Title: Ethan in Gold
Series: Johnnies Series #3
Author: Amy Lane
Genre: Contemporary
Length: Novel (350 pages)
Publisher: Dreamspinner Press (October 4th 2013)
Heat Level: Explicit
Heart Rating: ♥♥♥♥4 hearts
Blurb: Evan Costa learned from a very early age that there was no such thing as unconditional love and that it was better to settle for what you could get instead of expecting the world to give you what you need. As Ethan, porn model for Johnnies, he gets exactly what he wants—comradeship and physical contact on trade—and he is perfectly satisfied with that. He’s sure of it.
Jonah Stevens has spent most of his adult life helping to care for his sister and trying to keep his beleaguered family from fraying at the edges. He’s had very little time to work on his confidence or his body for that matter. When Jonah meets Ethan, he doesn’t see the hurt child or the shamelessly slutty porn star. He sees a funny, sexy, confident man who—against the odds—seems to like Jonah in spite of his very ordinary, but difficult, life.
Sensing a kindred spirit and a common interest, Ethan thinks a platonic friendship with Jonah won’t violate his fair trade rules of sex and touch, but Jonah has different ideas. Ethan’s pretty sure his choice of jobs has stripped away all hope of a real relationship, but Jonah wants the whole package—the sexy man, the vulnerable boy, the charming companion who works so hard to make other people happy. Jonah wants to prove that underneath the damage Ethan has lived with all his life, he’s still gold with promise and the ability to love.
Product Link: http://www.dreamspinnerpress.com/store/product_info.php?products_id=4237
Reviewer: Any
Review: Amy Lane has a knack of creating really beautiful characters that jump off the page and make you think they’re real. That they could be one of the guys living next door. Ethan is no exception to the rule, he is a well-developed character that has suffered and been tested in life. He is also gentle, humorous, and warm, and for the most part, I really enjoyed reading about him and Jonah.
I have to confess something here, though, this was one of the harder Amy Lane books I’ve read. I wasn’t expecting the traumatic beginning and it took me a long time to be able to work past that and read on. What I needed was a trigger warning that this book holds themes of sexual abuse of a minor. But get over that, and I eventually did, this is a lovely story.
Jonah was a solid character too, although I didn’t quite get as much connection with him as I did with Ethan (Or as I did in the previous book with Dex!) I actually read Ethan in Gold first, and then, because I was so curious about the other characters, immediately went and got my hands on the previous book as well, which I enjoyed even more.
Nevertheless, Ethan in Gold is well written, full of emotion and tenderness, and even sparks of humor. Oh, and sexy smexiness, of course! I enjoyed it.
Amy Lane, rocks again!