Punching the V-Card

by Leta Blake

Best friend’s hot older brother? Check. A weekend alone? Check.

Finally punching that V-card? Oh yes.

Carl has a pesky “innocence” problem that requires a solution. His best friend's brother Devon is the perfect answer.

Devon’s experienced, gorgeous, and Carl’s been secretly crushing on him for ages. And Carl doesn’t want to “lose it” to just anybody. Everyone says the first time should be special—and what’s more special than sharing it with the guy of his dreams?

It’s not like Devon won’t enjoy it. Solving this so-called problem is an objectively fun experience for most people! The plan is totally win/win!

Shockingly, Devon agrees. Even if it goes better than either of them ever expected, Carl’s moving across the country. It’s not possible to have more.

Is it?

Punching the V-Card by Leta Blake is a is a high heat, low angst, new adult gay romance featuring a best friend’s hot older brother, scorching first times, and falling in love with the guy of your dreams.

Genres: M M Romance, Contemporary, Romance, New Adult, LGBT, Novella, M M Contemporary

145 pages, Kindle Edition

First published March 10, 2022

About the author

Author of the bestselling book Smoky Mountain Dreams and fan favorites Training Season, Will & Patrick Wake Up Married, and Slow Heat, Leta Blake has been captivating M/M Romance readers for over a decade. Whether writing contemporary romance or fantasy, she puts her psychology background to use creating complex characters and love stories that feel real. At home in the Southern U.S., Leta works hard at achieving balance between her writing and her family life.

If you'd like to be among the first to know about new releases, you can sign up for Leta's newsletter here: http://eepurl.com/bdn32H

Reviews

[Heather K (dentist in my spare time) · Rating 2 out of 5]

A short, sexy read from Leta Blake? What could go wrong?? Well, apparently a few things.

I'm not one to love a sex-forward story, and it seemed like we were thrust right into one long, drawn-out sex scene. There was very little preamble or back story, and I felt like Punching the V-Card was a chunk inside a much longer book. I was like, Who are these guys?? What the hell is happening?? I knew this was a novella, but I still like my novellas to have some structure and story progression. This was one, big insta-love sex scene, which isn't my jam.

Leta Blake can write really compelling stories, but this one took me almost a week to read. And it's less than 150 pages! Didn't work for me, unfortunately.

goodreads|instagram|twitter|tiktok

[~✡~Dαni(ela) ♥ ♂♂ love & semi-colons~✡~ · Rating 2 out of 5]

Disclaimer: read through to 50%, skimmed the middle, then read the last chapter and epilogue.

I am not opposed to porn-without-plot, but I need emotional momentum to keep going. As an example, some of Roe Horvat's stories are 80% sex yet still manage to be compelling and complex.

I am typically a fan of Leta Blake's work, but this book was a miss for me.

Main issues: stilted dialogue, strange power dynamic between the MCs (Carl is the virgin but also the pseudo Dom), no relationship development, big jump between the last chapter and the epilogue that made me seriously doubt the HEA.

I wanted to see Devon and Carl's relationship progress beyond one weekend of fucking.

Plus, Devon's sister setting up Carl (her bestie) and her brother, so Devon could deflower Carl was just ... NO. I don't want my brother involved in my sex life like EVER. It was super weird and contrived.

[Celia {Hiatus until August} · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really loved this one. I thought it was really sweet.
The first love...

It seemed a bit annoying in the beginning, but than became really hot 🤭
What I loved most of this story was the characters acting like their own age, 18 and 20.
Yes, they were imature, childish sometimes, but what the heck? 18 and 20 it's not all about that?
Of course I prefer characters more mature but if I like that, why should I read some with young ones?
Sometimes I get confused because they are too mature for their age, most of the authors now write stories like that.
This one was all about the discovery, falling in love, being irresponsable, having all life ahead... Doing spells in the woods...

[drew · Rating 3 out of 5]

i think Leta Blake is a wonderful writer - and this is no exception - but i didn’t end up loving this. a bit too much sex for me personally, and i’ve also never been super into instalove, so that was two knocks against this novella for me. that said, i did enjoy the story and characters; Leta is great at developing her characters and making them feel real - even in less than 150 pages.

overall this was a good read, but it just wasn’t quite to my tastes.

[Keira Andrews · Rating 5 out of 5]

Sexy, perfectly instalove-y, and did I mention sexy? :D No angst and dirty fun was just what the doctor ordered. Leta Blake always delivers on heat and tender feels.

