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Regifted
A Muscle Man and Nerd Holiday Romance
"Regifted? Isn’t that what people do with fruitcakes?"
Vincent, owner and trainer at the most exclusive gym in the city, is in the middle of a bad luck streak in his dating game. To avoid having a blue Christmas, he reluctantly volunteers to participate in a date auction event at the holiday benefit for his city's LGBTQ community center. Vincent’s thrilled when a wealthy silver fox with muscles as big as his own wins the auction.
All is going well for the merriest of Christmases until Vincent finds himself regifted to Desmond, a viola-playing nerd who wants a date for a performance of the Nutcracker at the city ballet.
Desmond can’t believe his good fortune, and Vincent is laid low by the humiliation of his rejection. With the help of good friends Maeve and Jerry, both Vincent and Desmond learn that there is much more to falling in love at Christmas than shallow appearances.
There’s plenty of good humor, steamy scenes, and a happily-ever-after ending in this muscle man and nerd romance.
"Regifted? Isn’t that what people do with fruitcakes?"
Vincent, owner and trainer at the most exclusive gym in the city, is in the middle of a bad luck streak in his dating game. To avoid having a blue Christmas, he reluctantly volunteers to participate in a date auction event at the holiday benefit for his city's LGBTQ community center. Vincent’s thrilled when a wealthy silver fox with muscles as big as his own wins the auction.
All is going well for the merriest of Christmases until Vincent finds himself regifted to Desmond, a viola-playing nerd who wants a date for a performance of the Nutcracker at the city ballet.
Desmond can’t believe his good fortune, and Vincent is laid low by the humiliation of his rejection. With the help of good friends Maeve and Jerry, both Vincent and Desmond learn that there is much more to falling in love at Christmas than shallow appearances.
There’s plenty of good humor, steamy scenes, and a happily-ever-after ending in this muscle man and nerd romance.
142 pages, Kindle Edition
First published December 19, 2018
123 people are currently reading
65 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 42 reviews
January 26, 2019
This story of gym owner Nick and viola player Desmond was absolutely lovely. I laughed so many times from the amazing humor throughout the story I am sure I added a few more laugh lines to my face! Nick was gorgeous of course... but Desmond was perfection and together they were beyond adorable. The secondary characters not only provided for lots of laughs, but were well-developed and interesting. This was a totally enjyable sweet Christmas read!
January 18, 2019
2 stars -- The premise was interesting: a muscly gym owner participates in a date auction for charity and is "won" by the richest, most-eligible bachelor in the city, but a series of events results in the winner regifting the date to a nerdy college professor. While the book started out okay, I probably should have just DNF'd this one about halfway though, because neither of the characters were particularly endearing, so much so that one ultimately struck me as insincere and the other as just annoying, and the writing was often painfully dull as it strained to be cutesy fluff fitting the holiday theme. I've read other books by this author before, so this was surprisingly disappointing.
January 28, 2019
This was a short and sweet holiday story with the trope of opposites attract.
Vincent is a hunk, a personal trainer with his own gym and your typical muscle man. Desmond is a Nerd, slim with dark rimmed glasses, playing the viola in an orchestra.
When Vincent volunteers to be auctioned away for a date at a fund raiser, hunky and rich business owner Sal places the highest bid. This is exactly the outcome Vincent had hoped for, however, when a jealous ex of Sal appears, he needs to get rid of his date and "regifts" Vincent to Desmond, who accepts the present eagerly.
Most of the story was honestly not too thrilling, very predictable, the little drama with Sal interfering when the 2 guys finally got together, quite stupid and unnecessary.
Two things I liked about it were a charming happy end and small and nerdy Desmond absolutely taking the lead in the bedroom and topping the strong muscle guy.
Apart from that it was an okay read and a 3 star book for me.
Vincent is a hunk, a personal trainer with his own gym and your typical muscle man. Desmond is a Nerd, slim with dark rimmed glasses, playing the viola in an orchestra.
When Vincent volunteers to be auctioned away for a date at a fund raiser, hunky and rich business owner Sal places the highest bid. This is exactly the outcome Vincent had hoped for, however, when a jealous ex of Sal appears, he needs to get rid of his date and "regifts" Vincent to Desmond, who accepts the present eagerly.
