Audio Review ~ Crossroads ~ Riley Hart

Crossroads by Riley Hart
Crossroads #1
Narrated by: Sean Crisden
Release Date: November 17, 2015 (audio)
Genre: Adult, M/M Contemporary Romance
Source: Purchased on Audible
Rating: 4 Bookworms
Challenges: Goodreads Reading Challenge
Goodreads

Synopsis
After divorcing the woman he'd been with since he was seventeen, Nick Fuller is starting over. He owns the restaurant of his dreams and he's determined to meet new people, find new passions, and experience life to its fullest. Easier said than done--that is until he meets his new neighbor, Bryce Tanner...

Bryce is all about a good time. He plans to show Nick how it's done, help him meet a few women, and enjoy the gift of a the single life he's been given. But things don't go as planned, and soon they realize they'd rather be together than with anyone else.

Neither man has ever wanted another guy, but there's a connection between them from the start--a spark they can't deny. They find themselves navigating an unfamiliar new world and dealing with unforeseen obstacles. Physical desire isn't enough, and now Nick and Bryce are at a crossroads. They have to decide which way to go--the easy path they've always followed, or the one that's determined to trip them up at every turn.

This is my second book with Hart and I've determined I quite like her style. She delivers a provocative story with engaging characters that I can't help but root for. 

I first want to address something I've seen a few comments regarding and that's whether or not this story is a "gay for you" type story. While neither of these guys ever thought they were gay, I didn't feel this was necessarily a GFY and here's why:

• Nick had married his high school sweetheart and had never been with anyone else. While this might indicate he was straight, one might infer that his being from a traditional family would have kept him from exploring his sexuality earlier. One might also infer that since his wife cheated on him repeatedly, she wasn't happy with their sex life.
• Bryce had slept his way through many women but at 31 he'd not found a single one that made him want more than sex. Once might infer from this that he kept trying something - someone - new because no one was doing it for him. No one until Nick.

That's all my opinion, of course. Anyway, I adored Nick and Bryce. They were neighbors who became close friends, who became more. Nick, having been with his ex-wife since he was 17, had never had real friends of his own. Bryce's only real friend, Christy, had been around for awhile and they'd even dated briefly. The reason these two worked well because they balanced one another. Nick was staid, had always known what he wanted to do, and was loyal almost to a fault. Bryce was more of a dreamer, who tried a little of everything before picking a career, was always ready with a joke, leaped before looking but also was one who loved deeply.

Watching their friendship evolve, the realization they felt more and the fallout experienced in making their feelings public, all made for an emotional listen - one I was loathe to put down. Sean Crisden did a fine job with voicing a rather large cast of characters. He kept his voices distinct and was also able to convey the feelings in every scene. His female voices don't have quite as much range but it didn't take anything away from the story. This is my second listen with him and I plan to continue the series, so it won't be my last.