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kitherondales's review
5.0
I absolutely adored this book! It is soooo good, especially because it incorporates all of my fave tropes, from best friends falling in love to the jerky guy going soft for a man who has been through literal hell. Now I’ll admit that I wasn’t very fond of Dean at first but luckily there’s this thing called character development, and by the end of the book I had deemed Dean as my precious baby boy who was to be lavished with love forever and ever.
Dean was a character that was very flawed and human, but he was a good man with a good heart at his core. He was the epitome of the dude bro that couldn’t stop fucking up but he ultimately matures thanks to the way Jason sees him for the beautiful person he truly is inside. And while there are a few m/f sex scenes, I implore you not to be put off by them. They are scarce and they are important to Dean’s evolution, meaning that they are not just gratuitous and meaningless in the grand scheme of things; Dean did not realize exactly how much he loved Jason until he discovered that he could no longer desire another person, male or female, the way that he desired Jason, and he would not have been able to admit that he loved Jason had it not been for his past sexual encounters with women. His best friend had ALWAYS owned his heart but he had been too afraid to allow himself to feel that so he tried to erase it. In the end he came to understand that what he had with Jason ran deeper than any other relationship in his life and Jason was more precious to him than the whole world.
The friendship between Dean and Jason made their romantic relationship all the more sweeter. The two literally grew up together and Dean’s family loved Jason more than his own religious cunt of a mother ever could. I have already mentioned how flawed Dean was but let me assure you that Jason was not perfect either. He was a deeply damaged person suffering from a brutal childhood that left him with feelings of worthlessness and the belief that he deserved to be punished for the sexual abuse he had endured when he was a young boy. And I can’t tell you how upset it makes me to see other reviewers here calling Jason a push over for being afflicted with a serious case of PTSD. Yes, he allowed himself to be hurt because he CRAVED pain in the hopes that it would help him atone for the sins he was told by his abuser that he committed, but he was anything but weak; in my opinion he was the strongest character in the book because he was a survivor who had the courage to speak up and demand he be heard by those around him, that wanted to turn a blind eye to the horror he had to go through when he was just a kid.
It was heartwarming to witness Jason overcome his difficult past with Dean by his side, always supporting him and loving him even when Jason’s mental health issues caused him to behave in ways that hurt Dean. Their love for one another made their lives better and that is exactly what love should do. So if you’re looking for a novel with some heavy hurt/comfort, two characters that are imperfect but REAL, a love story that will hit all your buttons if you are a fan of the best friends to lovers trope or the gay for you trope, and the sappiest most squee worthy HEA I’ve ever had the pleasure of reading then this is a book you’ll want to check out :)
Dean was a character that was very flawed and human, but he was a good man with a good heart at his core. He was the epitome of the dude bro that couldn’t stop fucking up but he ultimately matures thanks to the way Jason sees him for the beautiful person he truly is inside. And while there are a few m/f sex scenes, I implore you not to be put off by them. They are scarce and they are important to Dean’s evolution, meaning that they are not just gratuitous and meaningless in the grand scheme of things; Dean did not realize exactly how much he loved Jason until he discovered that he could no longer desire another person, male or female, the way that he desired Jason, and he would not have been able to admit that he loved Jason had it not been for his past sexual encounters with women. His best friend had ALWAYS owned his heart but he had been too afraid to allow himself to feel that so he tried to erase it. In the end he came to understand that what he had with Jason ran deeper than any other relationship in his life and Jason was more precious to him than the whole world.
The friendship between Dean and Jason made their romantic relationship all the more sweeter. The two literally grew up together and Dean’s family loved Jason more than his own religious cunt of a mother ever could. I have already mentioned how flawed Dean was but let me assure you that Jason was not perfect either. He was a deeply damaged person suffering from a brutal childhood that left him with feelings of worthlessness and the belief that he deserved to be punished for the sexual abuse he had endured when he was a young boy. And I can’t tell you how upset it makes me to see other reviewers here calling Jason a push over for being afflicted with a serious case of PTSD. Yes, he allowed himself to be hurt because he CRAVED pain in the hopes that it would help him atone for the sins he was told by his abuser that he committed, but he was anything but weak; in my opinion he was the strongest character in the book because he was a survivor who had the courage to speak up and demand he be heard by those around him, that wanted to turn a blind eye to the horror he had to go through when he was just a kid.
