The short blurb bit: Nick is a pilot traveling the world with an unusual and touching mission. Lyall is an electrician from a tightly knit over-protective 
family. The two men meet and are instantly attracted to one another. They are both struggling with loss in their past and as they grow closer, they wrestle with finding the right time to talk about the events in their lives that have made them who they are. They come face to face with the fact that the passion that rules Nick’s life is the one thing that Lyall is terrified of. How do you meet in the middle between the earth and the stars?
The descriptive bit: This was a lovely book. At its core, this novel is a gay romance. Nick and Lyall are instantly attracted to one another when they meet. The problem is that their lives have been affected by loss in ways that are going to become a huge hurdle that they have to overcome. The thing about a loss is that is can alter our perceptions of things and change our lives in ways we hadn’t ever expected. Nick lost his mother and has spent a huge part of his life completing the journeys his mother didn’t get to make. Lyall’s brother was killed in a horrifying plane crash. I’m sure you can see the problem that these two men have.
Lyall is terrified of flying; so terrified, in fact, that just finding out the Nick is a pilot is enough to make him retreat the very first time they meet. Fortunately, his attraction to Nick wins out and the two men begin a relationship.
My thoughts bit: I loved reading about the difference in the family dynamics and how it affected the way each of these men interacted with their partner. The loss of a family member changes the way we see everything and I found de Lorne’s depiction of this to be sensitive and on point. While Nick is finding that the traveling he’s been doing is solitary and lonely and he’s longing to include Lyall in the final trip. But Lyall’s fear of flying is so intense that the idea of having to get on a plane sends him spiraling out of control.
There are some misunderstandings, disagreements, and secret-keeping in the way of these two men getting together. The angst between them isn’t overdone, it’s realistic. The merging of two lives is never an easy thing, and de Lorne does a great job of writing about the uncomfortable family interactions and misinterpreted actions that come hand-in-hand with a new relationship.
The warnings bit: mentions of a horrific plane crash, mentions electrocution, the death of family members in past
I received an ARC of this book by Daniel de Lorne from Escape Publishing via NetGalley in exchange for an unbiased review.
Kinzie Things 