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Shatterproof Bond #1
Comme vous voudrez
Oliver, le frère de Declan Ramsay, va épouser Annabelle Aiken dans un château de contes de fées sur les rives du Loch Ness en Écosse.
Les mariés ont décidé que Declan serait le témoin, et le frère cadet d'Annabelle, Sam, qui est gay, partagerait les devoirs du témoin. Declan n'a jamais rencontré le gamin qui va être son équipier. Sam Aiken est à l'étranger, terminant ses études. Il ne rencontrera Declan que quelques jours avant le mariage, alors les deux témoins vont communiquer par email et mettent tout en place pendant plus d'un an.
Lorsqu'il rencontre enfin Sam Aiken, Declan est surpris de réaliser que le gamin n'en est pas un, mais un jeune homme grand, blond et athlétique. Declan est certain d'être hétéro, alors il est inquiet par l'attirance féroce qu'il ressent pour Sam. Et comme l'attirance est réciproque, les événements au Château Dunloch changent tout ce que Declan croyait savoir sur lui-même. Mais Samuel Aiken est-il vraiment ce qu'il semble être
Les mariés ont décidé que Declan serait le témoin, et le frère cadet d'Annabelle, Sam, qui est gay, partagerait les devoirs du témoin. Declan n'a jamais rencontré le gamin qui va être son équipier. Sam Aiken est à l'étranger, terminant ses études. Il ne rencontrera Declan que quelques jours avant le mariage, alors les deux témoins vont communiquer par email et mettent tout en place pendant plus d'un an.
Lorsqu'il rencontre enfin Sam Aiken, Declan est surpris de réaliser que le gamin n'en est pas un, mais un jeune homme grand, blond et athlétique. Declan est certain d'être hétéro, alors il est inquiet par l'attirance féroce qu'il ressent pour Sam. Et comme l'attirance est réciproque, les événements au Château Dunloch changent tout ce que Declan croyait savoir sur lui-même. Mais Samuel Aiken est-il vraiment ce qu'il semble être
202 pages, Paperback
First published October 5, 2015
155 people are currently reading
1148 people want to read
About the author
Isobel Starling
67 books235 followersAWARD WINNING AUTHOR OF GAY ROMANCE.
Born in Germany, Isobel Starling spent most of her twenty-year professional career making art in Ireland. Now she writes full-time and runs her publishing company, Decent Fellows Press.
The Shatterproof Bond series is Gay Romance bestseller in the US, Germany and France. It is also a bestseller in audiobook format, narrated by Gary Furlong
Isobel is currently working on "The Dark Harvest", (The Quiet Work #2) The follow up to her successful Fantasy novel "Apple Boy"
When that book is done Isobel will be working on "Infernal Vices" book #3 of the Resurrectionist Historical MM series, and then "The Rebel Candidate " Book #6 in the Shatterproof Bond series.
Born in Germany, Isobel Starling spent most of her twenty-year professional career making art in Ireland. Now she writes full-time and runs her publishing company, Decent Fellows Press.
The Shatterproof Bond series is Gay Romance bestseller in the US, Germany and France. It is also a bestseller in audiobook format, narrated by Gary Furlong
Isobel is currently working on "The Dark Harvest", (The Quiet Work #2) The follow up to her successful Fantasy novel "Apple Boy"
When that book is done Isobel will be working on "Infernal Vices" book #3 of the Resurrectionist Historical MM series, and then "The Rebel Candidate " Book #6 in the Shatterproof Bond series.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 356 reviews
September 12, 2019
I know that I am saying this again and again and again but if you have followed me on Goodreads for a while, you know that Isobel Starling is my favorite contemporary author. 💜 In fact, she’s the one who taught me to love and read more contemporary romances. 😌 And you might also know that Gary Furlong is my favorite ever narrator. 🥰 So why did I wait this long to start listening this fabulous series? Really, I am kicking myself in the nuts! 😅
Declan Ramsay has never had any sexual feelings towards any men in his entire life. In fact, he might even be straighter than an arrow. 😁 But all that changes when he met Samuel Aiken, a young man who’s supposed to be his co-best man and the younger brother of his brother’s wife-to-be. Declan has been emailing back and forth with Samuel for months and Sam l in his mind was young, innocent, funny, honest and a geeky scholar who only cares about languages. The Samuel Aiken in reality when they met was tall, handsome, young but irrefutably adult and male. Their first encounter in real life was awkward and a bit embarrassing. But for the life of Declan, he really can’t figure out why he’s undeniably and uncontrollably attracted to Sam. 😁 He might be experienced when it comes to women but perhaps, he needs the guidance of young, innocent-ish 😂 Sam to learn how to make love to a man.
I was mesmerized since from the very beginning of this book. From the first encounter of Sam and Declan to Declan’s awakening of his sexual desires, this book started out very strong and carried it throughout the book. And my god, their love is epic from the very beginning. 💜 Declan was a bit of an ar*e to Sam in the beginning but boy, he more than made up for it in the end. 👏 The tender, loving, precious ways he was towards Sam, it was so romantic. 😍 And I loved Sam the young genius, witty, funny, intelligent, down-to-earth and extremely loving and patient. And my, what an unexpected turn of events in the end. I did NOT see that one coming. 😳 Those were jaw-dropping revelations. 😱 But I’m so excited to see the continued journey of Declan and Sam. As always, Gary Furlong made me blush and hot and bothered. 😅 I swear the man has the sexiest voice! 😁🔥 I cant wait to start listening book 2 immediately. 😉
5 As you wish my love stars
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Audio rating
Story - 5 stars ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Narration - 5 stars ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Performance - 5 stars ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Overall - 5 stars ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Disclaimer: An audio copy of this book was provided by the author for an honest and unbiased review.
Declan Ramsay has never had any sexual feelings towards any men in his entire life. In fact, he might even be straighter than an arrow. 😁 But all that changes when he met Samuel Aiken, a young man who’s supposed to be his co-best man and the younger brother of his brother’s wife-to-be. Declan has been emailing back and forth with Samuel for months and Sam l in his mind was young, innocent, funny, honest and a geeky scholar who only cares about languages. The Samuel Aiken in reality when they met was tall, handsome, young but irrefutably adult and male. Their first encounter in real life was awkward and a bit embarrassing. But for the life of Declan, he really can’t figure out why he’s undeniably and uncontrollably attracted to Sam. 😁 He might be experienced when it comes to women but perhaps, he needs the guidance of young, innocent-ish 😂 Sam to learn how to make love to a man.
I was mesmerized since from the very beginning of this book. From the first encounter of Sam and Declan to Declan’s awakening of his sexual desires, this book started out very strong and carried it throughout the book. And my god, their love is epic from the very beginning. 💜 Declan was a bit of an ar*e to Sam in the beginning but boy, he more than made up for it in the end. 👏 The tender, loving, precious ways he was towards Sam, it was so romantic. 😍 And I loved Sam the young genius, witty, funny, intelligent, down-to-earth and extremely loving and patient. And my, what an unexpected turn of events in the end. I did NOT see that one coming. 😳 Those were jaw-dropping revelations. 😱 But I’m so excited to see the continued journey of Declan and Sam. As always, Gary Furlong made me blush and hot and bothered. 😅 I swear the man has the sexiest voice! 😁🔥 I cant wait to start listening book 2 immediately. 😉
5 As you wish my love stars
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Audio rating
Story - 5 stars ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Narration - 5 stars ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Performance - 5 stars ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Overall - 5 stars ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Disclaimer: An audio copy of this book was provided by the author for an honest and unbiased review.
September 4, 2025
This book didn’t have to do much to win me over:
(Can you see the common theme here? lol)
The narration style was a bit unusual, switching between several third-person POVs - sometimes even mid-paragraph. Most of the time it worked, but occasionally I caught myself thinking: “Wait, whose head am I in right now?” which felt a little disruptive.
I also agree with Evie, you can kinda tell this book is about ten years old. There are a few gay stereotypes sprinkled in, as well as some mild misogyny. Not nearly as bad as in other books from that era, but still worth mentioning.
What I really enjoyed, though, was the bi awakening. It was quick and relatively painless, and the chemistry between the leads was palpable ❤️🔥 Insta-love isn’t my favourite trope (as I’ve said a hundred times before lol), but in such a short book it kind of worked - and by the end, I genuinely believed in their all-encompassing kind of forever love, so that’s something!!
All in all, a perfect little audio palate cleanser with an MC whose Scottish accent was an absolute delight 😮💨
Also: It’s free on Audible!
3,5⭐️
🏴 Setting in the beautiful landscape in Scotland? Check.
🏴 Accommodation in a Scottish castle? Check.