[Lilly [Hiatus due to School] · Rating 5 out of 5]

Punching The V Card was such a sweet and steamy read. We have Carl, who has been in love with his best friend’s brother, Devon. He convinces his friend to help get her brother to help him lose his virginity before he sets out to LA. Devon agrees, thinking he is helping out, but their intense chemistry and the feelings that grow from their time together make him question his whole life and whether they could be something more than a hookup.

I really enjoyed this book! It was erotic, super sweet, and so whimsical! Literally made me feel all warm and fuzzy.

I adored Carl; he had had feelings for Devon for a long time. He was totally in love with him, and despite his social anxiety, he took a brave leap in asking while knowing that he could be rejected or their time together would perhaps only last that weekend.

Their relationship progresses very fast- it’s a shorter novel - but also, since Carl is Carl (a fairy-like free spirit who likes to cast spells with a deep amount of positive energy), it doesn’t feel rushed at all. It takes time for Devon to come to the realization that he truly deeply cares for Carl and that his feelings are love. I love how Carl’s love for Devon inspires him and allows him to want more for himself.

Devon shrugged. He knew this was all madness. Two days ago he hadn’t even been sure he wanted to even have sex with Carl, and now he was seriously, very seriously, considering taking a sabbatical and trying out a whole new direction in life.

Carl had never known before how sex could be so analogous to so many things, how it could echo life so thoroughly. The frustration, the action, the pleasure, the desperation, the climax, the aftermath…

It was like falling in love with Devon: first seeing him, watching him, wanting him, yearning, reaching, pining, aching, and finally, finally having him—as heady as orgasm, as satisfying as the after bliss.

I love how they want to get to know one another and explore their connection more. Carl is nervous but, at the same time, is so self-assured? He felt so comfortable with Devon that he showed his true self. I don’t know how to explain it, but I loved how he was so sure of his love for Devon, even if Devon could not 100% believe it.

“We’d get to know each other, too. Real fast. That’d be fun, wouldn’t it? And hot? I’ve always thought fucking in some dumb roadside motel room has a kind of gross appeal, you know? Like grungy hot.”

No fake persona to keep the stuttering at bay, either. Carl was comfortable with Devon in a way he never had been before, obviously, and equally obvious was the understanding that Carl meant every word.

The sex! Leta Blake never fails to write steamy and very erotic sex scenes. I love how while there was sex talk - it was Carl’s first time, after all - it also felt so natural. They went with the flow and the mood; it was not clinical or anything like that. I also loved seeing Devon discover his more submissive side and Carl coming into his role as a baby dom. I didn’t expect that dynamic at all, so I was pleasantly surprised.

But, for now, he was curled up on his side with Devon fucking into him from behind, his entire back touching Devon’s front. He felt safe and protected, and open and vulnerable. He loved the sensations and the beautiful bubble they created over the long weekend in Devon’s bed.

This was heaven. This was a new beginning. This was magic beyond his understanding. This was more than punching his v-card, this was the start of an endless, vast future for them both. He couldn’t even begin to see the end to it. It was just forever and onward. Adventure and growth, and new experiences, and love.

Overall, it was a wonderful, sexy story about first times, being young, and falling for your best friend’s brother! Absolutely enjoyed it.

[Grace · Rating 1 out of 5]

1.5 rounded down

This was such an odd book. Which, I do expect to an extent from this author, but I think they're joining the ranks of authors that just aren't working for me any more. This novella is basically one long PWP, which I'm not at all opposed to, but the way everything happened was really strange. First off, the blurb is from Carl's POV (the virgin) and yet all but the second-to-last chapter of the book are from Devon's POV, which I found pretty jarring. We're thrown immediately into the action, with Devon driving over to deflower Carl, an event that was facilitated by Devon's sister (Carl's BFF) who was overly involved in the whole thing in a way that felt really weird. And then the dynamics between Devon and Carl are just... off, IDK how else to describe it! I appreciate that the author was trying to do something different with a pretty common trope, but the way Devon was acting made me really confused as to why he'd agree to this in the first place, and something about their connection and dialogue felt forced to me. And then they go from fucking for a few days to Devon uprooting his entire life and moving across the country on a whim, and there are random spells being cast?? Bizarre is all I can think of to describe this one, and not in a good way.

[Dan · Rating 5 out of 5]

I finally get to review this book! Yay!
First off, I have to say this is pretty much an erotic novel. Pretty different than what Leta usually does, but she did it pretty well! It is pretty much a "sexy times with a plot" kind of book, but Leta managed to add enough plot to make it compelling. The characters are fleshed out, and I really appreciate how Carl's stutter is portrayed!

[Aldi · Rating 2 out of 5]

Don't really have much to say about this one - basically a high-heat PWP, which, given the short length and the fact that it's Leta Blake, I more or less expected, but there was rather little focus on character establishment, so basically a whole heap of smut involving two people who don't really know each other and whom we don't really get to know. Plus the fact that the sister set up a deflowering fuckfest between her BFF and her older brother - and then was supplied with details by both of them over the phone! - was just kinda squicky.

I am not having a great year for m/m so far, lol. Don't know if I'm being super-picky or always in the wrong mood or whether all these books are really that meh.

[martina (the life of a chaotic reader)]

time of death 55%.
it felt weird, constructed, forced, completely unrealistic and let me put another weird.

[BevS · Rating 3 out of 5]

A Patreon gift from Leta. 3 stars from me. Some people I know will love the fact that there isn't really anything else in the story other than Devon, his bossy little sh*t of a virgin and their sexfest. Other people however, myself included, would possibly have appreciated a little more in the way of character/relationship development between the two and less in the way of sex, although that is certainly what Devon and Carl originally got together for. Maybe I'm just getting too long in the tooth now for stories that centre solely around sex 🤔? Who knows, but I would definitely term this read as a HfN and not a HEA.

[The Corniest Flake · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very sweet and hot. For such a short and smut filled book, the characters' personalities are nicely fleshed out and complex, Carl's in particular. I also loved the touch of "magic", it was right up my alley.

[Florence . · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars

RTC but I always love sweet books with a lot of sex scenes, I much prefer sex scenes to plot on most days, and this is exactly what this book was, so it just really worked for me. This book just really appealed to me.

I received an ARC of this book and this is my honest opinion

[NicoleR.M.M. · Rating 3 out of 5]

I think this might be my first Leta Blake read, and there was nothing wrong with the writing. I enjoy her style and the way she tells a story. I will certainly read other books by her hand.
But...
This was kind of okay, but that's mainly because of the writing. The story was focused on a lot of heat and sex, (which occasionally is just fine by me!) and even though there was some character background, it wasn't enough for me to feel a connection. The whole sister thing felt a bit weird too - the phonecalls made me even a little uncomfortable. At some point, when shy Carl started to take charge, it felt like he was acting out of character, even when it was explained to me why he acted like that. And I'm just not sure if I liked Devon that much.

So, all in all, good writing, but a story that, unfortunately, didn't really work for me.

I kindly received an ARC from Gay Romance Reviews, and this is my honest, voluntary review

[Aribel Mejia · Rating 1 out of 5]

I despise Devon , I hate him , I really can’t stand him , he is so insufferable and always complained about anything , Carl deserves someone much better , these two should not have ended up together. at the first complaint and riddicules of Devon I would have opened the door and run for my life.

[Steph (Teacups & Tropes) · Rating 3 out of 5]

2.5/5 ⭐️
5/5 🌶

This was waaaay different than I expected. Part of me enjoyed it but also I didn’t like it at all. Devon was an okay character. It’s nice to read about a relatively normal dude now and then. I imagined Carl from the blurb TOTALLY different though. I liked him better when he was vulnerable and stuttery as opposed to dominant. But the sex between these two was 🤌🏻 Leta Blake writes great sex scenes and this was no exception.

If you want high steam, low angst, instalove this is your book.

[Valerie ❈M/M Romance Junkie❈ · Rating 3 out of 5]

I’m not a fan of young adult/new adult books. I’m a parent to a NA, and it makes feel like I’m perving on his friends. I’m not sure what made me read this, but I am glad I did. I enjoyed it. Reality is a thing that really doesn’t exist in this book (neither does any real plot or emotional growth), but just go with it. It’s hot AF❤️‍🔥🔥. That may be why I liked it so much? What? I said YA/NA made me feel like I was perving on my son’s friends not that I wasn’t a perv. 🤷🏽‍♀️

If you’re looking for a low angst, hot AF read, this is for you. Just know we aren’t talking literary masterpiece or any form of reality.

[25 Readings Or More · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5

I didn’t really know what to expect from this story especially after the first two chapters, but it surprised me in the best way possible 🤩🤩

Carl and Devon are anything like I expect them to be.
Devon, despite being the older one, seemed unsure; while Carl was cold. And I have to say I kinda hated him at the beginning because he acted like an a$$hole.
But as their interactions starts to warm up, he shows us how vulnerable he often feels.
Plus his true nature comes out to play ... 😏😏
And well, let me tell you these two gonna make you sweat 🥵

The book flow smothly; the angst almost non-existent, yet the story keep you interested just the same thanks to the complexity of its characters and their chemestry.

