his work is cut out for him. Caleb is adamant he can’t and won’t do it again, but what if it’s just fear holding him back?

This book is about growing up, forgiveness, and second chances for first loves. It’s touching to see how hard someone is willing to work when it comes to love. Real love is worth fighting for, but will love be enough?

I really enjoyed this book. The characters were relatable and likable. It was easy to get drawn into the story and root for Nathan and Caleb. I also wanted to smack Micah. I understand his position, but he could be less of a jerk about it. Fear makes people be a little crazy, though.

This was book one for the Midwest series, and it set a great tone for the upcoming books. I’m looking forward to reading the other guys’ stories as well. This book can be read as a standalone, as it did not end in a cliffhanger. The author did a fantastic job telling Caleb and Nathan’s story. I enjoyed the flashback chapters. It was a bonus getting to see what happened instead of it just being discussed in a conversation. It made it easier to be emotionally involved with them. I really felt for both of them. Being in high school is tough on its own, but dealing with bullies and having to hide your true self makes it worse. This book was extremely enjoyable and I’d definitely recommend it.

***Copy provided to Bayou Book Junkie for my reading pleasure. A review wasn’t a requirement. ***

This was a wonderfully complex and emotional read about growing up, first love, self-discovery, being true to yourself and forgiveness.
Caleb and Nathan met in high school and secretly began a relationship because Nathan was an in the closet hockey player who was terrified of his father’s reaction, not to mention how he would be treated by his teammates.
Caleb wasn’t openly out but he never denied his sexuality.
They made plans to secretly be together at prom, but plans go horribly awry when Nathan’s father somehow suspects he’s gay.
In a horribly misguided attempt to protect Caleb, Nathan breaks his heart in the most viscous and heartbreaking manner.
Now they’ve both been in the same college and avoiding each other.
Graduation is looming and they run into one another at a party.
Nathan wants to make amends, but he doesn’t realize the extent of the damage he’s caused Caleb.
He’s afraid to love again, afraid that he’ll end up vulnerable and being used again.
Together, they stumble their way through Caleb’s stubbornness in the wake of unknown truths for an amazing HEA.
This was a gutwtenching, emotional tour-de-force about being vulnerable and risking yourself after being broken and finding your way back.

This is a second chance romance between Nathan and Caleb. The author does a beautiful job developing their story and describing both their characters and scenes in detail. She deals with their sexual orientations in high school,their fears,anxiety and anger from their past and brings supporting characters to help them come together. It’s an entertaining story I enjoyed and would recommend reading.

I voluntarily reviewed an ARC of this book. All opinions in this review are my own and freely given.

I voluntarily reviewed an ARC of this book. All opinions i this review are my own and freely given.

Have you ever read a book where you’re torn between wanting to hug the MCs, and wanting to smack some sense into them? Well, this fantastic, grab-you-by-the-feels, intense, emotionally charged, gripping, and totally awesome tale did it for me. Caleb and Nate had me hooked from beginning to end, and I would DEFINITELY recommend getting it for yourself.

I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.

They were inloved but too young. Now four years later the target is forgiveness. It is no easy when you were hurt badly. But, at least try. So … The question is … What is more important hockey or the loved one???? Well written story. Good reality and background. Well created story.;-)

I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.

4.25 stars
Oh Nathan and Caleb! This was a first-time author for me and I enjoyed the writing and pacing of this story. The author did a great job of lining up the past and present chapters to help build the story perfectly. Nathan and Caleb were both easy to like MCs and reading about their past just gave me emotions! They were super sweet with each other and it was lovely to see the young excitement and love between the two of them. Later on, we obviously see the falling out from when they were younger and that broke my heart a bit with how well it was written and how much the emotion came off the page.

This book definitely has some angst and we do not really get a resolution until the end of it, but it really worked for me. The timing was true to the characters, especially Caleb, and I think that it flowed really well. The side characters were also great and I am ready to jump into Lowell and Brent’s book!
*** Copy provided to Bayou Book Junkie for my reading pleasure, a review wasn’t a requirement. ***

Bully – A method used to start or restart play in informal hockey, played without a referee. The puck is placed between two opposing players. The players tap the flat sides of their sticks three times and then go for the puck.

Exit – A stage direction that’s pretty self explanatory. The most famous exemplar is in Shakespeare’s A Winter’s Tale (Exit – pursued by bear) – Though in our case, our “exit” is pursued by a Bronco.