🏴 Scottish MC (and therefore narration with a Scottish accent?) Check.
🏴 Kilt shenanigans? CHECK!
(Can you see the common theme here? lol)
The narration style was a bit unusual, switching between several third-person POVs - sometimes even mid-paragraph. Most of the time it worked, but occasionally I caught myself thinking: “Wait, whose head am I in right now?” which felt a little disruptive.
I also agree with Evie, you can kinda tell this book is about ten years old. There are a few gay stereotypes sprinkled in, as well as some mild misogyny. Not nearly as bad as in other books from that era, but still worth mentioning.
What I really enjoyed, though, was the bi awakening. It was quick and relatively painless, and the chemistry between the leads was palpable ❤️🔥 Insta-love isn’t my favourite trope (as I’ve said a hundred times before lol), but in such a short book it kind of worked - and by the end, I genuinely believed in their all-encompassing kind of forever love, so that’s something!!
All in all, a perfect little audio palate cleanser with an MC whose Scottish accent was an absolute delight 😮💨
Also: It’s free on Audible!
3,5⭐️
June 23, 2025
I feel like this is a bit of a strange one to review, mainly because I think that the rest of books in this series are about to wildly deviate from the tone and content of this first introductory book lol
Sam and Declan have been communicating and becoming friendly through emails for a year over their shared Best Man duties to the upcoming wedding between Sam's sister and Declan's brother. When they meet in person for the first time at the wedding sparks quickly fly between the two and they find themselves falling into an unexpected and deeply intimate connection together.
I really enjoyed reading about Sam and Declans connection. I thought that Declan's bi-awakening was handled surprisingly well and there was no major freak outs which was nice. The spice between these two was pretty intense and insta-lovey (their initial getting together happens over the course of a few days they stay at the castle the wedding is set at) but it makes sense in the context of these characters. I did think there was some curious choices about narrative jumps during the spice scenes which I found a bit disruptive, but nothing too major. I also found an occasional side eye at some of the scenes where either it was a bit questionable on the spice or melodramatic to the point they seemed out of character for the circumstances.
This book was released in 2015 and honestly, you can kind of tell. It does feature a little sprinkle of misogyny in the female side characters that was not at all uncommon of MM books released during this time (and some lazier ones now too I suppose). I didn't find it as egregious as some other instances I've encountered though and can more or less look past it as a relic of a (mostly) bygone era.
Gary Furlong does another fantastic job narrating this, I am always impressed by how he can change between voices and accents. His Scottish accent in this one is delicious.
A fun and sexy introduction to these characters including some sexy kilt time and Scottish castles....which now somehow becomes an action series for intelligence agents??? Who am I to argue .....3.5 stars rounded up.
(I feel like a grave injustice has occured by not having the kilts on this cover 😂😂)
Sam and Declan have been communicating and becoming friendly through emails for a year over their shared Best Man duties to the upcoming wedding between Sam's sister and Declan's brother. When they meet in person for the first time at the wedding sparks quickly fly between the two and they find themselves falling into an unexpected and deeply intimate connection together.
I really enjoyed reading about Sam and Declans connection. I thought that Declan's bi-awakening was handled surprisingly well and there was no major freak outs which was nice. The spice between these two was pretty intense and insta-lovey (their initial getting together happens over the course of a few days they stay at the castle the wedding is set at) but it makes sense in the context of these characters. I did think there was some curious choices about narrative jumps during the spice scenes which I found a bit disruptive, but nothing too major. I also found an occasional side eye at some of the scenes where either it was a bit questionable on the spice or melodramatic to the point they seemed out of character for the circumstances.
This book was released in 2015 and honestly, you can kind of tell. It does feature a little sprinkle of misogyny in the female side characters that was not at all uncommon of MM books released during this time (and some lazier ones now too I suppose). I didn't find it as egregious as some other instances I've encountered though and can more or less look past it as a relic of a (mostly) bygone era.
Gary Furlong does another fantastic job narrating this, I am always impressed by how he can change between voices and accents. His Scottish accent in this one is delicious.
A fun and sexy introduction to these characters including some sexy kilt time and Scottish castles....which now somehow becomes an action series for intelligence agents??? Who am I to argue .....3.5 stars rounded up.
(I feel like a grave injustice has occured by not having the kilts on this cover 😂😂)
August 20, 2017
3.5*
I loved the setting of where this book took place and I also loved the Scottish accent.
Declan and Sam meet over email when they are both given the job as co-best man for Declan's brother and Sam's sister's wedding. They get on well over emails but their first encounter doesn't go so smooth. Things are a bit awkward at the beginning but soon they tied to the hip and sometimes tied up in bed. *wink*
The men become very close and share a lot of intimate time with each other barely leaving their rooms unless necessary. But I didn't mind because it wasn't all sexy times. I enjoyed their love of the same movie and their banter. They were sweet and playful.
Although Declan has never been with a man or ever even been attracted to one he doesn't go back and forth about it. He is confused of course but he doesn't dwell on it. He accepts it and then indulges himself into Sam.
Sam does jobs for his dad and doesn't have a great relationship with the man. But Sam only has his father and sister left seeing as his mother passed away when he was young. So even though he doesn't want to do the jobs his father arranges for him he does. He doesn't want to lose his small family and we get to see how much a prick his father is when Declan listens in on one of their conversations. Sam's father literally threatens to makes his son's life miserable if he doesn't bend to his will.
Later on in the book we are informed what exactly Sam does for his father and how Declan will be involved now. This allows us a bit of an insight on how the rest of the series will go.
I enjoyed this read quite a bit. What kept me from rating it higher is because of the unnecessary POV's of a couple other characters. It only happens a couple times and it was distracting. I would have liked the flow to have run a bit smoother when the author was changing the POV of the MC's. It was confusing in the beginning to understand who was talking. As I read it got easier as I got use to the writing style. But a smoother intro would have been better. There was also some major editing issues in the beginning of the book with jumbled sentences. But these things could have been fixed by now.
I totally think MM lovers would enjoy this one. Pick it up dolls!
Happy reading! xx
**I received an ARC from Netgalley and Publisher in exchange for an honest review**
I loved the setting of where this book took place and I also loved the Scottish accent.
Declan and Sam meet over email when they are both given the job as co-best man for Declan's brother and Sam's sister's wedding. They get on well over emails but their first encounter doesn't go so smooth. Things are a bit awkward at the beginning but soon they tied to the hip and sometimes tied up in bed. *wink*
The men become very close and share a lot of intimate time with each other barely leaving their rooms unless necessary. But I didn't mind because it wasn't all sexy times. I enjoyed their love of the same movie and their banter. They were sweet and playful.
Although Declan has never been with a man or ever even been attracted to one he doesn't go back and forth about it. He is confused of course but he doesn't dwell on it. He accepts it and then indulges himself into Sam.
Sam does jobs for his dad and doesn't have a great relationship with the man. But Sam only has his father and sister left seeing as his mother passed away when he was young. So even though he doesn't want to do the jobs his father arranges for him he does. He doesn't want to lose his small family and we get to see how much a prick his father is when Declan listens in on one of their conversations. Sam's father literally threatens to makes his son's life miserable if he doesn't bend to his will.
Later on in the book we are informed what exactly Sam does for his father and how Declan will be involved now. This allows us a bit of an insight on how the rest of the series will go.
I enjoyed this read quite a bit. What kept me from rating it higher is because of the unnecessary POV's of a couple other characters. It only happens a couple times and it was distracting. I would have liked the flow to have run a bit smoother when the author was changing the POV of the MC's. It was confusing in the beginning to understand who was talking. As I read it got easier as I got use to the writing style. But a smoother intro would have been better. There was also some major editing issues in the beginning of the book with jumbled sentences. But these things could have been fixed by now.
I totally think MM lovers would enjoy this one. Pick it up dolls!
Happy reading! xx
**I received an ARC from Netgalley and Publisher in exchange for an honest review**
February 11, 2021
Audio 5 +++++ Gary Furlong gets all the Stars 😍😍😍😍😍. His performance is the sole reason why I'm not giving up on this series.
Story 2.5 Stars
OTT insta + gay for you does not work for me. I need a slow burn build up. All of those sex scenes felt impersonal because they were unbelievable.
Thankfully book 2 is proving to be a lot more interesting, and I'm starting to feel the connection between the MCs.
Story 2.5 Stars
OTT insta + gay for you does not work for me. I need a slow burn build up. All of those sex scenes felt impersonal because they were unbelievable.
Thankfully book 2 is proving to be a lot more interesting, and I'm starting to feel the connection between the MCs.
July 22, 2018
Review also on my blog
I received an arc from the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review
Oh boy oh boy, I don't even know where to begin with this book! Boy was this bad.
