Practice Makes Perfect

Practice Makes Perfect, Housemates 3

My Favorite in the housemates series....
You can read/listen to this one as a standalone, but you will be seeing some of the characters from previous books so you might want to just start at the beginning since the first two books are great too.
This one is funny and cute and deliciously sexy. Dev is sweet and awkward and shy, kind of geeky and totally innocent. He likes to make To-Do Lists for everything, even when deciding what Sexual things he would like to learn about and do. lol. And once Ewan finds out how inexperienced Dev is he comes up with the excuse that he needs help studying math just to help Dev mark items off that sexy to-do list. I think this book was even better once you listen in Audio too, I was Laughing and Blushing right along with Dev and Ewan during Mark Stedman's narration of this book. I really liked his accent used for Ewan's voice since it was so different from all the others so far, I think it gave the audio a little extra that was needed for this book. It was really fun to listen to and will be one I come back to listen to again.

Hot New Adult Romance

Jay Northcote's words are a perfect match with Mark Steadman's narration. Great story that features friends with benefits to more.

great book in this series i love!

What made the experience of listening to Practice Makes Perfect the most enjoyable?

everything about it really.

What was one of the most memorable moments of Practice Makes Perfect?

the respect between them, its a hookup or a fling but they are still so honest and there is no big drama.

What about Mark Steadman’s performance did you like?

the narrator what very good, loved is accent and the way he differentiated each character. He was sometime a bit flat, especially in sex scenes when I would have liked more emotion or feeling in his voice.

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

yes!!!

Any additional comments?

i really like Jay Nortcote's books, maybe because he is a trans man he can add another dimension of masculinity. I know it sounds odd but I feel like he really pays attention to things other books don’t. It's a nice read with a HEA from an author who brings a new edge to LGBT M/M romance, in my opinion anyway, and I loved it A LOT.I liked the fact the fast way the Dev and Ewan together was so believable even though it was fast and out of the blue. Dev is so cute and the way they explore each other is lovely, respectful while still sexy and romantic. I haven't read the other book in this series but now I will definitely read them, especially the newest one about a transgender man starting over and learning how to live as a man while transitioning. I think it's so important to have these voices and characters that are not mainstream but still in a romantic HEA setting.

Housemates and hot neighbours

What did you love best about Practice Makes Perfect?

I'm a sucker for Ewan's accent as he teaches Dev from the house how to...well... all the ins and outs of gay sex! Jay's third tale in this series is a cute addition. Jez and Mac are still together from the first book, and Josh & Rupert from the second book are the ones who help Dev move into the house after a semester from hell in the halls of residence.
Sweet little Dev was targeted by homophobic bullies, forcing him to look elsewhere for sanctuary.

What other book might you compare Practice Makes Perfect to and why?

If you enjoyed this, look for the other Housemates books.

Practice Makes Perfect

Any additional comments?

*Audible code provided to Bayou Book Junkie by the author for my listening pleasure in hopes of an unbiased opinion, a review was not a requirement.*

Practice Makes Perfect is Book 3 in Jay Northcote's Housemates series. These books can be read on their own, but there are reoccurring characters and I think it would be more enjoyable to know all their stories as well!

Dev is a geeky virgin who lives by lists. He's moved into a shared residence after a bad incident in the dorm he lived in and is looking to change his virgin status. He's created a list to help, join a hook-up app in hopes of getting experience, try everything he can, get a boyfriend. It seems simple enough in his mind until he joins the hook-up app and is getting unexpected messages. Dev's new neighbor notices him on the app, and Ewan decides to talk to Dev about it despite the awkward first meeting they had. When Ewan goes to see Dev, instead he finds himself volunteering to teach Dev everything he wants to know in exchange for help with one of his classes. Both men decide to have a friends with benefits arrangement to work through Dev's list, but didn't expect the attraction they would actually feel.

This was a funny, awkward, sweet story of discovery with little angst. Dev was exactly what one expects of a young, smart, geeky boy and underneath that was a very sexual being looking to escape. Ewan was sweet and unexpectedly protective of Dev. This book was full of discovery between two college boys, who found more than they were looking for. As you can imagine, a story full of firsts was hot and steamy.

The narrator of this story is Mark Steadman and this was the first time I've listened to a narration by him. I enjoyed listening to him and found his voice to be very soothing. So soothing in fact, that sometimes I had to go back in the story to relisten because I would zone out and just listen to the narrator's voice and not focus on the words he was saying! He had a good pace, flow, and was able to provide recognizable different voices for characters.

Overall: 4.5 stars
Performance: 5 stars
Story: 4.5 stars

The ginger and the geek!

This was a quick listen and I didn’t want to stop once I started! Mark Steadman’s vocal performance was really good. He floated into the Scottish brogue seamlessly and had clearly distinctive voices for each character. He brought the emotions of the book to life!

I loved these characters! Dev the shy, nerdy virgin and Ewan the more experienced, more confident, not as studious neighbor (and a ginger to boot!) were the perfect balance for each other. These two were adorable together. They bumbled around each other a bit but when in a sexual haze held nothing back.

The story is a bit predictable but still good with not a lot of angst. I loved seeing Mac & Jez as well as Josh and Rupert from the previous books. They served as a great supporting cast in the story.

adorable New Adult romance - great series

4.5 stars
I received a free copy of this audiobook for my listening pleasure.

I love lists. Seriously. I live my life by lists and the happiness of checking of items of said lists. So the blurb of this book sold me when it first came out, and I loved it! And having a favourite come out in audio format is always great.

Dev is moving out of the dorms and into shared housing. College so far, has not been exactly what he had been dreaming of, and he hopes this will be a fresh start for him. And it seems like he might be right. Almost all of his new house mates are nice and friendly, two of the guy's in the house are a couple and the boy next door is an adorable Scotsman, with a big smile and a sexy accent.

Dev lives his life by lists. Short term goals and long term ones. His long term goals include making friends, learning to cook and joining Grindr to get some sexual experience, in order to get a boyfriend. What could go wrong?

Dev and Ewan are adorable and hot together and it was lovely to meet the couples from the two other books again. This is the third in the series, but can easily be read as a stand alone, if you wish. However, please do not cheat yourself out of the cuteness that are the two first books of this series.

The narrator Alan Steadmann does a good job as always with distinctive voices - we even got a bit of a Scottish lilt for Ewan - and re-enactment of emotions. I can warmly recommend this series in both book and audio book form.

I really loved this one...

Would you consider the audio edition of Practice Makes Perfect to be better than the print version?

I'm not sure if I'd say better but for me it was probably more enjoyable. The narrator just did a fabulous job with the accents and I love an English and/or Scottish accent and in this story I got both.

What did you like best about this story?

The humor it was cute and engaging and the things that happened were things that I could easily imagine happening in real life.

Which scene was your favorite?

There were several but the one that comes to mind was when a parcel from Amazon was delivered to Ewan by mistake and he opened it and then had to give it to Dev when he realized the mistake. Their conversation was priceless.

Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?

I'm not sure there was any one particular moment. Practice Makes Perfect was one of those books that engaged and enchanted me from the word go. I loved the characters and the flow of the story was excellent.

Any additional comments?

I would highly recommend this to anyone looking for a sweet, engaging feel good romance that's guaranteed to leave you smiling and wanting more.A copy of this audiobook was graciously provided by the author in exchange for an honest review.