Happy Place

Rainbow Place, Book 5

By: Jay Northcote

Narrated by: Hamish Long

Length: 6 hrs and 21 mins

Publisher's summary

A first kiss from a younger man leads to a sexual awakening...

George’s strict upbringing has left him ashamed of his sexuality. In his forties now, he's yet to come out or even kiss a man - until he meets Quentin.

Quentin has had enough of bad relationships with men who won't commit. Still raw from the last one, he’s not ready to try again. But George is sweet, and helping the older man get some experience might be a fun diversion.

Swept rapidly into a deeper connection than they bargained for, they face a dilemma. George isn’t ready to come out, and Quentin wants a boyfriend who isn’t afraid to be seen with him in public.

Can they find a way to navigate the unpredictable waters of their new relationship and find happiness together?

Contains: age gap, gay first times, sexual exploration, out for you.

©2020 Jay Northcote (P)2020 Jay Northcote

Well Done!!

This was my first audio book from Jay Northcote and I loved it. I have read several other books by Jay. It came alive for me. Fantastic! The story felt so real. I loved the age gap romance, George and Quentin were well written and endearing. Hamish Long did a fantastic job on narration. Well done all around!!

✫✫ 4 Stars ✫✫

I just love this series more with each book. The safe and happy place that the author created always leaves my heart happy. Love the May/December romance and coming out story line in this book. It was sweet & sexy all in one. Can't wait to see what's next.

Hamish Long is as always perfect for this series.

Happy Place

I do love an older man finding his way. It makes my heart happy. His upbringing wasn’t conducive to being who he is so he went on like he was “supposed to”. He married a woman and obviously that wasn’t his journey but he did get one heck of a great kid out of it.

The first meeting is always my favorite and Quentin was adorable, I think right away I liked him because he might have thought one thing but he also gave George another chance. He isn’t close minded he might be guarded because of his past but he is unapologetically himself. I love this about him. As we get to know him and George I like that he did what he needed to do for himself. That made me respect him all the more.

George too takes a good look at himself. I really liked that he seeked out help to work through things.

This book is low on the drama which I love, but it was high on being who you are. I also really enjoyed getting to see some of the characters from the books before it gives us a really well rounded story you can’t help but root for these two.

Hamish Long is a great narrator and I want more, more, more books narrated by him. I enjoy the different tones he gives for each character it brings us so much depth to these characters.

Finding my own Happy Place

Jay Northcote has written a wonderful, touching fifth book in the Rainbow Place series. Jay captures the excitement and unique tension of two men-one younger out gay man and the other older, closeted man-as they grapple with a sexual attraction that becomes something much more serious. Hamish Long does a fantastic job of giving each of the characters-Quentin, George, Liv, Seb-such clear and distinctive voices. Hamish takes Jay’s wonderful word smithing and provides the perfect dramatic pacing. This story is so well-told as the reader follows the up and down of these two unlikely sex partners’ early relationship, the pains and fears of early budding affection, the frustrations of an out gay man in love with a closeted man. The beauty of Jay’s writing and Hamish’s brilliant narration is that the story and the people in it flow naturally. Nothing sounds forced or contrived. The worst part of this audiobook is that, when you get to the end, you have to say goodbye to characters who become so real to you. That is excellent writing on Jay Northcote’s part and brilliant dramatization on Hamish Long’s part. Excellent job!

Age gap and out for you.

A beautiful May/December story, where the older man (George, 45) is deeply in the closet and just barely starting to accept his being gay.
Quentin is 18 years younger, out and proud, and has been hurt in the past, so he's not sure he can bear the secrecy and hiding.
Once again, this author tells a story of two imperfect men, where it's not all hearts and butterflies and the sex is not always porn-worthy. Jay Northcote gives us all: the good, the bad and the awkward!

