My Fiction Nook: Book Review: Where Do I Start? (Why You? #1) by Chase Taylor Hackett

Tuesday, February 13, 2018

Book Review: Where Do I Start? (Why You? #1) by Chase Taylor Hackett

Blurb:

The ex best thing . . .

Fletcher Andrews never believed in promises. Or monogamy. Or love. When you’re tall and gorgeous, New York City is one big all-you-can-eat buffet of hot young actors, models, and baristas. Even when living happily with Roger, his sweet, sexy violinist boyfriend, Fletch can’t resist an occasional taste. Too bad you don’t know what you’ve got until it’s thrown you out for cheating with half the cast of Disney on Ice.

Two years and a chance meeting later, Fletch desperately wants Roger back. Roger’s new boyfriend, Jeff, will do anything to stop that from happening. But Fletch has a plan to make amends. And with a little help from friends, colleagues—even Roger’s Scottish terrier, Haggis—they might find that the love you don’t believe in can sweep you right off your feet . . .

Todd's rating:

Okay, confession time.

After reading the blurb way back when, I had sworn off reading this book. As in, "fuck cheaters, rot in hell, good riddance, poof be gone, Bye, Felicia" sworn off.

Then I read book 2 and had to re-evaluate that stance.

Mainly because of Tommy, who was hilarious in book 2 and best friends with the MC in this story, soooo... Yay, more Tommy, right?

Well, I got the Tommy fix that I'd hoped for, but also got a very sweet, touching story about learning from your mistakes and living with the sincerest regret that you'd hurt a very special person. An important person. Possibly "the" most important person you've ever had the amazing good fortune to meet.

I really loved this book, just not quite as much as book 2, mainly because both of the MC's in book 2 could teach a damn Master Class on Snark and Banter, and those two things are my freaking crack cocaine wrapped in a chocolate-glazed cronut. No exaggeration there, guys, hand to God.

Don't get me wrong, though. This story was still especially funny, but it also felt a bit more serious. After all, you don't just laugh your way past the love of your life sleeping his way through all of Manhattan and half of the outlying boroughs. And you're likely to hold those he slept with after you tossed him to the curb against him, too. Infidelity leaves a taste in your mouth worse than black licorice. PS, nasty, gross, ick, eww, and no. Same thing here.

As with the second book, this one also contains zero sexy times, which was fine with me. I didn't feel that it was missing.

However, what I did feel in conspicuous absence was the underlying reason as to *why* Fletch felt the overwhelming need to cheat behind Roger's back. Repeatedly. Ad nauseam.

They were otherwise happy together, so I would have truly liked a full, detailed reasoning as to why the man-whoring was such a pressing need for Fletch. Because the man seriously had zero will power.

If dick was chocolate cake, dude would've weighed 800 pounds if he weighed an ounce by the time Roger rightfully fast-tracked his ass to the curb.

Yet right from the beginning, I found myself rooting for Fletch, because sluttery aside, he was a great guy and I wanted he and Roger to work beyond their past history. To be happy together, again.

I liked that this story didn't pull any punches. It called a spade a spade and moved on to sift through the big, ugly wreckage, with the MC's (cough-Fletch-cough) admitting their faults and working to be better.

My favorite part of the story was toward the end, where "Jeffrey" from book 2, Roger's current boyfriend (and fuckwit extraordinaire), did a truly dick hole thing, at which point Roger was steadfast in his defense of Fletch. That simple act forced him to re-evaluate all of his past hurt and current assumptions about Fletch. Then truly decide what he wanted from his life. And whom. And I loved that.

I'd highly recommend this book for any fans of second chance romances and rate it at around 4.5 stars.