Title: Lonely Hearts
Series: Love Lessons #3
Author: Heidi Cullinan
Genre: Contemporary with a Bit-O’-Kink
Length: Novel (260 Pages)
Publisher: Samhain (August 11, 2015)
Heat Level: Explicit
Heart Rating: ♥♥♥♥♥ 5 Hearts
Blurb: With the quiet help of his wealthy family, Sebastian “Baz” Acker has successfully kept his painful past at bay. But as the end of college draws near, his friends—his buffer zone—are preparing to move on, while his own life is at a crippling standstill. With loneliness bearing down on him, Baz hooks up—then opens up—with Elijah Prince, the guy Baz took a bullet for last year. The aftershocks of their one-night stand leave giant cracks in Baz’s carefully constructed armor. For the first time, the prospect isn’t terrifying.
Accustomed to escaping his demons by withdrawing into his imagination, Elijah isn’t used to having a happy herd of friends. He’s even less comfortable as the object of a notorious playboy’s affections. Yet all signs seem to indicate this time happiness might be within his grasp. When Baz’s mother runs for a highly sought-after public office, the media hounds drag Baz’s and Elijah’s pasts into the light. In the blinding glare, Baz and Elijah face the ultimate test: discovering if they’re stronger together…or apart.
Warning: Contains sex in a Tesla, sex in a cupboard, sex under a piano, kinky role play, and a cappella RuPaul songs. Just a couple of boys groping, battling, and then finally loving their way to becoming men.
Product Link: http://www.heidicullinan.com/Lonely-Hearts
ISBN13: 9781619226692
Reviewer: GiGi
Review: What a hot mess….putting these two flawed characters together was either going to be genius or dangerous but it turned out maybe a bit of both. Through this series, Baz had always pulled my heart strings, though I did have sympathy for Elijah. The two together were explosive, passionate and at the same time tender and beautiful. Both these characters have a lot of secrets and a past to unveil.
I may be biased because I lurved the first two books in this series so much, but I will also admit to needing to do some musical research before spouting too much about Lonely Hearts. Now the Lonely Hearts reference I get, but I just didn’t put Elijah and Ru Paul together musically. So I did my homework, Supermodel brought back memories, but I had to give Sissy That Walk a thorough listen.
Maybe I wanted more anger and aggression from him, but what I got from this combo is that Eli really was just totally misunderstood. Elijah had some really good reasons and really terrifying experiences to build up that hard and thorny shell around his heart. I was really worried when he began to expose it for Baz.
Yes, I was rooting for the hard-hearted Eli to keep his armor. I’m a sick bitch, right? But sometimes it’s a survival mechanism that can do us good. Thank the muses, that Heidi gave Baz an even bigger pair of balls and a constitution to stand up to Eli despite his physical weaknesses, because they wound up being a perfect complement to each other.
This hot angsty story contains political machinations, a little less song and dance, and a lot more fast cars, drugs and sex. And did I mention big tender hearts and a giant romantic streak…..just when I thought it was Baz that was all romance….Eli surprises me.
But wait…one of the best parts….we get to visit with Ed and Laurie again!!!!!!! If you somehow missed reading Dance With Me, first….what the hell? And second, go grab that baby and read it. Preferably before Lonely Hearts, but if you don’t- read it anyhow and find out what you’re missing. All together with Walter/Kelly, Aaron/Giles, Ed/Laurie, and the ever increasing supportive community around them, Cullinan builds a world of good people. Those I hope would reflect me and my community. I’ll just overlook the fact that she names one of her villains Giselle. I love to read Heidi’s books because I’m drawn to heroes and heroines that have hurdles to jump, the under dogs that have to fight for happiness and win it! But the truth is, none of these characters should have to fight these odds for love, and it’s a lesson we can apply to our own communities. People misunderstand this genre, but the truth is it’s a mirror to our society, one that helps us examine the problems, reflect on our own issues and hopefully find solutions. Both Baz and Eli found a community that loved and supported them in the end, and that shouldn’t be a fairytale.