Self Preservation

by Ethan Day

Davis always assumed they would wind up back together, until Jack calls and invites Davis to his wedding to Tadd Austin, a prominent architect in Chicago. Jack's only known Tadd for two weeks, so whatever Jack feels for Tadd couldn't possibly compare to what he shared with Davis. There's no way in hell Davis can stand by and watch the life he always expected to get back slip away to some guy Jack barely knows. Tadd Austin, indeed...more like Toad Ass-ton, Davis thinks.

With his best friend, fashion designer Deseree Wildwood in tow, Davis has to shed his sweet, guy-next-door persona, and re-vamp his image into a self-confident, hot piece of eye candy. He's going to the wedding with only one goal in mind: to do whatever it takes to win back Jack. The Toad is toast!

Once in Chicago, Davis discovers it isn't going to be as easy as he thought. Not only is Tadd very un-Toad-like, but a mysterious British playboy named Alex Parker manages to interject himself into the mix. Only true love will survive as the tug of war ensues in this Bermuda love triangle from hell.

Publisher's Note: This book contains explicit sexual content, graphic language, and situations that some readers may find objectionable: Anal play/intercourse, male/male sexual practices.

Genres: M M Romance, Romance, Contemporary, Humor, Erotica, LGBT, Contemporary Romance

181 pages, Kindle Edition

First published February 10, 2009

About the author

Welcome to Ethan Day's Goodreads Profile. I write mainly contemporary GLBT Romance Novels, but who knows what the future might bring and what other genres I may dive into.

Hopefully, you’ll find my books to be sexy as well as fun. Sex and romance, should be fun! If it isn’t, then perhaps you’re not doing it right.

I hope you love my characters as much as I do. With any luck they’ll inspire you the way they do me.

For a full Bio & more insight into my zany little mind, please visit my website listed above.

- I can also be found on Facebook @
https://www.facebook.com/ethandayonline

Reviews

[Daisiemae · Rating 4 out of 5]

Self Preservation is the first Ethan Day novel I’ve read, and it won’t be my last. I was pleasantly surprised on how humorous the book was. I found myself laughing out loud a few times at some of the crazy things the characters in this novel go through.

The plot is similar to the movie “My Best Friends Wedding”, but it had its own uniqueness to it that I enjoyed. I want to point out that our hero Davis doesn’t even meet his future lover, Alex, until almost mid way through the book. The book mainly focused on Davis’ feelings, and his intentions to stop the wedding of his first love, Jack, and his determination of getting back together with him.

I will say this frustrated me some. I am a romantically driven reader. I want my heroes to meet early on, and I want to watch their relationship build. I didn’t get that with this book as much as I would have liked. I was also confused at times because, in the end, I’m not sure if Jack wasn’t the one for him. I think part of this reason is because I didn’t get enough of Davis and Alex together on a more emotional level. I felt this way because Davis was already strongly connected emotionally with Jack from the beginning of the book.

I know that Davis had to go through everything he did to be able to find a new love with Alex, but I still would have enjoyed reading more of them together. From the last chapter to the epilogue, there is a six month period where we aren’t able to see Alex and Davis fall in love. I missed that. Don’t get me wrong, it’s very apparent that Davis and Alex are attracted to one another. They have some hot sexual chemistry as well as an emotional spark between them that neither wants to really admit to themselves.

I just feel a tiny bit cheated because I felt like there was so much I missed in that six month period; from their first real date, to the first time they tell each other they love one another. I hate that I didn’t get to read about that.

Please don’t get me wrong. I really liked this book. It’s funny and quite character driven. I thoroughly enjoyed the variety of characters, and I came to like all of them. I am looking forward to reading more from Ethan Day. I’m hoping that the next book will focus more on the romance between the two heroes, but if it doesn’t, and the characters are as well written as the ones in this book is, I’ll probably be okay with that too.

I would almost consider Self Preservation more of a comedy with some hot sex scenes in it than a romance; although there is a happy ending at the end. I just wish I could have watched Davis and Alex’s journey getting there!

