Ami's Hoard

3.5 stars

A friend of mine pointed this novella out to me, told me that she enjoyed it. She's a tough reader, so 3* rating from her (which means she likes it), is good enough of an endorsement.

For the most part, I thought this was really lovely. I loved the slow-build friendship to romance process. Yes, Cam was acting like a total prick in the beginning, when he judged Luke based on the physical appearance (Luke suffered from cerebral palsy limp) but he was able to make up for it. They had business deal, then spending more time outside work and became friends. I loved every minute of it. From Luke baking for Cam, Cam making lunch for Luke, the swimming, the Drunk Twister, and Cam teaching Luke how to surfboard. In addition, the whole descriptions about the foods made me salivating. I had a case of mini foodgasm! So delicious just thinking about it!

However, the story took the cliche moment around 80% when Cam and Luke met Cam's friends. In this case, I must agree with Arthur

I thought when Luke broke things up with Cam without giving a chance for Cam to explain, Luke played the pity party card a little too thick. I understand that Luke reacted because he felt hurt; Steve's taunts were something he often experiences in life. But it was basically the first time Luke met Cam's friends. Why would he just immediately believe in Steve's words? It was clear that Steve was a douchebag. Luke should give Cam the benefit of a doubt. I prefer that Luke looks Cam in the eye and says, "Cam, your friends are dipshit. You know what they said to me? ... ". If Cam chooses to believe Steve instead of Luke, if Cam thinks that Luke is being drama-king, then Luke can kick Cam's ass to the curb.

The way I saw it, what happened in that party was not entirely Cam's fault (except if you count him befriending asshole people). Sure Cam could defend Luke much stronger, but remember that he was also ready to confront Steve. I thought Cam definitely progressed to be the better guy here (compared to his attitude in the beginning) while Luke seemed to stuck a little bit in his 'poor me' corner.

Overall it's a good story though. It is located in Australia too, which is a nice change for scenery. And for me, specifically, the lack of on-page sex scenes is completely welcome (consider that a warning for you smut lovers!)