Bitter Taffy by Amy Lane ~ Audio Review

Amy Lane - Bitter Taffy 3d Audio Cover p02f3

Amy Lane - Bitter Taffy Audio Cover 9230klTitle: Bitter Taffy

Series: Candy Man 02

Author: Amy Lane

Narrator: Philip Alces

Genre: Contemporary

Length: 6 hrs, 48 mins

Publisher: Dreamspinner Press LLC (9th November 2015)

Heat Level: Moderate

Heart Rating: 💖💖💖💖💖 5 Hearts

Reviewer: Prime

Blurb: Rico Gonzalves-Macias didn’t expect to fall in love during his internship in New York – and he didn’t expect the boss’ son to out them both and get him fired either. When he returns to Sac-ramento stunned and heartbroken, he finds his cousin, Adam, and Adam’s boyfriend, Finn, haven’t just been house-sitting – they’ve made his once sterile apartment into a home.

When Adam gets him a job interview with the adorable, magnetic, practically perfect Derek Hus-ton, Rico feels especially out of his depth. Derek makes it no secret that he wants Rico, but Rico is just starting to figure out that he’s a beginner at the really important stuff and doesn’t want to jump into anything with both feet.

Derek is a both-feet kind of guy. But he’s also made mistakes of his own and doesn’t want to pressure Rico into anything. Together, they work to find a compromise between instant attrac-tion and long-lasting love, and while they’re working, Rico gets a primer in why family isn’t al-ways a bad idea. He needs to believe Derek can be his family before Derek’s formidable pa-tience runs out – because even a practically perfect boyfriend is capable of being hurt.

Purchase Link: Audible US | Audible UK | Amazon US | Amazon UK

Review: Bitter Taffy is the second book in Amy Lane’s Candy Man series. I’ve have come to enjoy some of Lane’s books and this book is no exception. I find the writing style is really accessible, in that it is well written and very expressive without too much complicated language, so it’s easy to relax and read or listen to the book. The narration was performed by Philip Alces, who narrates the full series. Alces has a soft and gentle voice that matches the sweetness of the plot and conveys the variety of emotions that tumble through the MCs. It was a wonderful performance and completely on point.

Candy Man has a really cute premise. It’s about this almost hippy-like guy, Darren, who runs a boutique candy store in Old Sacramento and just so happens to have psychic visions about the people that he needs to help, i.e. people that are down on their luck and may not be looking for love but are gonna get it anyway. Really cool.

I dimly remember once reading book 3 in this series without going back to the start.

Bitter Taffy features Rico Gonzalves-Macias and Derek Huston. Both characters popped up in book one with a connection to Adam. Rico being the only family member of Adam, who kicks off the stories within this little world, and Derek both hit on Adam and commissioned some art work off of him. Between Darren, Candy Heaven owner, and Adam, they are the main connections between a majority of the characters that we meet throughout the series.

Rico is forced to leave New York when the man that he fell in love with didn’t stand up for him, which meant that Rico lost his internship after only four months, because that guy was the boss’s son. Rico feels a little like a stranger in his own home, with his cousin, Adam, and Adam’s boyfriend Finn, living in his apartment while he had been away, the two men had made it more homey in a couple months than he ever did in six years. Even his dog, Clopper, seemed to now belong to Adam. With the loss of his internship, Rico is at a loose end but doesn’t want Adam to do him a favour to help him get a job.

All that changes when he meets Derek. Derek Huston is a little older and owns his own company that acts to contract out various people, like Rico who does advertising, to smaller businesses who wouldn’t normally afford a firm to do the same thing. Derek is instantly attracted to Rico. He wants to give him and job and a whole lot more. However, Derek respects Rico’s heartbreak and he is committed to waiting patiently for the man to be ready. The guys take it slowly, getting to know each other while Rico mends. This makes for some great chemistry and sexual tension; it also makes their romance relatable and believable.

An awesome second book to the Candy Man series, now for the next one!