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Finding Your Heart II
After the worst Christmas Casey has had in years, the urge to go home overwhelms. Standing in front of the house he grew up in on a bleak New Year’s Eve, he acknowledges that what he once thought of as home is gone. Filled with despair, he sees that his life is a barren wasteland and he has no energy or hope left with which to change it.
When a man exits the rundown house, his long legged stride carries ghosts of the past right into Casey’s present. Never had he imagined that he’d run into the man he’d lost a lifetime before or that the man would own the house that had always been a symbol of home to Casey. But Paul is there and he’s never forgotten the love they shared so briefly. Casey’s New Year’s quest to find reasons for his existence becomes a homecoming he never expected when Paul opens his heart. It’s only then that Casey discovers the answers to life are as simple as finding your heart.
When a man exits the rundown house, his long legged stride carries ghosts of the past right into Casey’s present. Never had he imagined that he’d run into the man he’d lost a lifetime before or that the man would own the house that had always been a symbol of home to Casey. But Paul is there and he’s never forgotten the love they shared so briefly. Casey’s New Year’s quest to find reasons for his existence becomes a homecoming he never expected when Paul opens his heart. It’s only then that Casey discovers the answers to life are as simple as finding your heart.
29 pages, Kindle Edition
First published January 1, 2012
3 people are currently reading
59 people want to read
About the author
Lex Valentine
83 books198 followersAward-winning author Lex Valentine writes across genres from contemporary to urban fantasy but mostly M/M these days. A native of California, Lex lives in Orange County, with her husband Rott and a bunch of cats she collectively calls “babies.” She's a 17 year employee of a 100+ year old cemetery, builds her own computers and is generally considered the IT geek at work and to her family and friends.
A member of the Romance Writers of America, Lex is active in her local Orange County chapter and is a past treasurer for PASIC. Her publishers include Loose Id, Ellora's Cave, and MLR Press. She's the author of the self-published ARe and Amazon best selling series Souls in Bondage.
Lex loves to hear from her readers. Her door is always open at lex@lexvalentine.com or on her personal or author Facebook pages.
Website: http://lexvalentine.com
Facebook: http://facebook.com/lexvalentineauthor
Facebook: http://facebook.com/cemeterywinter
Twitter: http://twitter.com/lexvalentine
A member of the Romance Writers of America, Lex is active in her local Orange County chapter and is a past treasurer for PASIC. Her publishers include Loose Id, Ellora's Cave, and MLR Press. She's the author of the self-published ARe and Amazon best selling series Souls in Bondage.
Lex loves to hear from her readers. Her door is always open at lex@lexvalentine.com or on her personal or author Facebook pages.
Website: http://lexvalentine.com
Facebook: http://facebook.com/lexvalentineauthor
Facebook: http://facebook.com/cemeterywinter
Twitter: http://twitter.com/lexvalentine
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Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews
October 3, 2015
The author wrote virtually the same story twice, one as a heterosexual story and one as a gay story. Apparently she was talking with someone else and decided that emotion was emotion and it doesn't matter if you're gay or straight.
Well, I think that may be true up to a point, but how people express it, the way they actually feel those emotions do differ, not just by gay vs straight, but also by gender. When I read this, I thought it felt odd, like something was wrong and/or missing. Once I found out that it was a het story not even reworked but just pronouns and body parts changed, it made sense. Now I'm not sure it was that great a story to begin with. Casey is pretty pathetic and it was hard to get behind him but it wasn't the worst story I've ever read. It just wasn't up to the other story of hers, Entangled, that I read and really liked.
Well, I think that may be true up to a point, but how people express it, the way they actually feel those emotions do differ, not just by gay vs straight, but also by gender. When I read this, I thought it felt odd, like something was wrong and/or missing. Once I found out that it was a het story not even reworked but just pronouns and body parts changed, it made sense. Now I'm not sure it was that great a story to begin with. Casey is pretty pathetic and it was hard to get behind him but it wasn't the worst story I've ever read. It just wasn't up to the other story of hers, Entangled, that I read and really liked.
January 8, 2012
After many years apart, both Casey and Paul are unhappy and unfufilled.
Casey's despair is so clear and sad, and Paul is so sweet and good for him.
A lot of emotions in such a short story.
Casey's despair is so clear and sad, and Paul is so sweet and good for him.
A lot of emotions in such a short story.
March 9, 2012
Finding Your Heart II was short and sweet in it's own way. Casey has come home to his hometown, and catches up with Paul, his former lover. Some words pass between them, they end up at Paul's hotel where they talk some more and then some sizzling sex takes place. Sounds like a 4 star review for sure, right?
Nope. Here's why. I downloaded this and the Finding Your Heart I. Read this one first. Attempted to read the second one. What a cop out. All the author did was change he to she, him to her, cock to cunt..and put out a second book, second version. If this was an experiment by Ms. Valentine, it failed miserably, in this reviewer's opinion. If a book can so easily have the pronouns change, the gender of the main character, then there is nothing special about that character.
By doing this with Finding Your Heart, Ms Valentine cheapened what had been a decent read to being nothing but another piece of smut with not rhyme or reason. Ms. Valentine has lost a potential reader in my, unless someone can convince me she's worth taking another look at. I hope she doesn't do this with another book. If so, I can assure you, I'm done. So. Finding Your Heart II, the one I actually finished reading comes in with a ** review. This is down from the intended **** review I had ready until attempting to read Vol. I. Bad move, Ms. Valentine. Bad move.
This is what the author say on Smashwords:
Sorry, Ms. Valentine. Cop out. Gender Doesn't matter when you're hurt, but all you did was demean BOTH books by doing this. I suggest this experiment failed, miserably.
