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It's Just You
An M/M Slow Burn Romance.
I am who I am: flamboyant, androgynous, comfortable in my own skin — well, there’s that one thing, but generally I am me, and I love it that way. It’s easy to ignore scars from the past, especially when they can be covered up and forgotten. What I don’t love is having to spend time in my hometown after having escaped the bullies there years ago. The only plus side is meeting up with one of my best friends again… and his brother Kane.
Who the heck expected him to end up as a hunk of a guy, tattooed and sexy and all that? It’s just a pity he’s straight. Or maybe not interested in anyone at all? Or…?
I can’t figure him out. But I never back down from a challenge, that’s for sure, and I want to see what’s really going on behind those beautiful, troubled eyes.
This 74k slow burn romance features a sexy guy who’s never really been attracted to anyone before (let alone another man) and a man who needs to accept that he can be loved despite for who he is beneath the makeup and lingerie as well as in it.
I am who I am: flamboyant, androgynous, comfortable in my own skin — well, there’s that one thing, but generally I am me, and I love it that way. It’s easy to ignore scars from the past, especially when they can be covered up and forgotten. What I don’t love is having to spend time in my hometown after having escaped the bullies there years ago. The only plus side is meeting up with one of my best friends again… and his brother Kane.
Who the heck expected him to end up as a hunk of a guy, tattooed and sexy and all that? It’s just a pity he’s straight. Or maybe not interested in anyone at all? Or…?
I can’t figure him out. But I never back down from a challenge, that’s for sure, and I want to see what’s really going on behind those beautiful, troubled eyes.
This 74k slow burn romance features a sexy guy who’s never really been attracted to anyone before (let alone another man) and a man who needs to accept that he can be loved despite for who he is beneath the makeup and lingerie as well as in it.
265 pages, Kindle Edition
Published January 26, 2021
94 people are currently reading
117 people want to read
About the author
R. Phoenix
81 books564 followersR. Phoenix has an unhealthy fascination with contrasts: light and dark, heroes and villains, order and chaos. She believes that love can corrupt and power can redeem. Her muse is a sadomasochistic slave driver who thinks it's terribly amusing to give her the best ideas when she just got comfortable and warm in bed, and she passes on that torture to her readers. She also tries entirely too hard to be funny, and she mercilessly inflicts her terrible sense of humor upon anyone who speaks to her. She'd love it if you'd say hello!
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Displaying 1 - 27 of 27 reviews
February 2, 2021
When does the perfect match just happen?
Especially with someone you knew in your past. And avoided. Almost as much as you avoided your parents and tried to avoid the bullies.
How is it possible for a straight brother of a straight friend to be so crooked and wicked to bring out the worst in each other. Or is it the best? Or both.
Love is something that grows and builds on a base as each express their feelings and touchings and kissing and expressions and sight descriptions in spit of smelly feet, scattered clothes, and nosy neighbors. But the worst might be the jealous brother who finally realized how much everyone gave up for him.
But that is how love works.
Especially with someone you knew in your past. And avoided. Almost as much as you avoided your parents and tried to avoid the bullies.
How is it possible for a straight brother of a straight friend to be so crooked and wicked to bring out the worst in each other. Or is it the best? Or both.
Love is something that grows and builds on a base as each express their feelings and touchings and kissing and expressions and sight descriptions in spit of smelly feet, scattered clothes, and nosy neighbors. But the worst might be the jealous brother who finally realized how much everyone gave up for him.
But that is how love works.
August 26, 2021
4.25 stars
Finn is all sorts of awesome, true, and I love how much he is his authentic self, come what may and damn all detractors. But I absolutely adore Kane. He's the ultimate stand-up guy, doing whatever is necessary to help the people he loves. Beautiful story about two beautiful people, inside and out.
Finn is all sorts of awesome, true, and I love how much he is his authentic self, come what may and damn all detractors. But I absolutely adore Kane. He's the ultimate stand-up guy, doing whatever is necessary to help the people he loves. Beautiful story about two beautiful people, inside and out.
dnf
February 9, 2021DNF 19% - maybe I'll try it again later? But the story and writing style so far felt awkward and clunky and slow, and I just don't have the patience or investment in the characters for that right now. 😕
April 9, 2021
Me resulto pesadísimo. Los protas meh, uno mejor que otro, pero quiere hacerlo tan slow burn que lo hace slow de más. La historia no da para más de 100 pg y para conseguir doblar ese número lo alarga y alarga sin sentido y te aburres y aburres hasta la saciedad.
