Heart Trouble

Publisher's Summary

When Gage Evans gets a look at his hot nurse, he's smitten immediately. Too bad he's given the nurse the impression he's some kind of daredevil. It couldn't be further from the truth. Gage is a college journalism instructor writing a series of guest columns that require him to jump into new experiences - a fun bucket list, but one that does nothing to convince Ben he's not an adrenaline junkie. 

Fresh off his latest heartbreak, nurse Ben Griggs is wary when one of his patients shows an interest in him - especially when that patient showed up in the ER after a motorcycle accident. Ben's ex was a biker, a friend with benefits, and he dropped Ben cold when someone more interesting came along. Ben isn't the kind of guy who can hold the interest of an adrenaline junkie like Gage Evans for long. The last thing he wants is to lose his heart to the wrong man again.

The more Ben gets to know Gage, the harder he is to resist. He can only hold on for the ride and keep his guard up as much as he can. But Ben's lack of trust seriously gets in the way of building a relationship, and Gage will only be patient so long. Can he trust Gage enough to give his heart, or are they destined to have a fling that goes nowhere?

This is a spin-off from the Ashe Sentinel Connections series, where Ben appears briefly in the book Hard Press. It can be enjoyed as a stand-alone.

©2016 DJ Jamison (P)2019 DJ Jamison

Promising start

Ben Griggs knows what he wants and what he doesn’t want. And one thing he most definitely is not interested in is daredevils. Working as a nurse in the ER, along with some past experience, has made him appreciate safe. His only problem Is to get his body on the same page as his brain, because he can’t seem to get a particular patient from his mind.

Gage Evans teaches a class in journalism at college. He’s also writing a series on trying something new, something different. Unfortunately those new experiences seem to land him in the ER with one injury or another. He’s drawn to the nurse taking care of him and does everything he can to get Ben to go out with him.

There is a lot of back and forth between these guys and entirely too much drama for my tastes. It felt out of proportion and mostly unnecessary. I get that Ben was hurt in the past, that he had trust issues, but it was too much and I found myself kind of screaming at him to get over it (and himself) already.

In general there isn’t a lot going on in this book. It’s pretty straight forward with no real detours. Boy meets boy, instant attraction, spend some time together (in and out of bed), que some commitment drama and all it entails, make up and then live happily ever after. Sometimes that’s all you need from a book, sometimes you need those detours – it all depends on what you want and expect from your next listen.

Kenneth Obi isn't among my favourite narrators, but there are times he really nails it. That's why I keep coming back to his books. When listening to Heart Trouble there were a few things that got to me and sadly not in a good way; the strange intonations and sentence structure, and not to mention mixing up names. At the last one I actually did go back and listen to it again just to make sure it wasn't in my imagination.

This was a mostly sweet romance. I've seen others mention this wasn't the strongest in the series so I will continue on with the next one as there is potential for something really good here.

A copy of this book was generously provided by the author in exchange for an honest review for Love Bytes.

Ohh how sweet and refreshing!

Heart Trouble is a sweet, fun romance. I needed a good pick-me-up a story and this was perfect.
Ben is a nurse that has trouble with men. He has a habit of choosing men that like adrenaline rushes and no strings. He wants a boyfriend. His friend Alex always tries to help hook him up by saving him, certain patients. One day he meets Gage thinking he is a motorcycle rider he turns down his advances. He meets Gage again at a bar where each was out with their friends and after a few drinks they go talk and wind up in bed.
I loved Gage's persistence. This story is so well written, its sweet and hot but the heat is well done.
Kenneth Obi narrated this and man did he give it such life. I loved his narration and listening to the story.
I highly recommend this if you are looking for something romantic, like male nurses, Male professors, crazy best friends, and some hot man-sex.

Amazing!!

Heart Trouble by DJ Jamison is the first book in The Hearts and Health series.

Gage and Ben are great characters and I love them. Their dance of romance is fun, sweet and a good dose of sexy. I felt drawn into the story and enjoyed every moment.

Narrating is done my Kenneth Obi and is fantastic. Each Character has their own "voice" that pops out with personality and life. The experience of the story is taken to new heights. Great job!

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adorable

I loved this story when I first read it. I loved the sweetness of the two men together. Kenneth brought the story to such life that made me feel more of the emotion of the story than just reading it had done. great collaboration with the two!

I love Ben and Gage so much.

I read and reviewed this book when it was first released by in October 2016. I've now had the opportunity to listen to the audiobook performed by Kenneth Obi and I loved it. His performance of the book brought the story alive for me again; it was like I was reading it for the first time. His different voices made it easy to distinguish the various characters in the story.

Below is the review I left when the ebook was originally published.

Ben has been hurt in the past by loving men who didn’t love him back. He’s determined not to let that happen again so he’s hardened his heart to the point that he won’t let anyone in. Gage has also been hurt by men who told him he’s too clingy and then they leave. When Gage first sees Ben in the ER he’s attracted enough that he wants to ask him out. Ben’s attracted to Gage as well but he won’t agree to “date;” he’ll only agree to a one-night stand. And what a night it was!

This book really grabbed me and I didn’t want to put it down. I was so frustrated when I had to put it aside after chapter 3 in order to take care of personal obligations. Later that day I started back up and didn’t stop until I’d finished it.

My heart hurt for these two guys who both have insecurities when it comes to relationships. I was confident that DJ would give me my HEA but it didn’t come easy; Ben and Gage had some pretty big obstacles to overcome first.

I loved the secondary character of Zane. He had kind of a big impact on Ben and Gage’s relationship. I’d love to read his story next.

I also have to mention that DJ gave us a fantastic epilogue for Ben and Gage – a little glimpse at them 6 months later.

A free copy of this audiobook was provided to me by the author but that did not influence my review of the book.

Lovely story with great narration

This is a story of two wary people learning to trust and love each other. This is a wonderfully easy listening audiobook with a great cast of characters. Ben and Gage are lovely together. Ben’s assumptions about Gage lead to misunderstanding and Gage’s jealousy nearly ruin their budding relationship. I was rooting for them to sort it all out and realise what a good thing they’ve got going for them.
Kenneth Obi’s excellent narration makes the story alive. He has a lovely smooth tone. All the characters have a distinct voice which suits them making it very easy to follow.