finish some day, . .
Unfortunately was this one pushed off to the waiting shelf a few days, . . because of my passion for Adrien English this week, Time to return to the tattoo studio,
sitelink
Jenni Lea sent me a rec, She loved it Stars
My heart, This story was like a warm hug, It is a simple story with little outside drama or angst, There is an element of melancholy that pervades the story, but it just adds to the poignant and emotional atmosphere,
"Stories Beneath Our Skin" is a lovely healing/comfort story that brings together two endearing MCs and a cast of engaging secondary characters, At first glance, the two MCs have very little in common, Liam is a twentytwo year old English major, attending Berkeley, and dreaming
of becoming a teacher, He loves art and is a fledgling tattoo artist, At six foot three, Liam is a quiet, prickly, and vulnerable soul who fills his conversations with literary quotes, He is battling grief, loss, and a dark event from his past, while trying to move on with his career plans,
Ace is a thirtyone year old tattoo artist and tattoo shop owner, He is an Army veteran with a soft spot for children and rescue animals, Ace is five foot four, Welsh, has multiple piercings, and long, blond dreadlocks, Ace's friends and fellow coworkers make up a diverse and supportive found family that nurtures and buoys Liam through his darker days, There is also the introduction of a burgeoning love story between Liams coworker and a transgender female bartender that I would love to read more about,
I read this story through Kindle Unlimited and there are some glaring formatting errors in the text that are a bit distracting, but ultimately the fantastic story kept me focused and my attention diverted.
For a beautiful review that captures the full essence of this story, check out the review by sitelinkDαniela love amp semicolons's s
Highly recommend! A rather marvelous read.
Everything worked the gorgeous writing, the lovely cast of characters and the feel of it it felt authentic, The characters, supporting cast included, had such depth, They felt real and interesting like people I wouldn't mind hanging around with,
All boxes ticked,
I bloody loved it! ,inkedinmyheart. completed May,
"Hey, " Ace plucked at Liam's arm, "You okay under there"
"Yeah, " He huffed a laugh and let his arm drop away, Ace loomed over him. "God. You have no idea"
"That's what happens when you don't clean the pipes for three years, "
Gene is the most important person in Liam's life, He's deathly ill and has not much longer to live, To spend as much precious time as possible, Liam interrupts his studies to come home, Between housesitting and daily, extended visits at the hospice where Gene is cared for, Liam needs to pass some time, That's why he ends up paying Great Sin Ink a visit, Even though Liam has been out of the business for the last few years, he wants to start working as a tattoo artist again, Despite the crappy resume, the parlor's boss Ace is willing to give him a table and a few hours because he liked one of Liam's specific designs,
"Come on, man, I don't have all day, "
"Yeah, he's got an appointment at seven, " Deb licked a fingertip and stuck it to a magazine page, "Busy man. "
"For the love of Christ, Deb, " Ace groaned. "Let me maintain a little mystery, "
"The only thing mysterious about you is why you think you're mysterious, "
"I'll have you know that I am a goddamn man of international fucking mystery, "
"Yeah, you're a regular James Bond, "
Over the next few weeks Liam and Ace start a halting yet friendly relationship, The more time passes the stronger they gravitate to each other and undeniable chemistry is in the air,
Opposites attract. Liam, twentytwoyearsold, is six feet three inches tall, lanky, with a pale complexion and black hair, He's very introverted, reserved and somewhat tense, Ace is a short man, only five feet four inches tall, bulky, with a head of blond shoulderlength dreadlocks, Hes also nine years older than Liam, Ace is an easygoing guy with a very nice circle of friends, It goes without saying that both of them are tattooed,
"The whole point is that it isn't exactly unwanted, Justnot recommended. "
Oh boy, I had to settle for too many average or bad reads lately and when I decided to give Stories Beneath Our Skin a shot, I hadn't expected to feel so much for this book and its characters.
I love it when a book takes me by surprise, Stories Beneath Our Skin is one of those books that provides lots of story and not much smexin' but I loved it nonetheless, It's a beautifully and gently written story, very characterdriven, just an allaround great and satisfying read, This book unites everything I need to feel drawn into a story, Complex and very likable MCs, an engaging narrative, great dialogue, some wellplaced banter, and vivid secondary characters Deb, Goose, Frankie etc, that gave this story such a fabulous additional touch, Every great book needs a steady forward momentum and I believe supporting characters can do wonders in that regard, Although I need to grumble a little bit, Idve liked to see more of Joy, how she dealt with her problems and came out "converted" at the end of the dark tunnel, And I'd've loved to see more of the loveydovey angle, Why not going deeper there, offering more insight Instead of letting the reader partake in their awakening bond of love, the author skipped right to the epilogue which had been set two years down the road.
Don't get me wrong. I thoroughly enjoyed the epilogue, however, I felt like I'd been missing out on something vital, Thus, I really felt deprived of even more contentment,
"Don't limit my creativity," Ace said plaintively, rolling onto his stomach, "Piss is such a small medium, "
Bottom line, Stories Beneath Our Skin is a very well and nonintrusively written story, interspersed with numerous significant and beautiful quotes that will infuse you with a myriad of positive thoughts and emotions.