4 stars

[Josh · Rating 4 out of 5]

Self Preservation was more humorous than I expected it to be. There is an interesting cast of characters that kept the book moving along smoothly. Although I really liked Davis and Alex together, my one complaint is I felt like I didn't get to spend enough time with them, because of all the craziness going on with the other characters.
I really enjoyed this book, and I look forward to reading more by this author.

[Trio · Rating 5 out of 5]

Ethan Day's writing always hits me hard in my heart, and I’ve been avoiding Self Preservation for a long time. Maybe hoping for a bit of self preservation myself…? Well, I’m very glad I finally read it. This one is just as beautifully crafted as all of his novels.

Ethan Day had such a natural ability to make his stories flow like you’re watching a movie. Basically mainly coming from one person’s point of view, but checking in on other characters from time to time. Like the camera sweeping over to just check in on others’ reactions. It’s seamless, and perfectly executed.

Very bittersweet, but endlessly hopeful as well, Ethan Day tells the tale of Davis’ last ditch effort at reclaiming the love of his first love. Flashbacks show us how great it was, with just enough of the hurtful memories scattered in so we understand why Jack might not be quite the catch Davis is remembering. Plus, as possibilities gradually reveal themselves, we can see that it might be time for Davis to look ahead as well.

The traditional Ethan Day supporting cast of best gal-pal, the super sassy and effortlessly stylish mom, and the dishy best friend, fit perfectly in the flow of Self Preservation, and add the humor, romance, and warmth which serves to make this story great.

I’ll always appreciate Ethan Day’s skill in finding what makes his characters real. The honesty of their emotions, the truth in their actions… and (as expected) I wasn’t able to escape yet another crying jag while reading this truly lovely story.

[ElaineY · Rating 2 out of 5]

Davis would have to be Drama Queen of gay romance! He was whiny and immature and I just didn't get his HEA with Alex - how did that romance even get off the ground when from start to finish, Davis was still hankering after his ex and plotting to break up his weeding a la 'My Best Friend's Wedding'-style?

I struggled through this one and was tempted to ditch it but somehow managed to get through it and gave myself a mental pat on the head for perseverance.

[Deeze · Rating 4 out of 5]

I have mixed feelings on this one. Firstly after reading Ethan Days Sno Ho series I was expecting more laughs, instead I got a roller coaster of emotions with a few chuckles thrown in. Secondly I’m still not sure if this ended the way I wanted,

When I started reading my heart was sure Davis and Jack would get back together. Half way through and I was hoping they would get back together but Alex started to worm his way in. By the end I still wanted Davis and Jack together but I wanted Alex to win Davis too. Jack kinda upset me with the speed he fell for Tadd. Two weeks and he is declaring him the love of his life? I was totally hurt on Davis behalf. It kinda made what they had seem less. Plus Jack kinda lost points with me over the way he chose Tadd over his career but chose his career over Davis in the past.

Candace and Deseree were enjoyable side characters, neither were too over the top or too know -it-all-ish . But Tadd was not a guy I ever really warmed up too.

Some people might have an issue with the amount of crying Davis did, but to know Davis character is to totally understand him. I loved him to pieces and maybe on reflection he really did get the ending he deserved.

[Monika · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5 Stars

Review posted on World of Diversity Fiction Reviews

This was another great Ethan Day book. I always know I’m going to get something humours, sweet and sometimes emotional with an HEA and very little angst. His characters are something that will give me hours of reading pleasure.

This was a sweet story about love, friendship and coming to terms with what you’ve lost then realizing there just may be a light at the end of that love tunnel for you anyway. The story is light hearted one that took me on a journey that kept me wondering if there was going to be a HEA until almost the end. It’s a well written romcom that plays out like a movie.

