Another winner from Bardsley, His style shifts and adapts with each book and character set, but it's always uniquely Bardsley.

ღ´¨)
¸.•´¸.•*´¨) ¸.•*¨)
(¸.•´ (¸.•` ღ When there was no other way...

I cried inwardly throughout the second half of this book and thought once again, this freaking author is slowly making his way into my heart. Ralph writes front the heart, his soul deeply embedded in the words he churns out. As with The Photographer's Truth, the sexual tension was high, the chemistry there, but never made it on the pages, and that enhanced the development of the book. Not all books need that on page interaction to be considered steamy.

The author took us on a journey of alternate parallels. There was Stephen and his best friend Travis. Together forever, people started classing them as one. When Stephen discovered Travis's secret, he made it his passion to support his friend through thick and thin. But Travis had another secret, one he tried to keep from Stephen, one that kept him hostage even as he tried to find happiness.

One gay, one straight. Both uncertain in life and love. Separated for four years, they come together again after college. Travis needed to be the best, and demanded the best. Unfortunately, it came with an abusive partner. Stephen, as the years went on, found himself on the receiving end of a man's affection. Even though he had always denied his sexuality, this friendship grew, sweet and perfect; whereas Travis's was going from ten to zero. When Travis cired out: "How come you get all of this? You didn’t even want this. You weren't even supposed to be gay," I felt raw with his emotions.

The author was deep and expressive in his words, taking the reader through life and love, exacting oppositions and keeping everyone on edge. Questions arose, thoughts expressed and why, oh why would you stay in such a situation...why would you not speak up...why would you allow someone you love to suffer just because they asked you to? Inwardly, you cringe and yell, but the story was so real, you could not put it down.

As relationships go, Travis and Benson was the total opposite of Stephen and his partner Gabe. It was Gabe who was always pushing for Travis to come forward, to get out. In the end, it was Gabe who got the last word, to the detriment of his soul.

I am a fan of Ralph Josiah Bardsley and as long as he churns out such heartrendering, fantastic and doable books, I will be reading.

I voluntarily and honestly reviewed this book without bias or persuasion from Netgalley

A Careful Heart is a good and solid story that held my attention from the beginning up to the end, well written, with love to detail.
I can't say this was a romance book. It was more the story of a friendship than that of a relationship.
This was a well written book about family, life, love and love lost. It is written with emotion and caring for the characters. A page turner.
I would recommend to friends

This is my first Bardsley book; I'm still not quite sure how to grade it.

A Careful Heart is the story of two best friends, Travis and Stephen, as they mature from boys to men. The story details their lives at significant age milestones, but the novel is mostly focused on their romantic relationships they form once the graduate from school. Early on it's clear that Travis is gay, but Stephen's sexuality is less obvious. Only after Stephen meets and falls in love with the third MC of this story, Gabe, do we come to understand he's bisexual, or more specifically, demisexual.

The tender, loving relationship between Gabe and Stephen provides a sharp contrast to the romantic relationship that eventually develops between Travis and his co-worker (and superior) Benson, the fourth MC in this story. Though the story continues to jump between the PoV's of Travis, Stephen and Gabe - it transitions from individual stories to one about relationships and the choices and compromises we all make for the ones we love, and the effect those decisions have on our daily lives. It's gritty, moving and frustrating - but joyful too.

I liked the writing and pacing of the book (three PoV's and a story that unfolds over the life of the MCs friendship with each other), and I admire Mr. Bardsley's deft and sympathetic approach to a difficult situation one of the MCs faces in the second half. However. This book is marketed as a romance, and though there are romantic parts, it's designation is misleading and in my opinion - wrong.

So, despite the quality of the story and writing, it didn't meet my most basic expectation for a romance novel - a happily ever after for the main characters. Based on that criteria -which is how and I why I opted to read it - this book doesn't work for me. It's a well written and good book - just not the one it purports to be.

Apologies, but I could not get into this title at all.

This story spans over quite a long time period, friends and where their lives lead them, the choices they make - not always good ones. The story touches some hard issues, trust and friendship are strong themes through this story.

After finishing the book, I went to look at reviews on Goodreads like I always do and came across a great review from Fabi https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/1939629415?book_show_action=true

The review started with a sentence that I think sums up the book perfectly "This is not a romance novel. This is a story about love."

The book is centred on various relationships; romantic, friendship, family (both positive and negative) and done with great care.

I have to admit that at times I did struggle with understanding which direction the book was heading (especially in the first 30%) and the introduction of characters that at first seemed they were going to be important and then we never saw again. However it was well written and engaging enough to keep reading through those times.

