Of Sunlight and Stardust

By: Christina Lee, Riley Hart

Narrated by: Tristan James, Kale Williams

Length: 7 hrs and 4 mins

Publisher's summary

After the death of his wife, Tanner Rowe takes a step toward making her dying wish come true and buys the house with the dilapidated barn she'd been inexplicably drawn to in the picturesque Upper Peninsula. But after a year, he still can't get past his grief long enough to make the repairs he'd promised.

Recently out of prison, Cole Lachlan has little to his name. Homeless, broke, and without many options as a felon, Cole heads to Red Bluff with hopes of a second chance. There he meets Tanner, whose loneliness mirrors his own, and soon Cole is trading room and board for rebuilding the burned-out barn on Tanner's property that hasn't been touched in 70 years.

Turns out, the barn holds more secrets than either of them could have imagined. After unearthing a hidden journal from 1948, Cole and Tanner spend their evenings poring over the pages, reading about a young man pining after his best friend. The deeper they delve into this forbidden affair from the past, the more Cole and Tanner's own relationship shifts - from acquaintances to friends...to undeniable attraction.

But as they begin to deal with the newness of falling in love in the wake of Tanner's loss and Cole's past, they also become more determined to unravel the mystery of the young lovers who've captured their hearts, the rumors about the fire, and what really happened that fateful night.

©2018 Christina Lee and Riley Hart (P)2019 Audible, Inc.

Love is so Beautiful

This book was sad but encouraging at the same time. Tanner and Cole’s connection is fated. I loved that we got to see almost 2 love stories. How they became a couple but also the struggles they faced. I can’t even imagine and I am glad I don’t have to but to have understanding and compassion for someone else situation is key in evolving. Or at least that is how I feel.

Cole has so much to work through and Tanner is so understanding because of his own past that even if he didn’t know it he was helping Cole.
And it was kind of the same for Cole, helping Tanner it really is a beautiful story of love.

I am glad I picked this up.

The narration was good a little different than I am used to but I still really enjoyed the book and the voices.

Great story, terrible narration

This is a lovely story but Cole’s narrator is so bad it round half the book.
His voice is raspy and nasal, he makes Cole sound old and haggard even if he’s supposed to be in his late 20s / early 30s. He also makes Tommy sound feminine and young when he’s supposed to be in his 20s

The written book would be a better purchase

Fantastic Story

Really loved this so very real and heartwarming !!! a nice change of pace i highly enjoyed this book

Heartwarming story

This was a great story. Sad at times but truly beautiful. The narrator's made it worth while.

Heartwarming and emotional gentle Romance

Narration:
I found myself not liking Tristian James's narration as much as Kale Williams's. something about his pacing maybe, which is odd because he was the narrator for the first audiobook I listened to and I always had a warm spot for books narrated by him. Yet, the narration was done very well in this book and both narrators brought the emotional depth this story needed.

The story:
This was such a gentle romance, and an epic love story that is emotional and sweet.
Both men are broken, in a sort of limbo, and meeting each other helps them heal and start moving forward again. I LOVED how Cole and Tanner slowly open up to each other, and the Slow Burn romance here is just right for these characters. They each have a turbulent past, sadness and emotional baggage to sort through before they can start thinking about relationships. Starting as friends and evolving to lovers was fitting, and Tanner never having been with a man before needed time to adjust. I like that he got that time, many M/M books with a GFY character power through the physical side and only then have the MC deal with how it changes him/his perception of himself. I felt like Tanner had a healthy pace and had time to process everything, and while it was slow it was most definitely satisfying and never frustrating as the intimacy builds one step at a time. And once they start, baby you do not want them to stop! I mean smoking hot AND emotional in one sexy packaging.

The journal Cole finds in the barn is a constant guide and catalyst on their path to becoming a couple, connecting them to the past in a symbolic way. Tom and Charlie’s secret love slowly unfolds with every journal entry they read, bringing them closer to each other and the truth behind the barn fire.
The ending was so emotional without using big dramatic events, something I liked a lot as this book had elements that could have easily been blown out of proportion for some soap opera type drama. I found myself crying, something I don’t usually do and was not expecting to do while reading this book. Its got to me on a fundamental level, it spoke of love and acceptance, of being valued for who you are and not what you were.

It was very well written for a co-authored book, the writing flowing seamlessly and beautifully worded.
I recommend this book to all readers, it is a wonderful heartwarming book, with lots of feels and a love transcending time in its purity and strength

Reborn Love

This love of Tanner and Cole is deep and true and makes this an amazing book to read but adding in the deep love between Tommy and Charlie as well as Paige and Emma makes this book one of the best books I have read and touched my hart so profoundly.

This book kept me on the edge of my seat and I was completely unable to put it down.

The way this book was written makes me feel that the souls of Tommy and Charlie was reborn into Tanner and Cole so that even if they were not allowed to live and love the first time they were however able and allowed the love and live again trough Tanner and Cole.

beautiful mm romance

a wonderfully beautiful romance story. the initial narration there me, but I caught on after a few minutes. so glad to discover this gem.

Keep going...

At first I wasn’t pleased by the first narrator, and I was struggling with what was happening in the first couple of chapters....but I kept going. And it just got better and BETTER! Really glad I stuck with it. It was a great story:)

Beautiful story

Beautiful story about second chances at life and love. Ex-felon Cole is having a hard time finding work and refuses to be a charity case. Grieving for his wife, Tanner buys the barn and house she always wanted for them. Cole meets Tanner and offers him room and board in exchange for his help fixing up the barn. They form a tentative friendship that developed into more as they learn about what really happened to the barn through a young man's journal. Ugh this book has all the feels. It was an emotional rollercoaster as each of them opened up about their past. And Charlie and Tom's story was heartbreaking. Both narrators did a great job voicing the main characters.

My heart is broking 💔

I had to restart this book a few chapters in. I just wasn't really into it at 1st; seemed a bit slow. But I'm so glad I gave it another try. This book is really beautiful. You have to pay attention because there's a story within a story and you don't want to miss any thing. Tanner and Cole and 2nd chances 🥰💞
Geese I cried so hard thinking of how many people lost their lives to this type of hateful end...
Worth all the 🌟