ruin pornRating: 4.75 stars
Buy Links: 
 Amazon | All Romance | Amazon UK
Length: Novel


Kevin Rene has been a huge fan of the rock band Resonator since he was a kid and can’t believe it when he is asked to join the band as their new bassist. The three founding members, Miah, Ritchie, and Finn, also known as the Detroit 3, have been best friends since childhood. Kevin (who becomes Evin when he joins the band) is nervous about how he will fit in with these close friends and his personal idols. However, before he knows it, Evin has become a seamless part of the band and having the time of his life as they tour. Resonator has a huge fan base and their popularity is surging to heights few ever expected, and the four friends are enjoying the ride.

The friendship between the men is incredibly close, but Evin has feelings of more than friendship for Finn. The attraction is so strong, but Evin doesn’t want to risk their relationship or the comfortable camaraderie of the band by making his feelings known. But when Evin learns that Finn likes men, suddenly he realizes the opportunity may actually be there for more between them.

As the tour continues, however, things get increasingly stressful and complicated. Secrets and lack of communication threaten their friendships, and the pressures of their skyrocketing fame have everyone stressed and bickering. What once seemed like a steady rise to the top for Resonator may all come crashing down around them and Evin may lose both the band and the man he has grown to love.

Wow, I really liked this one a lot. So unusual and just completely engrossing. I am a big fan of the rock star romance and this is a great one. What makes this story particularly engaging is that it combines the individual romance between Finn and Evin with an ensemble story about the entire band. We spend a lot of time with the four of them, even getting alternating POVs from all four men. The individual romance is a key thread, but it is really woven deeply into the friendship among these four guys and how the connection between them grows and begins to falter as the band takes off. Now I know not everyone may like this as some folks want exclusive focus on the romantic heroes. But I encourage you to give this a chance because the authors handle it so well. I was just drawn in so deeply to the story and we get such great interaction among the four of them. We learn their personalities and the way they interact, both good and bad. We see how these four individuals come together to make something great and how as they begin to doubt one another, things fall apart. It is really so well done and makes for a wonderful story.

So the romance between Finn and Evin grows within the larger story of the band on the rise. Both these guys feel a strong attraction to one another, but worry about acting on it, both out of fear that the other doesn’t reciprocate, and larger worries about how it will affect the band. When they do finally get together, it starts as a friends with benefits kind of thing (with Ritchie involved as an occasional third), or at least that is what they both assume. The real struggle for Finn and Evin is that both are growing to care for one another, but neither is sure how the other feels and both worry the other just sees things as casual. I will admit the lack of communication and the ease with which these guys jumped to conclusions bugged me a bit. Especially since the ending resolution comes kind of fast and I wondered how they were going to avoid making the same mistakes over again (though they do finally really talk and share their feelings at the end). But I really liked these guys together and found their connection sweet and sexy.

Ruin Porn actually starts with the band having fallen apart and Evin hiding away in his L.A. home. We then go back a year to when Evin first joins the band and follow along as things grow and ultimately shatter. It is a really well done structure as the whole story we know things are going to fall apart, even as we see the band have increasing success. It adds some nice tension, as we never quite know when and from where the ultimate crisis is going to come. The authors do a nice job of wrapping things up (though it happens a bit quickly) and pulling it all together into a great ending. This story is the first of a series, so I assume we will have more about the band and at least one of the other two guys in the next story. So I can handle a little bit of a quick ending as I am sure the next story will continue to develop things with the band and the four men.

I’ll also just make quick mention of the title, as I didn’t understand it at first but as it is explained in the story, it is quite poignant. The term “ruin porn” refers to people who get off on seeing the decay of a formerly thriving place. In this case, Miah, Ritchie, and Finn grew up in Detroit to working class families. As the economy there tanked, the once robust city has fallen apart with lots of buildings abandoned and falling to ruin. Now there are people who come to take pictures and experience the decay of the city, fascinated to see something that once was so strong having fallen so low. This of course mirrors the story so nicely, as Resonator is a band on the rise, only to fall apart as the world watches. It also plays nicely with the group’s Detroit roots, something that is a big part of their personalities and connection with each other.

So I really loved this one and thought it was so well done. It is a fascinating take on the rock star story with a great mix of intensity, along with sexiness and fun. It is a great collaboration between McAuley and Peterson and I am so excited to see what the future holds for Evin and Finn and the band.

A review copy of this book was provided by Dreamspinner Press.

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