It’s no secret that Portland, Oregon, has some of best restaurants, shops, and cafés in the country. But it’s the hard-working men who serve it all up that keep us coming back for more…
One of Portland’s hottest young baristas, Brady is famous for his java-topping flair, turning a regular cup of joe into a work of art. Every Wednesday—aka “Knit Night”—hordes of women and their needles descend on the coffeehouse, and Brady’s feeling the heat. Into the fray walks a tall, dark, and distractingly handsome stranger from New York. His name is Evren, and he’s the sexy nephew of Brady’s sweetest customer, the owner of the yarn shop down the street. He’s also got a killer smile, confident air, and masculine charm that’s tying Brady’s stomach in knots. The smitten barista can’t wait to see him at the next week’s gathering. But when he tries to ask Evren out, his plans unravel faster than an unfinished edge. If Brady hopes to warm up more than Evren’s coffee, he’ll have to find a way to untangle their feelings, get out of the friend zone, and form a close-knit bond that’s bound to last a lifetime…
Praise for the Portland Heat series:
“Tremendously charming and sexy.” —RT Book Reviews on Served Hot, TOP PICK
“A really enjoyable story.” —Joyfully Jay on Baked Fresh
“Sometimes an author just gets everything right…Absolutely perfect.” —Guilty Pleasures Book Reviews on Delivered Fast
Review:
This was such a sweet romance!
It didn’t exactly start out that way–well, it did, and then it veered temporarily into “What the heck?” territory, but by the ending it was back to sweetness. Evren just needed to get his head out of his butt over Brady’s being a bisexual and learn to truly let others (mainly, but not strictly limited to, Brady) in to help him with all of the crap that life was sending his way, and then everything was back to feel-good romance land again.
Well, except for the part that made me cry.
But then Brady and Ev were back to making me sigh happily, so… 🙂
I loved Brady’s character–not much of a surprise, since we see the whole book from his point of view (with the exception of the small snippets of Ev’s knitting blog which we get at the beginning of every chapter except the first one–loved this device, BTW!). He’s got so much on his plate, with his four younger siblings that he’s been responsible for since the death of their parents–seven-year-old twin girls, a ten-year old brother, and nineteen-year-old sister who helps up to a point, but who also wants to be a “normal” nineteen-year-old girl. Between work and his family, his dating life has been nonexistent. And then he sees Ev across the busy coffee shop…
Ev’s a bit harder to like at times. At first he’s all cute and flirty–until he finds out Brady’s orientation. He’s had bad experiences with two bisexuals, and says he won’t chance it again and shuts Brady down. But then he decides friendship is doable, only they both clearly want more…anyway, he’s lucky that Brady is patient. And that he really, really likes him. It also doesn’t hurt that Ev’s so good with kids… 😉
This was my first book from this author, but it won’t be my last! Even though it’s 4th in the series, Knit Tight worked just fine as a standalone.
Rating: 4 / B+
Meet the Author:
Annabeth Albert grew up sneaking romance novels under the bed covers. Now, she devours all subgenres of romance out in the open—no flashlights required! When she’s not adding to her keeper shelf, she’s a multi-published Pacific Northwest romance writer.
Emotionally complex, sexy, and funny stories are her favorites both to read and to write. Annabeth loves finding happy endings for a variety of pairings and is a passionate gay rights supporter. In between searching out dark heroes to redeem, she works a rewarding day job and wrangles two toddlers.
