A Furever Home

A Friends at Gaynor Beach Animal Rescue Romance

De: Kaje Harper, Gabbi Grey

Narrado por: Michael Ferraiuolo

Arthur

When I was squeezing rescue dogs and cats into my small house, all I wanted was to not turn away a pet in need. Opening the Safe Haven Pet Rescue was a dream come true. But when I get hurt, standing between a man with a gun and a stray dog, I realize I still can't do it all.

My injured leg, a concussion, having to lean on my friends, and realizing how helpless I feel, throws me back to my childhood when nothing I did ever seemed to be enough. But there's one silver lining. Brooklyn West. He's the kind of guy who holds a stranger’s hand in a crisis. He's great with my dogs, even cranky little Chili, and really wants to help the shelter. I like watching him be a protective big brother when his sister turns up on his doorstep, even though I think there's pain underneath his sunny smiles. But as we move toward friendship, I keep looking for the strings, and wondering how I'll pay him back, because nothing in my life can be that sweet, or that simple.

Brooklyn

I went through medical hell, and came out the other side with enough money to move to the opposite side of the country and start the doggie daycare business of my dreams. The cherry on top of that good luck is meeting Arthur Bjornsson. Big, wild-bearded, soft-voiced Arthur is the kind of guy my family would've ridiculed. He's warm-hearted and willing to throw himself into harm's way to save one pathetic stray dog.

He's the kind of guy who gives me back some faith in humanity. But when my underage sister Cheyenne shows up on my doorstep, on the run from the family I thought I'd escaped, my old life and new collide. I want to help Arthur, get to know him, and, as he heals, I want more than just friendship. But Cheyenne brings legal risks, a teen on the other side of my bedroom wall, and the threat of retribution from our family. The simple relationship I thought Arthur and I were building is suddenly messy as hell. I don't know how we'll get through this to reach the furever home I so desperately want.

©2025 Kaje Harper, Gabbi Grey (P)2025 Kaje Harper, Gabbi Grey

arthur finally gets his person and family

The Gaynor Beach and related series have been so much fun. I’m a fan of both authors. This was the first co-write for these 2 authors and I was curious to see how their styles would blend. I was not disappointed. Arthur finally gets his person and family!

Arthur and Brooklyn are both dealing with past hurt and trauma. Brooklyn’s shows up in a giant way with the arrival of his runaway teen sister escaping the family cult. The animals were key to the story and not just there for cuteness. Their relationship started with a bang with ups and downs that felt very realistic.

Michael Ferraiuolo is a favorite narrator, though I admit I listen to more of his fantasy/paranormal titles than contemporary. He excels at voice acting, providing distinct character voices and emotions.

I am voluntarily reviewing a complimentary copy from GayRomanceReviews.

ALC Review

Thanks to GRR for providing me with the audiobook!

This book was just so sweet – I mean, come on: gays and animals? There’s nothing better. I absolutely adore Arthur and Brooklyn, especially because of how much they care about the animals. Honestly, I wish every animal had someone like them. What I loved most was how Brooklyn stepped in to help Arthur and the animals in his daycare after an incident – that was such a heartwarming detail.

Overall, this is the perfect cozy read for animal lovers. And even though it’s more of a slow(ish) burn, I still really enjoyed it because the rest of the story kept me hooked and smiling the whole way through.

Cute furry animals

After listening to this, I had to give it a couple days to sit. There were bits of this that I loved, in particular that each animal had its own personality, and gravitated to its own spaces and people, but there were also pieces that I didn’t like so much. Brooklyn was a very private person, and the fact that none of his past came out until very late in the story made it harder to relate to him. I’m not sure we learned much about Arthur at all, other than his current situation and that he’s got a lot of imposter syndrome. Then there was the violence. For such a sweet love story, there was a lot of violence.
I listened to this in audio, and I found the narration good, but not stellar. There were places where the tone did not seem to match the emotion of the words. I like the voice, so it was an okay listen.
Overall, I would say that I liked this book and would recommend it if cute animals are your thing and you can handle some violence.

michael made thus book

Michael Feraiuolo does not disappoint in this story. He makes these characters sing and draws in for the ride.