4 stars for book 5. But 5 stars for the whole ser

Happy Place by Jay Northcote the 5th book in the Rainbow Place series. Read by Hamish Long.
The Genre Would be considered romance, contemporary, and LGBTQ
This book has romance in it some Passion a little bit of getting to know yourself.. This is a story about two gentleman 1 out and 1 deeply in the closet.
As a straight person myself I fellJay Northcotes books help me understand more of the difficulties and every day life for someone trying to just be themselves, And how the LGBTQ community deals with the frustration that goes along with how they deal with public, family and friends.
.
The most important thing you get out of Jay Northcotes books is love is love bottom line.

I gave the book 4 out of 5. Only because I felt the first few in the series were better.

But I give the whole series a 5 star.
I give Jay Northcote a 5 star.
I give Hamish Long 5 stars.

Embracing Truth

I had a bit of harder time with this final story of the series and I think it was because I really was worried about Quinton with George's reluctance to admit his truths. I know that everyone needs to come out in their own time but I don't like the idea of the timing causing another harm. I'm am proud that even Quinton realizes that he needs to have a line without making demands. I did appreciate the internal pain that George was facing and my heart goes out to anyone that has that much fear and self-loathing. The ending did redeem the story for me.

Listened to the audio version and it was very well done.

Sweet listen!

This is such a sweet story and I love it! George and Quentin are so cute together. I love how Jay Northcote makes these story so real. This is definitely the perfect title for this story because it made me so happy. Then Hamish Long does such an amazing job with this narration. I am pulled even more into this story. I love it!

Amazing OFY age gap love story!

An amazing, well-written May-December romance with the perfect amount of angst, steam, starry-eyes and sweetness.

I loved the realness of this story, how everything wasn’t just perfect lust and connection from the first. This romance felt so genuine and authentic, like something that could happen to actual people, which made it a very appealing read to me. As a reader I got to cheer for Quentin and George as they stumbled, doubted or misspoke and sympathized with them as they struggled through some pretty awkward moments. And most importantly, I got to see them fall in love which was absolutely heartwarming.

George is a product of his upbringing, poor guy, and in some ways he’s in a prison of his own making because of that. He has carried around a big secret for most of his life and doesn’t appear to have any friends he can turn to in order to break free and be true to himself, which was pretty sad. I loved his bravery and how he handled his coming out though. Quentin is a wonderful character too. I could easily relate to his longing for a relationship, as well as his hesitancy to open himself up to heartbreak, again.

I loved how these two men fit into the Rainbow Place “community” and I especially liked Seb’s role in their story, though the glimpses we got of the other characters in the series were great fun as well.

Narration: Hamish Long again proves he's an amazing narrator and truly did justice to this wonderful love story. He manages to give every character, however small, a distinct voice and his intonation and pacing are perfect and made this audiobook into a wonderful listening experience. I love his smooth and warm voice, so pleasant to listen to and never grating, and his beautiful & clear enunciation.

Rainbow Place is MY HAPPY PLACE!

I was so excited when Jay sent me an audiobook code for Happy Place (Rainbow Place #5). This was my first time listening to Hamish Long voice George and Quentin. Jay Northcote is an amazing author that I discovered a few years ago. I fell in love with Rainbow Place and all the amazing people that dropped by the cafe. I grew up in a small, conservative town in southeast GA and I wish there had been some place safe and inclusive like Rainbow Place. There were moments in this audiobook that made me tear up and angry. Quentin and George struggle to move beyond sexual exploration and being in the closet. They grow closer and form an intimate connection. Unfortunately, for most of the audiobook, George struggles to come to term with coming out to his family and friends. Hamish Long does a wonderful job narrating and bringing to life Jay's book. The angst you hear in his voice makes the listener experience first-hand everything Quentin is going through. Nobody should be afraid of coming out and loving whoever they want but it's hard. They both did a wonderful job conveying the struggles and emotional upheavals. Brilliant job and I love Jay's works of art. Rainbow Place #6 can't come soon enough for me :)