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Blink

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Blink

By: Rick R. Reed
Narrated by: Brian Stoddard
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About this listen

Life can change in the blink of an eye.

That's a truth Andy Slater learns as a young man in 1982, taking the Chicago "L" to work every morning. Andy's life is laid out before him: a good job, marriage to his female college sweetheart, and the white picket fence existence he believes in. But when he sees Carlos Castillo for the first time, Carlos’ dark eyes and Latin appeal mesmerize him. Fate continues to throw them together until the two finally agree to meet up. At Andy’s apartment, the pent-up passion of both young men is ignited, but is snuffed out by an inopportune and poorly-timed phone call.

Flash forward to present day. Andy is alone, having married, divorced, and become the father of a gay son. He’s comfortable but alone, and has never forgotten the powerful pull of Carlos’ gaze on the "L" train. He vows to find him once more, hoping for a second chance.

If life can change in the blink of an eye, what will the passage of 30 years do? To find out, Andy begins a search that might lead to heartache and disappointment or a love that will last forever....

©2019 Rick R. Reed (P)2022 Rick R. Reed City Life Fiction Genre Fiction Literature & Fiction Romance Urban Heartfelt

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All stars
Most relevant

Listener received this title free

This is a lovely second chance romance for Andy and Carlos. They met as young men and though there was an instant connection, it was sort of wrong place, wrong time in their lives and both have moved on - sort of. Thank goodness this isn't a story where both their lives were bleak and full of regret. They've lived, loved and succeeded in life but, when they meet again they have a wonderful opportunity for that second chance now as older, mature men who know what they want and how to get it. Brian Stoddard does a magnificent job with letting us feel the emotions and the aging process for these two.

Beautiful story and performance

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Listener received this title free

Beautifully presented story of 2 young men meeting on the L train, back in 1982. 1 about to be married and 1 gay, a close encounter that sticks in their mind, 30 odd years later they meet at a party and then catch up together ❤. Narration was perfect

Carlos and Andy

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Listener received this title free

I feel this is a heartbreaking and heartwarming story. It is broken into two parts. The guys as younger men and then years later. The younger part is heartbreaking. Andy is living a life as expected. He knows something isn’t what it should be as he is getting closer to his wedding. Andy meets Carlos and an event does not go as planned and the two go their own way.
Later Andy is divorced and mourning the dying of his partner. He is having a hard time letting go of him. He has a gay son and while going to a house party with his son he again meets Carlos and things get tense.
I feel this story touched on so many different issues and the author handled each well. I liked that Andy never regretted any of the life he had lived. I enjoyed the narration by Brian Stoddard. I feel he gave personality to the characters and events.

Stages of life

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Listener received this title free

Exactly the kind of thoughtful, and emotional writing I hope for in a Rick R. Reed novel, and he delivers it beautifully in Blink. Andy's journey, as he discovers himself, and works his way through life, is poignant and very moving.

This story truly resonated with me, as it is somewhat similar to my own. And I can relate to Carlos, to whom a cell phone isn't second nature! Ah, those those simpler times...

Don't worry though, even if you're not in your mid-50's, Blink will still deliver a punch. This is such an important time in our history, and Andy and his generation are the pioneers we need to honor and remember.

I listened to Blink in audio, and I enjoyed Brian Stoddard's rich, mellow voice. Five stars for the story, and three stars for the audio performance.

an audiobook copy of Blink was provided to me for the purpose of my honest review, all opinions are my own

A Poignant and Emotional Story

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Listener received this title free

I admit to going in blind to the book – just open to new possibilities. I’d read a previous book by this author so figured I had a good chance of enjoying this one. Boy, did I ever. Even from the non-traditional start – hello 1982 – to the interesting culmination – hello 2012 – this book had me enraptured.

I loved Andy. He’s got his life planned out – marriage, baby, white picket fence. He doesn’t count on meeting a stranger on the “L”. Now, this book is quintessential Chicago. I only understood one or two of the references, but I felt immersed in the culture. I love when a book does that – takes me to a different place.

Anyway, Andy meets Carlos. At first, it’s just glances and shy smiles. Eventually he gets bolder and eventually the men speak. They make plans, but when the time comes, Andy receives a phone call that brings him back down to earth. He’s committed to marrying a woman – everyone expects this of him. He lets Carlos go in the most painful of ways and the men move on with their lives.

Fast forward a whole bunch of years. Andy’s divorced, has a gay son – Tate – and can’t stop thinking about that missed connection of sorts. His best female friend encourages him to find Carlos. After all, Andy’s had a couple of relationships with men, but none have lasted. He hasn’t met Mr. Right.

Carlos has changed jobs. Along the way, he met someone. He’s had a good life and, truthfully, hasn’t spent any time dwelling on what could’ve been with that guy. When Andy comes back into his life, it’s unexpected.

I won’t give more away. Of course I was rooting for the men, and wanted them to have their happily ever after. But thirty years is a long time. I loved the epilogue.

I will mention Brian Stoddard. He narrated the other Rick R. Reed which I enjoyed and he did a good job with this one. My only complaint – and it’s minor – is that there wasn’t a huge differentiation in the voices of the two main characters. Sometimes I struggled to remember whose POV I was in. Like I said, minor issue. Nothing that detracted from my enjoyment of the great love story.

Fantastic listen

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