Early Review: It’s Complicated by L.A. Witt

Reviewed by Heather C

Title: It’s Complicated
Author: L.A. Witt
Series: Tucker Springs #7
Heroes: Brad Sweeney & Jeff Hayden
Genre: M/M Contemporary Romance
Length: 52,000 words
Publisher: Riptide Publishing
Release Date: April 28, 2014
Available at: Riptide Publishing
Add it to your shelf: Goodreads

Blurb: After their umpteenth breakup, Brad Sweeney and Jeff Hayden are living apart and starting over from scratch. The morning after a promising first date, they’re more optimistic than ever that they can make it work this time . . . until Jeff’s ex-wife and business partner calls to announce she’s pregnant with Jeff’s baby. Brad’s already competing with a demanding business for Jeff’s time. Now there’s a baby on the way, and worse, he’s afraid Jeff is still carrying a torch for the woman who’s carrying his child.

Jeff is desperately trying to keep his life together, but before he can even get his head around the news that he’s going to be a father, his ex announces that she wants to leave Tucker Springs. Now he either has to take over her role at the shop while ferrying the baby back and forth from Denver, or move the business—and himself—with her.

Brad and Jeff knew reconciliation wouldn’t be easy, but they’re rapidly running out of room for compromise. And sooner or later, something has to give.

Review:

I’m a big sucker for the Tucker Springs books and I just can’t help myself every time there’s a new one.  I don’t even see what they are about; I just dive right in.  For It’s Complicated, I did have the opportunity at GRL 2013 to hear L.A. Witt read a big revealing scene from early on in the story, and if you’ve read the blurb already, you can probably guess what scene that might be!  So I knew a little about what I was getting in to.  I will admit, established couples or reunion stories are not usually my go to reads when it comes to romance, as I prefer them to be stacked with sexual tension, but since I had already met Brad and Jeff in the previous book, After the Fall, I really wanted to see them get their HEA.  And even though these guys appear in another book, I do believe this could be read as a standalone. 

• Brad and Jeff sure did like to argue…over the silliest things!  But they sure did know how to have some of the hottest make up sex.  No sexual tension in this story, these two can’t stay out of bed long enough, even when they are mad at each other.
• This wasn’t as angsty as I was expecting.  Yeah, Jeff did have sex with his ex-wife, Christine, while he and Brad were officially broken up, but she never intentionally tried to come between them.  She was the cause of a few obstacles Brad and Jeff had to overcome, but there was never any malicious intent on her part.  In fact, Christine was probably the #1 cheerleader for Brad and Jeff’s HEA.
• It was very sweet.  I couldn’t help myself from liking both Brad and Jeff.  Yes, they both had their faults, but it was obvious they were still in love with each other and neither of them every really wanted it to end.
• I’m usually okay with alternating 1st person POV with each chapter, but here I found it very difficult to distinguish between the two voices.  I even found myself backtracking in the middle of a scene because I had forgotten whose POV I was reading.  And forget about taking a break in the middle of a chapter!
• I didn’t get to see Brad and Jeff making their relationship work.  Instead, I got pages and pages and pages of them worrying and stressing and fighting and having makeup sex, and once they finally decide to make the changes in order for their relationship to actually work, the story jumps months ahead to the ending and to the expected HEA.  I wanted to see them actually do it…work at it, see the counselor and make those compromises that will help their love last forever.  So, yes, I feel a bit shorted because it seems to me I only got a long beginning and a brief ending with NO middle whatsoever.  I really, really liked these guys and I wanted more from them.

In the end, I did enjoy Brad and Jeff’s story, I just wanted a bit more story.

Overall Impression: I Liked It!

*I received a copy of this book from the author/publisher in return for a fair and honest review.*