Scratch the Surface

De: Mary Calmes

Narrado por: Tristan James, Tim Paige

Sometimes things look one way, but when you scratch the surface, there's more than meets the eye.

Jeremiah Wolfe has always done what was necessary to survive. When a rare night off finds him with the chance to make a quick buck, he jumps on it. A meaningless one-night stand is simple and easy, so he steps into the hotel room - as he has many - without expectation. But the man behind the door is a surprise, as is the instant connection that builds along with passion and a glimpse of his heart.

Cameron Gallagher has never been accused of being spontaneous. He's always been the careful one, so inviting a stranger into his bed on the lure of his gorgeous smile and warm brown eyes isn't only out of his comfort zone, it's entirely out of character. Surprisingly, when he wakes in the morning alone, it's not regret he feels, but the need to find the man who held him in his arms all night.

When they're brought back together, each man believes it's more than luck. They feel as though they've gotten a second chance. Sure, love at first sight is just a myth, the stuff of romance novels, but the more they scratch the surface, the more they realize they've got a shot at something lasting.

©2021 Mary Calmes (P)2022 Tantor

story good, a bit rambling

I like the characters and there's some plot going on, which I always appreciate when there's romance. There is waaaaaay too much detail at times that should be chopped out, like unnecessary/unwanted conversations between characters that don't add to tone or character development or plot.

So Good!

I'm convinced Mary Calmes can't do anything wrong. I have loved every books she's put out and this one is no different. Even narrators I typically dislike (not these I love Tristan) don't bother me when reading her work.

Too Many Plotlines, Inconsistent Characters

I loved the premise and had high hopes, but this is a bit of a mess. It feels like multiple writers were checking in and out... or maybe the author had a bunch of partially worked ideas, but ran out of time and just mashed them all together. Between the escort business, the classmate in protective custody, the restaurant being sold, the childhood trauma, the apartment decorating, the dad's health scare, Thanksgiving for the masses, running into the former fiance's friends, the townspeople who abused an abandoned child but all love and respect him as an adult... sheesh.

On top of all that, the characters changed... well, character... repeatedly. Is Cameron an introvert who struggles to connect, or the rock that carries his family through trauma, or the self-confident control freak who forces his affections on a new beau? Is his instamate (Jeremiah) a rough around the edges guy who sold himself to survive, or the world's best restaurant manager, counselor extraordinaire, saver of women and perfect boyfriend? Why do the cop and rich kid who abused our hero in his youth suddenly get to be good guys? And what's with every male character being movie star handsome? I could go on...

Trigger Alert: There is a protracted discussion of a crime against two young men that is disturbing and completely unnecessary to the story.

Good story

The only thing I really disliked was the narration for Jeremiah, he sounded like a robot.

Cute and light

It was a cute, sweet story but the first narrator’s voice sounded like ai it was weird. I am assuming this was one of his first projects or something because I have listened to him on other books and he didn’t sound this way but outside of that I liked the story. Low angst. They moved quickly but it was clearly one of those ‘when you know you know’ stories. I love how Cam took care of Jer when he needed it although it was hard to accept the help. I love how honest they were with each other instead of keeping secrets. I want more like this. Definitely checking out this author’s books.

cheesy

I can not decide if the writing of this book was cheesy or the narration. This book was good but, not as enjoyable as some others. It was a nice light read.

Great story. Slightly confusing narration.

Great narrators but there were many times when I couldn’t tell the difference between the two main characters.

Awful Narrator

Can’t believe someone could read like that, had to be computer generated for Jeremiah. Just awful. I almost gave up.

Smooth enjoyment

I don't know how to truly convey how I felt about this story/listen as I often find "insta love" trite and unbelievable - but I believe Mary Calmes pulled this one off beautifully. Two very interesting main characters and back stories but I think it was Mary Calmes' prose that made this story/listen seamless and beautiful. She seems to have the gift when writing dialog and interactions that show you who the characters are without having to explain it to the reader.

I always love both narrators - Tristan James always just does it for me to be honest - and I think their voices just added to the beauty of the story.
It was pure smooth enjoyment and I think one of her better novels.

Unique take on love at first sight

First off, the narration was super strange and hard to get used to. In Jeremiah’s chapters, the narration by Tim Paige sounds like AI - wooden and one dimensional. Cameron’s chapters were read by Tristan James, who I love - lovely, natural sounding voice modulation, making Jeremiah’s voice all the more frustrating to hear.

Other than that, I liked the story. There’s a lot of character depth and an arc in spite of the premature love at first sight trope. Worth listening to in spite of the confusing narration.