Apparently I'm a total sap, and I'm not going to apologize for loving the sentimental romance that this was. It must be the college setting and the setup of the shy virgin who just can't help but fall in love with the notorious player, slowly winning over his heart. Though this is a classic NA trope we've all read many times before, Cullinan executes this quite brilliantly.

So yes, this was a perfect blend of everything I like in a romance. You've got well balanced push pull, crazy jealousy, gut twisting insecurity, torturous want, and miserable doubt - capped off with a slow burn UST and seriously hot, sexual exploration. Uh huh.

Kelly - shy, a bit awkward, and who sees and hopes for the best in life and love. He doesn't want to compromise on what he wants from a relationship and stays firm in his idealistic beliefs.

Walter - a cynic who takes naive Kelly under his wing in navigating the ins and outs of college. Deep down, he too just wants to be loved, though he's never going to admit that to anyone, let alone himself.

As their friendship grows, these boys want each other so bad, and for different reasons, hesitate and resist the longing for something they feel they can't have. But once Kelly and Walter step over that proverbial line in the sand… mmmmm.

This gets the rare 5 stars from me because though Kelly and Walter have internal and external debates about the pros and cons of their relationship, there was no excessive, unnecessary melodrama, nor any cringe worthy, over the top miscommunication. They may have their doubts about themselves, but not any for each other. This was simply a sweet and very sexy look at first times, first relationships, and first love. If only real life emulated this for everyone.


Meags, thanks for keeping me company!! ( )

this was pretty good, especially the first third or so. their friendship was maybe a little too easy from the beginning and there was too little else going on and the professor/advisor relationship was weird and unrealistic. but the writing was better than i expected and it was nice to have characters that are mostly good people. i do think this should have been a novella rather than a novel, and all the issues i had with it would have been resolved, but otherwise this was pretty good. ( )

Romances set at colleges always bug me on some level, because the classes are often treated like background noise, glossed over. I know! I don't want to read about hours studying or writing a paper either! And still, it's the main reason they usually don't feel "real" to me. For this one, however, the author managed a balance of sorts that I found satisfying, particularly with the guys' level difference, freshman and junior, and the myriad complications all the characters face. It's not at all two characters in a vacuum. Their friends and family felt real, actions and consequences real. Thus, five stars, and I'll be reading this series. ( )

Another sweet romance from Cullinan. I loved the demonstration of a healthy family and what it meant to each character. ( )

Kelly and Walter were sweet together.. i enjoyed reading this, though i felt it was too long. ( )