Most of the story was honestly not too thrilling, very predictable, the little drama with Sal interfering when the 2 guys finally got together, quite stupid and unnecessary.
Two things I liked about it were a charming happy end and small and nerdy Desmond absolutely taking the lead in the bedroom and topping the strong muscle guy.
Apart from that it was an okay read and a 3 star book for me.
January 8, 2019
Cute Idea, Disappointing Result
I've got so many gripes with this one. A pretty big one is that neither character seems really enthusiastic about being with the other. Vincent's supposedly always crushed on "nerds" but he overreacts to the "insult" of being rebuffed to Desmond & he keeps being drawn to muscular men like his ex & Sal. Sal is, by far, the worst thing in the story. Wtf was he even doing in this mess after he did the regifting that was supposed to set the Desmond/Vincent romance in motion? Am I the only one that remembers the whole bathroom scene where Desmond eavesdropped on the conversation about Sal's ex coming back & being the only reason he couldn't go on the date with Vincent despite the supposedly record breaking his he'd placed to win Vincent?! From Vincent's pov we learn that Sal claimed he had to attend his aunt's FUNERAL & that was why he gave the date to Desmond & Desmond was bribed with a "six figure" contribution to his music department to keep the real reason quiet. Yet when Sal reappears to go from a*hole to sleaze by asking Desmond out, there's no thought about Gabriel(Sal's ex) & the chapter/scene ends with Desmond wondering about the health of Sal's aunt. The health of an aunt who supposedly died to cover up the fact that Sal couldn't go out with Vincent when Sal was reuniting with his ex. This book is far too short for the writer lose track of that plot point but I'm not surprised by the error since pretty much all of the story forgets that it's supposed to be about a romance between Desmond & Vincent. I honestly could give this 1 star but I actually read it all the way through so it gets 1 star for effort & 1 star for being a KU read so that I didn't waste money along with my time.
I've got so many gripes with this one. A pretty big one is that neither character seems really enthusiastic about being with the other. Vincent's supposedly always crushed on "nerds" but he overreacts to the "insult" of being rebuffed to Desmond & he keeps being drawn to muscular men like his ex & Sal. Sal is, by far, the worst thing in the story. Wtf was he even doing in this mess after he did the regifting that was supposed to set the Desmond/Vincent romance in motion? Am I the only one that remembers the whole bathroom scene where Desmond eavesdropped on the conversation about Sal's ex coming back & being the only reason he couldn't go on the date with Vincent despite the supposedly record breaking his he'd placed to win Vincent?! From Vincent's pov we learn that Sal claimed he had to attend his aunt's FUNERAL & that was why he gave the date to Desmond & Desmond was bribed with a "six figure" contribution to his music department to keep the real reason quiet. Yet when Sal reappears to go from a*hole to sleaze by asking Desmond out, there's no thought about Gabriel(Sal's ex) & the chapter/scene ends with Desmond wondering about the health of Sal's aunt. The health of an aunt who supposedly died to cover up the fact that Sal couldn't go out with Vincent when Sal was reuniting with his ex. This book is far too short for the writer lose track of that plot point but I'm not surprised by the error since pretty much all of the story forgets that it's supposed to be about a romance between Desmond & Vincent. I honestly could give this 1 star but I actually read it all the way through so it gets 1 star for effort & 1 star for being a KU read so that I didn't waste money along with my time.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
December 27, 2018
Mostly OK
The story is cute enough but the delivery style was not. There’s too much info passed in dialogue and it gets annoying after awhile. Minimal character development for Vincent and Desmond. We learn that they’re nice guys but get very little background information. On the plus side it is a cheerful Christmas themed story that ends well.
The story is cute enough but the delivery style was not. There’s too much info passed in dialogue and it gets annoying after awhile. Minimal character development for Vincent and Desmond. We learn that they’re nice guys but get very little background information. On the plus side it is a cheerful Christmas themed story that ends well.