I pretty much loved everything about Self Preservation. Davis, Deseree, Jack, Candace and Alex were great. I liked Tadd but for some reason I never got completely connected to him, I think it might have been because he wasn’t in the story as much. Davis was sweet and sad at the same time. Pining for his first love, Jack, for 6 years made me sad but he had such a great personality it was hard not to love him and his best friend Deseree was such a hoot! They made a perfect pair. The shenanigans they get involved in trying to win Jack back were priceless. The few flashback chapters told me about how Jack and Davis got together and a little about their relationship which really helped in understanding Davis’s need to win Jack back.

Ethan Day has a way with words, his characters are comical, snarky and hard not to like. In Self Preservation there isn’t one character that I could say I disliked and I found myself really hoping they all got their own HEA. This story ended differently than I thought it would but it really was a perfect ending.

[Karel · Rating 2 out of 5]

I really wanted to like this one, after reading multiple reviews about how funny ED's books are. That part, at least is true - the humor is there. Not hilarious, my-sides-doth-hurt funny, but it's enough for a few quick laughs.

Problems I had with this book:

1. The flashbacks drew me out of the book. Maybe if the book had been structured differently and it had started out with the past instead, I might have cared more. As it is, we were fed on chapter one about the plot... And then just when the anticipation builds, you're drawn back to a 10-year-old flashback that stops the plot. I found that I couldn't care about the flashbacks at all - they're just fluffy detail of a relationship that has since gone sour.


2. The Alex-Davis chemistry just doesn't feel very real. What does Alex even like about Davis? The fact that he's hung up about his ex? The fact that he... wants to break up his best friend's wedding? The fact that he... Has a really foul mouth?

I just can't seem to understand what Alex (and I've got something against the fact that he's a wealthy spendthrift as well; I guess I just prefer my rich millionaires to at least, well, do something) sees in Davis. The whole book, right up to the last 20 or so pages, was about Davis' hang-ups about Jack's marriage, so much so that it defined Davis.

As a reader, I feel like that's who he is: Davis, home-wrecker before you make one. I don't get his personality beyond that, don't understand his life, and I don't even remember what shop he owned, really.

About the only detailed character was Des, and for the first time since I've read MM, I found myself thinking, 'You know what? I'd much prefer this book if Des was the MC'. I usually hate the feMC in het romances, never mind MM. For that, I'll have to commend the author.

Overall, a decent, if slightly unsatisfying read.

[JenMcJ · Rating 3 out of 5]

I was pleasantly surprised by this book. I did like Davis more than I expected to.

I would probably have bumped this up to a 4 star if the Davis/Alex romance was more solidly explored. I feel like there was more of connection between Jack and Todd and Jack and Davis then there was between Alex and Davis. Partly this was because Davis and Alex did not spend enough time together in the book. Davis spent more time in the book with his BFF girlfriend then he did with Alex.

I will also add that the POV changed constantly in this book. Usually this does not bother me, although I know it drives some readers bugnutz. However, in this book, I did have to go back and try and figure out who was thinking/talking/"pov"ing in several places because the change was so abrupt.

That said, I still enjoyed the book. It was a bit like watching a sitcom more than reading a romance but it held my attention and I did care about Davis in the end. I wanted him to be happy...and Jack and Alex and Todd and the BFF (can't remember her name, dang it). :)

[Tina · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was the second time I read Self Preservation by Ethan Day. The first time, it was released by a different e-publisher and I gave it three stars. The editing was missing completely from that version. I have to admit I had forgotten the reason I gave it three stars and I was not looking forward to re-reading it for this review. Why did I volunteer? I think because I had already read several Wilde City Press e-books and had found true nirvana. Almost flawless editing, proofing and formatting. This version of Self Preservation is a now different animal entirely from it’s previous incarnation.

To me, story is King. But the court jesters of bad proofing, editing, formatting and spelling can assassinate the King. Because of the much needed improvement in those areas, which were made by Wilde City Press, the story in Self Preservation was able to shine through. I got my first true taste of this lovely, heart-warming book.