Look, it's a m/m romance book, I get it. I'm not expecting anything spectacular. But this was bad.
Let's start with the writing, it was terrible. I've read some bad writing in my time but this had awful writing. The start of the book wasn't too bad but one thing Declan does is, wait for it, describe how his own dick looks. It was such a hilariously awful part and was so out of place! The author also constantly used "lover". That was far too ridiculous for me. And since Declan is Scottish, the author wrote in his accent and it got annoying very quickly. A pet peeve of mine is when accents are written in, especially to the extent it was in this book.
Next major point I want to discuss: holy misogyny, Batman. This book had a lot of misogyny weaved through the entire thing! Here's a specific thing from Sam.
The thought of having a cock inside him that had only been in women was, if he was being honest, a little distasteful.
How fucking misogynistic AND cissexist.
There were also no developed female characters. I get it, it's a m/m romance, you want to focus on the dudes and their relationship, fine. But absolutely none of the female characters had any personality. There was, Sam's sister who we never see and who is oh so considerate to include Sam in the wedding, but is referenced to be a spoiled brat; Declan's sister who was in the book even less; and of course, the obligatory "slut" who keeps trying so gosh darn hard to get into Declan's pants. The third was specifically portrayed in quite a terrible way, especially as pretty desperate. She was clearly used as a device to create drama later even though Declan cannot stand her. One woman Declan had gone on a date with was also portrayed as rather bitchy, for lack of a better term. She called him when he was at his brother's wedding and said;
"You're at a wedding? Why didn't you invite me?"
And later saying.
"I thought we had a little spark, Dec..." That was it; Declan's Mr Nice Guy shot himself in the head.
"Nope, no spart, zilch, nada, nothin'. Listen Lindsey, I wish ye a good life an' all, but please don't call me again. I won't answer."... Fucking needy woman
This is pretty much the only portrayal of women there is who aren't family. Let's put this with Declan offhandedly calling women he'd gone on dates with, "cows".
There's more on the misogyny I can say but let's stop it there.
I want to talk about the portrayal of sexuality. One thing I hated was that Sam's dad doesn't like him being gay, and what does he do? He sends Sam to places it is very dangerous to be gay. Granted, they were for business but this was clearly his intent. Sam and his dad do have a strained relationship but it wasn't explored nearly enough.
Declan realising he's bi was a little... off. He hadn't experienced attraction towards another man, which, you know what? Fine, I'm okay with that. But it bothers me he'd say something like "was he even gay, bi, or what?" This was after they'd had sex multiple times. The word "bisexual" is never actually used to describe Declan though. I did read the summery for the second book and it is used there at least. But there is a line where he says that Sam "changed his sexuality" or some bullshit. That's not how sexuality works, he realised he was bi. Not suddenly become attracted to men.
Do I really want to talk about how sex is handled in the book? No. Am I going to? Yes.
First off, let's start with the utterly ridiculous. This is technically not sex, but Sam had underwear that said "bottom" on the back. That was a little over the top.
Have you ever heard two dicks being rubbed up against each other as "fencing"? Because I now have!
Sam also licked Declan's armpit. I'm not about to kink shame anyone but okay.
This next part is just... too... ridiculous to not include.
The loud, agonising roars emanating from the Laird's bedchamber would have made any servant for happened to be passing the corridor think that a killing was taking place. But in reality, it was just Declan Ramsay, experiencing anal sex for the first time.
There are a million other ways you can write a man bottoming for the first time, writing in their pain like this is not one I'd pick. And it extends out! And it doesn't help that Declan is too stubborn to stop. Something also said that is more of an annoyance was that Sam said, even though they've had plenty of sex, that he has taken Declan's virginity. I hatehatehatehate the concept of virginity but this is the most obvious way to see how ridiculous it is. It pretty much describes virginity as having not been penetrated by a dick. He could've easily said he'd never been the first guy to top someone, easy! Wow! This virginity concept is so deeply ingrained to the point that even though they've had sex multiple times, this includes penetration, Declan is still somehow "losing his virginity". Fuck. That. And fuck this book.
I received an arc from the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review
Oh boy oh boy, I don't even know where to begin with this book! Boy was this bad.
Look, it's a m/m romance book, I get it. I'm not expecting anything spectacular. But this was bad.
Let's start with the writing, it was terrible. I've read some bad writing in my time but this had awful writing. The start of the book wasn't too bad but one thing Declan does is, wait for it, describe how his own dick looks. It was such a hilariously awful part and was so out of place! The author also constantly used "lover". That was far too ridiculous for me. And since Declan is Scottish, the author wrote in his accent and it got annoying very quickly. A pet peeve of mine is when accents are written in, especially to the extent it was in this book.
Next major point I want to discuss: holy misogyny, Batman. This book had a lot of misogyny weaved through the entire thing! Here's a specific thing from Sam.
The thought of having a cock inside him that had only been in women was, if he was being honest, a little distasteful.
How fucking misogynistic AND cissexist.
There were also no developed female characters. I get it, it's a m/m romance, you want to focus on the dudes and their relationship, fine. But absolutely none of the female characters had any personality. There was, Sam's sister who we never see and who is oh so considerate to include Sam in the wedding, but is referenced to be a spoiled brat; Declan's sister who was in the book even less; and of course, the obligatory "slut" who keeps trying so gosh darn hard to get into Declan's pants. The third was specifically portrayed in quite a terrible way, especially as pretty desperate. She was clearly used as a device to create drama later even though Declan cannot stand her. One woman Declan had gone on a date with was also portrayed as rather bitchy, for lack of a better term. She called him when he was at his brother's wedding and said;
"You're at a wedding? Why didn't you invite me?"
And later saying.
"I thought we had a little spark, Dec..." That was it; Declan's Mr Nice Guy shot himself in the head.
"Nope, no spart, zilch, nada, nothin'. Listen Lindsey, I wish ye a good life an' all, but please don't call me again. I won't answer."... Fucking needy woman
This is pretty much the only portrayal of women there is who aren't family. Let's put this with Declan offhandedly calling women he'd gone on dates with, "cows".
There's more on the misogyny I can say but let's stop it there.
I want to talk about the portrayal of sexuality. One thing I hated was that Sam's dad doesn't like him being gay, and what does he do? He sends Sam to places it is very dangerous to be gay. Granted, they were for business but this was clearly his intent. Sam and his dad do have a strained relationship but it wasn't explored nearly enough.
Declan realising he's bi was a little... off. He hadn't experienced attraction towards another man, which, you know what? Fine, I'm okay with that. But it bothers me he'd say something like "was he even gay, bi, or what?" This was after they'd had sex multiple times. The word "bisexual" is never actually used to describe Declan though. I did read the summery for the second book and it is used there at least. But there is a line where he says that Sam "changed his sexuality" or some bullshit. That's not how sexuality works, he realised he was bi. Not suddenly become attracted to men.
Do I really want to talk about how sex is handled in the book? No. Am I going to? Yes.
First off, let's start with the utterly ridiculous. This is technically not sex, but Sam had underwear that said "bottom" on the back. That was a little over the top.
Have you ever heard two dicks being rubbed up against each other as "fencing"? Because I now have!
Sam also licked Declan's armpit. I'm not about to kink shame anyone but okay.
This next part is just... too... ridiculous to not include.
The loud, agonising roars emanating from the Laird's bedchamber would have made any servant for happened to be passing the corridor think that a killing was taking place. But in reality, it was just Declan Ramsay, experiencing anal sex for the first time.
There are a million other ways you can write a man bottoming for the first time, writing in their pain like this is not one I'd pick. And it extends out! And it doesn't help that Declan is too stubborn to stop. Something also said that is more of an annoyance was that Sam said, even though they've had plenty of sex, that he has taken Declan's virginity. I hatehatehatehate the concept of virginity but this is the most obvious way to see how ridiculous it is. It pretty much describes virginity as having not been penetrated by a dick. He could've easily said he'd never been the first guy to top someone, easy! Wow! This virginity concept is so deeply ingrained to the point that even though they've had sex multiple times, this includes penetration, Declan is still somehow "losing his virginity". Fuck. That. And fuck this book.
June 19, 2019
Relisten: 6/19/19
Just as DROOL-WORTHY as the first time around!!
Original review: Nov 2018:
Sexy as sin...GFY/OFY!! 🔥🔥🔥🔥
Damn, this was fun!!! This is one of my favorite tropes!! How can I possibly resist popping cherries and the new found joys of the magical p-spot? I can’t. Not at all.
So this lovely story sets up an Englishman and a Scotsman as co-best men at their siblings’ wedding at a castle on Loch Ness. How’s that for romantic??