As a Michigan emigre and a hockey fan, This author’s blurb sold me immediately. And, in most aspects, it delivered. I loved how Michigan trivia was included. I liked the “Sleeping Bear Mocha” and the continual references to “pop” rather than soda, but I was a bit disappointed that their special “pop” wasn’t Vernors Ginger Ale, particularly in that that stuff is still bottled in Holland, Michigan, not far from Kalamazoo, this book’s main locale. It’s one of those flavors that only true Michiganders get nostalgic about.

Unfortunately, this is a seriously flawed book. The core plot-line revolves around how two guys fell madly in love in high school, but haven’t even talked since some huge betrayal four years ago at their senior prom. College senior (and hockey star) Nathan Rhodes did something four year ago to theater geek Caleb Stockwell when they were in high-school. He’s truly sorry for it and wants to make amends. But the hurt and betrayal runs so deep that Caleb won’t give him the opportunity to apologize.

As I read the first part of this, I couldn’t imagine any betrayal a closeted high-school jock-boy could commit that would emotionally scar then both so badly that they both still feel it so deeply four years later. Particularly when both have attend the same smallish university for four years.

Finally, eighteen chapters or so into this twenty four chapter book we’re allowed to learn what that betrayal was. And the way that it’s written, it does seem unforgivable. Problem is… at that point the betrayal just doesn’t seem believable to me. It’s totally out of character for Nathan we’ve seen both past & present up to this point. And though we’re told more later, the prom night behavior never felt fully motivated or justified. Although it’s clearly NOT the part of the story that the author wanted to focus on, more was needed. We needed to see more foreshadowing surrounding Nathan’s prom-night behavior (before seeing that behavior) if Nathan was to continue as a sympathetic character. Small plot anomalies are forgivable, but this one is a major problem.

Aside from the glaring anomaly, I really liked both of the protagonists, I loved their friends, and I liked spending time with these folks. I loved seeing their initial courtship and seeing the popular jock trying to woo the nerd. And, until the “great reveal,” I was really enjoying this story. But for me the poorly considered, unbelievable betrayal is just this big sucking wound of a plot hole. Several other reviewers seem to have had similar feelings and gave this book abysmal ratings or even slated it as DNF (Did not finish)

I tried to dismiss what I construed to be a literary misjudgment, and just got on with the rest of the novel and I even enjoyed that. Their eventual reconciliation and the forgiveness scene are really well written. And the agreement that comes out of that seems realistic and hopeful. Personally, I can’t understand some of the things people do, but I do generally forgive people and judge them by what I expect there future behavior will be. I do wonder how many people who panned this based on young Nathan’s prom night behavior would dismiss real people from their own lives as easily as they claim.

To put it in the Michigan vernacular of my childhood, this book is like a Classic Chris Craft Boat… with a softball sized hole in its bottom. If someone can patch the hole (or find some other way around the flaw) this is one of the best there is. Even with the hole, some folks will find a way to patch up the flaw, and find value here. Only those unable to accept flaws will dismiss it as worthless.

There’s also a tiny bit of disappointment toward the end of the book. There’s a brilliant set-up for book 2 but once again it’s somewhat spoiled by its poor presentation. Nathan once again acts in a way that seems uncharacteristic.

I fully recognize that every author has the right to tell their stories they wish to, but I do wish that these “writerly gaffs” could have been avoided or edited out. Without these flaws this could easily have been a five. I would suggest that this author would do well to find an additional “beta-reader” who’d be less supportive and more constructively critical than whoever is currently doing the job.

I do also need to mention that I listened to this rather than read it. The audio presentation was by narrator James Edward Jones. The story is told in third person primarily from Caleb’s point of view. Mr. Jones does a great job with the basic narration and pacing. The “voice acting” for the dialogue sections was mostly understated. This is set in the mid-west so there are no accents here to speak of. But what acting there was, was sufficient to help differentiate and further define the characters. There are some sex scenes toward the end that get pretty graphic and Jones handles them without them sounding “porno-cheesy” as so often happens. I look forward to hearing more of his work in future.

This is a new adult romance with a touch of bullying. Nathan is a hockey player but also smart.
He sees Caleb in a play and finds himself interested. I’m not going to say much more as it gives away too much but I will say this is such a good romance. Very emotional and heartbreaking at times. The story goes back from senior year in high school to senior year in college so it does bounce around a little but it is told in a way you understand and don’t get lost.
I loved all the characters and the story.
I’m ready for Brent and Lowell now.

A second chance love story told in present day with alternating flashbacks which I enjoyed.
It starts as a typical closeted jock (Nathan) falling for an out/proud fellow student (Caleb). Though a bit angsty, it is overall a sweet story of facing up to one’s mistakes, forgiveness and the fabulousness that is Lowell Brent was also a nice character and good friend.
Definitely enjoyed this.