Ethan Day is one of my favorite authors, genre be damned. He is witty, snarky and creative but also has emotional depth that translates well onto the page. Or screen if that’s how you read. He created characters in Self Preservation that were so likeable, I wasn’t sure I was rooting against ANYONE! I wanted them all to get their HEA.

Davis is invited to Jack’s wedding. Jack was his first love and Davis has been in a holding pattern for six years, just waiting for the moment Jack will walk back into his life and tell him he made a mistake by leaving him. Now Jack is marrying a man he has only know for weeks. A man named Tadd. Tadd the toad!

Davis and his best friend, fashion designer Desiree, decide to go to the wedding, planning to make-over Davis and get Jack back for himself. As usual, the best laid plans of mice and men and all that.

After much tomfoolery an nonsense, it turns out Tadd isn’t such a toad after all. And Tadd’s best friend Alex, he is just a knight in shining white armor. The wedding happens (of course it does, you didn’t expect such a quickly planned caper to work!).

But a funny thing happens on the way to the HEA. Alex likes Davis. Really likes Davis. And Davis is pretty sure he likes Alex right back. Desiree, she has a big secret of her own and meets a tall, dark and handsome stranger at the reception.

The over-arching observation for me in Self Preservation is that Ethan Day injects humor into every possible little nook and cranny that he can find. He had me laughing out loud so many times! But he also had me crying. I think that an author capable of causing such heights of humor and happiness is equally capable of causing us to tap deeply into our inner well of sadness. Not all authors choose to do that. Ethan Day is one of the best at it. He elects to wield every emotion at his disposal, and uses them like stealth bomber. I’m laughing, and then, wait, what? Why am I crying? Ohhh. I get it, that’s funny but it’s so sad, too. The capacity to inject a situation with those opposite extremes of emotion is a rare talent. I have so far not read an Ethan Day book that I have not liked. I know that the combination of his innate talent and the talent of the staff at Wilde City Press (of which he is one of the co-founders, by the way) will be unbeatable. I can’t wait for more. I recommend Self Preservation with no reservations. You will love it.

[leigh · Rating 3 out of 5]

Likable, well-plotted but lightweight rom-com. I didn’t warm up to either main character. Davis was not only pathetic but annoying. He pined for years over his lost love, making no adult attempts to reconnect nor to find someone else with whom to share his life. When it looked like Jack had a chance of real happiness, Davis’s first impulse was to sabotage it in the name of Twoo Wuv. He eventually allowed reason to prevail and held back some of his more evil machinations, but his heart remained in the wrong place until the very end of the story when he finally caught a clue. In the meantime, he acted like a boob, embarrassing not only the other characters but the reader as well. Screechy, self-absorbed, catty without being funny, and weepy at the drop of a hat. Urgh. Yes, he eventually realized much of this, but it was an irritating ride waiting for that to happen.

Jack came off as too slick, too touchy-feely, and definitely still too into Davis for a groom on the eve of his wedding. They finally did have a well thought out discussion on why their lingering feelings do not mean they are still in love or that they should still be together. .

The most engaging of the bunch were Tadd (who was better than Jack deserved) and Alex, who was the only source of real humor. I was rooting for them. The ultimate resolution to the romantic quadrangle was fairly obvious from early on, but the plot had enough genuinely entertaining twists and turns to move the story at a page-turning pace. And it was not without its affecting and tender moments—most of which involved Tadd or Alex.

The writing was smooth and flowing, with the exception of instances of head-hopping which an author of this stature should permit his editors to smooth out. The narrative was 95% in Davis’s head, there was no apparent reason or intent to have the point of view wander for moments here and there.

3.5 stars.

[Jet · Rating 4 out of 5]

such a lovely story! I laughed aloud

[L-D · Rating 4 out of 5]

Man - this book stressed me the F*CK out. Davis and Jack were first loves in college. After dating for 4 years, they are separated for 6 which is addressed in a few flashbacks. Even though they haven't dated for 6 years, Davis has always loved Jack and held onto the hope that they will get back together...until Jack calls to invite him to his wedding.

Having only been with his fiance for 2 weeks, Davis is certain that Jack can't love Tad the way they loved each other and, with best friend Deseree and co-conspirator in tow, he sets out to disrupt the nuptials. When they arrive, Davis is crushed to discover that Tad is perfect in every way and he and Deseree really have their work cut out for them. When Davis meets Alex who offers to help make Jack jealous, has he found a co-conspirator or does Alex have ulterior motives?

I both loved and hated this book.

What I loved:
• I loved Deseree. She is a wickedly delicious fag-hag and loyal friend to the end. Her only goal is to see Davis happy and using an "ends-justifies-the-means" approach, she is single-minded in her effort to ensure Davis gets his HEA. Davis and Deseree's ploys to get Jack to notice Davis again range from cute to insidious.
• I loved how strongly Davis loved Jack and I fell in love with Jack through Davis' eyes.
• I loved Alex - he was a scamp and a player, but was unabashedly so. He was gorgeous, sexy, fun, and wicked wrapped up into a British-speaking package. What's not to love?

What I hated:
• I didn't like the fact that Jack could fall in love and get married in only 2 weeks. That rang a little false to me. I'm not sure why the author made that time frame so unrealistic.
• I hated how stressed I felt reading this book - seeing glimpses of Davis and Jack's past love, it was painful to watch Jack get ready to marry another man. I felt like my heart broke a half dozen times while reading this book. This amount of emotional angst is detrimental to my well-being.

I'm not sure I'm happy with the ending to this book. I'm undecided as to whether or not the right decisions were made. If I could rewrite the ending would I? YES. But am I okay with how it ended? It was better than a kick in the nuts - But I'm not thrilled about it. And only those of you who have read this will understand my last parting comment: I wanna be someone's monkey face.

[Nic · Rating 4 out of 5]

Funny and fabulous!

Davis has been apart from Jack, the love of his life, for 6 years. He thought they were destined to be together, that true love would win in the end but then receives a phone call from Jack inviting him to attend his wedding! Davis sets off with best friend Deseree to win his man back!

"And you'll come with me to Chigago?" he asked.
"You breaking out of your shell and laying claim to your man?" Deseree asked, smiling at the thought. "Like I'd miss watching you going all My Best Friend's Wedding on Jack's ass"

What follows is a funny and touching story as Davis and Deseree head to Chicago. The characters include Jack's gorgeous and outspoken mother Candace and Alex, a handsome British guy who steps in to assist Davis with his break-up plans.

There are a couple of flashbacks allowing us to see how Jack and Davis first met, their first sexual encounter and also their most recent meeting a year before. This integrated with the story well and provided a nice view of how Davis and Jack's relationship was.

The only negative points I have about this story are minor and are spoilerish. Tadd, Jack's new fiance, had no depth. I guess he was portrayed that way so that the reader would find him shallow and hope Jack would see through him and break up. However, with the events at the end, I was disappointed that I didn't like Tadd more as I wanted Jack to be happy. I also struggled to accept that Jack totally loved Tadd due to Jack's obvious reaction to Davis, how he spoke to him and touched him. Anyway, enough of my ramblings....."

The ending was lovely, not over the top, just a slow romance building between Davis and Alex.

[Paisley · Rating 4 out of 5]

When I am reading this story I am once again reminded why Ethan Day is one of my favorite authors - he is so freakin' entertaining! I love his work. It's beyond just humorous at times - it is laugh out loud, people are staring at me while I'm reading my Kindle in the airport funny.

Although I would not say this is my favorite story of his - it is up to par with most of them. I've paid a lot to Amazon over the past few years for his stuff, and even though I cringe when I hit the "One Click Buy" button (because those 7 dollar books add up) I have never been disappointed in his story crafting yet.

