Buy Link: Nobody’s Hero
Author: Katey Hawthorne
Publisher: Loose Id
Length: Novel

Rating: 4.75

Jamie Monday is a great guy – social butterfly, lots of fun, good friend, and a bit of a slut.  But he is living a double life that is weighing on him.  To his friends, coworkers, and most of the rest of the world he is an out and proud, average guy.  But to his mother and her social circle, he is one of the “awakened,” a guy with the ability to control electricity, and one who has incredible power.  To them he is the dutiful son, playing straight and expected to marry the daughter of his mother’s best friend.

Jamie grew up in a small, wealthy community of awakened families.  As folks with power to control electricity, heat, and cold, they take their responsibilities toward others very seriously, immersing themselves in charity work and jobs where they can help people.  But along with this they are an incredibly insular group, guarding the secrets of their powers and intermarrying to both protect that secret and to pass along their abilities to the next generation.  Jamie already disappointed his mother by going into sales, rather than becoming a doctor and using his power for healing.  Jamie is an only child, raised by a single mother after his father’s death, and he fears disappointing her.  So he can’t bear to tell her that he is gay and has no desire for an arranged marriage.

Jamie is managing things pretty well until he meets the gorgeous Kellan Shea, the new computer programmer at work.  Kellan, with his rumpled hair, geeky glasses, tattoos, and prickly demeanor just pushes all of Jamie’s buttons in the best possible way.  Kellan comes from a poor, large family with siblings that fight and squabble but love each other fiercely.  He is open and honest and real, sharing his emotions as well as his deep spirituality with Jamie.  And Jamie finds him so hot he can barely control his powers around him.

But as the two men grow closer in the relationship, the secrets begin to weigh on them.  Jamie has trouble explaining why he hasn’t come out to his mother and why she expects him marry someone she selects. Jamie also suffers nightmares from an accident with his powers as a child, and he is unable to explain them to Kellan.  And Kellan hasn’t missed that there is part of Jamie that he keeps hidden  However, as much as Jamie wants to share all of himself with Kellan, he has to keep the secret.  The awakened learn early on they can not tell “sleepers” who and what they are.  There are many haters, witch hunters, and others out there looking to destroy them.  Although he trusts Kellen completely, Jamie knows he can’t tell him the truth so early in their relationship, if at all.  But he also knows that if he has any hope of a real future with Kellan, Kellan must be able to trust him and he never will unless Jamie can share all of himself.

Oh, this book was so good, I just loved it.  Ok, first we’ll start with the juicy stuff. It’s off the charts hot.  Seriously you guys, crazy hot.  Jamie and Kellan burn up the sheets (and the couch, and the bathroom wall…) and you can just feel the chemistry between them.  One interesting aspect of their relationship is that Kellan is not mentally comfortable with anal sex (seemingly for religious reasons) and is clear with Jamie about this up front.  He worries that Jamie will miss it, or worse, pressure him to give in like other boyfriends.  But as experienced as Jamie is, Kellan’s conservative side actually turns him on and the two guys find lots of other interesting and creative ways to enjoy each other (alcoholic whipped cream comes to mind…).

I think the best thing about this story is how likable both Jamie and Kellean are and how much I found myself rooting for them to make it work.  As much as Jamie is attractive, popular, and wealthy, he is also an incredibly good and kind guy.  He is thoughtful and caring and generous with others and you just can’t help but like him despite being the “popular guy.”  I could really feel for him as he found himself torn between his two worlds. Although he realizes he should have just told his mother the truth years ago, he’s hiding partly out of a misplaced sense of duty and desire to make her happy. Jamie is also not always totally comfortable with himself and his powers.  After the incident as a child, part of him fears his abilities and can’t always face that side of himself.   He is a good guy caught in a hard situation and although it takes him a while to face it head on, I found him quite sympathetic.  I also really loved Kellan despite his prickly nature (or perhaps partly because of it).  He is straight forward and is so honest about what he thinks and feels.  Kellen has a great strength of belief and his faith and family is very important to him. It is really easy to see what both guys like about one another.

As with her other books, Hawthorne once again incorporates music into the story and includes a playlist at the end of the book.  Both guys’ personalities are revealed through their song choices and the music integrates so nicely into the story, from the Irish Kellan’s paddy rock to Jamie’s love for Massive Attack.

Overall I really loved Nobody’s Hero.  It is fun, romantic, thought provoking, and super hot. It was a great story and highly recommended.

Cover Review: Yet another gorgeous P.L. Nunn cover.  Totally gets the vibe of the book and the cover guys feel just like Jamie and Kellan.

As a special treat, Katey Hawthorne will be joining us tomorrow to talk to us more about Nobody’s Hero, her writing, and all kinds of fun stuff.  She will also be giving away a copy of Nobody’s Hero, so be sure to stop back in and check it out.