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May 21, 2021I'm conflicted. Part of me loved seeing demisexual rep but I just wish it was done better. The worst part is that it wasn't awful in it's entirety. The actual issues were the sly aphobic comments about "missing out" and how someone without physical touch must be "so sad and lonely". It was the moments where the gay MC said "I don't ever need more than this (in referring to handjobs/blowjobs)" and then later said "I couldn't live without any sex". Truthfully I think these authors wanted to have some divers.rep and did BARE MINIMUM research without actually talking to any aspec individuals. I am the first person to say that all experiences are different an there isn't a universal aspec experience, but it needs too much to ask for there to be be blanket statements about sex and desire. Yes, some demisexuals love sex, some asexuals love sex, but what were not gonna do is create demisexual rep and then make it sound like "yay now they're normal" because they like sex.
I may try and make a longer review of this one at some points, but I won't be recommending this as aspec rep anytime soon.
I may try and make a longer review of this one at some points, but I won't be recommending this as aspec rep anytime soon.
April 12, 2021
This is a warm story of two young men finding the person who fits them best. Finn is a college student whose parents have moved back to their old hometown. Spending time with them means venturing back to the site of intense school bullying for Finn, who was flamboyantly gay, gawky, afflicted with acne, and whose parents turned a generally blind eye to what he was going through. His father was, and still is, uncomfortable with Finn's androgynous presentation and his mother is just self-absorbed.
The plus side to going back there is spending time with his old friend Sam, also visiting from college. They were close and Finn hopes to reconnect and get some kind of silver lining out of this whole mess. What he doesn't expect is to meet up with Sam's older brother Kane, and to find an electric pull of attraction toward the quiet, muscled, tattooed personal trainer. Guys who look and act like Kane are usually straight and uncomfortable around Finn at his most fabulous. But Kane isn't acting uncomfortable.
For Kane, Finn is a revelation-- the first person who rouses the kind of interest and desires Kane heard about from others and figured would never happen to him. The fact that Finn is his brother's best friend gives Kane some qualms, but they're all adults and Sam should be able to share. Especially since Sam has been off enjoying college while Kane dropped out and came home to help his parents.
This story is fairly low-angst, especially between the main characters. Sam's disgruntled jealousy, family issues, and the fact that this is a brief holiday after which Finn will be gone, add a little tension. Kane's demisexual homoromantic awakening is sweetly done but fairly unquestioning. A suggested conflict with old bullies never materializes. Both young men have just enough pain, new and old, to give them a little depth and add a few emotional moments.
I always appreciate good characters whose identities on the gender or sexuality spectrums are less often seen. This book had one of each, and they fit together sweetly and believably.
The plus side to going back there is spending time with his old friend Sam, also visiting from college. They were close and Finn hopes to reconnect and get some kind of silver lining out of this whole mess. What he doesn't expect is to meet up with Sam's older brother Kane, and to find an electric pull of attraction toward the quiet, muscled, tattooed personal trainer. Guys who look and act like Kane are usually straight and uncomfortable around Finn at his most fabulous. But Kane isn't acting uncomfortable.
For Kane, Finn is a revelation-- the first person who rouses the kind of interest and desires Kane heard about from others and figured would never happen to him. The fact that Finn is his brother's best friend gives Kane some qualms, but they're all adults and Sam should be able to share. Especially since Sam has been off enjoying college while Kane dropped out and came home to help his parents.
This story is fairly low-angst, especially between the main characters. Sam's disgruntled jealousy, family issues, and the fact that this is a brief holiday after which Finn will be gone, add a little tension. Kane's demisexual homoromantic awakening is sweetly done but fairly unquestioning. A suggested conflict with old bullies never materializes. Both young men have just enough pain, new and old, to give them a little depth and add a few emotional moments.
I always appreciate good characters whose identities on the gender or sexuality spectrums are less often seen. This book had one of each, and they fit together sweetly and believably.