Its a story about pain, loss and grief but without the common stilted and gratuitous drama factor that Im used to encounter in todays romance books, Its also a tale about family values that are not based on DNA, friendship and love that inked itself a place in my heart, A truly great book that put me back in my happy place, Ink is always telling a story and it's also a connecting element to a wide range of feelings, a witness of a time period, I became even more aware of that while reading this book,
Read it and lets spread some ink love for this wonderful and heartfelt story!
Steamto,
For Liam and Ace:
Ink melding us together
Sodden and trodden
Frustrated and impatient
Tired of waiting
Let the rain wash it all away
Every restraint and doubts
Let me kiss you like
I always wanted to kiss you
Don't hold back and fear not
There are enough words
To tell yet another story
A story that goes beyond our skin
Tattooed in our hearts
A story of you and me
Laid bare, lips trailing over aroused skin
Fingers tangling in mussed hair
Memorizing every inch of you
Anchored in the moment
And drowning in pleasure
Let it out, let it all out
I've got you, you're under my skin
Rain pattering steadily at the windows
Absorbing the beat of our hearts
Dwelling on thoughts
Remembering a pale face
Soaking up all the colors
To sweep away and forget
No more power to the
Ugliness and scars of the past
The wound is the place where the Light enters you.
Rumi
Recommended read,
Especially recommended to those readers who havent discovered yet how awesome man love is,
Fuck, yeah, More please.
things I liked the most
Hands, Sloane writes hands and small movements well, When Liam and Ace touch it drives me wild with longing,
Sentences.
" some Seussian nightmare of snarled rhyme, "
" gathered on the roof, smeared over three of the chairs, . . "
" the plush arc of his lips, "
Things I wish were different:
That someone would please correct Cole: Mars is further away from the sun and its temperature is MUCH lower.
Don't let him go through life like this, Kids can take correction!
Clamoring does not mean clambering, This book will be inked in me for a long time, I'm sure of it! I loved this story and the writing, and being this my first Veronica Sloane book, I have to say that I want to read more of her work.
I have one complain, though, . . The ending was a little rushed, and I didn't want the book to end, I wanted more of these two magnificent men and their friends, There were things, although not very important to the plot, that I didn't knew how they happened or what lead to those events in the ending,
But, going back to the beginning, this is the story of two men, Ace and Liam, both with sad pasts, and they have their story inked on their body! Good and bad moments, pain and joy, those things are forever written on their skin! This is also a story about friendship and trust, how friends became lovers, how attraction became love!
This is an unforgettable book, with low angst level, with characters that provide fun, tenderness and love!
I had the pleasure of having great friends on a fabulous sitelinkBR with me!!! Reread Still love this story.
But the audio now available is a no go for me, Ace's voice is pure Pirate, and the two Welsh sentences pretty sure huhehunho said fast doesn't mean anything in any language!
Lovely, Picked this up after reading sitelinkAmi's review, and really she says it all better that I can, Couldn't sleep and read this in one sitting,
An exploration of family and meeting of friends that become a family stronger than blood, Colourful characters everyone that's given page time is engaging, In fact I really hope that this'll become a little series, I'd love to see more of this group,
Bright cocky Goose 'talk,awesome,ink' with his ability to read people and his crush on barowner Francesca, whose nursing strong fears and hurts,
Deb the only female in the tattooshop family, A great character nononsense, exmilitary, Affection shown through the familiarity of her banter, without her ever owning to mushy feelings,
Ace the shop owner who sees beneath the surface of Liam,
Liam the main character, hiding behind his literary/film quotations none that can't be skipped if it's really not your thing
All have their own stories and lives which are woven together like one of Ace's Celtic knots to make a family.
There's enough to make them all real, without fogging up the main story arc,
How nice to have Ace the confident exmilitary character be a petite 'shrimpy',".in boots compared to the Liam's,". There's hurt/comfort but its shared, They both get to be the strong for the other, it makes them feel real and the relationship all the sweeter, There's a nine year age difference but it's not hugely evident,
The men both have family issues and histories but the story is angst free, Instead it's them getting to know each other, Liam healing his past and getting more comfortable with himself, His Uncle Gene is another great character, a good man, A really nice story, but enough there that you care and want more, it doesn't get dull,
There's a sadness that you know is coming from the start but still causes an ache, Its dealt with very well,
Only niggle for me was the time jump at the end, Forward two years, I didn't get why the jump ahead, didn't really feel like two years had passed or that it covered how the interim had played out, Liked seeing how they were set but would have preferred to stick to real time and had another chapter or two there, Still, enjoyed the feel of the story too much to deduct a star,
This is a comfort read, like a warm hug, Acceptance, seeing the stories beneath the skin, Life, colour, true family and love, Smut levels are very low, but the connections are strong, pretty ok.
some of it seemed over the top some of it seemed nicely understated too much of it was conversation, and not enough of it was original,
but when it was good, it was goodand that's something, at least, .