I can't say this was a romance book. It was more the story of a friendship than that of a relationship. Don't get me wrong. There was not one but two relationships in the book, it just felt to be more about the friendship between Stephen and Travis and the way it changed over the years.

The book was slow to pick up but once it did the pages went flying!

We start with the main characters' first day in high school and we follow them all through college, graduation, first apartment, first jobs, relationships....

We don't get many details for each milestone in their lives and as a result we don't get to know the characters very much. I would have liked either more pages (although it had a good length) or less things happening to the characters so we could focus more on the things that did happen.

The ending left me wanting something more. It was pretty open and left room for the reader to decide (or wonder) what happened eventually to the lives of the characters.

So far it looks like I'm complaining about the book but I'm really not. I liked it a lot especially because it was so different.

As I said already it was the story of a friendship between two men who were like brothers. They grew up in neighbouring houses and were constantly together even though they were so different. Travis was social and wanted to be the center of attention where Stephen was quiet and awkward with crowds.

They went to different colleges but kept their friendship alive. What distance couldn't do through the four years they lived away from each other, an abusive relationship was able to do it. Travis and Stephen's friendship began to suffer and they grew apart. Travis was closing in on himself, he grew distant and mainly isolated himself. He essentially lost himself and became a totally different person losing his love for the spotlight.

The horror of Travis' poisonous relationship becomes more apparent in contrast with Stephen's loving and respecting one.

Stephen had a wonderful relationship with Gabe, even though before him he didn't think he was attracted to men. We see them getting to know each other and slowly falling in love. Gabe was very considerate and patient with Stephen and never pushed him to go faster than he was comfortable with. Stephen worked through the new things he discovered about himself at his pace and even though it took some time for them to become a couple their relationship and their connection were great.

Gabe's relationship with his father was an amazing one. His "Da" was understanding, supporting and always there for him. He loved him unconditionally and his actions showed that.

I give it four stars and I recommend it as a read but you need to keep in mind that this is not a primarily romance book.

*An ARC of this book was kindly provided to me by the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.*

Not quite what I was expecting but still a great story overall, I would check out this author again.

How in the world am I going to review this?

In a word: POWERFUL

This is not a romance novel. This is a story about love. There are some beautiful relationshops and there are some ugly relationships in this story. But you won't find any of the typical romance tropes or even any on-page steamy scenes.

If I had to categorize it, I'd say it falls under Women's Lit. Except that it's not Women's Lit. It is a intent and shocking view into the lives of four gay men.

The story starts when two friends are very young and follows them as they grow up and become adults. We see them mature. We follow in their steps as they aquire knowledge about themselves along the way.

I have to admit that once we moved on from the early years of their lives, I was completely enthralled by Stephen and Travis. I couldn't seem to get enough of them. I had a very difficult time putting this book down to live my life because I wanted to keep reading about theirs.

The overriding theme of the story is love. Love between friends. Love between families. Love between partners. It's not a happy story even though there are happy parts to their lives. It has a melancholy overtone and even a few gut-twisting reveals.

Again, the word at the forefront of my mind as I finished reading was POWERFUL.
"...he would never be able to repay the kindness of helping him to find a new normal."

This is my first look at this author's work. I am IMPRESSED.

A Careful Heart 5 stars

Detailed read told in a very natural way.

Best friends for life Travis and Stephen spend all their time together. After college
they even hire an apartment together in Boston. They are opposite Travis the
extrovert and Stephen the introvert. In this story you will find constant confirmation
about this fact.

It's kind of funny to have different feelings about main personalities. Do I like Travis?
Sometimes I don't. Do I like Stephen? Mostly I do, but sometimes I want to grab him
and shake him.
But they are honest as they are. Further in this story you will feel more and more
committed to them.

Then there is Gabe lovely redhead Gabe...a Boston Cop....he is definitely on
Stephen when they meet for the first time. It's at a gay bar Travis wanted to go and he can't get over it that Gabe has only eyes for Stephen .... Stephen who never had a relation with a guy.

After exchanging mobile numbers Stephen is not responding on calls from Gabe...
After a week he gives a reaction and they finally have a date...no..no.. so not a date :)

Stephen is confused about his feelings...he really really likes Gabe a lot. And staring
in each other eyes is something he never done before...with a guy. It's distinctly
going very natural.
Their relationship is blossoming and going steady more and more.
For the once who are curious...you will only read some kissing

Travis falls for Benson, senior executive at work, wealthy, handsome and it looks he
has it all together... only Benson isn't as nice as he pretends to be. Travis is in denial....

