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Between Friends #1
Between Friends
Two very different couples. Two very different lives. Yet somehow they manage to keep things between friends. Schoolteacher Jason and Harry the cop have a pretty good life together. Or at least they always have in the past. When Harry starts acting strangely, withdrawing from Jason and displaying bouts of mysterious anger, Jason starts to wonder if he’s losing his hold on what he and Harry share. He turns to his friend Samuel, a college roommate, for a little moral support. Antique dealer Samuel has enough on his plate, buying a new house with his lover, Peter, and keeping up with their inventive love life. Luckily for Jason, Samuel’s lover, Peter, is also a good friend of Harry’s. When Peter hears about the troubles between Harry and Jason, he forces Harry to confront his demons, and to give Jason the chance to help. Can Harry and Jason come to terms with secrets that might change their lives forever? With Samuel and Peter’s help, they just might, as they find out what friends are for, and what it means to let someone help share the load. Sean Michael creates a finely woven web of friendship, where two couples and two sets of friends become family, and where the intricate dance of everyday life comes alive in the most beautiful way.
220 pages, Paperback
First published June 18, 2007
11 people are currently reading
180 people want to read
About the author
Sean Michael
652 books1,209 followersOften referred to as "Space Cowboy" and "Gangsta of Love" while still striving for the moniker of "Maurice," Sean Michael spends his days surfing, smutting, organizing his immense gourd collection and fantasizing about one day retiring on a small secluded island peopled entirely by horseshoe crabs. While collecting vast amounts of vintage gay pulp novels and mood rings, Sean whiles away the hours between dropping the f-bomb and persuing the kama sutra by channeling the long lost spirit of John Wayne and singing along with the soundtrack to "Chicago."
A long-time writer of complicated haiku, currently Sean is attempting to learn the advanced arts of plate spinning and soap carving sex toys.
Barring any of that? He'll stick with writing his stories, thanks, and rubbing pretty bodies together to see if they spark.
A long-time writer of complicated haiku, currently Sean is attempting to learn the advanced arts of plate spinning and soap carving sex toys.
Barring any of that? He'll stick with writing his stories, thanks, and rubbing pretty bodies together to see if they spark.
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Displaying 1 - 19 of 19 reviews
March 9, 2009
Really a great story.
There's so many things i'd like to say about this story, but i can't find the right words without giving spoilers; so my review will be short.
2 couples and 2 set of friends who are coping with the after-effect of a tragedy...
Sean Michael tells us this story differently: he takes us inside their life, inside their hearts, trying to deal with every day life, trying to believe that "everything is all right".
If we believe it hard enough, it has to be true???
I really liked the characters: we feel their love, we feel their frienship. They are different but so lovable, each one on his own way.
But i will say that my preference goes to Sammy. Sammy is special: when all I wanted to do was to cry or shout or whatever, Sammy was there to make me laugh till my belly hurts.
There's so many things i'd like to say about this story, but i can't find the right words without giving spoilers; so my review will be short.
2 couples and 2 set of friends who are coping with the after-effect of a tragedy...
Sean Michael tells us this story differently: he takes us inside their life, inside their hearts, trying to deal with every day life, trying to believe that "everything is all right".
If we believe it hard enough, it has to be true???
I really liked the characters: we feel their love, we feel their frienship. They are different but so lovable, each one on his own way.
But i will say that my preference goes to Sammy. Sammy is special: when all I wanted to do was to cry or shout or whatever, Sammy was there to make me laugh till my belly hurts.
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October 30, 2011I give Between Friends one star.
Edited - 10/30/11
After guilting myself over this one star review, I now feel that I might have been a bit harsh in my criticisms. Therefore, I'm going to pull the review, for now, and rewrite it later.
March 1, 2012
It’s not often you sort of get two stories for the price of one, but that’s kind of what happened in “Between Friends” as we get to follow along with two couples who are connected with strong bonds of friendship. I loved the contrasts between the couples – Sammy and Peter were a little more on the kinky side with a mild D/s relationship while Harry and Jason suffered some hangups along with trying to cope through a PTSD due to a major incident involving Harry. A nice change of pace to have a bit more content mixed with the kink in a Sean Michael story. Enjoyed it!
September 11, 2011
3.5 STARS
While I liked this book I felt as though I had missed a previous book...but this is Book 1 in the series! Events - serious events - were mentioned that impacted these characters and I was left feeling disconnected.
While I liked this book I felt as though I had missed a previous book...but this is Book 1 in the series! Events - serious events - were mentioned that impacted these characters and I was left feeling disconnected.
November 2, 2012
My favorite of the books I’ve read by Sean Michael
Warning: This review might contain what some people consider SPOILERS.
