It's all crazy - but SO good!

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4.5 Stars

I love Mary Calmes. Like a total hetero, non-stalking, would totally try to refrain from making crazy eyes at her if we ever met LOVE.

I think this love is no better proven than with my absolute and total enjoyment of this story. Because the characters in this book? They all be batsh*t cray-cray boo. Seriously. Looney toons bonkersville.

I love it! Such is my love and total admiration for Mary Calmes' writing. Because very few writers can take such possessive craziness and such complex characters and...completely and totally make it work. Trevan and Landry need each other. To live, to breathe, to...be.

"Our relationship was a twisted, codependent mess, but it worked for us, and within the snarl that it was, we functioned pretty well."

Caleb Dickinson perfectly narrates all the characters. He does an especially brilliant job with both the subtle nuances of possessiveness and jealousy and the more overt devotion, fidelity and LOVE that Trevan and Landry feel for each other. He captures Trevan's strength, Landry's manic highs, aggressiveness and submissiveness, and the not-so-subtle true scariness of Trevan's friend Conrad "Connie" Harris (who happens to be a contract killer), along with all the other characters without ever once going over the top or campy.

I absolutely loved Dickinson's narration. This story grabs you by the throat and doesn't let go until the very last word. If you are a fan of possessive alpha males and great narration - I must recommend you grab this up with both greedy little hands as soon as possible.

And can I just make an aside here? I really, really want a story centering around Connie.

HIGHLY RECOMMENDED!

7 people found this helpful

Intense and Wonderful

Landry and Trevan meet at a party. Landry is used to being used and gives himself away. He was kicked out for being gay and moved far away to go to school and has been on his own since.

Trevan is a runner for a crime boss. He doesn’t kill or do anything more illegal than collecting debts, but he has to be tough. He’s got important contacts keeping him safe, but his life is far from simple. He wants to get out, open a restaurant and keep Landry safe and grounded.

Landry – with the help of Trevan – is an up and coming jewelry maker and artist. Without Trevan he is… lost.

Their relationship isn’t perfect. Both are ridiculously protective and possessive and jealous. But they love one another passionately. Together they fit. Together they work.

Apart… not so much.

Trouble starts up again when Landry’s long lost brother comes to town claiming his mother wants to see him because she has cancer. Nobody believes this story but they can’t say no. So they travel to Las Vegas since the timing is right and they need to get out of town anyway.

While in Vegas everything blows up. Trevan’s boss is killed. Landry is kidnapped. Landry’s family implodes and Trevan is offered a life he can’t refuse.

Finally, when the dust settles, it’s Landry and Trevan together again, and back on the path they’d been planning… forever.

**

This is one of Mary’s dark stories. She likes her share of angst (ie 3 years of separation for Jory and Sam – no- I can’t forget that!) but these guys are really perfectly flawed. They are intense. They are passionate. But they love one another and together they are beautiful.

The secondary character, Conrad (aka Terrance – we met him in Duncan and Aaron’s book Parting Shot) is awesome. So fierce, but on the edge, super-hero tough, but so tender. I’m hoping we’ll one day see him in his own story.

Caleb Dickinson – hand picked by Mary for the narration – does an amazing job with the voices. Trevan is awesome, just as I’d pictured he’d sound and Landry is as sweet as I’d hoped.

If you are a Mary fan you won’t want to miss this in audio format, the book is wonderful and the audio only adds to the enjoyment.

I highly recommend this for fans of “broken MCs” and to all of Mary’s loyal subjects.

5 of 5 stars

6 people found this helpful

Incredible

I read Mine when it came out a couple years back and jumped at the chance to review the audio when it became available. Unfortunately, I stopped listening to audio for a bit and this one got pushed back. I wish that hadn’t happened because I adored it this time almost as much as I did when I read it.

Mine is another great story by Mary Calmes with unique characters thrown into a situation they aren’t able to control.

Here we have Trevan Bean and his boyfriend Landry Carter. I enjoy love stories where we get to see the men fall in love but having a story where the couple is already established and face adversity together can be even more enjoyable.

Trevan has a dangerous job working for criminals and Landry has some emotional issues. I loved how well the men knew each other and how Trevan dealt with Landy when he has a fit. At first I was kind of annoyed by Landry and his immature attitude, but by the end of the story I understood why he had the issues he had.