At 50% something is changing....bad....Not at once.... but slowly slipping in.
The turn in this story will give you bad shivers. I didn't see it coming...

Without giving away the story I want to say the personalities were well put down,
convincing, with there own character traits. You will not love everybody but that's just
how life goes...

A delicate read with finesse in it. It's consistent and steady. The essence of the story was original. It's detailed and extended in a pleasant way. Good flowing sentences
with feelings and tension coming of the pages. Some chapters will grab you by your
heart because of the reality.

I really want to recommend this story as a #mustread

A beautiful title "A Careful Heart" !!

- A copy received from Netgalley given by Publisher -

A finely crafted, wonderful story; it touched my heart in all the right places.

A Careful Heart is the first book I’ve read by Ralph Josiah Bardsley and what a wonderful introduction to his writing! I’m not sure if this will make any sense but I’d compare this to any of the best women’s fiction stories I’ve ever read by authors such as Kristan Hannah or Robyn Carr just to name a couple. The thing is this isn’t women’s fiction, it’s an LGBTQIA story that spans several decades.

Travis Gaines and Stephen Davis grew up together in a small northern New Hampshire town and they’ve been best friends forever. After a sporting event Stephen sees Travis kissing another boy. He’s not horrified and Travis knows he won’t tell what he’s seen.

As time goes by the two best friends go to different colleges and Travis gets a chance to stretch his wings as a young gay man. Stephen falls in love with a girl at his school and things are still great between the two best friends even though they are both changing and growing into their adult selves.

Stephen is heart broken when his girlfriend breaks up with him and Travis tries to console him. After graduation Stephen and Travis move in together and begin their adult lives in Boston.

To say much more would give away too much of the story. I felt this story down to my very soul and I cried many tears as I read certain portions. I normally read only romance stories with my current preference being for M/M books. I picked this one up based on the description and I’m so glad that I did.

It’s a wonderful coming of age; new adult; family relationship; finding one's self story all rolled up together. It’s also a heartbreaking story about how two different young men with similar backgrounds make such different choices and how the consequences of those choices affect both of them.

I absolutely couldn’t put this book down once I started reading it and found myself totally engrossed and captivated by the story to the point that I read way into the early hours of morning so that I could finish it.

There is no way my review can do this book justice but I hope you will give it a try anyway. There is little to no sexual content in this story but that’s because it’s not about the sex; it’s about a wonderful, enduring friendship and the different paths taken by two best friends.

I would definitely read more books from this author.

A review copy was provided by the publisher via NetGalley but this did not influence my opinion or rating of the book.

Loved the story, characters, attention to Boston detail. I would want to be friends with these characters in life.

I've loved the other books I've read from Ralph Josiah Bardsley, so I was excited to get my hands on this book. But, for me, it didn't live up to the other two previous books by the author. Where the other books were interesting and held me captive from the moment I picked them up, I struggled to get through this book. I found it was slow and the writing was choppy. Some scenes felt unfinished. Something major would take place in the story and suddenly it was a year or two into the future with no closure to what had previously happened.


I do applaud the author for tackling the sensitive subject of domestic abuse, especially domestic abuse in same-sex couples. This portion of the story was well-written, but not overly graphic. Although, if this is a trigger for you, you may want to skip this story.

I'll be perfectly honest and say, I think the wrong characters ended up together. It's not how I wanted it. I kept waiting for the characters I wanted together to realize they were perfect for each other and I was sad to never see it come to fruition. I walked away unsatisfied, frustrated and a bit heartbroken. I'm sorry to say it wasn't an enjoyable read. Still, I look forward to seeing what the author has in store for us in the future.

*Copy provided to me via NetGalley for my reading pleasure, a review wasn’t a requirement.*

Although this story is primarily about best friends, Stephen and Travis, it is also very much Gabe and Benson’s story. In fact, the story starts in Gabe’s point-of-view, something that took me by surprise initially, but as the story progressed he became my favorite character.

This story spans decades, from high school when Stephen walks in on his friend Travis making out with Danny, through to graduating, getting jobs, living together as roommates, and their subsequent relationships – Stephen with Gabe, Travis with Benson.

During their time at high school, Stephen falls head over heels for Melissa and experiences his first heartbreak when things don’t work out. I found it curious that everyone except Stephen himself suspected he was gay. It takes a chance meeting with the enigmatic Gabe for that to change. I loved these two together. Their relationship developed at a believable pace.