[Sucajo · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is one of those stories that gets better and better, the more you read. I alternated between laughing and cringing at Davis's actions and even though I didn't want him to succeed in his mission I was slightly cheering him on! I loved Deseree and everybody should have a best friend like her. This book was a lot of fun, although it did have a couple of sad moments, and I can definitely see myself reading this again.

[Cindi · Rating 4 out of 5]

A nice, humorous story about discovering that sometimes going back isn't all it's cracked up to be. A very entertaining read.


Full review can be found at On Top Down Under Book Reviews.


This book was provided by Wilde City Press in exchange for a fair and honest review.

[Sunne]

Okay - I had started the sample three times before I actually bought the book....and that should have been a hint itself. I've ignored that and bought it anyway.

Let's just phrase it this way - neither story nor built up nor MCs are my cup of tea.

I did not finish and therefore don't rate it. That means someone else might enjoy it.

[Spring · Rating 4 out of 5]

I liked this book a lot. I would have given it 5 stars Davis and Alex had more interaction with each other. It's funny and I thought Davis was so cute!
I'll be reading more from this author.

[Tana · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was a great story, I love when you read a book and it makes you laugh outloud. I would love to read more about Davis and Alex. Heading over to LLC to find your other books.

[Emanuela ~plastic duck~ · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was not my favorite Ethan Day's book. The story resembles My Best Friend's Wedding, but Davis (Julia Roberts) is Jack's ex, the future husband is not a naive guy, but a prominent architect and Davis' ally are his best friend Deseree and the future husband's best friend Alex. It's enough to make the dynamics all different.

It was as if the story never got really started. It takes place almost all in the present, with a few flashbacks about the past, the very first Davis and Jack's date and the brief reunion a year before. Unfortunately what I think was the most important memory - when Davis and Jack decided to split 6 years before - was missing, it was simply talked about, and I was dying to know the details because I wanted to know what really brought them to that point.

Another thing that drove me crazy, but it's MY pet peeve, was the shifting point-of-view. It wasn't done in a regular way, it was unpredictable and sometimes it shifted to secondary characters for a few paragraphs. Instead of giving enlightenment, it seemed to show the limitations of the narration. Unfortunately, while I loved Davis and Deseree, I didn't see the connection between Davis and the other guy.

The atmosphere is like a comedy, with great rhythm and the plot is rich of events and extremely entertaining, once the story got going it was impossible to put down, but while Ethan Day's books are remarkable because the writing is so good that it disappears, here the magic didn't happen. Still recommended.

[Julia · Rating 4 out of 5]

This one teetered between a three and a four for me. On the one hand, it's very similar in a lot of ways to My Best Friend's Wedding. Not a total rip off like some-- *coughs*Pretty Man*coughs*-- I've read, but more like I could imagine the writer having been inspired by that film (or one like it) and going, "This would be great for a m/m romance..." And it is. I liked not being sure who was going end up with who and I really liked all the characters. There are no bad guys here, just personal struggles that create the obstacles and I'm a fan of those kinds of stories.

The only thing that really bothered me was the amount of description spent on nearly every single setting. As a reader I like a little understanding of the surroundings, but with a contemporary novel, it doesn't need to paint the entire picture for me. It sort of slowed the pacing of the story down for me and I didn't love that. But, I didn't knock it down to a three star read simply because that's a matter of personal taste.

In the end, this is a sweet, funny little romance with some really great characters. I'd definitely give this author another shot and I'll probably enjoy it.

[Barb ~rede-2-read~ · Rating 4 out of 5]

I liked this story but not as much as I usually like Ethan Day's work. There was definitely humor, and I really like his writing style, but I just didn't engage with the MCs as much as I usually do.

Maybe that's because it wasn't clear who the MCs really were. I couldn't decide if Davis was going to end up with Jack or not, and when I finally realized that maybe Davis would be with Alex, the story was nearly finished. Most of the book was about Davis and his efforts to win Jack back from his current fiancé, Tadd. Flashbacks recounted their early years as well as a hot reunion they had one year previously. It really looked like Davis was in love with Jack and would win him back even though I wasn't feeling that strong romantic connection of true love being reunited.

