Ames’ review of October Sun by Christopher Craven

Love is the strongest force in the universe…
Defense attorney Miles Turner seems to have it all. At the height of his game professionally, he’s just been hired to defend a famous L.A. party boy’s less than stellar reputation, a case that stands to earn Miles a small fortune. And to top it off, his love life isn’t bad either. Even the headache he can’t seem to shake isn’t strong enough to overpower the tenderness he has for his partner. Miles Turner is finally happy.

Landon Black is living a life beyond his dreams. Finishing his degree towards a career he’s always wanted, Landon might spend his days studying, but his nights are filled with the one thing he can’t live without–love. Even the thought of spending a weekend at the upcoming Black family reunion with his less than tolerant father isn’t enough to extinguish the excitement Landon feels at the reality of a getaway trip with his lover.

But it can be taken away in an instant…
As members of the “Black Pack” come together in the snow capped mountains of Colorado at Lake Alexander, no-one can see what’s looming ahead– an event with consequences so severe it stands to alter all of their lives forever.

Prepared with nothing but his integrity and a heart full of hope, Miles is praying for a miracle while Landon, forced to play a high stakes game of life-or-death, is asking himself if the love he has is enough to offer.

October Sun is labeled M/M Romantic Suspense. I have a bit of a problem with this. Romance, in my opinion, should have an HEA. This book does not have that. This book has infidelity and death. Not really romantic. And the suspense plot? Doesn’t really show up until the end…and there it’s just some pictures (for what purpose, not to blackmail) with a note that says ‘I was there’, a dead man in the hospital, and then another note after a funeral that says one of the characters is next. This book was more like an extended prologue for the next book, where the majority of the suspense plot will be played out (I’m guessing).

That also leads me to the other problem I had with October Sun. As far as I could tell, this was a stand-alone book (or the first in a series). But right from the beginning, I felt like this was a sequel…and that I needed to read that first book to get what was going on in this one. Not a good thing.

Miles was an ok character. There was one scene where I was like, “who is this man?” but then figured what he was going through at the time was probably affecting his behavior. But Landon. What an irredeemable character! He’s spoiled, he’s selfish, he’s a cheater and has quite the temper. In one scene, he’s at a family reunion and he throws a wine bottle at his father. That’s a bit much. But I found that all the characters did something over-the-top. It was all very exaggerated.

Ok, I was going to write a non-spoiler review but I have to warn potential readers. So this next bit has some major spoilers.

Miles has a brain tumor. Miles is a lawyer and he owns his own firm with his friend Frank. So Miles blurts out at the family reunion that he has cancer and that he’s dying. The family reunion is for Landon’s family in Colorado and Miles and Landon are based out of LA. So the day after Miles drops his bombshell, he’s called back to LA for this case he’s working on. Miles and Landon fight about him returning to LA and Miles goes anyway and Landon gets drunk. Landon sees an old boyfriend out at the bar and cheats on Miles. Bad bad bad.

So Miles’ condition gets worse really fast and he has seizures and and he’s bedridden. He decides to get his affairs in order and is discussing things with Frank. Miles asks Frank to watch over Landon when he’s gone and Frank agrees. Then Miles also says he thinks Frank and Landon would make a good couple. And Miles can tell Frank likes this idea. Ugh.

So Miles has another seizure and winds up in the hospital where he is murdered. So get this, at the funeral, Landon is already thinking about Frank in…not in a friendly way. Check it out:

“My husband was the most beautiful soul I’ve had the honor of ever knowing.” Dabbing the tissue to his eyes, Landon continued. “Miles used to tell me from time to time that you had to give a lot to this world in order for the world to give a damn about you,” Landon sighed. “Truth is, he was right. Miles gave everything he had to his profession. But more than that, he gave me the world. I won’t stand here and tell you that I feel better knowing he’s gone and that I’m happy because he’s in no more pain. I’m too selfish for that.”

Turning his head and catching Frank’s eye, Landon smiled. What if the last thing Miles ever gave me was the next person I need to hold onto?

At his husband’s funeral? NO WAY. Too many kinds of wrong going on.

So there you have it. I did not enjoy October Sun. The story, the characters and the writing all left something to be desired. 1 out of 5.

This book is available from Rebel Ink Press. You can buy it here or here in e-format.