Travis has always known he was gay, and even though he owns it, he often comes across as a very defensive character, running hot and cold toward his best friend. Something that irked me a time or two. That aside, Travis eventually becomes involved with his work colleague Benson/Benny and then the story enters into one of domestic abuse, denial, forgiveness, going back, leaving etc.
I won’t say the outcome of all of this, but Gabe’s part in it all is unexpected. All I can say is Travis was extremely lucky to have two such caring people in his life.

***

So while the above sounds great, the biggest issue I had with this story was the abundance of telling, something the huge time jumps didn’t help with. While I’m no stranger to a story leap-frogging ahead, this one does it in leaps and bounds, omitting vital details so the reader has to fill-in the blanks. For example; near the end of one chapter Benson proposes to Travis, the very next chapter is a year later. Considering the volatile relationship between them that’s a vital time period to gloss over. Likewise, farther on, the heading 2013 is followed by a short chapter ‘telling’ the reader of events from the previous night, a flip of a page and bang its 2014!

Verdict – kudos to the author for tackling a topic that needs more page time. Domestic abuse is never okay and this story showcased that it’s a very real issue, and can happen in any relationship, regardless of gender or sexual orientation.

Warning : Even though most of the abuse goes on behind the scenes and is more mentioned than anything, I still want to inform the reader. Possible triggers include Domestic Violence.

This isn't a romance story as much as it is a story about two boys, Travis and Stephen, that have known each other their whole lives. We get follow them throughout years of friendship as they navigate through high school, college, employment and relationships. Whether there is a physical and/or an emotional distance between them, we get to see how it affects the individual as well as the dynamics of their friendship. We not only get to know Travis and Stephen, but their family and friends as well. In time, we are introduced to Gabe, whose life eventually crosses their path.

Once the trio meets, I feel that Travis and Stephen's friendship starts to grow apart while things between Stephen and Gabe move closer together. Thus, feeling that the POV weighs heavily with Stephen, followed by Gabe IMO.

There were two areas that bothered me in the story, and here they are:

1. There is point in the story between Gabe and Stephen where I thought the author would slightly mention Stephen's first time. Especially, after Gabe explains how his was special and in turn wants to do the same for him. Yet, that is all that is mentioned. I can only assume that his first time was that night and that Gabe did his best to make it memorable for him.

2. While the author seems to wrap everything up pretty nicely in the end with Travis's HFN and Stephen and Gabe's moving in with one another; he does not in fact let us know if either Travis and/or Stephen received a promotion at their jobs. The only one that did receive a promotion in all that time is Gabe.

Side Note: All sexy times happen behind the scenes.

I am one of many reviewers at Gay Book Reviews and can be found here: http://gaybook.reviews/author/steph/

I received an ARC of this book via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

As much as I loved this author's first book, this one was not my cup of tea at all.
It was a bit tedious to read. There was a lot more showing than telling, it was long-winded and sloooow. Because of this, I had a hard time getting into it and got to a point at which I didn't care what happened, as long as it happened quickly (or at all).

I don't usually think of me as someone who needs a point to a book to enjoy it, but the detailed descriptions of nothing really happening got to me here.

3,5 stars rounded up

A Careful Heart is a good and solid story that held my attention from the beginning up to the end, well written, with love to detail and melancholic elegance.

Not your typical MM Romance: though it is a love story, you won't find any sex scenes here. Sex happens but out of pages.

It is in the first place a novel about deep friendship and the power of love.

Two close friends—Travis Gaines and Stephen. Whereas Stephen is rather shy and very reserved, Travis is extroverted and communicative, but despite all the differences, they are the best friends - more like brothers - and they are inseparable.

A Careful Heart is a story of their friendship, their supportive families, their profound connections to each other, their life experiences, bad and good, and how they learn to be honest to themselves and their feelings. The author shows us their lives through high school, college, beginning of working careers and adulthood. From childhood to maturity, through thick and thin.

There is an interesting way of telling the story: Ralph Josiah Bardsley shows it from different points of view. The focus is not steadily set on only one characters, it flows between characters.

The book starts a bit slow but gains on pace through the story. The last part is full of surprises and an unexpected turn at then end can let us consider almost a change of a genre!

I mostly enjoyed the part that told the love story of Stephen und Gabe and the dynamic of their relationship. Moreover, Gabe became my favorite MC, though he is rather a main secondary characters in this book.

All in all, it is a good written, emotional and engaging novel. I think I would have enjoyed A Careful Heart much more if I had fallen for the main characters too, but despite I was invested in their story, I didn’t feel this deep connection to them that makes a good written interesting book to a 5 star reading experience.