Nope. Here's why. I downloaded this and the Finding Your Heart I. Read this one first. Attempted to read the second one. What a cop out. All the author did was change he to she, him to her, cock to cunt..and put out a second book, second version. If this was an experiment by Ms. Valentine, it failed miserably, in this reviewer's opinion. If a book can so easily have the pronouns change, the gender of the main character, then there is nothing special about that character.
By doing this with Finding Your Heart, Ms Valentine cheapened what had been a decent read to being nothing but another piece of smut with not rhyme or reason. Ms. Valentine has lost a potential reader in my, unless someone can convince me she's worth taking another look at. I hope she doesn't do this with another book. If so, I can assure you, I'm done. So. Finding Your Heart II, the one I actually finished reading comes in with a ** review. This is down from the intended **** review I had ready until attempting to read Vol. I. Bad move, Ms. Valentine. Bad move.
This is what the author say on Smashwords:
This is the result of a conversation I had with author Patric Michael who said I should take a story and make a het and a gay version. The idea is that the story isn’t about gender but emotion. The 2 books aren't exactly the same. However, the reason they are mostly the same is because love is love. Gender doesn’t matter when your life is miserable and your only shot at love has been lost.
Sorry, Ms. Valentine. Cop out. Gender Doesn't matter when you're hurt, but all you did was demean BOTH books by doing this. I suggest this experiment failed, miserably.
January 31, 2017
Casey is searching for a place to call home in 'Finding Your Heart II' by Lex Valentine. As the story begins, Casey's despondency is well represented by the desolation around him. The sky is gray, the weather is cold as he stands in his old neighborhood at the house he once thought of as home. He feels that there is no one left who cares and it sucks the life out of him. Reflecting on the past only hurts him, making him feel even more alone. When he feels that all is lost, the one person who can change his life appears and restores his hope.
I'm sure Paul never thought of himself as a Knight in Shining Armor, but to Casey, that's exactly who he is. He's Casey's touchstone, the only person he has ever truly loved and Casey is the same for Paul. Not only does Paul now own Casey's house, he's also the one person whom he feels at home with. Paul seizes the opportunity to recapture the magic of their youthful love and is determined to keep Casey with him this time. He presents a very impassioned argument which gives Casey the courage to face his feelings and get beyond the past. They both realize that the reason they were never able to give their hearts to anyone else is because, even though they weren't together, they've always had each other’s hearts.
This is a beautifully written, poignant love story that brought me to tears more than once because I became so emotionally invested in Casey and Paul. I'd recommend it to anyone who believes that there is someone for everyone; it's just a matter of finding them and acknowledging your connection. The story is a reminder that no matter where you are, when you're with the person you love the most, you're always home.
I'm sure Paul never thought of himself as a Knight in Shining Armor, but to Casey, that's exactly who he is. He's Casey's touchstone, the only person he has ever truly loved and Casey is the same for Paul. Not only does Paul now own Casey's house, he's also the one person whom he feels at home with. Paul seizes the opportunity to recapture the magic of their youthful love and is determined to keep Casey with him this time. He presents a very impassioned argument which gives Casey the courage to face his feelings and get beyond the past. They both realize that the reason they were never able to give their hearts to anyone else is because, even though they weren't together, they've always had each other’s hearts.
This is a beautifully written, poignant love story that brought me to tears more than once because I became so emotionally invested in Casey and Paul. I'd recommend it to anyone who believes that there is someone for everyone; it's just a matter of finding them and acknowledging your connection. The story is a reminder that no matter where you are, when you're with the person you love the most, you're always home.
January 17, 2012
This book is quite interesting. Not in the way of story, which is quite standard 'second chance' story (reunion of two former lovers after being separated for a decade). No. But it's in the author's quite unique efforts. Remember some of us (surely I do) bitch about 'm/m books written with female with penis"? Ms. Valentine took it to the heart, and in a tongue-in-cheek manner, she actually wrote two 'identical' stories, in which in one story the main character is a female (hence an m/f romance), and in the other it's a male (hence, an m/m romance). The m/f story's title is "Finding Your Heart I", while the m/m is "Finding Your Heart II".
Just for that, I add extra star to this. Plus, the story itself is not bad at all.
Just for that, I add extra star to this. Plus, the story itself is not bad at all.
March 8, 2012
A pretty good short story. Thanks to Lex Valentine for the free download. I enjoyed this story but only marked it down due to the length and lack of development. I felt there were quite a few unanswered questions. I'm not sure why it took Casey and Paul two decades to connect. There was also some unresolved issues with Casey's daughter. There's tension between them that was mentioned, but obviously with the length of the story, not enough time to address much less resolve. A little rushed, but I appreciate the tenderness of the characters.
August 22, 2012
This short irritated me. Ok, not the whole thing, but the fact they loved each other so damn much but waited 20 years to see each other again? I HATE seeing lovers apart, it kills me. For the amount of back-story and sadness involved, the book was just too short and I found myself needing to know more about the characters. I had lots of questions and very few pages left to answer them, and other than the timeline of the story being way too long for me it was good, and fit better than the M/F version I thought.
February 26, 2012
Lovely second chance at love story about two men who meet up on a cold New Year's Eve when one of them is at his lowest. This one is hopeful and a beautiful reunion for first love that should have been forever love.
January 25, 2012
After reading the first book I became disppointed with this story because its the same as part 1. The only difference between the two books is that Casey is a female in the first book and a male in the second.
owned-to-read
January 1, 2014*downloaded free on ARE
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January 25, 2012FREE on Nook
Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews