I'm well overdue to write this review, but I thought Out of Frame was a solid read. While the reality show wasn't really my cup of tea, I enjoyed the characters and the overall storyline. I went in expecting an angsty book, but I ended up appreciating the lighter tone quite a bit.

Quinn Mathers has always been shy and lives life on the sidelines. He has overbearing parents and can’t help but think through the consequences of every action before making a move. But now he is headed out on a cruise for Spring Break with his best friend, Jess, and Quinn is determined to let loose and have fun. The fact that his celebrity crush, J.R. Butler, is on board filming with his reality show, Trip League, doesn’t hurt things either.

J.R. has dreams of being an actor and signed on almost a year ago with Trip League, hoping it would lead to his big break. J.R. took the advice of his agent who told him he must hide the fact that he is bisexual and now J.R. is forced to play straight for the cameras and the fans. It is killing him to keep that part of himself hidden, but with a sick brother in need of expensive medical treatments, J.R. doesn’t see much choice other than to play along and keep his interest in men hidden. It has been working for a while, but after seeing Quinn, J.R. can’t help of dream of a chance to be with the adorable, shy redhead.

As the guys get to know one other better over the course of the trip, the attraction between them continues to flare. Quinn finds himself seeing a softer side to J.R. than the angry man edit he often gets on the show. Seeing what J.R. is really like makes Quinn’s attraction even stronger. And J.R. finds himself falling for Quinn, despite his determination to keep his distance. He knows he can’t let himself fall for Quinn when he must keep his sexuality a secret, and Quinn has no interest in being hidden away. Yet even though both men know being together is a bad idea, the attraction and growing feelings for one another are too strong to ignore. Now they must figure out if they have any hope of being together, or if their relationship is doomed before it really starts.

Out of Frame is the third book in Erickson’s fabulous In Focus series. The first book, Trust the Focus, was one of my top picks of 2015. This story very loosely connects to the other two in that Jess is Colin’s sister from Focus on Me. Colin and Riley make a brief appearance here as they drop off/pick up Jess and Quinn from the ship, and the epilogue features all three series couples, but other than that, this story stands alone completely.

Although this book isn’t technically a road trip story like the other two, it has a similar feel as these guys are locked together on a cruise for the week. We can really feel the tension and attraction between them as they encounter each other over and over, being in close quarters and having trouble fighting their feelings. Erickson sets up a tough conflict here for the guys, as J.R. feels he has no choice but to stay closeted, and Quinn isn’t willing to be a secret boyfriend after getting out of a similar relationship in the past. I liked that not only can we understand what is driving both guys, but they are also so understanding of one another. Despite the impasse they find themselves at, both men are totally supportive of one another. It makes the conflict even more bittersweet and the resolution even more rewarding.

One issue this book handles particularly well is J.R.’s bisexuality. He has long known he was interested in both men and women, but felt pressured to keep it a secret in order to get acting jobs, and now is contractually obligated on the show to “play straight.” Erickson really shows how painful this is for J.R., and how little understanding he gets on the issue. People tell him it is ok because since he likes women too, what difference does it make if he can’t date men? But we can see how much J.R. wants to share who he is instead of feeling ashamed or like it is a big secret. He wants to be open, to be able to tell the people he dates, and to stop pretending. Just partnering with someone of the opposite sex doesn’t erase his desire for the same sex, or the desire to be open about his sexuality. Erickson really does a great job exploring that here.

J.R. is on a reality show that is filming on the boat, so we get some some behind the scenes details about what life is like as a reality show star and can see the emotional toll it takes on J.R., and even on the other cast members. They are each pigeon-holed into their character and it is not an easy experience for any of them. The reality show isn’t a major part of the story in terms of the day-to-day filming, etc, so even if that is not your thing, I think you will still enjoy the book. I did find myself wondering about J.R.’s supposed “celebrity” status, however. Honestly, the vast majority of reality show contestants or performers aren’t even well known, let alone famous celebrities and I couldn’t help but find it odd that J.R. and the gang seem to be household names and that anyone was paying that much attention to what they were doing. I think a little more background on the show and its scope may have helped address that, as I couldn’t help but find it a bit far fetched that these random people were supposedly so famous.