June 29, 2024
While I enjoyed the demi rep and femme MC (who had bad acne scars, which is something I don’t think I’ve seen before in a romance novel), the book was fairly average. I feel like I would have enjoyed it more if the dialogue wasn’t as awkward and the dramatic reactions – especially Sam when finding out the MCs were in a relationship – were toned down a bit. The ending also felt unresolved, despite the two epilogues, which didn’t do much to explain what happened or indicate how long they took place after the last chapter.
3.5/5 stars, rounded down to 3.
3.5/5 stars, rounded down to 3.
January 30, 2021
What a sweet and well written slow burn romance. I absolutely adored it. Finn and Kane were wonderful characters, deep and well developed and so very relatable. I really enjoyed reading their story and their happy ending just warmed my heart. Also, the demisexual representation in the book was amazing!
January 29, 2021
So sweet
What a sweet book. This was definitely a slow burn book, but once Kane and Finn found their footing, it was one sexy ride.
It was nice to see an MC that was Demi. We don’t get many of those and it was refreshing. I loved how accepting Kane was of his sexuality and how he wasn’t afraid to explore a relationship with Finn. I loved how patient Finn was with Kane and how he was willing to take the risk with Kane.
Sam, Kane’s brother, came of as unlikable, frankly. I can forgive him for his reaction to learning new information about his dad and Kane and Finn’s reaction. But to let that linger and not make any effort to fix it? Ugh. My other beef about the Sam situation is that we didn’t get to see the discussion between Finn and Sam after the discovery of the relationship. Sam basically tells Finn to forget they were ever friends and lose his number. These two are BEST FRIENDS! I wish we had gotten to see that friendship mended.
I really enjoyed this book and I’m glad we finally got Finn’s story.
What a sweet book. This was definitely a slow burn book, but once Kane and Finn found their footing, it was one sexy ride.
It was nice to see an MC that was Demi. We don’t get many of those and it was refreshing. I loved how accepting Kane was of his sexuality and how he wasn’t afraid to explore a relationship with Finn. I loved how patient Finn was with Kane and how he was willing to take the risk with Kane.
Sam, Kane’s brother, came of as unlikable, frankly. I can forgive him for his reaction to learning new information about his dad and Kane and Finn’s reaction. But to let that linger and not make any effort to fix it? Ugh. My other beef about the Sam situation is that we didn’t get to see the discussion between Finn and Sam after the discovery of the relationship. Sam basically tells Finn to forget they were ever friends and lose his number. These two are BEST FRIENDS! I wish we had gotten to see that friendship mended.
I really enjoyed this book and I’m glad we finally got Finn’s story.
May 14, 2021
Oh love is in the air
Love it so much. Well writing. Emotion are so well describe you feel it in your core even the vulnerable way Finn show himself at Kane.
One feminine makeup lover's Brother's best friend
One brother in the middle of a Demisexual Awaking
One not so obvious brother.
One dad sick
Kane drop out college to help his dad in his sickness. In the meanwhile, his brother graduate and went to college pursuing his Dream all unaware of his dad condition. Two years later, Kane his jealous of his brother and he can't hold the Secret anymore, the tourment of emotions in Him are so strong.
Finn is an efiminate gay Out and proud. He start going out with sam brother's, Kane, even if he knew Kane is straight.
Until Kane realize is feeling growing up for Finn and is confuse since he totally rejected Him the first time they met. Then he google his question and discover that he fit in the demisexual spectrum.
Then relationship, brother problem, dad problem and how to make it work together. HEA
Love it so much. Well writing. Emotion are so well describe you feel it in your core even the vulnerable way Finn show himself at Kane.
One feminine makeup lover's Brother's best friend
One brother in the middle of a Demisexual Awaking
One not so obvious brother.
One dad sick
Kane drop out college to help his dad in his sickness. In the meanwhile, his brother graduate and went to college pursuing his Dream all unaware of his dad condition. Two years later, Kane his jealous of his brother and he can't hold the Secret anymore, the tourment of emotions in Him are so strong.
Finn is an efiminate gay Out and proud. He start going out with sam brother's, Kane, even if he knew Kane is straight.