January 26, 2019
Muscling through the false harmony to the heart of the music
[As those few of us with a clue - us rare violists - know, the inner voice of the viola is the heart of the orchestra. :) ]
Quick and light holiday romance between the built gym god and the music nerd
There was no way I could resist a romantic story with a viola player as a protagonist. Unfortunately, it was a little too pat and cheesy for my general tastes. The set-up had significant promise, with an uber-fit gym owner/trainer unexpectedly switched into a charity auction date with a tall, built millionaire to a dinner with a nerdy academic violist instead.
Unfortunately, despite the promise of the initial premise, a sudden change in attitude was jarring and undermined the main conflict into a sudden (and rather unfulfilling) resolution.
[As those few of us with a clue - us rare violists - know, the inner voice of the viola is the heart of the orchestra. :) ]
Quick and light holiday romance between the built gym god and the music nerd
There was no way I could resist a romantic story with a viola player as a protagonist. Unfortunately, it was a little too pat and cheesy for my general tastes. The set-up had significant promise, with an uber-fit gym owner/trainer unexpectedly switched into a charity auction date with a tall, built millionaire to a dinner with a nerdy academic violist instead.
Unfortunately, despite the promise of the initial premise, a sudden change in attitude was jarring and undermined the main conflict into a sudden (and rather unfulfilling) resolution.
December 30, 2018
the premise was cute. I liked the friendship of Desmond and Jerry, which made me giggle. If you want something low angst, sweet this is for you.
February 6, 2020
UGH! This story had so much potential! I really loved the idea, I mean who wouldn’t, a muscle man and a nerd, how great is that! At the beginning I really liked Desmond and Vincent. I thought the relationship between Vincent and Maeve was funny and I loved the banter between Desmond and his best friend Jerry but the story went downhill fast from there.
So, what went wrong? Let me start with the definition of “regifted” (at least the one that comes to mind when I hear the word), I don’t know why but the “regifted” thing really bugged me. The definition according to the dictionary, verb... give (a gift one has received) to someone else . Vincent wasn’t a “gift” to be “regifted”! Sal bought him at an auction! He then gave him to Desmond because … well, you’ll learn why in a conversation Desmond overhears in the bathroom the night of the auction. Also, did the author forgot about that conversation? It was kind of an important conversation. I don’t mean to sound harsh but where was the editor or at the very least someone that proofread this story to keep things straight? It’s kind of a very big thing to miss in my opinion.
The other thing I had issue with was how quickly both Desmond and Vincent were willing to forego the other for an ex or in Desmond’s case when Sal came calling asking him for a date. WTH?!?! It was at that point I realized I’d given up on Desmond and Vincent, I didn’t like them very much anymore. I was done with their story. I did finish the book because I rarely DNF anything, you never know a story may turn itself around unfortunately this one didn't.
TAGS
-- Holiday/Christmas -- nerd -- muscle man -- opposites -- needs work -- didn't work for me
January 2, 2019
This is a sweet, low angst holiday read. I loved Desmond and the way he went out of his way decorating his apartment for Christmas and dressing to impress Vincent on their first date. I loved the little interjections of humor during the first dinner date, too. The one quibble I have is the introduction late in the story of potential alternate love interests for both Desmond and Vincent. The other men are introduced, but the potential is not developed, and then they are quickly swept away. Desmond doesn't even give his other suitor a final answer. The introduction of these characters was a plot twist that wasn't developed and didn't add to the story. That said, this remains a sweet Christmas read with fun primary and secondary characters. There is also a nice one-year later epilogue.
I received a complimentary copy of this book from the author. This is my honest, voluntary review.
I received a complimentary copy of this book from the author. This is my honest, voluntary review.
December 26, 2018
Such a great Christmas take and the connection you can feel with another. Also, that appearances can be deceiving. Vincent is up it forward as a bachelor for an event at a fundraiser but is regifted after the original winner backs out. Desmond is the lucky man who gets to go on a date with the man of his dreams and something is felt between the two immediately.
With romance and fun along the way, I really enjoyed the story of these two men growing closer in the lead up to Christmas. There are several secondary characters to enjoy as well as the MC's, the story flows really well and is engaging from the start.
Definitely a recommended Christmas holiday romance.
