Real Men Knit

By: Kwana Jackson

Narrated by: Keylor Leigh

Length: 8 hrs and 52 mins

Publisher's Summary

"If you're looking for an easy charmer, this is the novel for you." (Shondaland)

When their foster-turned-adoptive mother suddenly dies, four brothers struggle to keep open the doors of her beloved Harlem knitting shop.

Jesse Strong is known for two things: his devotion to his adoptive mom, Mama Joy, and his reputation for breaking hearts. When Mama Joy unexpectedly passes away, he and his brothers have different plans for what to do with Strong Knits, their neighborhood knitting store. Jesse wants to keep the store open. His brothers want to tie off loose ends and close shop....

Part-time shop employee Kerry Fuller has kept her crush on Jesse a secret. When she overhears his impassioned plea to his brothers to keep the knitting shop open, she volunteers to help. Unlike Jesse, Kerry knows the "knitty-gritty" of the business, and together they make plans to reinvent Strong Knits for a new generation.

But the more time they spend together, the stronger the chemistry builds between them. Kerry, knowing Jesse’s history, doesn’t believe their relationship can last longer than she can knit one, purl two. But Jesse is determined to prove to her that he can be the man for her forever and always. After all, real men knit.

©2020 Kwana Jackson (P)2020 Penguin Audio

Critic Reviews

"A big-hearted, warm, funny story of community, family and unexpected romance, Real Men Knit is an absolute winner. Kwana Jackson never fails to give me exactly what I want in a book: a messy family, characters who fight for what they want, believable and delicious romance, and a setting that’s as much a part of the story as the people in it." (Kristan Higgins, New York Times best-selling author)

"Such a fantastic read, complete with an emotion-filled romance, and a cast of characters I’m so looking forward to seeing again." (Nalini Singh, New York Times best-selling author)

"I loved every word of Real Men Knit. It’s a sweet and satisfying slow-burn of a romance about what knits us together as family, friends, and lovers. I can’t wait for the next installment of the Old Knitting Gang!" (Lyssa Kay Adams)

FADE TO BLACK SEX SCENES! Sad face

Wanted to Like this more than I did *Spoilers*

- I like the premise of the book.
-This book should not be in the romance section. I’m going to give it a bad review because it was miscatogorized. It is women’s fiction or Young Adult. A cute little story of a family of hot dudes and one falls in love with the clerk cool. But dear gawd a missed opportunity for steam.
-I like that they are a tribe of brothers, do I smell sequel?
-I loved to see brown people with brown people issues in harlem dealing and worrying about bad landlords and gentrification.
-The brothers being as diverse as they were gave me some hope for some good swirl action later. I wish other characters were introduced for them.
-I wanted to like this book a 5 outta 5.
-This book was too dam slow. It was over half way through the book when they kiss for the first time.
-The book was front loaded with backstory and information that I felt could have been spread out throughout the book mor authentically.
-The foreplay was nice and then…. WHATTTT fade to black????? Give me the sex. That's why I’m here.
-I never got the chemistry from Jesse. He seemed immature and Kerry seemed unequally yoked with him. Now Lucas...yes
-The characters were very 1 dimensional for me. For example Erica the girl who liked Jesse was a stereotypical mean girl. It doesn’t read authentic. There was a great opportunity to see the dynamics of the brothers bond and we saw little of that.
-This burn was too slow and the writing style for me felt choppy.

Cute, but...

Cute story, but a bit boring at points which made it drag. It would've been great to have more of an explanation of the relationships between the brothers and their interest in Kerry. Also, the performance would've been great with a Black woman as the narrator. There were several colloquial phrases and opportunities to punch up the text that were missed because of the narrator. Overall I would recommend.

just not good

This book had poor character development, weak storyline, bad descriptions. I'm an avid reader. this was disappointing.

A good weekend listen for knitters and crocheters.

I enjoyed the book because in many respects being a long time knitters and crocheters it was like spending time in my favorite local Yarn Store and spending time in a community of friends. Give a high five for true love. I am wondering if the author is going to have each of the remaining brothers find True love true yarn and knitting or crochet hooks. I’m hoping the author makes this into a mini series.

Awful male lead

The writing style wasn't really for me from the start but the more we get to know the main character's love interest the worse it got. At one point Kerry is trying to do some planning for the business she put her life on hold to save. Jessie decides to cross the room, touch her forehead and tell her not to look so serious this early in the morning or she will have to get back alley botox. Kerry panics at the thought of being unattractive to him and it is played as adorable.

I can't stand this man, and Kerry deserved better writing.

Review

I thoroughly enjoyed listening to this book. The narrator really brought it to life. The story had me laughing, crying and cursing. Highly recommended for anyone who enjoys listening to a really good book.

What an enjoyable listen!

A lovely book with real and awkward people, written without “artificial” feeling characters. Well done!

I can’t say enough! The best story!!

Real men knit! And who else to teach them, but a strong women full of firm Love and constant caring wisdom.
I think the characters are wonderful along with their emotional depths, and the intertwined community life is beautiful. I enjoyed the reference to the Harlem knights as well. I can’t wait to hear more by this author!
This is a great book.

Nice

What a nice easy read. I enjoyed these characters and storyline. Looking forward to reading something new from her.

Satisfying

I love discovering a new to me author and the first book in a series that makes me want to read the rest.

This story has a fixer and a supposed mess, both of whom need to realize they need to let go of labels and preconceived ideas and embrace their strengths and dreams. This story has grief, love, yearning and healing. The “forbidden” attraction and Jesse’s track record with women are an initial obstacle. The brothers’ considering “Kerry-girl” their little sister and off limits is mixed up with their judgement of Jesse. Both Kerry and Jesse are afraid to share their feelings even though everyone around them can see this relationship is special.
I love the way Kwana Jackson expresses the yearning without dragging it out and that everyone gets to grow - whether it is learning to ask for what they want, stand up for themselves, let go, or have to realize their previous judgement of someone is wrong and admit it.
Ms. Jackson built my interest in secondary characters too. I can hardly wait to see which brother is next and I really want to know what the heck is going on with Damian.
The narration by Keylor Leigh is lively and expressive. She is not great with male voices but her expression is so engaging that the “fe-male” voices weren’t distracting to the story. I hope she reads the rest of the series.