Rating: 9/10
PROS:
- Four very different characters, each of whom is unique and likeable.
- Beautiful friendship between the four men. Each man understands the other three so well that he knows instinctively what each of them needs, even if the one hurting is a friend and not his partner.
- Sensitive treatment of an excruciating psychological trauma for one of the men. I LOVED the way his lover and friends rallied around him when the past trauma was brought to the surface again. Each of the other three loves him in a different way, and they all show their affection for him in ways consistent with their personalities.
- Tender, beautiful, loving sex scenes between both couples. Fairly detailed--one couple’s vanilla and the other is into BDSM (not nearly as graphic, though, as Owen and Payne’s Deviations series or Switch by Claire Thompson), and very emotional. There are considerably fewer sex scenes in this book than in other Sean Michael books I’ve read (Bite and the Jarhead series come to mind), and I thought the balance between sex and conversation was great.
CON:
- Editing issues that make the conversations hard to follow at times. When a quote without a tag (“he said”) is followed by a description of what one of the characters is doing, if the description is on the same line, immediately after the quote, it means that the character who’s being described is the one who said the quote. [Example: “ ‘Yeah, right.’ John stood up and walked toward the kitchen.” In this case, John is the one who said, “yeah, right.”] This book contains a lot of instances in which the speaker of a particular quote isn’t identified and the descriptions around it make it difficult to tell which character spoke.
Overall comments: This is a romantic book incorporating the stories of two different established couples. If you’re looking for a “boy meets boy and they fall in love” story, this isn’t it; this is an examination of four men who fell in love years before and are dealing with everyday issues couples face. It’s lovely, though. My favorite of the books I’ve read by Michael by far.
Warning: This review might contain what some people consider SPOILERS.
Rating: 9/10
PROS:
- Four very different characters, each of whom is unique and likeable.
- Beautiful friendship between the four men. Each man understands the other three so well that he knows instinctively what each of them needs, even if the one hurting is a friend and not his partner.
- Sensitive treatment of an excruciating psychological trauma for one of the men. I LOVED the way his lover and friends rallied around him when the past trauma was brought to the surface again. Each of the other three loves him in a different way, and they all show their affection for him in ways consistent with their personalities.
- Tender, beautiful, loving sex scenes between both couples. Fairly detailed--one couple’s vanilla and the other is into BDSM (not nearly as graphic, though, as Owen and Payne’s Deviations series or Switch by Claire Thompson), and very emotional. There are considerably fewer sex scenes in this book than in other Sean Michael books I’ve read (Bite and the Jarhead series come to mind), and I thought the balance between sex and conversation was great.
CON:
- Editing issues that make the conversations hard to follow at times. When a quote without a tag (“he said”) is followed by a description of what one of the characters is doing, if the description is on the same line, immediately after the quote, it means that the character who’s being described is the one who said the quote. [Example: “ ‘Yeah, right.’ John stood up and walked toward the kitchen.” In this case, John is the one who said, “yeah, right.”] This book contains a lot of instances in which the speaker of a particular quote isn’t identified and the descriptions around it make it difficult to tell which character spoke.
Overall comments: This is a romantic book incorporating the stories of two different established couples. If you’re looking for a “boy meets boy and they fall in love” story, this isn’t it; this is an examination of four men who fell in love years before and are dealing with everyday issues couples face. It’s lovely, though. My favorite of the books I’ve read by Michael by far.
November 11, 2009
This was the first book of the Between Friends sereis that was released and I originally read it in May 2008. With the other three books having been released since (chronoligocally they all happen before ths one), I decided to re-read it in May 2010.
It's lost nothing of its charm but a lot of the references to the past made sense for me now, knowing the full back story. The way that the two couples relate to each other is wonderful and I certainly hope there might be another volume, to clear up the last few lose ends (like the criminal who's been let out into a mental hospital and Jason finding a permanent job).
It's lost nothing of its charm but a lot of the references to the past made sense for me now, knowing the full back story. The way that the two couples relate to each other is wonderful and I certainly hope there might be another volume, to clear up the last few lose ends (like the criminal who's been let out into a mental hospital and Jason finding a permanent job).
January 8, 2026
Read up to chapter 21. That was enough for me. I couldn't even be bothered to find out the outcome of the abuser because of all the sex. I do like sex in the stories, but, damn, this was quite over the top.
June 10, 2017
Good writing but hated the story.
October 18, 2015
First let me start off this review with a spoiler and a warning: Okay, while I wasn't expecting it, I do think the reactions shown were fairly well done; its a horrific experience and really I don't think the way Harry deals was overdone at all. This is also a book about friendship and it was nice to see Peter and Samuel stepping up to help Harry and Jase in anyway they could.