Of course, Declan, the sexy, straight, brooding Scot (who Gary Furlong gives the SEXIEST SCOTCH BROGUE TO) and Sam, the gay, happy-go-lucky world traveler DON’T HIT IT OFF at all.
Well, things change. Things like Declan liking Sam. Things like Declan wanting to be around Sam. Things like Declan wanting to touch Sam. This is all fantastic!! 💕💕💕
Now here is where we come to the pivotal point in any GFY novel: how will the “straight” guy handle his attraction to another man? How this is handled is sooooo important. And here it was handled adequately.
See, my dears, Declan could give a shit about being attracted to Sam. He just knows he is and goes with it. Full steam ahead. SPOILER!!!! . So, that reaction is a little hard to swallow for me. But Declan swallowed it very well, indeed.
Buuuuut.....Dec goes on to explain this and his inner monologue makes sense. So, I give him a pass. (Because he had a fucking fantastic accent).
What I LOVED about this delicious booty cherry popping scene was that it wasn’t all Stars ✨ and Rainbows 🌈 for our Declan. Noooo... it freaking hurt!!! Thank you Ms Starling for honoring the pain of anal breaching here 👏👏👏👏. Of course, Dec soon succumbed to the magic of the prostate and he was a goner. Can’t be helped (although that I’ll never know 😫 prostate envy is a terrible thing to live with).
I also ADORED all the references to one of the best movies of all times, The Princess Bride.....Sam and Declan have the thing memorized and they are hilarious with the dialogue using it during every single activity you can imagine.
While this was not love at first sight, it was close enough cause these two hotties fell in love over a wedding weekend.
So what happens to our lovers? Well, there’s a bit of a family secret and it means that we get to see more of these delicious men.
Major kudos 👏👏👏to Gary Furlong for NAILING The narration. Is there an accent the man cannot master? I think not!
I am totally digging my Starling/Furlong binge!! Feel free to join me, loves, it’s soooo worth it!
Just as DROOL-WORTHY as the first time around!!
Original review: Nov 2018:
Sexy as sin...GFY/OFY!! 🔥🔥🔥🔥
Damn, this was fun!!! This is one of my favorite tropes!! How can I possibly resist popping cherries and the new found joys of the magical p-spot? I can’t. Not at all.
So this lovely story sets up an Englishman and a Scotsman as co-best men at their siblings’ wedding at a castle on Loch Ness. How’s that for romantic??
Of course, Declan, the sexy, straight, brooding Scot (who Gary Furlong gives the SEXIEST SCOTCH BROGUE TO) and Sam, the gay, happy-go-lucky world traveler DON’T HIT IT OFF at all.
Well, things change. Things like Declan liking Sam. Things like Declan wanting to be around Sam. Things like Declan wanting to touch Sam. This is all fantastic!! 💕💕💕
Now here is where we come to the pivotal point in any GFY novel: how will the “straight” guy handle his attraction to another man? How this is handled is sooooo important. And here it was handled adequately.
See, my dears, Declan could give a shit about being attracted to Sam. He just knows he is and goes with it. Full steam ahead. SPOILER!!!! . So, that reaction is a little hard to swallow for me. But Declan swallowed it very well, indeed.
Buuuuut.....Dec goes on to explain this and his inner monologue makes sense. So, I give him a pass. (Because he had a fucking fantastic accent).
What I LOVED about this delicious booty cherry popping scene was that it wasn’t all Stars ✨ and Rainbows 🌈 for our Declan. Noooo... it freaking hurt!!! Thank you Ms Starling for honoring the pain of anal breaching here 👏👏👏👏. Of course, Dec soon succumbed to the magic of the prostate and he was a goner. Can’t be helped (although that I’ll never know 😫 prostate envy is a terrible thing to live with).
I also ADORED all the references to one of the best movies of all times, The Princess Bride.....Sam and Declan have the thing memorized and they are hilarious with the dialogue using it during every single activity you can imagine.
While this was not love at first sight, it was close enough cause these two hotties fell in love over a wedding weekend.
So what happens to our lovers? Well, there’s a bit of a family secret and it means that we get to see more of these delicious men.
Major kudos 👏👏👏to Gary Furlong for NAILING The narration. Is there an accent the man cannot master? I think not!
I am totally digging my Starling/Furlong binge!! Feel free to join me, loves, it’s soooo worth it!
May 21, 2023
Okay, so that was a very smart story and I loved the characters. Yes, I'm looking forward to this series continuing.
This audiobook won an award from "Audio Book Reviewer dot com" awards https://audiobookreviewer.com/blog/an...
(no idea where this award thing came from)... I already had purchased this one, since I'm a crazy Gary Furlong fan and will enjoy listening to him read literally anything!!!
BTW, just a note here: when writing this review I happen to notice that for the 'erotica' category Kenneth Obi won for M.A. Innes wonderful book Flawed Perfection, so this award can't be complete bunk ;)
So, for As You Wish. Great story, and I can't wait to read the rest of them. This one is a complete set-up for the rest of the series, but it's a classic story and I know I'm going to enjoy them.
As far as As You Wish as an audiobook? Honestly, unless you're a huge fan of this narrator (as I declared above!!!) don't go out of your way. The way the story is written it is mostly narrative, with alternating points of view. Furlong is given less opportunity to shine, being as there is so much less dialog and mostly just exposition. Though he does a great job with the two different voices - all the voices actually - but with the way this one is written, it doesn't do his talent justice, which is a waste (just my opinion of course).
This one would also be really fun for fans of The Princess Bride. I love that movie and Furlong does a spectacular job with the voices there too, when the characters are reciting lines in character.
Overall, yep, a really enjoyable story and a darn fine audiobook.
And if you're curious if I'll be trying out Flawed Perfection in its audiobook form? The answer is heck yeah!
This audiobook won an award from "Audio Book Reviewer dot com" awards https://audiobookreviewer.com/blog/an...
(no idea where this award thing came from)... I already had purchased this one, since I'm a crazy Gary Furlong fan and will enjoy listening to him read literally anything!!!
BTW, just a note here: when writing this review I happen to notice that for the 'erotica' category Kenneth Obi won for M.A. Innes wonderful book Flawed Perfection, so this award can't be complete bunk ;)
So, for As You Wish. Great story, and I can't wait to read the rest of them. This one is a complete set-up for the rest of the series, but it's a classic story and I know I'm going to enjoy them.
As far as As You Wish as an audiobook? Honestly, unless you're a huge fan of this narrator (as I declared above!!!) don't go out of your way. The way the story is written it is mostly narrative, with alternating points of view. Furlong is given less opportunity to shine, being as there is so much less dialog and mostly just exposition. Though he does a great job with the two different voices - all the voices actually - but with the way this one is written, it doesn't do his talent justice, which is a waste (just my opinion of course).
This one would also be really fun for fans of The Princess Bride. I love that movie and Furlong does a spectacular job with the voices there too, when the characters are reciting lines in character.
Overall, yep, a really enjoyable story and a darn fine audiobook.
And if you're curious if I'll be trying out Flawed Perfection in its audiobook form? The answer is heck yeah!
May 4, 2016
3.5 Stars
In As You Wish Declan Ramsay and Sam Aiken are co-best-men at the wedding of Declan's brother and Sam's sister. They get off to a rocky start but soon are inseparable and many sexytimes ensue. And lots and lots of quotes from one of my all time favorite movies, The Princess Bride.
I really enjoyed the story, the setting at a Scottish Highland castle and the antics these two employed to get to spend more time alone together. And I really enjoyed Sam and Declan. And that Declan did not beat himself up over his attraction to Sam, made it even better. It was a fun romp in the Highlands.
The ending of As You Wish kind of felt out of left field, though, and I admit I am curious as to where the author is going to take our men. Guess I'll have to read the upcoming books to find out!
In As You Wish Declan Ramsay and Sam Aiken are co-best-men at the wedding of Declan's brother and Sam's sister. They get off to a rocky start but soon are inseparable and many sexytimes ensue. And lots and lots of quotes from one of my all time favorite movies, The Princess Bride.
I really enjoyed the story, the setting at a Scottish Highland castle and the antics these two employed to get to spend more time alone together. And I really enjoyed Sam and Declan. And that Declan did not beat himself up over his attraction to Sam, made it even better. It was a fun romp in the Highlands.
The ending of As You Wish kind of felt out of left field, though, and I admit I am curious as to where the author is going to take our men. Guess I'll have to read the upcoming books to find out!
March 28, 2024
Reread/Relisten #2: March 2024
Love these two, and can’t wait to continue on to book 2!!
Reread/Relisten #1: September 2023
Same rating as last time.