I received an ARC and am happily giving a review
With romance and fun along the way, I really enjoyed the story of these two men growing closer in the lead up to Christmas. There are several secondary characters to enjoy as well as the MC's, the story flows really well and is engaging from the start.
Definitely a recommended Christmas holiday romance.
I received an ARC and am happily giving a review
January 21, 2019
2.5 stars
It was cute/Hallmark-y but hard to get into the characters. At first Vincent seemed very superficial. I also didn't get the point of Sal. I get he was to compare/contrast with the main love interest. But then it gets weird when he hits on the other MC (Desmond). I also don't get why his character was so slimy - so if he hadn't been a total creep then Desmond would have considered dating him after already starting to date Vincent? Similar issue with Vincent meeting up with his ex and having all those sparks. It just makes the relationship between Vincent and Desmond questionable when they are both also interested in others when presented with the opportunity. Still HEA and all that - a fluffy holiday story.
It was cute/Hallmark-y but hard to get into the characters. At first Vincent seemed very superficial. I also didn't get the point of Sal. I get he was to compare/contrast with the main love interest. But then it gets weird when he hits on the other MC (Desmond). I also don't get why his character was so slimy - so if he hadn't been a total creep then Desmond would have considered dating him after already starting to date Vincent? Similar issue with Vincent meeting up with his ex and having all those sparks. It just makes the relationship between Vincent and Desmond questionable when they are both also interested in others when presented with the opportunity. Still HEA and all that - a fluffy holiday story.
February 5, 2019
Sexy-sweet M/M romance
Vincent is the muscle man, successful owner/operator of a fitness business and looking for love this Christmas. The cover is a perfect match to his description…yum. One of his patrons, Maeve suggests he become one of the bachelors at a LGBTQ auction.
Desmond is the nerdy, viola-playing, tenured music professor who is also looking for a love-connection this Christmas. Maeve suggests that he go to the auction to see if he can’t find his man.
At the time of the auction everyone goes crazy when Vincent steps up to the stage. Desmond bids but does he win? What happens next is sooo good. Love the HEA!
If you like M/M romance with sweet guys and some delicious naughtiness, read this book no matter what time of year. I volunteered to review an ARC of this book.
Vincent is the muscle man, successful owner/operator of a fitness business and looking for love this Christmas. The cover is a perfect match to his description…yum. One of his patrons, Maeve suggests he become one of the bachelors at a LGBTQ auction.
Desmond is the nerdy, viola-playing, tenured music professor who is also looking for a love-connection this Christmas. Maeve suggests that he go to the auction to see if he can’t find his man.
At the time of the auction everyone goes crazy when Vincent steps up to the stage. Desmond bids but does he win? What happens next is sooo good. Love the HEA!
If you like M/M romance with sweet guys and some delicious naughtiness, read this book no matter what time of year. I volunteered to review an ARC of this book.
December 21, 2018
It doesn't get any sweeter than this! Desmond and Vincent are just so adorable, both separate and together. Vincent may be a muscle man and look like the big, tough guy, but I love that he's such a teddy bear. Desmond is just as lovable and I enjoyed his assertive side. And the secondary characters are just as engaging! Maeve and Jerry add that little something extra with fun banter and hilarious dialogue. The scatterbrained Jerry is absolutely fantastic, and I found myself looking forward to his scenes. The story is low on angst and high on fun with a bit of steam and plenty of Christmas feels.
December 23, 2018
If you want a light fluffy read with little to no angst, this one is a winner. I liked that even though Vincent has had a bit of a dry spell, he agrees to help out the LGBTQ community center as a part of their charity auction. He's so hopeful that something good will come is the way of a relationship from it. Getting regifted from the eye-candy billionaire to a nerdy viola player is a bit of a bruise to his ego. Desmond is all too happy to take Vincent. It was nice that see what efforts Vincent went to for their first date. Things clicked together so nicely that it made for a sweet read. Cute ending.
