Review: Jesse’s Diner by Cardeno C.

Title: Jesse’s Diner (Hope Collection)

Author: Cardeno C.

Publisher: Self-Published

Pages/Word Count: 112 Pages

At a Glance: What I loved most about this story was its simplicity. Right to the point, no angst, no miscommunication. Just two people finding love and companionship for all the right reasons.

Reviewed By: Lynn

Blurb: Two men with a shared history and a mutual attraction must be honest with themselves and each other so both their dreams come true.

Quiet, unassuming Tanner Sellers spends his time running a diner in Hope, Arizona. Not particularly social, twenty-two-year-old Tanner keeps to himself and enjoys his simple life, but he longs for someone to call his own. In his most secret fantasy, that someone is sexy Steve Faus. But Steve is his friend’s father and mentor’s widower and therefore off-limits.

Despite some challenges, thirty-nine-year-old Steve Faus has had a good life. He’s extremely successful at work, has a great relationship with his college-age son, and lives in a wonderful town. Eighteen months after losing his partner, the one thing Steve lacks is someone to share his life. If Steve is honest with himself, that someone is the young man he has known and cared about for years. Steve and Tanner want one another, all they need is a little push in the right direction to make both their dreams come true.

Review: I’ve loved everything I’ve read by this author and Jesse’s Diner was no exception. What a great story.

After reading the blurb I wasn’t too sure I wanted to read this. With the age difference and the love interest being the main character’s best friend’s dad, I didn’t think it would be something that interested me. I found myself coming back to it, rereading the blurb. Because I’ve loved reading this author in the past, I decided what the hell. I’m so happy I did.

What I loved most about this story was its simplicity. Right to the point, no angst, no miscommunication. Just two people finding love and companionship for all the right reasons. I thought I would have a problem with the age difference between the characters, but the author did such a great job with making them equals that age was never an issue.

Being in Tanner’s head throughout the entire story was a real treat. His humor, insecurities and overall amazement about actually being in a relationship with Steve was hilarious, especially when they are intimate for the first time. Tanner’s inner ramblings will stay with me for a long time. Too funny! And since there was so much dialogue between the two characters, I never felt as though I was missing the other person’s perspective.

Along with the lightness and humor, there were some somber moments. Steve’s late partner, Jesse, is part of the story even though he’s not there physically. We get a little insight into their relationship and see how Tanner first came into their lives. We’re also thrown for a loop, at least I was, with Steve’s big reveal. I’m not one to give away spoilers, so I won’t start now, but I thought the subject was handled amazingly well. I liked how the author touched on the issue a little bit then moved on. To me, it felt like a very realistic scenario in today’s world.

As I’m reading this story and loving everything about it, there’s a huge announcement at the end that made my heart melt. It made me love this story even more. Again, no spoilers. You’ll just have to read it yourself and find out. I can promise you, you won’t be disappointed.