These two make me smile haha. Not sure if I wanna go through the whole series, but it was great to be back with these two! Gary Furlong really makes this book.
3.5-4 stars: May 2023
Well, well, well, wasn’t this a pleasant surprise! Haha I have been in a slump for what felt like forever (probably only been 3-4 days lol) and this book brought me back to life haha. I was also here for the Princess Bride vibes haha! *cough cough* the title is a give away!
First off, Gary Furlong did an amazing job narration, though I’m not surprised since he is one of my favorites! And the first two audiobooks are on Scribd!
Second, even though this was a very fast, pretty much low angst GFY story, I ate that shit up so fast haha something about these two I can’t help but love.
Third, the writing style was a tad weird, it was written in 3rd person changing POV’s without warning sometimes so I got confused a few times on which perspective I was reading, which is why it isn’t a fully 5 stars or even 4.5. But even with that I loved this haha
I hear the books get better and better so you best believe I am picking up book two asap!
Love these two, and can’t wait to continue on to book 2!!
Reread/Relisten #1: September 2023
Same rating as last time.
These two make me smile haha. Not sure if I wanna go through the whole series, but it was great to be back with these two! Gary Furlong really makes this book.
3.5-4 stars: May 2023
Well, well, well, wasn’t this a pleasant surprise! Haha I have been in a slump for what felt like forever (probably only been 3-4 days lol) and this book brought me back to life haha. I was also here for the Princess Bride vibes haha! *cough cough* the title is a give away!
First off, Gary Furlong did an amazing job narration, though I’m not surprised since he is one of my favorites! And the first two audiobooks are on Scribd!
Second, even though this was a very fast, pretty much low angst GFY story, I ate that shit up so fast haha something about these two I can’t help but love.
Third, the writing style was a tad weird, it was written in 3rd person changing POV’s without warning sometimes so I got confused a few times on which perspective I was reading, which is why it isn’t a fully 5 stars or even 4.5. But even with that I loved this haha
I hear the books get better and better so you best believe I am picking up book two asap!
June 10, 2017
3.5 Stars
In all honesty, I don't know whether or not to take this story very seriously. At times it was kinda far fetched in its insta-love, GFY plot line. At other times it was quite the emotional, serious read.
Ever the perpetual ladies man, Declan goes through women quickly and abundantly, never really connecting. He's been looking forward to meeting his fellow best man and is dumbfounded by their combustible chemistry. His big head is saying no, but his little head is definitely saying yes, yes, yes.
So this had some angst, some really good laughs, and some serious bits too. Though it was a little over the top, it was a lot hot and cheeky fun. I don't want to give too much away. As a warning, this kinda ends as a HFN, but according to the author, a full length novel featuring these two is in the works - a story that I would be interested in reading.
Perhaps as a bonus, fans of The Princess Bride will have even more fun reading this. It definitely upped the enjoyment factor for me.
In all honesty, I don't know whether or not to take this story very seriously. At times it was kinda far fetched in its insta-love, GFY plot line. At other times it was quite the emotional, serious read.
Ever the perpetual ladies man, Declan goes through women quickly and abundantly, never really connecting. He's been looking forward to meeting his fellow best man and is dumbfounded by their combustible chemistry. His big head is saying no, but his little head is definitely saying yes, yes, yes.
So this had some angst, some really good laughs, and some serious bits too. Though it was a little over the top, it was a lot hot and cheeky fun. I don't want to give too much away. As a warning, this kinda ends as a HFN, but according to the author, a full length novel featuring these two is in the works - a story that I would be interested in reading.
Perhaps as a bonus, fans of The Princess Bride will have even more fun reading this. It definitely upped the enjoyment factor for me.
October 24, 2015
This was so not my book though it should have been: GFY and Scottish men. I wish authors would stop using GFY to work through their own internalized misogyny. Declan's loathing of the bride's best friend and his last internet date being case in point. Seriously women being harridans and stupid sluts totally undermines the case for GFY (and yes i know that the case for seriously arguing for realistic GFY is sitting on quickly melting ice but it's my thing so I will).
There was good grammar and proofreading, but I didn't like the author's writing style. It's a style that is common enough in romances, but I still haven't developed an adequate shorthand phrase for it. It's like the author just recycled phrases and scenes from other romance stories. Time for scene 410; let's throw in phrase 113-15 for a bit of difference. Maybe it's a bit like painting by the numbers.
The author's willingness to write a free story (even if it is a marketing ploy to sell the novel that expands/continues this story) is appreciated.
Time to take my grumpiness off to the next story. A bit Sterek to cheer me up.
There was good grammar and proofreading, but I didn't like the author's writing style. It's a style that is common enough in romances, but I still haven't developed an adequate shorthand phrase for it. It's like the author just recycled phrases and scenes from other romance stories. Time for scene 410; let's throw in phrase 113-15 for a bit of difference. Maybe it's a bit like painting by the numbers.
The author's willingness to write a free story (even if it is a marketing ploy to sell the novel that expands/continues this story) is appreciated.
Time to take my grumpiness off to the next story. A bit Sterek to cheer me up.
October 5, 2016
This book slump will never end.
August 15, 2016
All telling, no showing. POV switch to all characters.
December 31, 2017
The narration is terrific and Gary Furlong is a pure pleasure to listen to. I really enjoyed his accents, easily distinguishable character voices, the infusion of humor and emotion he puts into his performance, and his great pacing.
I really liked the that there is plenty of humor in the story with both Sam and Declan being quite witty and quippy. I'm also a big fan of The Princess Bride and I loved all the nods and winks to it.
I was less thrilled with the multiple POV changes that were sometimes difficult to follow along with (especially while only listening), and that there wasn't a single positive female role in the entire story. Also, I was quite honestly a bit baffled by the way the story sort of flips from a fun and funny rom/com to a spy thriller with a tentative HFN and a cliffhanger ending. Even though I was a bit confused by the ending, Furlong's narration was so good I can see grabbing book two, Illuminate the Shadows, to find out what happens next.
Gary Furlong's performance is pure entertainment and he is definitely on my narrators to watch to list.
Story = 3 Stars; Narration = 5 Stars
Audio copy of As You Wish (Shatterproof Bond #1) provided by author in exchange of an honest review.
This review has been cross-posted at Gay Book Reviews.
February 11, 2021
5 ++++ stars audio
2.75 sex saturated stars story
2.75 sex saturated stars story
March 11, 2016
Awwww, this was so sweet!! Lovely story that left me wanting more. I truly hope we get a full length novel about Declan and his adorable Sam.
May 26, 2024
Review from 2017
I've given this an A- for narration and a C+ for content at AudioGals, which averages out around 4 stars.
As You Wish is the first book in Isobel Starling’s Shatterproof Bond series which – so far – comprises four books (and a prequel) in which the storylines are all inter-related and the romance progresses throughout. I knew before I started listening that this story wasn’t self-contained and that it is to be continued into the next book (Illuminate the Shadows) and beyond, so please be aware of that before you decide to listen to As You Wish.
It’s a novella-length listen, coming in at just over four hours, and opens with two very different young men bumping – literally – into each other at Heathrow Airport as they each rush to catch a plane. Uptight control freak Declan Ramsey isn’t pleased when a scruffy back-packer almost canons into him, and is even less impressed when he finds the same man in the seat next to his on the flight to Edinburgh. He’s flying home to attend his younger brother’s wedding; Oliver Ramsey is marrying Annabelle Aiken, daughter of Declan’s boss, an incredibly wealthy property developer, at a fairytale castle on the banks of Loch Lomond, and Declan and Annabelle’s brother, Sam, are sharing best man duties. Because Sam has been living abroad for the past couple of years – he works as an interpreter and translator for his father’s company – Declan and Sam have been corresponding by email during that time, working out various details and planning their joint speech, and very quickly fell into an easy online friendship. Truth be told, Declan is a bit of a grouch; at thirty-two he’s never had a serious relationship and all the dates he’s gone on lately have been disasters – but the emails from Annabelle’s young, geeky brother have never failed to cheer him up, and he’s looking forward to finally meeting the kid.
Yep. You guessed it. Sam isn’t a kid; he’s tall, blond and gorgeous… and is the scruffy backpacker who pissed Declan off at the airport.
Sam Aiken has just returned to the UK after working for two years in some dodgy places, most notably Russia and Saudi Arabia, places where being gay could have got him into serious trouble (or even killed). He’s looking forward to seeing his sister married, getting laid after a two year drought and then to starting a new job he’s got lined up in London; he’s charming, funny, clever and ridiculously hot… and Declan, who identifies as straight and has never even so much as looked at a man in a sexual way, can’t believe it when he realises that he’s very strongly attracted to Sam.