So if your looking for an easy-to-read spicy story with a bossy virgin, this is the right book for you!!

[Joyfully Jay · Rating 4 out of 5]

A Joyfully Jay review.

4 stars

Punching the V-Card is a sexy, fun novel that is high on the heat and low on the angst. The guys spend most of their time in bed, but there is enough substance here to carry the story and get me invested in Carl and Devon as a couple. The set up is pretty straightforward, as Devon’s sister, Hope, is Carl’s best friend and she brokers this deflowering on their behalf. Devon is wary, as he doesn’t really know Carl beyond his presence as Hope’s friend for so many years. So while he finds Carl incredibly hot, Devon is also feeling a little awkward about it all, especially when Carl puts up some walls at first. But it doesn’t take long for things to settle and the guys then pretty much do and try everything they can think of over the course of four days together. Like I said, expect high heat with lots of sex scenes.

Read Jay’s review in its entirety here.

[bikemi · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5/5

Unexpected twists on the “virgin determined to lose virginity” storyline from Leta Blake and quite fun. Erotic novella with some D/s awakening and a touch of subversion. Devon and Carl have a weekend long arrangement for Carl to lose his virginity to Devon. They have a list, there’s begrudging conversation, and then magic unfolds. Really hot scenes interspersed with wholesome and tender moments as they fall head over heels for each other, helped along by Carl’s preexisting crush and a million incredible orgasms. Captured a nice energy of infatuated excitement and “student becomes the teacher” vibe. Carl is quite the baby Dom with his elfin features and pink flush and seeing Devon get undone by Carl’s preternaturally wicked ways was time well spent. Perfect read for a little mindless yet uplifting sweet steam.

[Gabis Laberladen · Rating 3 out of 5]

Darum geht’s:

Bevor er nach Kalifornien geht, um eine Musikerkarriere zu starten, will Carl seine ersten sexuellen Erfahrungen schon gemacht haben. Sein Schwarm Devon, der große Bruder seiner besten Freundin Hope, hat sich breitschlagen lassen, Carl in die Geheimnisse der körperlichen Liebe einzuweihen. Deshalb treffen sie sich in Devons Elternhaus, das sie für ein Wochenende ganz alleine für sich haben.

Meine Meinung dazu gibt’s hier

[Miriah · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was kinda weird but I really enjoyed it!

[Anita · Rating 5 out of 5]

"He was a rimming genius, that was all Devon could think as Carl explored all the various ways an asshole could be licked, sucked, bitten, and penetrated by a tongue." Woooo! This was a frothy, erotic, fun jizz-fest! Carl and Hope are best friends. Hope enlists her brother, Devon, to "help" Carl lose his virginity over a weekend. Devon knows of Carl but doesn't know him well. Well, little does he know he is about to become acquainted with a twinky, filthy demanding little virgin who tops from the bottom! Carl is this complex guy with loads of issues who blows hot and cold, often in the same sentence. Devon is a stand-up guy, trying to help his sister's friend who gets his mind blown. Such a fun read. "Who did this to a person? Ate their ass, jerked them to near completion, and then started scrolling their Netflix queue? Fuck. What the fuck?" Felt like the author had such fun writing it.

[Meg (queer_book_recs) · Rating 4 out of 5]

Steamy fun!

Home from college for the weekend, 20 year old Devon agrees to help his younger sister’s best friend Carl get some experience before he moves to LA to pursue his dreams, but a couple of magical days with Carl is enough to have Devon questioning his future.

This book was very short, very low angst, and very, very steamy. There’s not a lot going on plot-wise, but these guys are so fun and sweet and hot together that it ended up being a really enjoyable read. If you just need a light and fun erotic read with a bit of a D/s dynamic, definitely check this book out!

[Steph (semi-hiatus) · Rating 2 out of 5]

Carl was kind of manipulative and Devon was a pushover. I didn’t like either character much. I don’t mind books where it’s more porn than plot which is definitely the case here. As a matter of fact those are what usually bring me out of my slumps. Nothing much worked for me here.

Devon was talked into the weekend with Carl by his sister. Weird.

Carl cast a spell on Devon to make him agree. Weirder.

Devon was supposed to be helping Carl but Carl took over the entire weekend. He went from being nervous and kind of scared to baby Dom out of nowhere. Weirdest yet.

[Plumpka · Rating 2 out of 5]

DNF 50%

Jezu, jakie to było nudne. Postaci kompletnie mnie nie obchodziły.
Carl-dziewica umówił się z bratem swojej przyjaciółki Devonem na weekend seksu w celu pozbycia się problemu dziewictwa. Uprawiali seks i prawie nic więcej, a ten seks nie był nawet specjalnie interesujący. Strata czasu.

