Us (Him) Paperback – November 30, 2021

Spoilers in this review!!I read "Him" back in 2015 when it was released and I LOVED IT!! I bought this when it came out but just hadn't gotten around to reading it. I decided had several freebies from over the months on my Kindle app and several books that I bought. I wanted to get my TBR down and this happened to be the one that I randomly chose. But I wanted to read "Him" again so everything could be fresh on my mind. Here's the thing: You probably could only read "Him" and call it a standalone. But you REALLY need to read "Us." So this book picks up several months after the previous book left off. Things are going well for Wes and Jamie. They have a great romance, they're living together, and their jobs are going pretty well. But they've kind of gotten out of their honeymoon phase from beginning to date. Wes can't come out and tell the world that Jamie is his boyfriend because of potential consequences from the media, etc. It really does take a toll on their relationship because they have to be secretive ALL THE TIME. They can't go see a movie as a couple. They can't go on a date to a restaurant as a couple. It really upsets them. They're not mad at each other. They're just scared of how this could impact Wes' career since it's just starting to take off. One thing I absolutely love about this book is that Wes and Jamie are together THIS ENTIRE BOOK. There isn't a breakup. They are able to make it and solve unexpected problems. In this book, Jamie gets sick and it's bad. He has to go to the hospital several times. Their relationship is really strained but the second time he has to go to the hospital and it gets so bad to where he collapses at work and is in a coma, Wes drops everything and GOES TO HIM LIKE A LOVED ONE SHOULD ALWAYS DO. At the hospital, he kisses Jamie on the lips while he is still in a coma and then their relationship is exposed to the world. This creates more problems. Jamie feels like Wes is taking care of him all the time and doesn't want to be a burden. He also gets upset when Wes wants to pay his hospital bills. I understand that Jamie wants to be independent but I also completely understand how much this hurts Wes. As we found out in the previous book, Wes has loved Jamie for several years while Jamie just began having feelings about a year ago. So, in my opinion, Wes seems to care more deeply for Jamie. Not that Jamie doesn't care for him as much. It's just that Wes has felt that love for Jamie for a longer time. With Jamie trying to recover and Wes still having to go on the road to play hockey, Jamie ends up flying home to California to see his family and they are able to care for him. This hurts Wes deeply as he wants to be the one to care for Jamie but he understands that he can't because of his hockey contract. As Wes goes on a high-profile interview to talk about his career and relationship with Jamie, he reveals that he would marry Jamie if he could. He loves him that much. Back in California, Jamie reluctantly sees the interview on TV after being persuaded by his mom. Also, his mom is one of the best moms/parents I've ever read. Her and the Weasley parents from Harry Potter are the best parents I've ever read. Wes calls her "Mom" and honestly it's the cutest thing! When Jamie watches the interview, he is overcome with emotion and flies to see Wes at his current game (I want to remember where this is but honestly I don't know what city it was because there was too much emotion!!!!!). After the hockey game, Jamie surprises Wes in his hotel room and proposes and it's the best. It's filled with who they are as individuals and as a couple. I understand that so many romance books have a proposal in the last chapter or the epilogue but this was the best. I know that since this was a duology that there was more time to discover the relationship but it just seems that in so many romance books today, that it's all about the couples getting to know each other and they aren't really together until the end of the book. They usually are boyfriend-girlfriend, etc. at the end or they're engaged. But I'm so happy that this book was about their relationship and it was also SO REALISTIC!! It wasn't happy all the time but they communicated and were able to work things out without having over-the-top drama. I'm utterly and completely devastated that this duology is over and don't know how I will go on after this.Also, regarding Blake and his book. So like I said before, I bought this book when it had come out but hadn't read it until just a few days ago. Blake's book came out at the end of January and I had already bought it even though I hadn't EVEN READ THIS BOOK YET WHICH HAPPENS BEFORE BLAKE'S BOOK!!!! That is how much impact "Him" had on me. All I knew is that Blake's book was written by both authors and that Wes and Jamie would be in it. That's enough for me and I will 100% buy any book these authors write together. Also if they write something separately i will buy it, providing that it's M/M because I read Ms. Kennedy's "The Deal" and "The Mistake" and enjoyed them but didn't love them like these books. Also, I watched a few hockey games and I have never watched hockey before....so that is another example of how much these books have impacted me. Regarding Blake, I loathed him at first because he interfered with my Wes-Jamie time but I quickly adored him and how much he cares for these two guys!!!!I heard a few months ago that we may be getting another M/M book in this world but it may center around Killfeather from the last book????? That would be THE BEST. Anxiously awaiting that news but I'm going to dive straight into Blake's book at work next week!!!!