January 3, 2021
I stopped reading Declan Rhodes a long time ago because the stories always utilized gay stereotypes and unlikely situations. I thought I'd give him another try since it had been so long since my last encounter with one of his books. I'm glad I only paid .99 for this because nothing has changed in Declan's world. One MC, Vincent, is the stereotypical gay jock - HOT! SEXY! BEAUTIFUL BODY! The other MC, Desmond (Really? Desmond? It even sounds nerdy and fey. Why couldn't the MC's names be reversed? That could have helped soften the stereotypes.) is a "viola-playing" nerd (as the blurb states) who has as an aversion to the gym. (Another stereotype. Why can't nerds go to the gym? I know a lot of comic-con and computer geeks who work out!) But, you would never know anything about Desmond's viola-playing ability because it is never elaborated upon. The premise of the story has Vincent participating in a bachelor auction hoping to get a hot date with a gay millionaire. Instead, he gets traded off to geeky Desmond much to his despair. Vincent is shallow and Desmond is passive-aggressive. They become attracted to each other anyway, despite logic and common sense. It all works out in the end with a HEA.
December 22, 2018
Declan Rhodes' Regifted is a fun holiday romance. A hunk falling for a nerd? Always a fun trope.
This tale is adorable, sweet and tender. And, if you like when the smaller man tops, oh yeah, you'll enjoy this one. It's fun when things go against the norm, and this story has a whole lot of that.
Both Desmond and Vincent are great characters. There's also some fantastic secondary characters, most notably, Maeve and Jerry, who are hysterical. And the epilogue will leave you smiling.
Check out Regifted when you're looking for a feel-good story.
This tale is adorable, sweet and tender. And, if you like when the smaller man tops, oh yeah, you'll enjoy this one. It's fun when things go against the norm, and this story has a whole lot of that.
Both Desmond and Vincent are great characters. There's also some fantastic secondary characters, most notably, Maeve and Jerry, who are hysterical. And the epilogue will leave you smiling.
Check out Regifted when you're looking for a feel-good story.
December 22, 2018
A positively lovely Christmas story.
This is an example of the saying to never judge a book by its cover. Both Vincent and Desmond see themselves in not very positive lights but find nothing but great and appealing positives in the other. It takes the circumstances of the worst kind of regifting for each to open their hearts and minds to the unlimited possibilities. It was also wonderful to read of this society's open acceptance of the gay life. I was first given an ARC but then bought it.
This is an example of the saying to never judge a book by its cover. Both Vincent and Desmond see themselves in not very positive lights but find nothing but great and appealing positives in the other. It takes the circumstances of the worst kind of regifting for each to open their hearts and minds to the unlimited possibilities. It was also wonderful to read of this society's open acceptance of the gay life. I was first given an ARC but then bought it.
February 13, 2019
This book feels improvised
I had high hopes for this book and I was disappointed on all fronts. It seems like the author didn't have a plan for how the story was supposed to go and just improvises it.
You get 50+% through the book before the main characters even talk to each for more than a few seconds. There are plot holes and the dialog does not make sense. I can usually force myself to finish a book even if I don't like it. But there are too many inconsistencies in this book.
I had high hopes for this book and I was disappointed on all fronts. It seems like the author didn't have a plan for how the story was supposed to go and just improvises it.
You get 50+% through the book before the main characters even talk to each for more than a few seconds. There are plot holes and the dialog does not make sense. I can usually force myself to finish a book even if I don't like it. But there are too many inconsistencies in this book.
July 14, 2019
I'm going to admit this book drove me crazy. It's short, thank pete, but that works against it as well because how does the author forget in such a short book what happens? (Desmond and the overheard conversation). The two MC don't seem to really be into each other (Desmond considers another date, Vincent is drooling over an ex), the dialogue is so sappy and stilted I couldn't stop rolling my eyes, and the sleaziness of Sal really seems to come out of no where. And Gabriel? What the hell happened with that?
December 23, 2018
This is a sweet holiday read with strong likable characters in Vincent and Desmond. The author does a great job building the story and adding the supporting characters who play a big part in this story. It's an entertaining , humorous story with all the bantering as well as the steamy passion and I enjoyed reading.
I voluntarily reviewed an ARC of this book. All opinions in this review are my own and freely given.
I voluntarily reviewed an ARC of this book. All opinions in this review are my own and freely given.
