“It is the dim haze of mystery that adds enchantment to pursuit.” ― Antoine Rivarol
Blaze Shinozuka has recently graduated college and has an audition to play lead guitar for a famous pop star. Blaze is confident in his abilities and he is excited for the opportunity, that is until the man he is auditioning for walks in the room.
Jason Stockton is in a bind and has to replace the lead guitarist for Cassie’s tour since the last guy quit and the tour is set to start soon. When he walks in the room, he is struck in the gut by his attraction to Blaze. Jason tries to keep his face stoic, but he knows that the lust is shining from his eyes.
The two men seem to dance around their attraction until they both give in and start a tentative relationship. Blaze has never been in a relationship before, not with a man or a woman. He knows he has been attracted to men and women equally, but he has never acted on that attraction. Jason picks up on the vibes Blaze is putting out, so he proceeds slowly with Blaze.
It seems Blaze is going to learn the ugly side of the music industry quickly, though. Between being set up for Jason to overhear a comment taken out of context to an untrue announcement made out of spite, Blaze and Jason have to work through some issues if they want to stay together. Then to top all of that off when Blaze tells his parents about Jason, they believe this is only a phase and try setting him up with a woman.
Jason is going through his own learning experiences as well. He finds out that Blaze is still a little confused because he has found himself attracted to women as well. Jason also has some lingering issues with Blaze’s nonchalant attitude with alcohol and drug use.
Along the way the two men realize that they love each other and decide they can overcome any obstacles if they do it together.
This is one book that has left me torn. I absolutely love the premise of this book. I am totally in love with Blaze, but I wish I knew Jason better. I don’t know if this was intentional on the author’s part, but Jason kept pretty quiet about his past. I hope that Jason shares more about himself and his past in the next book because I am completely rooting for these two men.
The author did leave plenty of room for more stories. I am very interested to see if Cassie lets her issues with Blaze and Jason go, and I want to see if the two men will be able to make it work after Blaze goes on the European leg of the tour.
I am just going to have to read the next book to find out, and you can bet I will.
Reviewed by: Jackie
You can buy The Replacement Guitarist here: