Thursday, May 12, 2016

Bulletproof (A Matter of Time #5) by Mary Calmes

The first chapter of this book kinda surprised me, I got to see a Jory I've never met before and I was puzzled, wasn't sure I was liking what I seeing, but I think maybe THAT's exactly what was wrong, Jory was wrong, three years after the previous installment and also after closing his business due to economic recession, working for someone OTHER than his brother Dane, doing something he doesn't care for made him into someone HE isn't enjoyed being and not only that, Sam is away for the past 4 months on an undercover job. So while Sam and Jory are together as a married couple, same as they were at the end of the previous installment, they are still going strong yet struggling with life together mostly "job related". 


Jory misses Sam so much, and so he does what Dane says he shouldn't and it's meeting new people while not realizing he is sending the wrong signals to them. One of them is a Cristo Liron, the brother of a guy he rescued (one of those Jory moments where he saw someone needing of help and just went for it no questions asked..), too bad Cristo is a gangster and not only that he is also the guy Sam (!) is after.. so when Sam and Jory meet when he is undercover it's difficult for the both of them, seeing each other as well as Sam being afraid for Jory messing with such a dangerous guy. In the beginning Cristo was kinda nice to Jory and I thought maybe he was "misunderstood" but it didn't take long to realize he is the "real deal" and should not be messed with.. Jory also meets Hayes Fisher through his current job, he doesn't get that he is into him though he suspects he is gay, maybe because the guy can barely accept being gay himself but he is exactly the catalyst to make Jory see he is doing it all wrong, he misses Sam and so he is trying to have new friends, ones that don't know him and so don't ask him the "sad"/"hard" questions about how he is, how he is dealing etc. I totally got him the poor thing.. 

Jory and Cristo become friends, sort of, but as Cristo realizes Jory might be lying to him and also that he might be somehow connect to one of the guys he is working with (Sam in disguise) the regular "mess" starts to really hit the fan.. Sam is hurt and Jory is made to leave to Hawaii so Cristo won't get a hold on him. While in Hawaii he naturally makes a whole lot of friends but he also meets his ex Aaron Sutter and his new boyfriend (spitting image of Jory..) and Hayes Fisher both on vocation with some of their mutual friends. They hang out together but they mostly show Jory how much he misses his Sam and how much what they are offering would NEVER appeal to him. I felt kinda bad for both of them, being SO rich fucked with their heads, they are not sure what they want and how to deal with other people who DON'T have as much money as they do. Honestly I would put the two of them together - Hayes and Aaron that is, though I'm not sure beside the money and social circles they even have something in common... worth the try I guess :)

Hawaii did something good for Jory, it gave him the time to consider and re-consider his work situation and find a way to make himself happy again doing the things he love. Sam was already missing Jory too much so he also knew that this mission is his last in the police force (he is already half way through getting to be a US Marshal), being away from Jory it just NOT right by him and so when they reconnect in Hawaii when the case is closed the amount of sex and relaxation felt exactly what the two of them needed after being apart for so long (not to mention most of the book). I wasn't ready for a little bit more of gun point, chases and hospitals Jory and Sam always find themselves into. But though it was intense the way everything was wrapped up in the end, Jory and Sam expecting a life together no matter life consequences was everything I could have wished for. 

HIGHLY RECOMMENDED as all the other books in the series are. It might have started strange but once I got sucked into the story I couldn't put it down! well, up until I crashed to sleep, dreaming of Sam and Jory, woke up in the morning, finished reading the book and THEN got out of bed. 



Additional Details: Kindle Ebook, 260 pages, 11-12 May 2016 / On GoodReads
 
 
ABOUT THIS SERIES
 
A Matter of Time is a HIGHLY RECOMMENDED Contemporary MM Romance series by Mary Calmes
Telling us the story of Jory (Keyes) Harcourt & Detective Sam Kage romance story. The relationship buildup goes through the books, don't expect the HEA or even the HFN too soon - these guys have a lot to go before they can sit and watch the sunset together, yet throughout the series they do formalize their relationship and later on adopt two kids. 

The whole series is told from Jory's POV. Jory is one of my absolutely favorite characters, he is a JOY to read. He is funny, and a bit strange, he is very good with little details when it's about people but real life and everything around him? he can totally miss out on. Though he is basically an orphan he acquired a family through his boss - Dane Harcourt. He was the best personal assistant Dane could ask for, but after years working together they come to the conclusion they are much more than a boss and employee and so they part ways work-wise so they can become each other's family. Dane is also a character I absolutely LOVE. 


Detective Sam Kage is a complicated character. His whole life he saw himself as straight but he can't deny the attraction he feels toward Jory. He has a lot of struggles concerning his sexual identity, mostly when it comes to what he expected his life to be and also the fact he is a cop and being one and having a relationship with a man doesn't work that well together. Sam has a very loving and caring family but though they love Jory almost as much as he does, he is more close minded and so it's hard for him to find the path to what he truly wants. But when he finally realizes Jory is "it" for him, he is determined to NEVER let him go and doing all he can to be by his side and protect him (from himself mostly, or rather from his tendency to ALWAYS get into MAJOR trouble). 


Sam is truly the "alpha" in this series, it's usually not something I care for, but though he has his temper, Jory is mostly amused when Sam gets all ruffled up. Jory wants to "submit" to him, but their relationship is still very equal. Even when it comes to taking care of life and death situations they find themselves in. Jory is NOT a "damsel in distress", on the contrary. 


The 7th installment - "Parting Shot" - is different from the others focusing on another couple - Aaron Sutter and Duncan Stiel. We've met Aaron in the 3rd installment, he and Jory were in a rather serious relationship for a year and a half while Sam was away breaking apart the drug cartel who were responsible for Jory's injury in the 2nd installment. While Aaron and Jory stayed friends it was mostly Aaron staying close enough in case he and Sam broke up.. later on he tried replacing Jory with a sort of "duplicate"/"replica" of Jory until Jory makes a strange decision near the ending of the 6th installment to try and "hook him up" with Duncan Stiel a Detective he and Sam meet on their stay in Phoenix. Really enjoyed this one as well, Aaron and Duncan fit in a way I didn't see coming. It was so very different from Sam and Jory and also I loved seeing Aaron in a different lighting or rather seeing who he REALLY is. 


Notes -

  • Originally, the first 4 installments were published on their own, which is why I have separate reviews for them. A while back they were discontinued and instead of them two books were published -  "A Matter of Time Vol.1" containing the first and second installments and "A Matter of Time Vol. 2" containing the third and forth installments. It's basically the same. 
  • Jory and Sam's story is basically told in the first 6 installments. The 8th installment is a free closure novella of Sam and Jory getting re-married. The 7th installment as mentioned above is of a different couple (also mentioned in the 8th installment)
  • The 4 bonus short novellas - "Just Jory", "Ears, Eggs & Bunnies", "Hannah's Big Night" (told from (10 years old) Hannah's POV) and "Another Day With Jory" are free online reads (click links to read). 
  • If you've just finished this series and BUMMED that it's the end, it is and it isn't.. you can catch many glimpses of Sam (and a bit of Jory and the kids) in "Marshals", where Sam is the boss of the two MCs. 

Books:

1. A Matter of Time, #1 (published 1 October 2009) ★★★★★ 
2. A Matter of Time, #2 (published 2 November 2009) ★★★★★ 
3. A Matter of Time, #3 (published 30 November 2009) ★★★★½
4. A Matter of Time, #4 (published 15 December 2009) ★★★★★
5. Bulletproof (published 1 September 2011) ★★★★½
5.5. Just Jory (published 9 October 2012) ★★★★★ 
6. But For You (published 12 October 2012) ★★★★
6.5. Ears, Eggs & Bunnies (published 18 April 2014) ★★★★
7. Parting Shot [Duncan StielAaron Sutter(published 18 July 2013) ★★★★★
8. Piece of Cake (published 12 August 2015) ★★★★
8.5. Hannah's Big Night (published 27 November 2015) ★★
8.6. Another Day With Jory (published 24 December 2016) ★★★
 
 

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