Even though it’s Trevan who works with criminals, it’s Landry’s family that cause problems. Landry’s brother shows up and convinces Landry to come home for a visit. The reunion is bittersweet because Landry’s family is standoffish and cold compared to Trevan’s warm clan.

The danger felt real here and I liked that Trevan couldn’t do anything but sit back and wait for the police to handle it. It wouldn’t have been realistic for him to get more involved in the investigation.

Another great story by one of the best authors in the genre.

Narration Review:

I’ve never listened to anything narrated by Caleb Dickinson before and it appears he only has four narration credits on Audible so far. I’ve heard better but I’ve also heard far worse. He was pretty good and nailed Trevan’s voice. However, at times Landry came off as whiny and unlikable, which added to my annoyance with the character.

I liked the other narrators used in Calmes’ books better than Dickinson, namely Sean Crisden, Greg Tremblay and Tristan James, but that doesn’t mean Dickinson isn’t a great narrator. I think he’ll only improve from here and won’t hesitate to listen to him again.

2 people found this helpful

Crazy as bat doo...every single one of them...

Any additional comments?

and I loved it! Made me feel "normal" and that's a stretch. I was pleased at how the author made a story out of all the crazy. Not for the faint of heart.

2 people found this helpful

Love

I really enjoyed this book! I loved how the couple was already established and it wove their story into it. I love that the characters weren't perfect but perfect for each other. She did a great job with this book!

2 people found this helpful

Excellent narration! Will definitely re-listen!

Not your typical Mary Calmes story where the MC's are usually on the right side of the law but I liked it because the pretty boy-possessive alpha male romance was still very evident. But what really brought this story home was the fantastic narration. I'm definitely adding Mr Dickinson to my list of favorite narrators.

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FINALLLLLYYYY!!!

I have been waiting for this book since I read it to come on to audible. I wish there was a second one but all in all a great book.

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Amazing

Mary Calmes has done it again!! I loved it! I was so on edge when landry was kidnapped. The amount of love they have for each other is amazing.

1 person found this helpful

Hot, Needy and a Runner

Trevan Bean is man who knows what he wants and he wants Landry Carter. Trevan is a dominate man who is set in his ways. Landry needs structure and a hand to hold. This story tells how they got together and how they make it work with twist and turns all along the way. Join them on this journey of running a business, reuniting with family, kidnapping and dreams coming true of owning your own restaurant.

Narrator: Caleb Dickenson
I really enjoyed his deep voice and his narrating style. Rough and lighthearted.

Narrator Wasn't for Me

I believe the writer did a wonderful job of setting up the plot lines and relationships in the story. This is a complex bit of work. I will also admit I really didn’t like the first half or so. Laurent was just unlikeable and yet the story seems to be set up to push him and Damen together. O_o Yeah….I couldn’t see that. I’m starting to glimpse that there is more going on with Laurent than appears. I really don’t believe that Laurent is that cold and cruel. I will have to read the next book to find out if I’m right about that. Damen seems convinced by everyone’s surface appearance yet that is what got him in trouble before!

The characters are well crafted. I could see the slow development of Laurent as a person in the story. Damen, as the story’s point of view, was a bit easier. He did fill out more and grow as the story continues. I am beginning to glimpse how these two men could fit together. This shows a true talent for storytelling in the author.
The book can be really detailed with parts of the story and not so much in others. Most of the sex/rape scenes are skimmed over which is good. I must admit the author did a good job in detailing this world and its people, bringing this world to life.

Overall it was a bit of a heavy book. I will say in parts I was just glad to get through. Yet I did enjoy the book and believe that these parts I had trouble with also set up for everything else in the story to come. The book is the foundation for the rest of the series. I just think some readers will be turned off by the detail and length in which not much seems to happen. It can get a bit dry but if the reader pushes through I believe they will enjoy the last half of the book more. The action starts to pick up and we start seeing little cracks in how the world is perceived by Damen. How, Damen, may be wrong about a lot of what he believes. Excellent writing and overall solid read.

Re-read: I actually did the "reading" via audio. I still believe in how I reviewed this as an overall story. I will add to it that the audio wasn't as good as I had hoped. The narrator's voices for each character weren't always the easiest to tell apart and so it made it difficult to always know who was speaking. I (personally) also thought the "dryness" of the narrator's voice didn't sit well with me. I was left kinda bored where I wasn't with the ebook.