It was heartwarming to witness Jason overcome his difficult past with Dean by his side, always supporting him and loving him even when Jason’s mental health issues caused him to behave in ways that hurt Dean. Their love for one another made their lives better and that is exactly what love should do. So if you’re looking for a novel with some heavy hurt/comfort, two characters that are imperfect but REAL, a love story that will hit all your buttons if you are a fan of the best friends to lovers trope or the gay for you trope, and the sappiest most squee worthy HEA I’ve ever had the pleasure of reading then this is a book you’ll want to check out :)
kerithesmutslut's review
4.0
I’m conflicted. I couldn’t stop reading this book, and yet there was so many aspects of this book that I was just not ok with.
There are extreme trigger warnings for sexual abuse and cheating in this book.
I hated how both of the main characters thought if they were something other than straight that meant they weren’t “real men”
I hated how Dean treated JJ for the first 50% of this book, but I could understand some of his reasoning.
I however couldn’t get past JJ cheating on Dean because he assumed he would be left behind. I’m just not okay with what happened.
I loved the ending, and how supportive Dean became.
The sex scene were incredibly hot.
However I can’t get past the cheating. It literally enraged me. Also JJ didn’t really confess exactly how far he took things. Sure he was under the influence of drugs, but he allowed that crap, and he took it way to far with Ramon. Ugh.
There are extreme trigger warnings for sexual abuse and cheating in this book.
I hated how both of the main characters thought if they were something other than straight that meant they weren’t “real men”
I hated how Dean treated JJ for the first 50% of this book, but I could understand some of his reasoning.
I however couldn’t get past JJ cheating on Dean because he assumed he would be left behind. I’m just not okay with what happened.
I loved the ending, and how supportive Dean became.
The sex scene were incredibly hot.
However I can’t get past the cheating. It literally enraged me. Also JJ didn’t really confess exactly how far he took things. Sure he was under the influence of drugs, but he allowed that crap, and he took it way to far with Ramon. Ugh.
drez80's review against another edition
1.0
Dean was a ginormous a-hole, and Jason was a doormat. Dean was supposed to be Jason's best friend, but he made Jason's being gay/coming out all about him and how HE was trying to deal with it. Then using Jason for sex? I get that Dean had trouble admitting to himself and/or even recognizing that he was gay or bi or whatever he wants to call himself, not sure he ever decided in the book. Being confused does not make his behavior towards his supposed best friend ok. His awful treatment of Jason was unforgivable to me, and I hate that Jason allowed himself to be used and abused by Dean. And Jason's childish behavior, running off to his ex-friend with benefits because of his own assumption that Dean was getting back with his ex-gf really pissed me off. I know Jason was going through a hard time with the priest lawsuit, and Dean didn't necessarily handle the ex-gf situation in the best way, but running off, taking drugs and putting yourself in a dangerous situation where God only knows what could happen? Just ridiculous and beyond stupid. And in the back of the book, there was a sample of Ramon's story. I could NEVER read his story or root for him after he gave Jason drugs, took him to a sex club and ditched him, knowing Jason was having a bad reaction, putting himself in a situation to be raped or worse when he clearly wasn't of the mind to truly understand and consent. I'll have to pass on that one!
itsnotoveryet's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
raynebair's review against another edition
3.0
I give this three stars because the narration is good. I really enjoyed listening to this. But I hated Dean. He was a hypocritical asshole throughout most of the book, but somewhat redeemed himself by being there and supporting Jason when he needed it most.
mdee's review against another edition
1.0
Had to force myself to finish this because a lot of it was so problematic and cringeworthy. Slightly improved near the end, but not enough for me to care.
tinkcourtney's review against another edition
4.0
Blazingly hot!
Though this book dealt with childhood abuse and the fallout from it, it was also a friends-to-lovers story with scorching chemistry between JJ and Dean. My minor frustrations with it include how long Dean denied being gay or bi, and a bit of cheating and other bad choices during a moment of misunderstanding. However, overall I felt a very real connection between the main characters, and it was sweet to watch their relationship grow. I'll definitely be on the lookout for future books from this author.