GFY (gay for you) stories can be difficult to get right, and I don’t think the author has quite managed it here, mostly due to the fact that the shorter page count means that Declan’s transition from “no, no, I’m straight, absolutely and without question” to being attracted to Sam, admitting it to himself and then to having sex with Sam happens pretty much in the blink of an eye. On a positive note, Declan doesn’t waste time beating himself up about it; he’s not sure whether to call himself gay or bisexual, but it doesn’t really matter to him. He likes Sam, he wants Sam and for the first time ever, he feels comfortable and happy with another person and loves the way that he and Sam are so in tune with one another.
Because the two have in fact known each other for a year through their email correspondence, the emotional side of the romance is more convincing. Their ability to quote chunks of The Princess Bride and their shared sense of humour help to ground their relationship somewhat, and makes it a bit easier to buy into Declan’s light-speed team-switching. Plus the sex scenes (of which there are quite a few) are mostly a nice mixture of hot, tender, sweet and dirty. (Although there’s one rather unsexy one I could have done without!)
I enjoyed the listen, but there were a few writing glitches I found jarring. While the story is told mostly through Sam’s and Declan’s points of view, there are some places where the PoV suddenly becomes omnipresent and a character seems to be describing their own appearance, or places where it switches abruptly from one character to another, which jarred every time. There are also some stereotypical characterisations that I wasn’t comfortable with, such as Annabelle’s best friend, who has been after Declan for a while and who is whiny, needy and almost permanently drunk. Then there’s the way Declan describes the women he’s dated recently as “fucking needy”, and his assumption that all gay men are into casual sex, so Sam is unlikely to turn him down. And Annabelle loves having a brother who is gay, because it’s such fun to ogle men together. I have no idea if that actually happens… it just felt a little off to me.
A couple of weeks back, eagle eyed readers may have noticed a fairly wide difference of opinion between myself and Kaetrin when we both reviewed two different historical romances narrated by Gary Furlong. To cut a long story short, he’s an A grade narrator for me and a C grade one for Kaetrin – vive la difference! – and if you’ve already listened to him, then you’ll have come to your own conclusion as to whether he’s for you or not. I enjoy listening to him, and in fact, I requested a review copy of this audiobook on the strength of his name alone. His pacing is just right in both narrative and dialogue, and he portrays the two central characters perfectly; Declan’s gruff Scottish brogue is spot on and he nails Sam’s character completely, his charm, his cheeky humour and, later, his despair at not being able to live life on his own terms. All the secondary characters are clearly differentiated and appropriately realised, and while the female characters don’t feature very often, he performs them without resource to falsetto – and the whiny, needy would-be girlfriend is just the right amount of whiny and needy :P
The main criticism I’ve made of Mr. Furlong’s work before now is that while he does a terrific job when it comes to injecting just the right amount of expression and nuance into the dialogue in a story, he tends to perform the narrative in a way that is extremely low key and can miss out on some of the emotional cues. Here, however, I didn’t find that to be the case at all; maybe that’s due to the fact that I’m very used to his style by now, or due to the differences in tone and feel between contemporaries and historicals… or he’s simply infusing the narrative with more expression. Whatever the reason, he delivers very accomplished and enjoyable performance, and if I do revisit this series, it will certainly be in audio.
As I said at the beginning, As You Wish is the beginning of a series – or, more correctly, serial – and it does a good job of introducing the characters and setting up their relationship. I liked both principals, and while the romance progresses very quickly – a common complaint I have about novellas – Sam and Declan are good together and I was able to root for them to get their HEA – or, rather, HFN, as the story is to be continued. I had guessed the final twist, which looks set to take things in a slightly different direction, and I think I might be intrigued enough to try book two.
I've given this an A- for narration and a C+ for content at AudioGals, which averages out around 4 stars.
As You Wish is the first book in Isobel Starling’s Shatterproof Bond series which – so far – comprises four books (and a prequel) in which the storylines are all inter-related and the romance progresses throughout. I knew before I started listening that this story wasn’t self-contained and that it is to be continued into the next book (Illuminate the Shadows) and beyond, so please be aware of that before you decide to listen to As You Wish.
It’s a novella-length listen, coming in at just over four hours, and opens with two very different young men bumping – literally – into each other at Heathrow Airport as they each rush to catch a plane. Uptight control freak Declan Ramsey isn’t pleased when a scruffy back-packer almost canons into him, and is even less impressed when he finds the same man in the seat next to his on the flight to Edinburgh. He’s flying home to attend his younger brother’s wedding; Oliver Ramsey is marrying Annabelle Aiken, daughter of Declan’s boss, an incredibly wealthy property developer, at a fairytale castle on the banks of Loch Lomond, and Declan and Annabelle’s brother, Sam, are sharing best man duties. Because Sam has been living abroad for the past couple of years – he works as an interpreter and translator for his father’s company – Declan and Sam have been corresponding by email during that time, working out various details and planning their joint speech, and very quickly fell into an easy online friendship. Truth be told, Declan is a bit of a grouch; at thirty-two he’s never had a serious relationship and all the dates he’s gone on lately have been disasters – but the emails from Annabelle’s young, geeky brother have never failed to cheer him up, and he’s looking forward to finally meeting the kid.
Yep. You guessed it. Sam isn’t a kid; he’s tall, blond and gorgeous… and is the scruffy backpacker who pissed Declan off at the airport.
Sam Aiken has just returned to the UK after working for two years in some dodgy places, most notably Russia and Saudi Arabia, places where being gay could have got him into serious trouble (or even killed). He’s looking forward to seeing his sister married, getting laid after a two year drought and then to starting a new job he’s got lined up in London; he’s charming, funny, clever and ridiculously hot… and Declan, who identifies as straight and has never even so much as looked at a man in a sexual way, can’t believe it when he realises that he’s very strongly attracted to Sam.
GFY (gay for you) stories can be difficult to get right, and I don’t think the author has quite managed it here, mostly due to the fact that the shorter page count means that Declan’s transition from “no, no, I’m straight, absolutely and without question” to being attracted to Sam, admitting it to himself and then to having sex with Sam happens pretty much in the blink of an eye. On a positive note, Declan doesn’t waste time beating himself up about it; he’s not sure whether to call himself gay or bisexual, but it doesn’t really matter to him. He likes Sam, he wants Sam and for the first time ever, he feels comfortable and happy with another person and loves the way that he and Sam are so in tune with one another.
Because the two have in fact known each other for a year through their email correspondence, the emotional side of the romance is more convincing. Their ability to quote chunks of The Princess Bride and their shared sense of humour help to ground their relationship somewhat, and makes it a bit easier to buy into Declan’s light-speed team-switching. Plus the sex scenes (of which there are quite a few) are mostly a nice mixture of hot, tender, sweet and dirty. (Although there’s one rather unsexy one I could have done without!)
I enjoyed the listen, but there were a few writing glitches I found jarring. While the story is told mostly through Sam’s and Declan’s points of view, there are some places where the PoV suddenly becomes omnipresent and a character seems to be describing their own appearance, or places where it switches abruptly from one character to another, which jarred every time. There are also some stereotypical characterisations that I wasn’t comfortable with, such as Annabelle’s best friend, who has been after Declan for a while and who is whiny, needy and almost permanently drunk. Then there’s the way Declan describes the women he’s dated recently as “fucking needy”, and his assumption that all gay men are into casual sex, so Sam is unlikely to turn him down. And Annabelle loves having a brother who is gay, because it’s such fun to ogle men together. I have no idea if that actually happens… it just felt a little off to me.
A couple of weeks back, eagle eyed readers may have noticed a fairly wide difference of opinion between myself and Kaetrin when we both reviewed two different historical romances narrated by Gary Furlong. To cut a long story short, he’s an A grade narrator for me and a C grade one for Kaetrin – vive la difference! – and if you’ve already listened to him, then you’ll have come to your own conclusion as to whether he’s for you or not. I enjoy listening to him, and in fact, I requested a review copy of this audiobook on the strength of his name alone. His pacing is just right in both narrative and dialogue, and he portrays the two central characters perfectly; Declan’s gruff Scottish brogue is spot on and he nails Sam’s character completely, his charm, his cheeky humour and, later, his despair at not being able to live life on his own terms. All the secondary characters are clearly differentiated and appropriately realised, and while the female characters don’t feature very often, he performs them without resource to falsetto – and the whiny, needy would-be girlfriend is just the right amount of whiny and needy :P
The main criticism I’ve made of Mr. Furlong’s work before now is that while he does a terrific job when it comes to injecting just the right amount of expression and nuance into the dialogue in a story, he tends to perform the narrative in a way that is extremely low key and can miss out on some of the emotional cues. Here, however, I didn’t find that to be the case at all; maybe that’s due to the fact that I’m very used to his style by now, or due to the differences in tone and feel between contemporaries and historicals… or he’s simply infusing the narrative with more expression. Whatever the reason, he delivers very accomplished and enjoyable performance, and if I do revisit this series, it will certainly be in audio.
