Happy Gay Friday & Quick Review of Seeing You by Dakota Flint

I’ve finished Seeing You by Dakota Flint this morning and I really enjoyed this angst-filled cowboy romance. It was a short m/m novella (71 pages, but the last 10 pages were only promo’s for other Samhain books). I’ve decided not to write a long review about this quick read but share my thoughts in this Happy Gay Friday post, since it’s a romance about man love.

I also started reading another m/m novella this morning: Upwardly Mobile by Clare London. I can't say much about that yet, because I only read a few pages...

Now, first my weekly cookie (I know you were all waiting for it ;))

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Seeing You is featuring some hot and hurting cowboys. Dylan and Wade are dealing with some serious grief and guilt. Dylan's brother Simon was Wade's lover and has been killed in an accident over a year ago. Dylan couldn't handle his brother's death and his non-platonic feelings for Wade and left. But now he's back at Wade's ranch after a cry for help from his sister because Wade has been neglecting himself and the ranch.

This storyline screams for tissues and yes, they were needed, because Ms. Flint knows how to wrench your heart every now and then. It’s not too overwhelming imo, just well done. It makes this story one that’s more centered on emotions and feelings than on lust and hot scenes. Although I have no complaints in that department, because the love scenes were sexy as hell, with good foreplay (in one there’s a mud fight involved). I just liked it that the men knew they had to deal with their grief and hurt first and give Simon a place in their future lives.
Their love for Simon was honored and not devalued to make way for their new relationship. I also like it a lot that although there were feelings of lust, lust wasn’t the base for their relationship. They were friends before Wade and Simon became a couple and Dylan had always kept his feelings for Wade a secret. And their relationship just gets a new dimension now.

Dylan knows very well there’s a danger that Wade will see him as a replacement for Simon and therefore tells Wade that he wants him to see him (hence the title). The way Wade finally shows Dylan that he does see him, is very, very sweet and well found by Ms. Flint.
Wade’s seducing methods are adding to his character development. He’s kept a little bit in the dark until then. We only know about his angry, stubborn and gruff side, displayed by his dives in the pond to cool off. And I started to wonder what Dylan is or was seeing in him right before his playful side was shown. This limited information we have about Wade and his feelings is due to the fact that the story is told in first person from Dylan’s point of view only. That naturally comes with restrictions but also adds to the palpability of Dylan's own feelings.

One thing that really annoyed me was the sudden ending of the story, especially since I thought I had still a few pages to go, and got bothered with ten pages filled with promo’s for other books instead. It’s not that there wasn’t a clear happy ending, but I was expecting a more elaborate wrap up than I got now. Alas.

Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
Heat level: 2 out of 3 flames

Back Blurb:
Love can be found among the pieces of a broken heart.

The night his brother, Simon, was killed in an accident, Dylan took on a double load of guilt. Guilt for walking away unscathed…and for secretly loving Simon’s partner, Wade. Unable to bear the pain, Dylan left the Lazy G ranch to rebuild his life elsewhere.

A year later he reluctantly responds to his sister’s plea to come home, where he finds the Lazy G falling apart. And so is Wade. Wade has stopped caring about the ranch, about everything that should matter most to him.

Though there’s more ranch work than one man can possibly handle, Dylan throws himself into the task. Wondering how he’s going to find the strength to pull Wade out of the fog of grief when his own is still as raw as a fresh wound. Wondering when Wade will finally see that his second chance for happiness is standing right in front of him.