Cultivating Love by Addison Albright

[reviews_and_ramblings]

Joe and Ed are young and living together. To the equation misses only love. It's not that Joe and Ed are not in love, it's probably that no one taught them "how" to be in love, and "what" being in love means. Ed, orphaned at 17 years old, spent all his time to make the ends meet, and Joe was kicked out of home when he came out to his father at 18 years old. When the book starts they are already together, sharing an house and a bed, but it's not said how they met and how they put the boundaries to their relationship, not only love relationship but also life partner. Still the boundaries are there, and even if they are not rules, they are pretty strict, they do fifty / fifty on everything from who has to cook dinner to whom has to top. Joe and Ed are obviously in love, but still no one of them has every spoken the L word, and I don't know how many time would be passed before it would slip to someone if the fate had not forced the hand.

Father's Ed, whom Ed believed long ago dead, was still alive and living in a farm. Unluckily for Ed he comes to know it when the man dies and Ed is his only heir. Ed inherits the farm, and he doesn't know nothing how to farming, but Joe knows it, having being raised in a farm. Actually Joe's life dream is to be able sooner or later to buy a farm, and this unexpected inheritance seems a sign from heaven. Ed spends only few hours to decide that he is ready to change his life and moves with Joe on the farm (if this is not love...).

The new life they are starting is like a coming back to another place in time: in the small town and inside the walls of their farmhouse, it seems impossible to continue to behave like no more than friend with benefits. The new life forces them to rethink to their priorities and to what it is important for them. More it seems to bring them nearer to what it was Joe's life before Ed, and in a way, shorten the distance between him and his family. Joe's father turned away his son since he didn't understand his choice to love a man, not since he didn't love him; when Joe proves to him that being in love with a man doesn't change so much how he is, and since he is very much like his father, his father can again relate with him on a common ground.

It's not all a paradise on earth for them, moving in a small town has its trouble, where the majority of the townfolks are all right with them being gay, there is still someone who is not so welcoming. But all in all this subplot is not so strong and in first line, and above all the story is about Joe and Ed's evolution from lovers to partners. Due to that, the book is also quite sexy, and it's nice to see how their lovemaking changes with them, more they become intimate and more the sex does the same. Still, in a way or the other, it's pretty detailed but not "acrobatic", the feeling of the novella is more sweet than erotic.

http://www.loose-id.com/prod-Cultivating_Love-972.aspx

Amazon Kindle: Cultivating Love

Reading List:

http://www.librarything.com/catalog_bottom.php?tag=reading list&view=elisa.rolle

Comments

[addisonalbright.livejournal.com]

Thank you, Elisa! I'm glad you liked the story. :-)

[elisa-rolle.livejournal.com]

You are welcome Addison. It was a very nice novella. Elisa

[bean-montag.livejournal.com]

I've been interested in reading this since Loose Id sent the ad out, but... and of course this would not have an effect on my decision to purchase the book since it's really only the content I am interested in... but! That cover. Ew. What is with the guy on the left? His arm looks huge, and then his head is so tiny and it looks old for some reason. Even the guy on the right seems to know what I am talking about, his expression is clearly confused.

Other than that silliness, I'm glad to see a book with two leads who are more "manly" (for lack of a better word) in personality. After a while, all the adorable snuggling and constant declarations of love that permeate m/m fiction make me itch. :\

[elisa-rolle.livejournal.com]

Yes the guy behind is not exactly "handsome", and sincerely he doesn't match any of the two men in the book. But not all the covers come out perfect. Elisa

[tc-blue.livejournal.com]

*laughs* Seriously, the cover for "Life or Something Scary Like That"?

I hate it with a fiery passion. Neither of the guys on it look anything like the characters. LOL

Sometimes the author isn't given a choice. Chances are, that's what happened with Addison's book. *nods*

I'm considering doing a poll of authors on the subject, really. It'd be interesting to see the results. LOL

~Tis

[addisonalbright.livejournal.com]

Aww, I'm actually kinda happy with this cover. Although you are correct, it would have been tough noogies if I didn't like it. ;) I did get to preview a proof before the final to check it for stuff like hair and eye color and anything that would be completely inconsistent with their descriptions in the story.

Although these two cover models are not what I had personally pictured for the story characters (and apparently not what Elisa was picturing, either), they're not really inconsistent with the descriptions in the story. I don't go into any more than basic body build, hair, and eye color, so there's really quite a bit of leeway in how a reader can imagine them to look. I'd say the guy on the left here is probably a little more musclebound than 'Joe' is described to be, but otherwise...

I thought they were rather hunky, too!

[elisa-rolle.livejournal.com]

You are right Addison, it all depends on how the reader build the hero in her mind. In the book you said that Joe is muscular and handsome... I have an image of him, and the guy on the left doesn't match with that image, but it's my perception, my mind. Basically the cover is not so bad, Croco Design does good covers, maybe it's only a question of personal taste. Elisa

[elisa-rolle.livejournal.com]

BTW the same cover for "Life or Something Scary Like That" was on a Lethe Press book, Chemistry. And they came out more or less in the same period. Probably the stock photo website put new photos out and cover artists grabs them.

BUT, both your book, Tis, than Addison's one, are very nice, and I encourage people to read them despite the covers. Elisa