He was my very survival. Without him, I was nothing.
Pippin (Sampson)
I’m broken, hiding my pain behind fake smiles and pretend joy. Inside, I’m a mental mess between being tossed into conversion therapy and foster care as a kid. I struggle to focus and suffer anxiety, panic attacks, and nightmares. My passions for skateboarding and bartending make me happy enough. But only Nate, my former foster brother and best friend, calms me and keeps me going forward. I’m not sure what I would do without him. Even worse, I secretly love him. Loving him could mean losing him.
Nacho (Nate)
I’d been in and out of foster care for as long as I could remember. My last home was with Sam. We quickly became friends, and I instantly went into protective mode. After Sam got hurt by our foster father, I took Sam out of there and watched over him for two years while living on the streets. When you spend a lifetime not being wanted by anyone, you crave being needed, and Sam needs me. But I secretly love him. I’ve told my friends I don’t want to ruin my friendship with Sam. The truth is if we don’t work out, I won’t be there to take care of him. Sam’s needs are more important than my feelings.
MM Urban, Found Family, New Adult, Best Friends to Lovers, Secret Love, Pining, Skateboarder Romance
CW: Conversion therapy and abuse, suicidal ideations, panic attacks, anxiety, PTSD, iatrophobia (intense fear of doctors), abandonment, co-dependency, mental health rep.
Deanna’s Review: 5⭐️
This was such a beautiful book. Pippin (Sam) & Nacho (Nate) have been friends since they met as kids in foster care, both secretly in love with each other and afraid of changing the dynamic.
Sam went through hell in his early childhood, running away from home and being tossed into the system. Nate grew up in foster care, having never known his own parents. They become each other’s safe place.
Seeing these two transition from best friends to lovers gave my heart so much joy. It’s been a while since a book made me cry, and this broke my heart and put it back together. The best part of all – in my opinion – is there is no third-act breakup.
And while I normally don’t care for books narrated by one person for two POVs, Harley did a fantastic job of differentiating Sam from Nate. Bravo!
I highly recommend you abuse that KU membership and check out Pippin & Nacho –>HERE. And if you’re interested in the audiobook, you can find it –>HERE.