Title: Echoes of Us
Author: Teegan Loy
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Length: Novel, 230 pages
Publisher: Dreamspinner Press (November 18th 2013)
Heat Level: Moderate
Heart Rating: ♥♥♥♥♥5Hearts
Blurb: Most people think falling in love is a wonderful thing. For Rylan Blake, love only complicates his life. After a disastrous trip home, Rylan and his best friend, Maggie, head back to Chicago to meet their new roommate, Jade Marin, and prepare for their final year of college.
Love is the last thing Rylan expects when he meets Jade. But as the two men get to know each other and discover their mutual love of music, friendship becomes more. They compose songs and, at Maggie’s urging, post their work on YouTube—where the videos go viral and a music producer discovers them.
But hitting it big isn’t always a good thing, especially when it comes with a price. When Rylan and Jade sign a deal with a big music company, they’re ordered to hide their relationship from the public and take fake girlfriends. At first, it’s a game, but as their fame grows, Rylan feels forced to choose: Does he stay and live a lie, or does he walk away from a life of fame—and from Jade?
Product Link: http://www.dreamspinnerpress.com/store/product_info.php?products_id=4372
Reviewer: Tams
Review: Love and money don’t always mix well.
Rylan Blake and his best friend and roommate, Maggie, return home from a disastrous trip to see Rylan’s family to meet their new roommate, Jade. Rylan is fresh off of a break up with their last roommate and coming out to his family, so his mood is understandably gloomy. Rylan promised Maggie after his last faux pas that he would keep his hands off the new roommate.
Jade Marin is fresh off of a break up with his girlfriend as well. He is oh so sexy and sweet and Rylan has a little trouble with his ‘hands off’ policy, so Jade makes the first move. The two become much more than friends and roommates very quickly, and bond over a shared love of music. When Maggie puts one of their songs on YouTube, it’s a huge success and the pair becomes insanely famous almost overnight.
But with fame and money come the good, the bad, and the ugly. In an attempt to keep up appearances, their new manager adds a girlfriend clause to their contract, and attaches them with a guard dog in the form of a homophobic driver. Thankfully, they make quick work of the driver, but Maggie and Rylan’s sister posing as their girlfriends ends up going too far. Maggie is getting hate mail from diehard fans, and Rylan’s sister is cracking under the pressure of standing up as Jade’s arm candy. All Rylan wants is to go back to the way things were, when Jade could sit next to him on the couch writing music and link their ankles together in a show of love and affection. But Jade’s eyes are glassy with the promise of fame and the expectation of riches. Will he choose the lime light and the money? Or will he follow his heart and choose Rylan?
This is a coming of age emotional story about two young men that found their soul mates early on in life. But face the very real danger of losing each other when one of them loses sight of what’s important. Loy did an amazing job of conveying Rylan’s inner turmoil to the reader. He struggles with having to pretend he is straight and hide his love for Jade from the public eye. When Rylan made the impossible choice to leave it all behind, and Jade as well, if he couldn’t just be happy just loving Rylan, my heart broke for him. And then on top of all that he has to face family tragedy as well.
A little dark and extremely emotional, but the love that these two have for each other literally jumps off the pages. You will be drawn into their story and feel their pain with them. And let me just say, Loy balanced the pain with some pretty hot sex. I wasn’t kidding when I said Jade made the first move, and it set the stage for their relationship going forward. When they go at it in a supply closet at a venue, then come out wearing each other’s shirts, they come out in more ways than one!
*I received a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review for MM Good Book Reviews*
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