As I said at the beginning, As You Wish is the beginning of a series – or, more correctly, serial – and it does a good job of introducing the characters and setting up their relationship. I liked both principals, and while the romance progresses very quickly – a common complaint I have about novellas – Sam and Declan are good together and I was able to root for them to get their HEA – or, rather, HFN, as the story is to be continued. I had guessed the final twist, which looks set to take things in a slightly different direction, and I think I might be intrigued enough to try book two.
July 23, 2020
~ 3.5 stars ~
Hmmm... This was a hard one to rate. On the one hand, I really liked the setting and the characters and I'm interested in seeing how this little twist at the end plays out in the next books.
On the other hand, it took me a loooong time to get into the story because the writing felt jumbled and disjointed. There were lots of POV changes and I had to rewind several times to figure out who was speaking. It got better the more I listened and I hope I won't have such a hard time connecting to the future books.
Hmmm... This was a hard one to rate. On the one hand, I really liked the setting and the characters and I'm interested in seeing how this little twist at the end plays out in the next books.
On the other hand, it took me a loooong time to get into the story because the writing felt jumbled and disjointed. There were lots of POV changes and I had to rewind several times to figure out who was speaking. It got better the more I listened and I hope I won't have such a hard time connecting to the future books.
May 5, 2019
** 3.75 stars **
I enjoyed this slightly insta-love, GFY, May/December romance set in Scotland Highlands. I liked both Sam and Declan. They were initially so dissimilar but by the time the book was over, it seemed they both wanted the same thing - someone to cherish and come home to. But the reasons why they didn't have that yet were extremely different. The luxurious wedding in Scottish castle, the fairy tale like atmosphere and emotions flying high added to both men falling for each other so quickly.
Declan is presented as a perfectionist needing to control everything in his life. At first he comes off as arrogant but later on it seems that he is usually prickly when he is put on the spot and can't be in charge of the situation. He questions everything about himself when the sudden and unwelcome attraction to his boss' son will not go away. What starts as a tentative exploration, turns into passion that can quickly grow into something much more serious.
Sam is a bit of a mystery at the beginning. He is charming, smart, extremely good-looking, young and yet unattached. One would wonder why. But the uneasy relationship with his father and multiple secrets cause Declan to question things. Sam thinks he has a chance with Declan, so he jumps right into his bed, and it quickly turns into something more serious that just scratching an itch.
Both men enjoy their stay at the castle, they have fun but never forget that this is temporary. Both of them wonder how things will be when the excitement and the dream like quality of their affair dissipates, and the reality intrudes. I liked that even though it heated up between them fast, they still doubted, they hesitated and at times show their insecurities to one another. When the wedding is over and Sam is unexpectedly gone, time is proof enough for Declan that he needs Sam, that he fell hard for him, that he wants a life with him. When Sam appears and put all his cards on the table, Declan makes a leap of faith. It's only the beginning. I am curious what comes next for Declan and Sam. Copy was received for my honest and unbiased review
I enjoyed this slightly insta-love, GFY, May/December romance set in Scotland Highlands. I liked both Sam and Declan. They were initially so dissimilar but by the time the book was over, it seemed they both wanted the same thing - someone to cherish and come home to. But the reasons why they didn't have that yet were extremely different. The luxurious wedding in Scottish castle, the fairy tale like atmosphere and emotions flying high added to both men falling for each other so quickly.
Declan is presented as a perfectionist needing to control everything in his life. At first he comes off as arrogant but later on it seems that he is usually prickly when he is put on the spot and can't be in charge of the situation. He questions everything about himself when the sudden and unwelcome attraction to his boss' son will not go away. What starts as a tentative exploration, turns into passion that can quickly grow into something much more serious.
Sam is a bit of a mystery at the beginning. He is charming, smart, extremely good-looking, young and yet unattached. One would wonder why. But the uneasy relationship with his father and multiple secrets cause Declan to question things. Sam thinks he has a chance with Declan, so he jumps right into his bed, and it quickly turns into something more serious that just scratching an itch.
Both men enjoy their stay at the castle, they have fun but never forget that this is temporary. Both of them wonder how things will be when the excitement and the dream like quality of their affair dissipates, and the reality intrudes. I liked that even though it heated up between them fast, they still doubted, they hesitated and at times show their insecurities to one another. When the wedding is over and Sam is unexpectedly gone, time is proof enough for Declan that he needs Sam, that he fell hard for him, that he wants a life with him. When Sam appears and put all his cards on the table, Declan makes a leap of faith. It's only the beginning. I am curious what comes next for Declan and Sam. Copy was received for my honest and unbiased review
January 11, 2020
A complimentary audio was provided in exchange for an honest review.
This story wasn't for me. First there was too much sex and I ended up skipping parts to avoid it. Secondly, the character interactions was not believable. The two MCs have been communicating for a year planning their siblings wedding, and in all that time they never spoke over the phone? Just email? They never saw a photo of the other, maybe on a mantel and the future in laws? For them not to know the other at the airport just felt odd. And how they acted towards the other when they figure out who is who, I just didn't think was natural.
The ending, sheesh. Seriously, I am to believe there is some dark spy agency? This was just too much. Not going to continue the series. Sadly I think my taste and this author don't match and this will be my last. 😕
Narration was the best part of the story for sure! High praise and 5 stars!
This story wasn't for me. First there was too much sex and I ended up skipping parts to avoid it. Secondly, the character interactions was not believable. The two MCs have been communicating for a year planning their siblings wedding, and in all that time they never spoke over the phone? Just email? They never saw a photo of the other, maybe on a mantel and the future in laws? For them not to know the other at the airport just felt odd. And how they acted towards the other when they figure out who is who, I just didn't think was natural.
The ending, sheesh. Seriously, I am to believe there is some dark spy agency? This was just too much. Not going to continue the series. Sadly I think my taste and this author don't match and this will be my last. 😕
Narration was the best part of the story for sure! High praise and 5 stars!
May 11, 2024
Dear author:
Yes we know that Russia and Saudi Arabia, and most Arab countries in general, are homophobic and being gay is dangerous.
However, you don't need to shove it down our throats 529395 times in the span of a 200 page book. WE GET IT.
Also, the fact that one MMC goes to these places in particular to *get information* left a bad taste in my mouth.
You're skirting the line of the More Heat Than Sun author and I don't like it. I dropped that series for being extremely islamophobic and arabphobic and I'm hoping it won't come to that with this series.
Let's see....
Signed:
A muslim woman who is done with the offensive Muslim rep in MM romance 🙄🙄🙄🙄🙄🙄🙄
Yes we know that Russia and Saudi Arabia, and most Arab countries in general, are homophobic and being gay is dangerous.
However, you don't need to shove it down our throats 529395 times in the span of a 200 page book. WE GET IT.
Also, the fact that one MMC goes to these places in particular to *get information* left a bad taste in my mouth.
You're skirting the line of the More Heat Than Sun author and I don't like it. I dropped that series for being extremely islamophobic and arabphobic and I'm hoping it won't come to that with this series.
Let's see....
Signed:
A muslim woman who is done with the offensive Muslim rep in MM romance 🙄🙄🙄🙄🙄🙄🙄
Read
December 4, 2017I might come back to this, but so far this is not a good book for me.
Something with the POV and the douche-ness of the MCs has me put off by this...
Something with the POV and the douche-ness of the MCs has me put off by this...
August 20, 2025
1 wedding, 2 best men, one hell of a love story! Declan Ramsay was set to be the best man at his brother's wedding in Scotland, sharing the best man duties with the bride's gay kid brother Sam. Sam was abroad finishing his studies so the best men communicated by email for more than a year and wouldn't meet for the first time until a few days before the wedding. But on meeting Sam Aiken, Declan is surprised to see he isn't a kid at all, but a striking, athletic blond man with gorgeous green eyes and a wicked sense of humor. Declan is alarmed by the ferocious attraction he feels for Sam. And as the attraction is reciprocated, the events at Dunloch Castle change everything Declan has ever believed about himself. But is Sam Aiken all he appears to be?