Updated for audiobook 06/19/2017 (and BEWARE this review contains some spoilers for HIM (Book 1):I've had the audio for this for a while, but haven't listened because 1. I was sort of disappointed in the story (my fault - see review below) and 2. I am not a big fan of dual narration and getting multiple narrator character voices for the same character.However, I had bought this and it was sitting in my audio library mocking me, and I didn't have anything else to listen to that was grabbing my attention so I thought, "Why not?"And...I'm glad I did because I really enjoyed the narration. It didn't change the way I felt about the story overall, but I did have a good time listening.4 Stars for the audio!**~~**~~**~~**~~**~~**~~**~~**~~**~~**~~So, my initial disappointment in this story is entirely my own fault.You see, my interpretation of the end of HIM - oh wait, SPOILER ALERT if you haven't read HIM - turn away! - was that since Wes's coaches, team owners, and PR guy knew about him being gay that he would be discreet around town, but be out with his teammates, etc. like he'd been in college. Not so the case.Not only is Wes firmly in the closet to his teammates and the world at large, but he's dragged poor Jamie into the closet with him. Jamie is not introduced as the love of Wes's life, as his partner, but rather his "roommate", and Wes is determined to keep his orientation and his relationship with Jamie under wraps until after his rookie season so the media doesn't make everything about his sex life, but focuses on his playing. And his playing is fantastic! He's having the kind of rookie year hockey players dream about and pray for. Professionally, things couldn't be looking better. But the pressure is ever present and the extended time away from Jamie is starting to chafe.Jamie, on the other hand, is having a hard time having moved to a different country and climate than what he's used to, being without his close knit family around, being alone most of the time as Wes is constantly on the road, and having to hide their relationship when Wes is home like Jamie is a dirty little secret that no one can know of by keeping their relationship entirely within the walls of their apartment, and to top it off, Jamie begins having a hard time at his job when another coach displays a seriously bigoted and racist attitude.All of this wouldn't be so hard except neither Jamie, nor Wes, is communicating with each other about what's happening in their lives. They're basically just trying to get through the next few months of Wes's rookie season with the hope that it will all soon be over and they can stop hiding. But they aren't really talking to each other, and it's taking a real toll on their relationship.But you know the truth always comes out, and when it does it creates even more tension between the two.Personally, I was frustrated by the first three-quarters of the story. Well, frustrated might be generous, to tell the truth I was p***ed. I felt like all the good, happy, warm feelings I had from HIM were washed away in this ocean of doubt, miscommunication, and unnecessary angst. It was only the final quarter of the story that got the boys back on track and got me back to my happy place.And all of that is completely my own fault. Because I built up a HEA at the end of HIM that wasn't reality and was then disappointed in the way it was turned around for US. That's not the book's fault. It's mine.The reality of this story is it's really about a new relationship and a learning curve. The boys love each other just as much and they grow in their relationship, learning to communicate, and being there for one another.Though it didn't hold the same excitement and wonder for me that I had for HIM, in the end this follow-up has romance, sexy times, humor, some hurt/comfort, and more Jamie and Wes. And that's always a good thing.