Title: The One Who Saves Me
Series: Home 06
Author: Cardeno C.
Genre: Contemporary
Length: Novel (212pgs)
Publisher: Dreamspinner Press (12th November 2012)
Heat Level: Explicit
Heart Rating: ♥♥♥♥♥4 ½Hearts
Reviewer: Pixie
Blurb: At fourteen, Andrew Thompson and Caleb Lakes become best friends. As the years pass, they stand by each other through family trauma, school, and the start of their careers. They share their first sexual experiences as friends, learning and experimenting. And they talk each other through countless dates and breakups. Decades of trust and loyalty build a deep and abiding friendship —until Andrew suffers a tragedy. Caleb moves in with him, and the parameters of their unique relationship blur.
Wrestling with feelings he can’t articulate, Andrew spirals into self-loathing. Caleb struggles to help his friend heal, but he longs for more than Andrew can give him. After so many years, neither man knows how to break out of his established role. After all, boyfriends come and go, but best friends are forever.
Purchase Link: http://www.dreamspinnerpress.com/store/product_info.php?products_id=3347
Review: This story is part of a series, but can be read as a stand-alone. Andrew and Caleb become best friends at fourteen. Their friendship spans for the next twenty years. They are there for each other through family troubles, school, break ups and tragedy and when they both come out as gay they are each other’s firsts. Andrew and Caleb are best friends with benefits, but what happens when their relationship lines blur?
This is a wonderful addition to the Home series where we see the development of a strong friendship that turns into more and settles into something that neither man realizes. Andrew is searching for the one man who will be his everything; he searches for years going through bad relationships, before he settles for what he can get. And when that ends in sadness, he blames himself and feels guilt over his feelings for his best friend. Caleb won’t settle for second best and keeps hunting for the man for him. He has concerns for Andrew and Andrew’s reaction to the loss of his boyfriend, but dragging Andrew from his depression is harder than he thought and both men finally see what they have been missing all along.
Ahhh, Cardeno C. always writes an incredible story and this one is no different. The story of Andrew and Caleb is very sweet and touching and at times frustrating. Both these characters are incredible men. while Caleb is quite happy to wait for the man of his dreams, dating and taking things slow; Andrew is desperate to find his Mr. Right and throws himself into all his relationships wholeheartedly. And, Caleb is always there to pick up the pieces of his heart. In this story, we see a deep and abiding love that spans twenty years. We see two young men grow up and embark on their adult lives side by side. They share everything together, but as close as they are they miss the obvious… their love for each other.
I loved this story and yes, I got frustrated at Andrew for letting himself be treated badly. But, his desperation to have a steady relationship made him take what he could get. Caleb’s patience is amazing. How he didn’t scream at Andrew to man up and put his foot down proved what a great friend he was. I must admit to being amazed that Caleb and Andrew could never see how they truly felt about each other. But, I suppose that they were too close to see it as more than best friends. The sex between them is very hot and sexy and it was wonderful to see that over so many they still fancied each other rotten.
I recommend this to those who love a friend to lovers story, deep abiding love, hot sex, heartache, frustration and a belated happy ending.