October 10, 2019
Cute romance
This was sweet holiday read. At first Vincent confused me with his little petty attitude about being regifted and that Desmond wasn't Sal. But once he mentioned his like for nerds, I found them both cute in their attraction of each other. It was a little shady though with Vincent sitting on Steve/ Santa Claus' lap. That was a big no no, but it has a happy ending. It was a decent read.
This was sweet holiday read. At first Vincent confused me with his little petty attitude about being regifted and that Desmond wasn't Sal. But once he mentioned his like for nerds, I found them both cute in their attraction of each other. It was a little shady though with Vincent sitting on Steve/ Santa Claus' lap. That was a big no no, but it has a happy ending. It was a decent read.
December 22, 2018
Regifted is a sweet holiday romance. Both Desmond and Vincent have negative feels toward themselves. Feeling as if they aren't good enough for the other.
Desmond is "regifted" Vincent when someone else bets on him at an auction. Love blooms when one least expects it.
I voluntarily read an advanced copy for this book.
Desmond is "regifted" Vincent when someone else bets on him at an auction. Love blooms when one least expects it.
I voluntarily read an advanced copy for this book.
December 27, 2018
An enjoyable story
This is a really enjoyable story based around a Batchelor auction, where Victor has been persuaded to offer himself up for auction. But when the original winner, regifted his date with Victor to Desmond, they find that sparks fly.
Declan Rhodes is a new to me author, but I really enjoyed this story.
This is a really enjoyable story based around a Batchelor auction, where Victor has been persuaded to offer himself up for auction. But when the original winner, regifted his date with Victor to Desmond, they find that sparks fly.
Declan Rhodes is a new to me author, but I really enjoyed this story.
January 18, 2019
I am kind of mixed on this story. Overall, I like it. I didn’t love Vincent for most of the story, mostly because he is a very inconsistent character. The way he behaves with his ex is kind of gross. Sal should not have been in the story after the auction night as far as I am concerned. I love Desmond and the secondary characters and they saved the story for me.
December 13, 2019
omg, this book was a hot mess for me. I couldn't figure out if the MCs were developing any relationship at all. There were little to no chemistry and there were just over 1/3 of the book of lead up to no story. a tiny bit of another suitor drama that was out of no where and over as quickly. Very odd read that doesn't do anything to make me want to read more by this author.
March 30, 2020
Can I do 3.5 stars? I originally had this as a 4* review, but then I remembered the stilted dialogue in the book. The way the two MCs spoke to each other seemed more suited to a period piece (OK- maybe not that far) than a modern story about a hot gym dude and a music nerd. Anyway, it was a cute M/M-ROM-XMAS story, but I don't think I'll go back to it.
December 21, 2018
Fun holiday romance
A fantastic and fun holiday read. Vincent and Desmond are great... I love that the need gets the muscle man! Funny, sweet and hot... This holiday romance is Definitely recommended.
A fantastic and fun holiday read. Vincent and Desmond are great... I love that the need gets the muscle man! Funny, sweet and hot... This holiday romance is Definitely recommended.
December 23, 2018
Short and sweet
It’s a short read but so worth it. Desmond a nerd and Vincent a trainer and business owner. Vincent gets his ego hurt when he is regifted after being won at an auction but later finds that it was all worth it.
It’s a short read but so worth it. Desmond a nerd and Vincent a trainer and business owner. Vincent gets his ego hurt when he is regifted after being won at an auction but later finds that it was all worth it.
December 24, 2018
Regifted
A lovely sweet story of Desmond and Vincent.
Vincent a big muscle man is just a soft teddy bear and nerdy Desmond are just so adorable making this a slushy warm feeling read just what you need for Christmas. Also enjoyed the secondary characters Maeve and Jerry.
A lovely sweet story of Desmond and Vincent.
Vincent a big muscle man is just a soft teddy bear and nerdy Desmond are just so adorable making this a slushy warm feeling read just what you need for Christmas. Also enjoyed the secondary characters Maeve and Jerry.
December 31, 2018
This book really turned me off. The two man characters hardly spent any time together and when they did it was always in the presence of an ex or someone trying to be with one of them. It made no sense. They both kind of felt like cheaters even though technically there is no cheating.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 42 reviews