Review: All the Wrong Places by Ann Gallagher (Bluewater Bay #14)

Note: This ARC was provided by Riptide Publishing in exchange for an honest review.

All the Wrong Places is an M/M romance from author Ann Gallagher and is the fourteenth book in the multi-authored Bluewater Bay series from Riptide Publishing. This was quite an interesting change from my usual romance fare (LGBTQIA+ or otherwise) because both the main characters here were asexual. I've read a couple of books in the past that had one character as asexual, but to have two of them was a first and provided for some eye-opening discoveries. Because hey, as much as I read to entertain myself, books that impart something that you weren't all that well-versed in and inspires you to research and learn more have a special place in my heart. I researched asexuality before, but there were new terms that I came across in this book, so kudos to the author (who is also known by her other alter-egos) for a job well done!

Three ex-girlfriends, each one telling him that their needs weren't met during their time together, has finally clued semi-professional skateboarder Brennan Cross that something must be amiss. He decides to look for some answers and finds a bit of sage advice and knowledge from Zafir Hamady, an employee at the local Bluewater Bay sex shop. When Zafir suggests that Brennan may be asexual, Brennan isn't entirely sure how to take it, especially since the idea was something he had never considered in the past. Wanting to learn more about asexuality from someone like Zafir, who is also asexual, has them forging a friendship and Brennan becoming a skateboarding mentor to Zafir's son. Is all there is between them purely platonic? Brennan's just beginning to wrap his head around being asexual, but could he now possibly be gay as well?

This book gives readers a unique story line and doesn't muddle it with too many explanations that sound as if they belong in a textbook. The author has taken the time to simplify things, making it far easier to comprehend things that may have been foreign to readers before they picked this book up. Zafir and Brennan are multi-layered main characters who develop a true friendship, even though it may seem that all they really shared in common was their being asexual. I didn't really feel that romantic connection between them though. They felt more like two best friends who had finally met that one other person who loved and accepted them wholeheartedly, which is why All the Wrong Places was more of a book about acceptance and friendship than a romance novel, but it was well-written and original and it gets four stars. ♥

Release Date: 13 June 2016

Learn more about Ann Gallagher.

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