Title: Twelve Tasks

Series: N/A

Author: Theresa Woodson

Genre:  Romantic Comedy

Length: Novel (211 Pages)

Publisher: Dreamspinner Press (November 5^th, 2013)

Heat Level: Very Low

Heart Rating: ♥♥♥♥4 Hearts

Reviewer: Lisa

Blurb: Routine makes Eliot Taylor happy. He think’s. He goes to work, goes to school, and lives with his two best friends. Except lately, something’s missing. While he’s hangover from New Year’s Eve, Eliot’s friend Jen coerces him into a New Year’s resolution. They agree to try one new activity per month for an entire year.

Each new experience checked off his list, like singing karaoke and bungee jumping, destroys more of Eliot’s comfortable routine. He meets new people. He falls in love. And despite how much it scares him, he learns to love life a little out of order.

Product Link: http://www.dreamspinnerpress.com/store/product_info.php?products_id=4350

Review: It was a nice surprise when I chose this book to read. It took me most of the day to read but it was hard to put down. It was that good of a read. It had a mixture of humor and a sense of desperation and pain that I found easy to get into.

Eliot was basically a sweet guy who had taken to staying home and not dating. That all ended when his roommate and friend Jen had come up with a plan to get him back into real life. The first stop was the gym, where he meets Matt. Now Matt comes off as a complete jerk who doesn’t seem like he could get any better. The more I got into the story the better Matt started looking, and oh boy do you have to really look.

Eliot is a shy and innocent young man who comes off as a clumsy goof that one would make fun of, but he shows the signs of someone you could fall in love with in a snap. He is caring and tender with a heart of gold. Matt when the story gets going he is one that you would follow for sure, that is as soon as you realize he is just hiding how insecure he really is. When Eliot gets hurt, Matt shows a different side of himself, by rushing to help him and take care of him.

I loved that Eliot’s friends Jen and Pete. The connection and friendship they have with Eliot and their desires to see their friend happy. And Matt’s friends and stepsister gets into the whole thing when they realize Matt’s got it bad for Eliot.

I look back, as I do with most of my books, to see if the characters are just as strong after reading a story, as they were when I was reading the book. I conclude that Eliot and Matt will always be in my mind. This story came off so strong and was written with such a flare that I loved it. Even after a rough time in his life, Eliot was willing to make his friends and roommates happy. Their New Year’s resolution is really almost an intervention — one that ends up working.

The characters come off so real and just believable. It is just so sweet and tender, with a bit of humor added in. Actually, the whole story was funny as all get out. Eliot’s fear of getting close and Matt’s own fears are a way that pulls them together. There are kisses and touching but not much in the sex, which actually makes this an even better book.

This story amazes me and I will definitely be reading this story more than once.