It’s a wonderful look at one man’s journey to find what-and who-he truly wants after so many unsatisfying encounters with women, and another man’s attempt to find love and settle back into a normal life-if his controlling father will let him. I absolutely adored these characters. Sam is so lovable, bubbly and bright and outgoing-though at times hiding some bit of sadness that we don’t get to find out about until the absolute end of the story. And Declan…there’s just something about a person discovering his sexuality and breaking free of expectations that endears Declan (and other characters like him) to me from the start. The two together are intensely passionate and the phrase “explosive chemistry” was probably coined with their eventual pairing in mind.
Watching as Declan explored his sexual boundaries as he learns just what he needs and wants is emotional for the reader as well as Declan himself as he experiences it. He and Sam weave such a tight bond with each other, and as a reader I was just as devastated as Declan when their time together at the castle for the wedding comes to an end…especially the way it did.
I’m really glad the way things tied up at the end. No other ending would have been acceptable. It's another series that I am totally hooked on. Can’t wait to start in the next book. 5 stars and I can guarantee no matter how this series progresses from here that I’ll still be re-reading this one in the future!
It’s a wonderful look at one man’s journey to find what-and who-he truly wants after so many unsatisfying encounters with women, and another man’s attempt to find love and settle back into a normal life-if his controlling father will let him. I absolutely adored these characters. Sam is so lovable, bubbly and bright and outgoing-though at times hiding some bit of sadness that we don’t get to find out about until the absolute end of the story. And Declan…there’s just something about a person discovering his sexuality and breaking free of expectations that endears Declan (and other characters like him) to me from the start. The two together are intensely passionate and the phrase “explosive chemistry” was probably coined with their eventual pairing in mind.
Watching as Declan explored his sexual boundaries as he learns just what he needs and wants is emotional for the reader as well as Declan himself as he experiences it. He and Sam weave such a tight bond with each other, and as a reader I was just as devastated as Declan when their time together at the castle for the wedding comes to an end…especially the way it did.
I’m really glad the way things tied up at the end. No other ending would have been acceptable. It's another series that I am totally hooked on. Can’t wait to start in the next book. 5 stars and I can guarantee no matter how this series progresses from here that I’ll still be re-reading this one in the future!
Read
April 19, 2017You can now read the whole Shatterproof Bond series in one box set.
Read
December 21, 2024DNF @ 36% - I just can’t deal with all the exclamation points and wrong spelling of words. (metal was used when it should have been, ‘mettle’) There are multiple examples of this. Too much work deciphering bad grammar.
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August 20, 2017DNF @ 34% due to unprovoked insta-lust from a 32 year old straight man.
*sigh* I have no patience. I refuse to spend my prized reading time with raised eyebrows and rolling eyes.
*sigh* I have no patience. I refuse to spend my prized reading time with raised eyebrows and rolling eyes.
July 6, 2020
It was not the best novel. The characters stayed flat and there was no plot. 50% was sex. The narrator, although sometimes great, was droning while reading this novel.
August 23, 2016
So I saw this one and I was like, yeah, novella, okay, I'm crunching on time here but I think I can sneak that one in.
Novella... mhmm. Okay, Isobel Starling, I see the game you're playing here. I'll just have to make sure I clear my schedule for the week before I start that "full length" novel of yours.
In all seriousness though, I enjoyed this one a lot more than I thought I was going to! I was immediately drawn to Sam as an MC because he was quirky and lighthearted. His character made me laugh, and that's always something I love in a book.
I'll be the first to admit, I have a thing for the name Declan. I may or may not have decided to read this based entirely on that fact (you will never know). Declan as a character? Eeehhhhhhh, not my favorite. Not bad, but he's just not my cup of tea.
Now, Declan and Sam together?
Declan and Sam were on fire. I absolutely loved their slightly childish and dorky movie references despite The Princess Bride being my least favorite movie ever. The references and quotes in this book were easy to follow and actually rather endearing. Maybe the next time I'm forced into watching it at a family gathering I won't hate it so much...
I was also pleased to see an author take a not-so-serious slant on sex, especially in a romance novel that was otherwise very passionate and serious. Actually, I think their playful bedroom banter is what made me keep reading the novel (despite having a long list of things to do).
These two MC's were embarrassingly cute and hilarious to read, but they were also passionate and wildly hungry for each other. Starling can write some seriously steamy (and wildly unexpected) stuff. I do have to say, I loved every bit of it.
And can we just talk about men in kilts for a moment?
Actually, you know, I don't think we even need to talk. Just seeing that is enough to make me want to crack open this novel for another read.
There's a very special place, in both my heart and on my bookshelf, for GFY novels (especially GFY with kilts and cute boys). I think this one is going to fit in rather perfectly.
Reviewed by Jordan at Alpha Book Club.
Disclaimer: This book was provided by the author in exchange for an honest review. All thoughts and opinions expressed herein are my own and not influenced by the author or the publisher in any way.
Novella... mhmm. Okay, Isobel Starling, I see the game you're playing here. I'll just have to make sure I clear my schedule for the week before I start that "full length" novel of yours.
In all seriousness though, I enjoyed this one a lot more than I thought I was going to! I was immediately drawn to Sam as an MC because he was quirky and lighthearted. His character made me laugh, and that's always something I love in a book.
I'll be the first to admit, I have a thing for the name Declan. I may or may not have decided to read this based entirely on that fact (you will never know). Declan as a character? Eeehhhhhhh, not my favorite. Not bad, but he's just not my cup of tea.
Now, Declan and Sam together?
"He was sick last night too. I went up to check on him, and there were terrible moans coming from his room."
"Oh, I know. He kept me up all night." Sam informed her. "He said something about overindulging on sausage... from the buffet."
Declan and Sam were on fire. I absolutely loved their slightly childish and dorky movie references despite The Princess Bride being my least favorite movie ever. The references and quotes in this book were easy to follow and actually rather endearing. Maybe the next time I'm forced into watching it at a family gathering I won't hate it so much...
I was also pleased to see an author take a not-so-serious slant on sex, especially in a romance novel that was otherwise very passionate and serious. Actually, I think their playful bedroom banter is what made me keep reading the novel (despite having a long list of things to do).
When it was just him and Sam tangled in one another's limbs, satiated from a session of lovemaking, there was no gender; it was just beating hearts, ragged breaths, and the exchange of long looks that spoke of words they could not yet say.
These two MC's were embarrassingly cute and hilarious to read, but they were also passionate and wildly hungry for each other. Starling can write some seriously steamy (and wildly unexpected) stuff. I do have to say, I loved every bit of it.
And can we just talk about men in kilts for a moment?
Actually, you know, I don't think we even need to talk. Just seeing that is enough to make me want to crack open this novel for another read.
There's a very special place, in both my heart and on my bookshelf, for GFY novels (especially GFY with kilts and cute boys). I think this one is going to fit in rather perfectly.
Reviewed by Jordan at Alpha Book Club.
Disclaimer: This book was provided by the author in exchange for an honest review. All thoughts and opinions expressed herein are my own and not influenced by the author or the publisher in any way.
October 10, 2017
2,5 stars.
Declan and Samuel meet on a plane to Scotland, and neither is too impressed with the other. Little do they know that they already know each other. They have been emailing back and forth for about a year planning their best man duties for the wedding between Sam's sister and Declan's brother. The two spend a week in a fairytale castle by Loch Ness, and their attraction to each other sizzles even though Declan has never found another man attractive.
I found Declan delightful and his accent was great. Sam didn't really do anything for me - I feel that so much was set up with his personality, but there was no real follow-through (at least not in this installment). The story was a little shallow, and most scenarios were brushed over without intricate details. Only the sex scenes were laid out in detail. I would have liked more build up between the two, and I would have liked more pining before the end. It all seemed a little too easy. The epilogue was sort of out of place - the events in that (and I guess the following installments) sorta came out of the blue. I'm intrigued to read the next books although it seems they're more about Sam's father than the love story.
Review copy recieved in exchange for my honest review
Declan and Samuel meet on a plane to Scotland, and neither is too impressed with the other. Little do they know that they already know each other. They have been emailing back and forth for about a year planning their best man duties for the wedding between Sam's sister and Declan's brother. The two spend a week in a fairytale castle by Loch Ness, and their attraction to each other sizzles even though Declan has never found another man attractive.
I found Declan delightful and his accent was great. Sam didn't really do anything for me - I feel that so much was set up with his personality, but there was no real follow-through (at least not in this installment). The story was a little shallow, and most scenarios were brushed over without intricate details. Only the sex scenes were laid out in detail. I would have liked more build up between the two, and I would have liked more pining before the end. It all seemed a little too easy. The epilogue was sort of out of place - the events in that (and I guess the following installments) sorta came out of the blue. I'm intrigued to read the next books although it seems they're more about Sam's father than the love story.
Review copy recieved in exchange for my honest review
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