As for the story itself their were many ups and downs throughout, where it felt like a little too much at times. You did feel the characters connection yet for me the pacing felt somewhat off. This was my first read from these authors and can say I prefer the audio format, reading alone would take away the magic Michael brings to a performance leaving it not as strong of a story at least for me. The story itself would be 3 stars, but Michael's narrative brought it up to a 4 star listen.

Low Angst MM romance

This was so sweet. I loved Arthur in the previous books so I was so glad to see him find bis person. This was super low angst and just so sweet. I live all the furvaby side characters all with their own personalities. The narration was perfect too.,

Super sweet

🎧
This was the perfect romance. Although there was a lot of drama I loved how Arthur and Brooklyn’s relationship developed. It was realistic but also sweet. It’s an easy read/listen with lots of feels.

Add in dogs, a cat and a moody teenager and who can say no.

Emotional, enjoyable read

This was a cute, emotional story that I really enjoyed. I loved getting to know these two and seeing them come together. Arthur and Brooklyn are both sweet men and have not had things the easiest. Arthur didn't have a traumatic childhood but he isn't close to his family and feels more forgotten than anything else. It has influenced his interactions with friends and others that he needs to not be a burden and needs to be able to repay/offer them something. He has a hard time accepting help but loves to give it. He is running the animal shelter in town. Brooklyn did have a bit more of a harder, more intense past with where and how he was raised and he has separated from that and new in town with his doggy day care. They meet when Arthur is injured by getting shot in the leg standing between a dog and a man with a gun and Brooklyn was there. Arthur was worried about the shelter and Brooklyn wanted to help. Then Arthur ends up needing more help during recovery as the stairs to get up to his place and the concussion he has don't work so well together. I enjoyed seeing them get along and both of their demeanors being on the quieter, wanting to help side the forced proximity allowed them to get to know each other and feelings to continue to develop. As things are starting to move to the romantic and physical side of things, Brooklyn's 17 year old sister shows up in the middle of the night as a runaway. She isn't overly forthcoming at first about what is going on and why she ran instead of waiting the few short months until her birthday and graduating high school. I loved seeing them come together and figure out how to deal with it as they were starting a new relationship and getting together. The story was sweet and emotion and well done. I was engaged with the characters and the story and enjoyed it the entire way.
The narrator did a great job with the characters and bringing their personalities to life with their voice as well as what was happening in the story.

Arthur & Brooklyn

This was such a sweet story and a great addition to this series. I enjoyed reading it and even enjoyed the pleasure of listening to Michael Ferraiuolo's great narration for the audiobook.

I received an ARC and this is my unbiased opinion

So sweet

I have jumped around in this series, but the one MC I've always loved is Arthur. He has a heart of gold and would do anything for the animals that he tries to save. If left to his own devices, he would take in every homeless animal. When Kevin, who is the 13 yr old who has appeared in prior books, calls him about a dog that might get shot because a property owner believes it's killing his chickens, Arthur doesn't stop hesitate to show up & put his self in between the man & Kevin. Also, Brooklyn happens to be walking by and takes helps Arthur when he is injured during this altercation. We then get to see Brooklyn & Arthur come together and build a sweet romance. Very sweet relatively low angst read. I loved it & will listen to it again in the future.

Enjoyable Story & Listen for this Series Newbie

Narrator Michael Ferraiuolo is one of the best around, so I jumped at the opportunity to give the audiobook a listen despite being new to the series. I was rewarded with a feel-good trip to a charming place where I got to meet understanding and relatable characters and adorable pets.

Being new to the Gaynor Beach universe, one of the things I appreciated most was how MC Brooklyn was also new to town. It felt like I was riding sh0tgen as he met the locals and figured out everyone's connections to each other.

The story kicks off with a bang (literally) and packs a whole lotta wholesome goodness and a decent amount of sweet-level spice. The MCs are kind and loving (if not a little prickly to start with, Arthur) - just as one would expect in a small-town romance - and you can't help but root for their HEA. The animal rescue angle also features prominently - MC Arthur is the shelter director and MC Brooklyn runs a doggy daycare - so there's tons of critter cuteness too.

No surprise, Michael Ferraiuolo gave a fabulous performance. He gave each character, from the top down, a distinct voice and he hit all the right emotional notes in every scene. I'll be listening to this one again.