Until Kane realize is feeling growing up for Finn and is confuse since he totally rejected Him the first time they met. Then he google his question and discover that he fit in the demisexual spectrum.
Then relationship, brother problem, dad problem and how to make it work together. HEA
Read
March 18, 2021Meh. Plus the timeline of this was really weird. The one MC is stated to be 24 while the other is 2 years older at 26. The 26-year-old only went to college for a year before his dad's illness forced him to drop out. It was then stated that his dad has been sick for 2 years which would mean that he went to school for the first time at 23 and dropped out at 24. Meanwhile the 24-year-old is best friends with the 26 year old's brother and they're both the same age and in the same year of undergrad when at their age they would generally both be graduated by that point. I get that people go to school at different ages, but generally in the United States most kids go when they're 18 and it's weird to have three people going to school for the first time at age 22 or 23. so I don't know, the whole timeline is wacky and it bothered me to the point where I couldn't really enjoy the book. It's like I think maybe the authors forgot how old they said the people were supposed to be?
February 20, 2021
This was such a sweet book. I loved it. I liked the plot, even if I would prefer a little more conflict. But that's just me, who loves angst. It was a more lighthearted book than I'm used to, and I loved it. I did had a few, very tiny, issues, mostly related to a character's reaction to some events.
What I liked the most about it, were the characters, I loved them both, even if I felt more fond on Kane, probably because he was the one who struggle the most with emotions.
Overall it was a beautiful book. I had a great time reading it.
What I liked the most about it, were the characters, I loved them both, even if I felt more fond on Kane, probably because he was the one who struggle the most with emotions.
Overall it was a beautiful book. I had a great time reading it.
February 22, 2021
Ok, I just can't
10 pages in, yes only 10 pages and I just can't.
Ok, One, your best friend that you've known since high school, so over 6 yrs and his older brother, by 3years, might be named Kane? Come on! You would know his name if you were best friends with his brother.
Two, blurb says Kane is straight or not inter3sted in anyone. Page 10 said Kane was gay.
DNF, if you can't get your facts straight in the first 10 pages then I don't want to know how the rest of the book turns out. Good be good, myself I will never know as you lost me on Page 10!
10 pages in, yes only 10 pages and I just can't.
Ok, One, your best friend that you've known since high school, so over 6 yrs and his older brother, by 3years, might be named Kane? Come on! You would know his name if you were best friends with his brother.
Two, blurb says Kane is straight or not inter3sted in anyone. Page 10 said Kane was gay.
DNF, if you can't get your facts straight in the first 10 pages then I don't want to know how the rest of the book turns out. Good be good, myself I will never know as you lost me on Page 10!
August 13, 2024
DNF. Well, I'm disappointed, I thought this was right up my alley, it had a young fem man, which I love, and a promise of a 'gay for you', which I love, and yet it fell flat on me. It has some fairly decent reviews so it's not the story, it's me, just not my thing, no disrespect to the author intended.
March 16, 2021
Bohužel si autoři nebyli jistí, jaký mají postoj ke svým postavám. Skoro každá vedlejší postava byla popisována částečně jako slušný a laskavý člověk, částečně jako sobecký ass...e a částečně jako hlupák. Únavné.
March 22, 2021
Good slow burn romance
I love the self discovery and having a safe place to explore in this story. Although Finn has insecurities of his own, he unselfish allows Kane to discover himself. Their story is sexy, sweet, and tender.
I love the self discovery and having a safe place to explore in this story. Although Finn has insecurities of his own, he unselfish allows Kane to discover himself. Their story is sexy, sweet, and tender.
December 22, 2021
Such an amazing book!!! Kane and Finn build a relationship on friendship and establish a great connection above all else. They allow themselves to be vulnerable for each other, and find safety that way. They were so sweet together and they both grew so much, I loved them both!
August 21, 2022
I enjoyed the acceptance and love shown in this story. The depiction of demi/gray/pan discovery was well achieved also and the connection quite tangible (can't remember if they ever formally labelled it). A really enjoyable read with some wary souls learning to trust and love each other.
June 23, 2024
nope
DNF
I liked the premise but the writing was awful, and there was just too many inconsistencies. I hate not finishing a book so it takes a lot for me to DNF but with this one I just couldn’t.
