Sins of the Heart by Allison Cassatta

Story 8

Presentation 9

Total 17

Publisher: Dreamspinner Press

M/M, contemporary

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Blurb:

When the spark in his relationship fizzles, Dominic thinks he’s doing the right thing by breaking it off with his lover, Brody, but he never expected his good boy to go so horribly bad. Consumed with guilt, Dom confronts Brody about his self-destructive behavior, only to find himself second-guessing his decision to leave him, and now Dom will have to sort out his feelings for Brody before fate ties his hands.

A Bittersweet Dreams title: It’s an unfortunate truth: love doesn’t always conquer all. Regardless of its strength, sometimes fate intervenes, tragedy strikes, or forces conspire against it. These stories of romance do not offer a traditional happy ending, but the strong and enduring love will still touch your heart and maybe move you to tears.

Review:

For a short story, Sins of the Heart carries quite a punch. I can’t say that I liked either Dominic or Brody very much. Where Brody is clingy, reckless and co-dependant to the point that he’s punishing Dominic by destroying himself, Dominic wasn’t much more redeemable as a character. He isn’t responsible for Brody’s self sabotage, yet he took responsibility. I don’t want to give away the story, but want to offer my opinion on the story. Simply put, Dominic was an ass in how he handled Brody. Brody was foolish, and honestly his behavior really only confirmed, for me at least, that Dom made the right choice in leaving. And yet, I bawled my damn eyes out at the end so that means, I got the story as it was intended to be read. It wasn’t a pleasant read; it was one filled with angst, regrets, forgiveness and maybe a little understanding at the end.

Dear Diary by Allison Cassatta

Story 7

Presentation 9

Total: 16

Publisher: XoXo Publishing

M/M Contemporary

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Blurb:

Chris Bishop is an All-American type guy with the perfect family, perfect grades and perfect girlfriend, with a bright and shiny future ahead of him.

He thought he had everything planned, thought he knew it all. But one summer, a kiss, and a green-eyed hunk changed his whole life. Volunteering in a law firm was an opportunity for his future but it took him in a direction he never thought of or dreamt could happen.

Review:

Tender, emotional, a power packed short story that for the most part I loved. I think any lover of m/m romances and coming of age romances will enjoy this story. We learn about Chris and Josh through Chris’s own words. While reading the story, I liked the glimpse I was getting of Chris’s history and the journey that Ms. Cassatta was taking us on. The writing is good, wrought with emotion and turmoil. So reading the story was enjoyable, but all the while I had the niggling irritation in the back of my mind. While his date for the prom is waiting he has to record this memory of the man he’s fallen in love with. I have to say, it was a bit irritating because as a reader, I was distracted from what his “story” was because the timing seemed out of place. Why couldn’t he wait until the next day to “remember” everything? (Well, keep reading because you’ll find out.) He’s putting off his date, his mother is threatening to come up to get him and it only magnifies the “setting” issue with book. In my opinion, it doesn’t work and only detracts from the really wonderful story or the characters. However, in the end, I understood why the author chose to reveal the story this way. And while I like what she tried to do with the story, I wish I hadn’t been wrinkling my nose at the contrived “waiting for prom” method to get to the end. I’m sure readers will overlook that aspect, like I did, because I really did love the end of the story.