The videos are fun. But it’s the host who has him coming back for more… When Seattle-based blind YouTuber Dovid Rosenstein finds Sam Doyle’s Let’s Play channel, playitagainsam, he’s instantly captivated by the Irish gamer. Everything about Sam is adorable, from his accent to his personality, and Dovid can’t get enough of his content. Dovid’s glowing shout-out on Don’t Look Now, his own … Don’t Look Now, his own successful channel, sends Sam’s subscriber numbers skyrocketing overnight. He has more comments than he can read. And while the sudden surge in popularity is anxiety inducing, Sam decides it’s only right to dedicate his next episode to Dovid…which soon leads to a heart-pounding exchange of DMs.
They may have never met in person, but Dovid’s never felt this close to anyone before. What they have feels worth exploring–no matter the distance. But is it possible to already be in love with someone who’s half a world away?
One-click with confidence. This title is part of the Carina Press Romance Promise: all the romance you’re looking for with an HEA/HFN. It’s a promise!
This book is approximately 69,000 words
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There’s no doubt I love angst, conflict, and suspense in my romances, but sometimes I want something a bit more dialed back. When I originally read the blurb for Play It Again, I was hoping this would be a lighter, enjoyable long distance romance that was still dynamic enough to capture my attention, and that’s precisely what I got.
I loved how utterly adorable Sam and Dovid were. Their tentative connection was palpable from the start and the author did a fantastic job capturing the barrage of emotions the men faced as they forged an online friendship that led to more. I also liked how pure the relationship was. Sometimes it’s nice to read a love story without all the hoops to jump through, refusals to communicate, or false starts. I never second guessed this couple was meant to be and I appreciated how simple and wonderful their love was throughout the story. That isn’t to say that Play It Again is all fluff and no substance. The author did a great job flushing out character dynamics and backgrounds, and the conflicts Sam faced were relatable and allowed for personal growth along the way. And of course I loved the bits of silly and fun banter interspersed with the sweet moments which left me smiling cover to cover.
Play it Again is the first book of this author’s I’ve read, but I’ll definitely be on the lookout for more and would recommend this title o anyone looking for a lower angst romance that will instill some happy.
*Reviewed for Alpha Book Club*
I had the best time with this one! Plus now I’m three steps closer to understanding what’s up with my kids watching other people play video games.
Play it Again is the first book I’ve read by Aidan Wayne and I’m definitely impressed. They developed the characters beautifully, there’s humor and a bit of angst, and the romance is as charming as it gets.
I’ll admit, I cheated a bit on this one. When I saw how fast this novel got turned into an audiobook (and narrated by Sean Crisden, no less) I listened to it instead of reading it. I think that worked better for me since my understanding of DMing and Vloggers is basically nil. Mr. Crisden does an excellent job with the voices for these two young men. I especially enjoyed Sam’s sweet and understated Irish lilt. Well done!
I was completely delighted by new-to-me author Aidan Wayne’s “Play It Again.” Part of what drew me in initially is that part of it relates to what we do here on the podcast. Dovid is a YouTuber alongside his sister Rachel. They run a channel called Don’t Look Now. Among the things they do is review eateries in Seattle for how accessible they are because Dovid is blind. They also interact with their fans, go on trips, open mystery boxes–it’s the full YouTube gambit.
Over in Ireland, Sam runs a Let’s Play channel where he plays a popular videogame. Rachel and Dovid become obsessed with Sam’s channel because of his easy-going, fun delivery. Dovid calls out Sam’s channel in an episode and sends Sam’s subscriber count through the roof and when Sam contacts Dovid to thank him they end up talking frequently.
Dovid and Sam are single–but as I mentioned live on opposite sides of the globe. Neither of them, quite cutely, realizes how flirty they’re being as they message each other. Initially Dovid offers Sam advice on how to manage his new subscribers and ways to grow his channel but as they move beyond that and get to know each other the realization comes that perhaps there’s more there.
This isn’t the first book I’ve read that relies heavily on text messages, instant messenger, email and so on. I loved how these wove into the story. There’s a good deal of, what I’ll call, regular storytelling too, coming from both points of view. Dovid and Sam have quite a lot internal dialogue about their growing predicament. Just getting time to talk on the phone is a challenge with the nine hour difference between them. It doesn’t stop them though from being ridiculously cute and challenging themselves to let this relationship go through its formative stages without being in the same physical location.
Of course, the guys have to get together and that happens when Dovid and Rachel had the chance to do a European tour, which includes Ireland. As much as Dovid and Sam questioned themselves as they did the long distance thing, the jitters ratchet up as they meet. Aidan does a great job of showing the hesitancy–from Dovid wanting everything to be perfect to Sam wondering if he’s worthy of Dovid.
Sam comes from a family where he was put down a lot and Dovid goes into protector mode when Sam talks about this, which is incredibly touching and sexy.
For all the exploration they did via email, the time they spend together in Ireland really made me appreciate the romance that Aidan spun even more. They’d bonded so much before, they almost fall into old married couple mode with how they try to take care of each other. Dovid is particularly mindful of Sam’s asexuality and makes sure Sam isn’t doing anything he doesn’t want to do. It’s wonderful to see two such diverse characters finding their happy.
Speaking if the HEA, I’d wondered how it would manifest in a book where the two characters spend probably eighty percent of the book on separate continents. I adored how Aidan brought Sam and Dovid together. I would love to see more in this universe to know how Dovid and Sam are getting on.
Besides the wonderful romance, I loved the attention to detail that Aidan put into showing the work Dovid and Rachel do on their channel. From the talk of creating Patreon campaigns to managing social media and how to interact with the audience, I enjoyed it and I don’t think it’s too much for people who don’t do this kind of thing. Another excellent detail, Dovid and Rachel receive a package from a fan in Michigan–it contained Faygo Red Pop and Mackinac Island fudge, two childhood favorites that made me smile and gave me cravings!