Though this book dealt with childhood abuse and the fallout from it, it was also a friends-to-lovers story with scorching chemistry between JJ and Dean. My minor frustrations with it include how long Dean denied being gay or bi, and a bit of cheating and other bad choices during a moment of misunderstanding. However, overall I felt a very real connection between the main characters, and it was sweet to watch their relationship grow. I'll definitely be on the lookout for future books from this author.
vickyramirezy's review against another edition
1.0
Dreadful. Terrible. Godawful.
I was literally crying for the last like 30 min (at 2.3x speed). It was so loooooooooong
I was literally crying for the last like 30 min (at 2.3x speed). It was so loooooooooong
caseroo7's review against another edition
2.0
Find this review and more at Ramblings From This Chick
I love friends to lovers romance stories and I was really excited to read Unforgiven by Ruth Clampett. I especially love this trope in M/M romance books, and Jason and Dean's story was one that I really thought was going to be a home run for me. Unfortunately I had too many issues to love this one, and I am unsure at this point if I would read more from this author.
Dean and Jason have been best friends since childhood, following their dreams of opening up their own architecture firm by going to the same college and joining the same program. As roommates though, everything changes when Dean sees Jason with another guy. Jason has secretly wanted Dean for years, but has been forced to watch him go through countless women. When things suddenly start to heat up between them though, both struggle with what it means for their friendship and their future.
One of my biggest issues here was the fact that Dean was almost impossible to like for the majority of this book. He was an absolute homophobic jerk, making so many comments that were beyond acceptable that I didn't know that he could ever recover from them. Jason was often times a complete doormat that it made him hard to like as well. While these two clearly had a connection and chemistry, I just couldn't get beyond those things. Seriously it was shocking the thoughts and words that Dean had.
I also have to say that for a M/M story this book had a shocking amount of M/F action, and that really just didn't work for me. While I enjoy M/F books as well as M/M, I felt like it really hurt my opinion of this one right from the start and that along with the character issues here were enough to kill this story for me. If those things weren't enough though, there was a huge communication problem that led to cheating and it was all just brushed to the side and wasn't dealt with as though it was okay. That was the final nail in the coffin on this one for me. If you are looking for an asshole hero that makes a ton of homophobic remarks and is the least supportive friend ever when it comes to his best friend and future boyfriend coming out as well as some giant communication issues that lead to cheating then this one might be for you. However, I can't recommend this one based on everything that I had problems with here.
I love friends to lovers romance stories and I was really excited to read Unforgiven by Ruth Clampett. I especially love this trope in M/M romance books, and Jason and Dean's story was one that I really thought was going to be a home run for me. Unfortunately I had too many issues to love this one, and I am unsure at this point if I would read more from this author.
Dean and Jason have been best friends since childhood, following their dreams of opening up their own architecture firm by going to the same college and joining the same program. As roommates though, everything changes when Dean sees Jason with another guy. Jason has secretly wanted Dean for years, but has been forced to watch him go through countless women. When things suddenly start to heat up between them though, both struggle with what it means for their friendship and their future.
One of my biggest issues here was the fact that Dean was almost impossible to like for the majority of this book. He was an absolute homophobic jerk, making so many comments that were beyond acceptable that I didn't know that he could ever recover from them. Jason was often times a complete doormat that it made him hard to like as well. While these two clearly had a connection and chemistry, I just couldn't get beyond those things. Seriously it was shocking the thoughts and words that Dean had.
I also have to say that for a M/M story this book had a shocking amount of M/F action, and that really just didn't work for me. While I enjoy M/F books as well as M/M, I felt like it really hurt my opinion of this one right from the start and that along with the character issues here were enough to kill this story for me. If those things weren't enough though, there was a huge communication problem that led to cheating and it was all just brushed to the side and wasn't dealt with as though it was okay. That was the final nail in the coffin on this one for me. If you are looking for an asshole hero that makes a ton of homophobic remarks and is the least supportive friend ever when it comes to his best friend and future boyfriend coming out as well as some giant communication issues that lead to cheating then this one might be for you. However, I can't recommend this one based on everything that I had problems with here.
ntdan's review
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
informative
inspiring
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5