Rating: 3.5
Steam: 3
PoV: dual, 1st person
Series: Totally Pucked #2
Genre: contemporary romance, MM
Tropes / tags: love after loss, single dad, hurt / comfort
Kindness is my kryptonite, and this man has it in spades.
The Legend Next Door was a sweet and low angst read with characters that were just so gone for each other!
I hate to say it but I was a little conflicted about this one; it was a beautiful and well written story, but I just had a bit of a hard time with how things developed between Ben and Jeremiah. The first part of their book had me instantly hooked – it was easy to get intrigued by Ben and his sunshiny neighbour Jeremiah. I loved the easy connection between them and seeing them getting to know each other.
Ben was an amazing character, and I liked how Jesse H Reign portrayed his grief. The notes Ben wrote to Liz were both sad, sweet and funny, and I liked what they added to the story. The healing after loss theme was strong here and the friendship with Jeremiah was great for both Ben and his son Luca.
It was a low angst story with a slow burn, and for most part the flirting was pretty one-sided. I couldn’t help but feel like Ben’s sexual discovery needed more space and acknowledgment, it just felt like it came out of nowhere. Once things heated up between them they went from zero to hundred, with some kink thrown in. I didn’t see that one coming, and I think they should have discussed their attraction to each other and dynamic at some point.
The Legend Next Door was a very sweet read, and while there were parts I loved, the story lost me a little in the second half. I loved how the epilogue gave the perfect conclusion to Ben’s hockey career though, and it was overall a heartfelt conclusion to the story.
Ben touches my neck again. This time, it’s harder, and this time, there’s nothing uncertain about it. He nods, eyes still on my mouth, lips slightly ajar as he breathes, “I know what I want, Jeremiah.”
“Then take it,” I whisper.
Book links:
Amazon | Goodreads | BookBub | StoryGraph
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