I guess I wasn't feeling that because the author had other plans for Davis. But, even then, a sweep-him-off-his-feet kind of love and romance just didn't happen. So, bottom line? I couldn't relate to either romantic relationship and felt a bit let down by the end of the story. I'm having trouble articulating what I mean here but I like to be able to enjoy the romance and I didn't do that in this story.

3.5 stars rounded to 4 because I really like this author. :-)

[Ery · Rating 3 out of 5]

While Day incorporates his classic writing style, strong characterization, and sense of humor, it's a miss for me in one key area. Specifically, the one area that keeps me reading Day's works is his innate ability to build tension between two characters I - to totally submerge the readers in the conflict and/or developing romance, until it explodes in a lustful ball of fire. Here, due to the story structure, this is missing.

Overall, the story is well-written, interesting, and included enough drama to give it kick. It rather reminded me of 'My Best Friend's Wedding". So, personally probably a two-star, but I hate to penalize the author (who wrote a perfectly good book) because of a minor personal preference. Besides that - I rather like that Day continues to experiment in his writing.

[Kathy · Rating 5 out of 5]

LOVE, LOVE, LOVE this debut story by Ethan Day... and to be honest I certainly hope he has more where this came from, a LOT more! This man's humour is slightly skewed ~ but I LIKE it ~ and his characters, unforgettable. The story, well I couldn't read it fast enough... but when I was done I felt as though I was saying goodbye to a dear and treasured friend.
This story joins the line-up on my (virtual) keeper shelves.
Oh, and when it's out in paperback ~ don't get in my way 'cause I'll run anyone over that slows me down on my way to get my copy!

[Felicia (Ferishia) · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is the first book I've read from this author. You ever start reading a book, and part way through, you think you've figured out how it's gonna end. Only it doesn't end that way and you don't know know how to take it? Well, I was thrown for a loop with this book. I'm not gonna say anything about it other than I was...shocked. Still am. I loved the main character Davis and his best friend Desiree. I was on the fence about Jack and Alex, and definitely did NOT like Tadd. It was cute, sad, and funny. Not a bad read.

[Fangtasia · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good story, likeable characters but it was kind of unfocused. Would have liked it better if there had been more balance between the main character's move from his first to his second love interest. Also, other books by this author have been hilariously funny, this one was a bit short in that sense. Pretty good light reading, but not his best. I do recommend the one other story of his that I've read, Dreaming of You. It's absolutely fabulous!

[Jaymie Brideson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Well, I couldn't seem to put this book down, so I guess I liked it?

I don't know, but I think because there was so much time spent on how much Davis and Jack loved each other, that I was rooting for them. I really did like Alex, but I guess I'm a bit of a sap with the whole "first love" thing. So sue me. ;-)

And I didn't care for Tadd. He seemed like a nice guy, but he was just... Meh.

Candace and Deseree were awesome. Loved them to pieces.

It may not seem like it, but overall I did enjoy this book. Just a different scenario than what I was hoping for.

[Julia · Rating 5 out of 5]

This little gem was full of humor. The story was told with a series of flashbacks that really build the angst and pull on the heart strings. 5 emotional stars But I just gotta say, I did not see the end coming until the end. Even after the wedding I was praying for a truck to come and run Tadd over. Not that he was bad, but the entire book has you rooting for Davis to get his man. It was a little bit of a shock when the HEA doesn't turn out the way you think it will.

[♥J ♥ · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a nice treat! I picked this for a challenge and what a delightful surprise. I already knew I liked Ethan's writing and although this wasn't as quirky as the others I have read, it was still a great story with awesome characters. I would have loved to read more at the end, but I'm also satisfied with how it ended.

[Elisa Rolle · Rating 5 out of 5]

2009 Rainbow Awards Honorable Mention (5* from at least 1 judge)