Despite the angst and drama, it wouldn't be a Sean Michael book without a great deal of sex; there's kinky sex if that's what you're into but more "normal" sex between H & J as well. With the subject matter I think it might have been a little too much but someone else may disagree. The only real complaint I have about the story is not getting any closure about This isn't one that I'll read very often, I don't think, but I do plan to continue the series. The next two books deal with how the two couples each got together which I look forward to but I think I'll have to gear up to read the fourth seeing as it deals with what it shown in this volume.
3.5*
Despite the angst and drama, it wouldn't be a Sean Michael book without a great deal of sex; there's kinky sex if that's what you're into but more "normal" sex between H & J as well. With the subject matter I think it might have been a little too much but someone else may disagree. The only real complaint I have about the story is not getting any closure about This isn't one that I'll read very often, I don't think, but I do plan to continue the series. The next two books deal with how the two couples each got together which I look forward to but I think I'll have to gear up to read the fourth seeing as it deals with what it shown in this volume.
3.5*
April 2, 2018
This is an interesting series because this one, the first book, is actually about 2 established couples and you read about their beginnings (how they met) in the 2nd and 3rd books. The 4th book is more of their story. It makes starting with this book a little confusing because you have 2 established couples you are trying to get to know and not mix up the names (and Peter has a nickname - Laffy, which you don't find out why until one of the later books) but they are well worth it. Lots of sex (typical Sean Michael) but lots of story too and you really get to know the uniqueness of all 4 MC's - I just fell in love with all of them.
There is a short in "Toybox: Flogger - Testing Leather" where Peter and Samuel make a visit to Marcus, who makes some very special leather toys.
There is a short in "Toybox: Flogger - Testing Leather" where Peter and Samuel make a visit to Marcus, who makes some very special leather toys.
March 11, 2015
This book is the first of the series, but Sean pulled a George Lucas. Harry is a cop who was kidnapped, held hostage and raped. He and his partner Jason are dealing with the aftereffects in this book. Like George Lucas books 2, 3 & 4 reverse and tell how Harry and Jason met and the details of Harry's attack. The series also includes their friends Samuel and Peter.
Between Friends is choppy and lacks cohesion. We don't get a clear picture of Harry, Jason, Peter or Sammy. It is like scrapbooking. You get little snippets of their lives pieced together to form the book. This book had a good plot. I just wished it had flowed smoothly and allowed the story to develop.
Between Friends is choppy and lacks cohesion. We don't get a clear picture of Harry, Jason, Peter or Sammy. It is like scrapbooking. You get little snippets of their lives pieced together to form the book. This book had a good plot. I just wished it had flowed smoothly and allowed the story to develop.
October 9, 2014
Sean Michael at his best. Between Friends is a heart breaking story about love, friendship and learning how to over come hell. The 4 characters Peter/Samuel and Harry/Jason are strong well established character all bring their own flair to the story. I love how Sean Michael can bring kink and vanilla together so well in one and the same book and how he manages to tell several stories that all together as one in the end. I love Between Friends almost as much as I love Marcus from the Hammer series!
May 2, 2012
I almost stopped reading about a third of the way through. There wasn't enough of a story at that point, it was all sex and I just didn't really care about the characters or about what happened to them. But I'm glad I kept reading because the story got much better. If the first half had been as good as the second half was, I would've given it a five star rating.
May 20, 2016
1.5 stars
This is my least favorite Sean Michael book to this point. The dialog, with all the I love you's and calling each other love, was so unrealistic. A sex scene per chapter (29 chapters...makes for a whole lot of sex), circling around the same issues and conversations again and again, and very little plot had me bored out of my mind. Definitely don't recommend this one to anyone!
This is my least favorite Sean Michael book to this point. The dialog, with all the I love you's and calling each other love, was so unrealistic. A sex scene per chapter (29 chapters...makes for a whole lot of sex), circling around the same issues and conversations again and again, and very little plot had me bored out of my mind. Definitely don't recommend this one to anyone!
February 6, 2011
4.5 stars
June 23, 2011
Read as part of my QGB Q2 Challenge picked by Lynn. As always, Sean Michaels manages to endear me to yet another set of characters. I look forward to reading more of their stories. :)
February 7, 2011
Uh... plot? What plot? This was nothing but sex. BORING.
lurking-in-kindleland
December 22, 2014Torquere Press 12 days of Christmas freebie 22.12.14
March 10, 2015
Two couples and close friends. Other couple is strugling after one of them is kidnapped and raped. With the help of their friends Jason and Harry manage to overcome their troubles!
Displaying 1 - 19 of 19 reviews