Love at First Sight (Home #4) Lily G’s Audio Review

Title: Love at First Sight (Home #4)
Author: Cardeno C. and Alexander Collins (Narrator)
Publisher: The Romance Authors LLC
Release Date: March 30th 2016
Genre(s): M/M Contemporary Romance
Length: 7 hrs and 10 mins
Reviewed by: Lily G. Blunt
Heat Level: 4 flames out of 5
Rating: 3.75 stars out of 5
Blurb:

A book in the Home series

The moment naïve, optimistic Jonathan Doyle glimpses a gorgeous blue-eyed stranger from afar, he believes in love at first sight. Unfortunately, he loses sight of the man before they meet and then spends years desperately trying to find him. Just as he is about to give up, Jonathan gets a break and finally encounters David Miller face to face.

Successful, confident David turns Jonathan’s previously lonely life into a fairy tale, giving him more than he ever imagined. But the years spent searching were hard on Jonathan, and he’s terrified his young son and scandalous past will destroy his blossoming relationship. For David and Jonathan to build a future together, they’ll both have to dig deep: David for the courage to share himself in a way he’s never considered and Jonathan for the strength to tell the truth.

Alexander Collins is one of my favourite narrators. Although he doesn’t have a wide vocal range, he has a soothing and expressive voice. His narration is well paced and he provides good characterization. The use of additional sound effects enhances the listening experience.  (4.5* for the narration)

Let me say first that I enjoyed listening to this story, but there were several minor issues that niggled me.

As the title says, this is a story of love at first sight. Fans of CC will know this is a common trait for characters and are happy to enjoy this. Even so, I found the first few chapters hard to accept as I listened. I let out quite a few “What the… ? gasps. Stick with it! The events and situations that happened at the beginning are there for a reason and have consequences for the rest of the story and the two main characters. And by the end of the story I was thinking it all worked for the plot, and through it we gain a better glimpse of Jonathan’s true character.  

I did pause every time a reference was made to David’s strange navy blue eye colour, though, and I struggled to accept that someone could stand in a hospital staring at another guy for three hours without anyone questioning what he was doing or David noticing him. And when Jonathan moves to New York with a baby in tow in the hope of finding this guy again because he thinks he’s in love I was shaking my head. 

I was also a little bewildered at Jonathan’s reaction during the days following their first night together, but it added a little angst to the story and we get to meet some of David’s friends and see another side to David’s character during this time, so that was okay.

There were a few head hopping scenes/paragraphs which confused me, but not seeing the text layout and relying on the narration it wasn’t clear if there was a deliberate change of POV.  There were inconsistencies regarding Sam’s character and also when David meets Jonathan’s parents, plus I noticed a couple of timeline issues.

After saying all that, and it taking me a few chapters to get into the story, there was plenty that I did like about this story. I enjoyed the overall plot in the end and the interaction between the wide range of characters.

I liked that Jonathan wasn’t perfect. That made him more realistic. Yes, he was naive and innocent in a way and not the sharpest pencil in the box, but he loved his son and David without question and took his responsibilities seriously. He’d been misused by friends and strangers, but he had the support of a good family, and then David’s love and affection to see him through.

There is a wonderful ‘Aww’ moment after they first make love and Jonathan misinterprets what David says. 

David is indeed a catch. He’s hunky and protective of Jonathan and Sam, and long before the end of the story we see that he has a great big heart. I’m not usually a fan of stories with children, but I liked how David took on Sam without a second thought for himself.

The chemistry between these two guys sizzles throughout and as their relationship evolves the interaction is wonderful. I enjoyed how their story develops and how they show their love for each other from very early on. In fact, I enjoyed the second half of the book much more than the first half of the book. Once they are together there are plenty of fireworks with lashings of hot sex scenes to make this a beautiful and steamy love story.

I was anticipating fallout from Jonathan’s secret past and was pleased that it never really came to much. David’s reaction just demonstrated how accepting and loving of Jonathan he was because he really knew him by then.

I also liked that other characters from the Home series make an appearance as David’s friends.

Fans of CC will enjoy listening to this fluffy, instalove, and family-centric story. If you can overlook some of the unrealistic aspects of the plot, take it as a feel-good and sweet romance.

 Amazon Global Author Link GoodReads More Author Reviews