Widowed Before Forty Lawyer Caleb “West” Weston loses the man he loves, Carter, to cancer. When Carter dies, not only is West left hurting, but Carter’s younger brother, eighteen-year-old Shane, plummets deeply into grief. Both men bury themselves in their pain and forget to support one another. West feels hollow, and Shane’s life goes off the rails. The Lost BoyShane’s parents reacted badly when … Boy
Shane’s parents reacted badly when he told them he was gay, but he had Carter and West to run to when things got tough. They gladly took him in. After Carter dies, Shane feels like he has no one to love him, until one tearful moment between Shane and West turns into something passionate. Afterward, consumed by guilt, both men become more isolated than before.
Second Chance at Love, First Chance to Be Himself
West has never fully embraced the darkest parts of his sexuality, but he knows one thing for certain—he wants Shane as his. Even if being with his dead lover’s younger brother is wrong, fighting his attraction to Shane is hurting them both. He decides to step up and become the daddy he has always wanted to be, one who helps guide his boy back into the land of the living. One large problem remains, during the months Shane was left to his own devices, he made a wreck of his life. West and Shane both need a lot of love to heal. Can they learn to live a new life together, free of shame and guilt?
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I’m reviewing the audio edition. This story about grief and moving on is heartbreaking. After the loss of Carter both West and Shane are struggling to find a after. West has the responsibility to watch over Shane but it’s hard when there is an attraction. Shane is just almost lost. He is trying to deal on a daily basis but not so successfully. There are so many issues to this relationship and its development. How these two handle them drew me in. I enjoyed the story. What I felt just didn’t fit is the narration. The voice of West just seems too juvenile.
Ki Brightly and Meg Bawden craft an incredibly poignant and moving love story, and The Promise is the most satisfying BDSM romance novel I’ve read in ages.
Starting off with an incredibly sad and tragic situation, the characters in The Promise are floundering. Unsure how to proceed in their lives, and completely engulfed in their grief, it feels so right when they reach out to each other. West and Shane face a host of issues, and the authors work through them all at a steady pace.
What evolves is a truly stunning love story of two men who desperately need each other, and end up fitting perfectly together. Told from alternating points of view, I was particularly moved by Shane’s reaction to the different aspects of submission, denial, and punishments as he experiences everything for the first time. Their D/s relationship forms naturally, and allows both characters to explore their needs.
Brightly and Bawden write beautifully erotic love scenes. In addition to the eroticism of daddy kink, the authors make the most of the taboo aspect of the coupling between thirty-six year old West and his dead lover’s eighteen year-old brother. Intimate with a generous amount of kink, it’s a nice balance with the angst and the drama.
** spoiler alert ** West struggles with keeping his promise to his late boyfriend. Shane is struggling with the loss of his brother. One person links them, will they be able to heal each other?
I loved how these two had a foundation before anything happened between them. I didn’t blame either character for the way they were reacting or feeling guilty, but loved how they slowly realized that it was ok to be happy. Good read and I will definitely be going back to read more from this author!
If you love age gap, daddy kink stories you won’t want to miss this one. This really is a beautiful story all around and I couldn’t put it down. What starts out as a tragedy turns into something sweet and loving. Have tissues handy this book is emotional. It’s sad that Carter died, but it’s in his death West and Shane are able take care of each other. West made a promise and in keeping that promise he got so much more than he expected. I loved watching the growth of these two characters.
I recommend this book.
This isn’t my favorite trope to read and I usually have to be in the mood to read role play books, especially daddy kink. But do love a good angsty book and this one sounded like it fit the bill.I didn’t feel like this one was too over the top though with the daddy/boy dynamic and it was more used as a comfort thing for both characters. Carter died from cancer leaving the two people he loved the most behind, his boyfriend wes and younger brother Shane. Shane had a hard time coping with his brother’s death and was slowly withering away and only Wes can help pull him out of it. By bringing comfort and creating a safe place for shane, he was also bringing these things to himself. They were both what eachother needed to help get them through their grief and loneliness but Shane couldn’t help but still be stricken by guilt of taking comfort in the bed of that his new lover once shared with his no deceased brother. They were both at war with themselves on what was the right and wrong thing to do but had a hard time keeping away from eachother and struggled more being apart than when they were together. This was a touching and emotional read. I felt like the story and characters were both well written. At first I wasn’t sure if I would enjoy this kind of story with it being so soon after his brother’s death but I feel like the story was well done with super believable characters. We all grieve in our own way and that is exactly what these two characters did and they were able to that together instead of alone.