DNF
I liked the premise but the writing was awful, and there was just too many inconsistencies. I hate not finishing a book so it takes a lot for me to DNF but with this one I just couldn’t.
January 28, 2021
Very sweet mm romance
These two authors obviously work well together as this book attests to. It’s fun, different, sweet, low angst and well written. I enjoyed this book a lot.
These two authors obviously work well together as this book attests to. It’s fun, different, sweet, low angst and well written. I enjoyed this book a lot.
February 23, 2021
3.75 stars
May 9, 2021
Love it
Such an amazing story of sacrifice love and first everything. Absolutely love this story and I will re read it again and again.
Such an amazing story of sacrifice love and first everything. Absolutely love this story and I will re read it again and again.
September 22, 2024
Cute best friend's brother MM romance. I enjoyed Finn and Kane and enjoyed the banter. I liked the depth to the characters and the story itself.
November 19, 2022
A *really* s-l-o-w read. Too much info about a sick parent who doesn't want anyone to know about his problem. The whole thing just drags along with very little actually happening. And I don't want to even start on how clueless Kane's brother is; he's almost too self-centred to be real.
February 26, 2021
Title - It's Just You
Author - R. Phoenix
Genre - MM Romance
Age - Adult
Published - January 2021
Pages - 265 Pages
Summary - Finn is flamboyant, androgynous, comfortable in his own skin. When he has to return to his hometown he is less than pleased, but the upside is he gets to see his best friend and his brother, Kane. What he wasn't expecting was Kane to be a hunky, tattooed sexy guy and unfortunately straight or possibly not interested in anyone. Well Finn has always liked a challenge
What I thought about this book - This book was really cute I loved the characters especially Finn and Kane. I loved the character development and the plot which was fantastic. Really well written, easy to follow and enjoyable. Overall a fantastic and Great 5* Read
Would I Recommend - Yes
Would I Read Again- Yes
Rating - 5*
Reviewed by LucyLui
Author - R. Phoenix
Genre - MM Romance
Age - Adult
Published - January 2021
Pages - 265 Pages
Summary - Finn is flamboyant, androgynous, comfortable in his own skin. When he has to return to his hometown he is less than pleased, but the upside is he gets to see his best friend and his brother, Kane. What he wasn't expecting was Kane to be a hunky, tattooed sexy guy and unfortunately straight or possibly not interested in anyone. Well Finn has always liked a challenge
What I thought about this book - This book was really cute I loved the characters especially Finn and Kane. I loved the character development and the plot which was fantastic. Really well written, easy to follow and enjoyable. Overall a fantastic and Great 5* Read
Would I Recommend - Yes
Would I Read Again- Yes
Rating - 5*
Reviewed by LucyLui
September 22, 2023
First read: January 31, 2021
Second read: September 21, 2023
This was a well written and rather sweet gay romance novel with good character development that included a demisexual awakening. I did think it was a bit rushed for a story including a demisexual though, as Finn was Kane's brother's friend, and although Kane was obviously familar with Finn, they weren't friends themselves for long before Kane started wanting him. It felt like only a few days went by before they were in bed and in love. But there's also a fair amount of hurt-comfort in the story considering Finn struggled with his self-esteem from having been bullied in high school. So, overall, I really liked this novel and am glad that I found and read this book featuring Finn who's the friend of a different protagonist, Micah, from a duology also written by these two authors. I did wish that we got to see Finn and Kane spend time with Micah and Carter though because meeting friends is a thing.
Second read: September 21, 2023
This was a well written and rather sweet gay romance novel with good character development that included a demisexual awakening. I did think it was a bit rushed for a story including a demisexual though, as Finn was Kane's brother's friend, and although Kane was obviously familar with Finn, they weren't friends themselves for long before Kane started wanting him. It felt like only a few days went by before they were in bed and in love. But there's also a fair amount of hurt-comfort in the story considering Finn struggled with his self-esteem from having been bullied in high school. So, overall, I really liked this novel and am glad that I found and read this book featuring Finn who's the friend of a different protagonist, Micah, from a duology also written by these two authors. I did wish that we got to see Finn and Kane spend time with Micah and Carter though because meeting friends is a thing.
Displaying 1 - 27 of 27 reviews