A Second Harvest by Eli Easton

Eli Easton - A Second HarvestTitle: A Second Harvest

Series: Men of Lancaster County #1

Author: Eli Easton

Genre: Contemporary

Length: Novel (206 pages)

Publisher: Dreamspinner Press (July 1st 2016)

Heat Level: Moderate

Heart Rating: 4.5 Hearts

Blurb: David Fisher has lived by the rules all his life. Born to a Mennonite family, he obeyed his father and took over the family farm, married, and had two children. Now with both his kids in college and his wife deceased, he runs his farm alone and without joy, counting off the days of a life half-lived.

Christie Landon, graphic designer, Manhattanite, and fierce gay party boy, needs a change. Now thirty, he figures it’s time to grow up and think about his future. When his best friend overdoses, Christie resolves to take a break from the city. He heads to a small house in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, to rest, recoup, and reflect.

But life in the country is boring despite glimpses of the hunky silver fox next door. When Christie’s creativity latches on to cooking, he decides to approach his widower neighbor with a plan to share meals and grocery expenses. David agrees, and soon the odd couple finds they really enjoy spending time together.

Christie challenges the boundaries of David’s closed world and brings out feelings he buried long ago. If he can break free of the past, he might find a second chance at happiness.

ISBN: 9781634774048

Product Link: https://www.dreamspinnerpress.com/books/a-second-harvest-by-eli-easton-7193-b

Reviewer: Aerin

Review: First thing I need to say is… thank fuck there are only TWO points of view in this book, and they belong to the main characters! I was getting worried there for a while since Eli seemed to give us multiple POVs that weren’t wanted and didn’t belong in these fantastic books; I probably shouldn’t be so excited about this, but A Second Harvest is a religious-heavy book and one of the secondary characters is a nut for a while, so imagining his POV made me shudder. David Fisher is a 41 year old widower who lost his wife over 2 years ago. David is a Mennonite, a religion that sounds very similar to the Amish, from the way of life, to the religious beliefs (although I don’t know much about different religions since I’m not a religious person myself). David is a farmer who’s spending his days and nights alone on his farm; he isn’t interested in finding another wife, no matter how much his children Amy and Joe would like to see him remarried. David is content if not happy, and doesn’t think his life needs any changes.

Too much partying and almost losing his best friend to ODing has taught Christie Landon a lesson: it’s time to take a step back and re-evaluate everything, because life is short and Christie realized he has nothing to show for his 30 years other than a lot of partying and slutting around. Inheriting his aunt’s house in a little town in PA came at the perfect time, and it gives Christie the opportunity to remove himself from New York and all its temptations.

Christie and David are so different, it was hard for me to see what they could have in common. Christie is out and proud while David is just now admitting to himself he might be gay; Christie slept with half of New York while David only ever had sex with his wife; Christie is young and in his prime, while David is middle aged and stuck in a life and community that doesn’t give him much chance to be himself. But as they start hanging out and having dinner together, David and Christie have those things every successful relationship does: admiration, respect, and a good dose of attraction.  

Once David accepts that he is gay and decides he wants Christie to be part of his life, there is no second guessing. He is ready to face anything, do anything, ANYTHING at all to keep feeling this happiness and joy, because Christie makes him feel right, happy, HIMSELF for the first time in his 41 years. Joe (David’s son) was a real bastard for a while, and there’s nothing I want more than for him to get his own book, because I’m a vindictive bitch. Joe becoming a big cock slut would be my dream come true!

This book is a little heavy like all religious books are, but it isn’t overly angsty. Best part of all, we didn’t have to listen to any full sermon on homosexuality and yada yada, blah blah. When the community didn’t accept David for who he was, he removed himself from the situation and was an active participant in finding his HEA. I wish that whole part wasn’t blacked out and that we got to see how everything went down, but I’m not going to grumble too much about it. Because that HEA is so real and tentative, it’s absolutely beautiful. David and Christie are doing great and are happy together, and David is working on fixing his relationship with Amy and Joe.

This book was great, I truly enjoyed every single page! Recommended!