Buy Links: Amazon US | Amazon UK | Audible US | Audible UK
Length: 7hrs 33mins
Narrated By: Michael Stellman
Cover Design: Tiferet Design
BlurbJosh finds himself homeless at 18, but he has a plan. He'll head north on the bus to New England and spend October there for his mother's sake. She always talked about going to see the fall leaves someday. And when the leaves are done and the harsh winter comes, Josh plans to find a place to curl up and let go. It will be a relief to finally stop fighting.
Mark spent his life trying to live up to the tough swagger of his older brothers until he pushed himself so far against his nature that he cracked. Now a former Marine, he rents a little cabin in the White Mountains of New Hampshire where he can lick his wounds and figure out what to do with the rest of his life. One thing was clear: Mark was nobody's hero.
Fate intervenes when Josh sets up camp under a covered bridge near Mark's cabin. Mark recognizes the dead look in the young stranger's eyes, and he feels compelled to do something about it. When Mark offers Josh a job, he never expects that he'll be the one to fall.
The snow is coming soon. Can Mark convince Josh that the two of them can build a life together before the flurries begin?
Trigger warning: Suicidal thoughts
Karen's review:
It’s been almost two and a half years since I read this book and I was really left in a quandary that first time around because I was so sure I was going to love this and it ended up just being ok…in the end after considering what I liked or loved about the story I was just confused why things didn’t resonate with me more, but it didn’t, so when I was presented with the opportunity to revisit this story in audio book format and after having some time and more than a few books between then and now it seemed like the perfect opportunity to find out if it truly was a case of it’s not the book it’s me…
And guess what…I’d have to say that for the most part it was definitely me. Overall I just felt more connected to the story and it’s characters. In spite of the fact that I had read this story before and I knew what was going to happen I found myself drawn into events almost as if I were experiencing them for the first time and I think this is very much due to the excellent narrations of Michael Stellman.
I felt that hearing the story on audio added depth and emotion to both the characters and the story grabbing my attention on a stronger level than just reading the story did originally. I’ve had this happen before and I have to admit if I had to explain exactly why some stories are more enjoyable as audio books than they were for me to read I don’t think I could really give a definitive answer but I do know that for me it’s a thing. I actually have several stories that I’ve liked them, but when I read them they were just ‘ok’ for me, and then when I revisit them on audio they suddenly become a story that I want to revisit over and over again and believe me when I say that with many of them I have.
When I first read this story I found Josh tugging at my heartstrings but for whatever reason I didn’t feel that emotional connection that I tend to feel with a character in his situation and while I still wasn’t feeling as strong of a connection to this character as I usually do, I found myself rooting for him wanting him to succeed, to find that bit of happy that would encourage him to keep trying, to want something more and better for himself and this actually made me happy because truth be told Josh doesn’t need someone to shed tears for him…he needs someone to have faith, believe in him and encourage him to keep going…keep trying. Fortunately for Josh, Mark found him and as it turns out this was equally as fortunate for Mark.
Mark is not a man without his own set of problems…living in a rented cabin in the woods while he licks his wounds and trying to avoid his loving but overbearing family while he does. Mark’s hiding from the world but Josh…he’s running, and his plan is that when he stops…he’ll stop forever.
‘Falling Down’ is a story about two men…each trying to escape a world that’s left them drowning in memories of the past…mistakes they feel they’ve made and what they’ve each lost. It’s about second chances, starting over, finding love and learning to not only love someone else but to love yourself.
Maybe it was a combination of listening to the audio and me being in a different state of mind but whatever the reason I enjoyed ‘Falling Down’ a lot more this time around and I’m really glad I took the time to revisit Josh and Mark’s story on audio.
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An audio book of ‘Falling Down’ was graciously provided by the author in exchange for an honest review.
Having been, at various times and under different names, a minister’s daughter, a computer programmer, a game designer, the author of paranormal mysteries, a fan fiction writer, and organic farmer, Eli has been a m/m romance author since 2013. She has over 30 books published. Eli has loved romance since her teens and she particular admires writers who can combine literary merit, genuine humor, melting hotness, and eye-dabbing sweetness into one story. She promises to strive to achieve most of that most of the time. She currently lives on a farm in Pennsylvania with her husband, bulldogs, cows, a cat, and lots of groundhogs.
In romance, Eli is best known for her Christmas stories because she’s a total Christmas sap. These include “Blame it on the Mistletoe”, “Unwrapping Hank” and “Merry Christmas, Mr. Miggles”. Her “Howl at the Moon” series of paranormal romances featuring the town of Mad Creek and its dog shifters has been popular with readers. And her series of Amish-themed romances, Men of Lancaster County, has won genre awards.
Her website is www.elieaston.com
You can email her at eli[at]elieaston.com
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Congrats on the audio book release!
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