Dwie gwiazdki tylko dlatego, że to Leta Blake, do której mam słabość.

[HarriReadsRoMMance · Rating 4 out of 5]

While I would consider ‘Punching the V-Card’ an erotic novella, there is a surprising amount of romantic declaration in it. The story is almost entirely told in Devon’s POV which I really liked, as usually these kinds of stories are told from the inexperienced MC’s POV. It allows the reader to understand how/why the older and more experienced character falls for the other and why he makes the ultimate big decision he makes.
The story covers a long weekend between Carl and Devon. Carl has been in love with Devon, his best friend’s older brother, for years and asks him to take his v-card for him as he wants his first experience to be special before moving across the country to pursue his dream. Devon, who is slightly older and a lot more experienced, is hesitant and first but very quickly falls under Carl’s spell. There are BDSM elements to the relationship without explicitly being so. It’s kind of shocking and a LOT creepy how into wanting all the details Hope (the best friend/sister) wants and how involved she gets cooking them dinner and daily follow up calls. If you’re looking for a sexy, easy, zero angst read then look no further. 3.5 stars. Make sure to download the bonus scene as well. I voluntarily reviewed a complimentary copy of this book.

[Ken W · Rating 3 out of 5]

I did enjoy this story. I gave it 3 stars because I think that the characters deserved more STORY! In 145 pages there was probably 85 pages of sex and 60 pages of story. If that’s what you’re after, I will say that the sex was hot! I would love a sequel about the adventure that Devon and Carl embarked on at the end of this novella. I want to read their love story, not just their sex life!

[Jennifer · Rating 4 out of 5]

Definitely more in the erotica category, a swerve away from my usual romance reads. This book is about a weekend spent having (what felt to this perpetually tired, middle-aged reader like superhuman amounts of) enthusiastic, virile, almost perpetual sex. You are signing up for a marathon sex weekend when you open this book! Be ready :D maybe do some stretches to prepare.

Probably because of the shorter length of the story, combined with the percentage of words devoted to the necessary physicality of the sex, I didn’t get very attached to either of the characters, unlike I normally do with Blake’s more romance/relationship focused books. Their lives before and outside of this weekend retreat aren’t much covered or deeply dissected, so from that perspective, this book does an excellent job of maintaining its erotic zen by existing in the present moment with intense, single minded focus for a significant portion of the time. Which is exactly what a marathon fantasy sex weekend *should* be. So that felt realistic!

Also probably due to shorter length and sex focused reasons, I did not particularly like the sister, but it doesn’t matter - she only appears when needed to be either a facilitator of information or a cautionary voice of reason, as the plot requires, therefore I had no investment in her opinions no any reason why I felt either character should or should not listen to her about anything. I think the narrow focus of her being the only person they both talk to puts her in a super awkward position of first arranging their tryst like some kind of madam or pimp, but then suddenly turning buzzkill about any growing feelings, which makes her seem a hypocrite of the worst kind. Having even just one other neutral third party for either of them to talk to would have made me more comfortable- she is strained by trying to be the single point of contact for them both; whose side is she on? Should she even be on a side? She is the main reason I cannot give that 5th star.

But, again: this book is dedicated to the enthusiastic negotiation of learning to be yourself, to have sex and lots of it, and to learn to express one’s needs in a safe place while uncovering surprises about oneself in unexpected and sometimes mind-blowingly orgasmic ways - so it was easy enough to put everything else aside just exist with Devon and Carl in the here and now.

[Emily Hernandez · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'm not sure I've ever read a story quite like this one, and it was a delightful change of pace. The entire premise centered around a weekend of steamy bliss, and that's exactly what Devon and Carl delivered. They were unapologetic in their time together, invested in exploring anything and everything two young men could do in bed, and fully wrapped up in each other's orbit by the time the weekend ended. I kinda assumed from the blurb that this would be told from Carl's perspective, but instead I got to experience the many facets of his personality through Devon's eyes. I thought I had him all figured out in the beginning, but once the nerves had settled it was wonderful to see how confident he became in his desires. He and Devon fit together in ways I wasn't expecting, and I thoroughly enjoyed watching them open up to each other. I may have my doubts about the number of orgasms they crammed into a few short days, but I never doubted the quality of the connection they were building. I'm not even disappointed that their story didn't explore much of what happened after the weekend ended, because I didn't need it to know that these two would find a way to make it work.

**I voluntarily read an ARC of this book. This review expresses my honest thoughts and opinions.