My only real issue here is that I wished I had a better sense for what made J.R. decide now was the time to act on his feelings for a guy. He is immediately attracted to Quinn and almost right away starts thinking about being with him even though he knows he can’t. I get that he is kind of at his wit’s end over this pretending to be straight thing, but he must have been attracted to lots of folks in the past and I didn’t quite get what it was about Quinn specifically that made J.R. willing to finally act. Over time, they get to know one another, and then I could see how their feelings were growing enough to make me understand J.R.’s motivations. But in that time from first sight to actually knowing one another well enough to have real feelings, I felt like I was missing understanding what was making him act after keeping himself away from men for so long.

That issue aside, I found the book to really engaging and such a lovely story. I loved seeing Quinn blossom as he finally gets out of his parents’ overbearing reach. And I loved seeing J.R. let himself have the happiness he deserves. The guys are so great together and the story is romantic, and sexy, and totally entertaining. I really love this series and think Out of Frame is another wonderful installment.

I love Megan's work, and this book is no exception. I loved all the feels this book gave me and loved the steam factor!

Sweet, heartfelt and romantic and sexy!
I loved this book so much! Honestly, is there anything that Megan Erickson will write that I don't love? I don't think so!

3.5 Stars

“It’s exhausting to be aware of consequences for every single action.”

It has been a while since I've read the In Focus series and I almost forgot how much I truly enjoy this series. Megan Erickson always manages to draw me into these sexy and sweet stories. Out Of Frame didn't capture my attention as quickly as the first two books, but it did not take long  for me fall for Quinn and Jay.

"I knew what it was like to be scared of who you were. Scared of people finding out and treating you differently."

The story revolved around Quinn Mathers and Jay Ryan "J.R" Butler. Quinn was was a college senior. Both he and his best friend Jess, decided to enjoy themselves and attend their first spring break trip. The cruise they took featured the cast of the tv show Trip League.

Quinn was gay and out. Quinn was the type of guy that always planned everything out. Between his overprotective parents and his own anxieties, he always thought of all the consequences. He never let himself live in the moment. This trip was his chance to enjoy himself. Plus he would get the chance to meet his crush J.R. 

J.R was one of the stars of Trip League. J.R. had the reputation of being temperamental bad boy of the show, but in the reality Jay was was completely different from his tv alter ego. On the show he was supposed to be in a long term relationship and he was also supposed to be straight. In reality J.R was bisexual and single. Thanks to a (crappy) agent and his own fear, he was scared of what being black and bisexual would do for his budding acting career. So he hid his true self from everyone but his family. 

“Thank you,” I said. “For being the one decision in my life I don’t regret.”

I really enjoyed this story. It was a quick read but Megan wrote it well. I loved seeing the budding friendship between both characters. It was cute how much they clicked. Sure, there was a little bit of insta-love in this story, but honestly I didn't mind it. It was hard not to like and fall for Quinn and Jay. They both had vulnerabilities that were easy to relate to. They gave each other courage and boosted each other's confidence. They never judged one another and I adored that.  I would definitely recommend this book. I'm already looking forward to the next book, Overexposed. It features, Levi (J.R's friend/cast mate), and I loved his character.

Possibly my favorite of all the In Focus series books. The cruise ship setting was so different from the other books. We had a larger cast of characters than before -- not only are there the friends and costars and family members, but there's also an entire ship full of college students. One thing I adore in books is a setting that feels alive. And this one certainly felt alive.

I also loved the fact that one of the heroes (JR) is black. We don't see nearly enough black characters in romance, so this made me so happy. I think Megan Erickson handled writing him quite well -- I could tell there was a sensitivity involved. He wasn't a caricature, and his blackness was also not downplayed so that he seemed white. Thank you, Megan Erickson, for writing such a well fleshed-out black character!

Aside from all of these lovely aspects, the plot itself was wonderful. This wasn't as much of a coming-out story as the first book, nor was it as heavy as book 2. It sat at a nice balance. Things like JR's family issues held a seriousness, while fun side characters and cruise ship TV show antics kept the atmosphere light.

All in all, this was another thoroughly enjoyable read from Megan Erickson.

I found this to be a fun, sweet, and sexy story. This was one of those books that I seemed to like the characters more and more as I read further into the story. By the end of the story, I was cheering for things to work out for Quinn and J.R. which is exactly what I want to happen when I read a romance novel. This book is the third book in the In Focus series but I read it as a stand alone with no difficulty.

Quinn is going on a cruise with his best friend Jess during the last spring break before his college graduation. Quinn has spent his life playing it safe and following the rules. He is looking forward to having fun on this cruise. The cast of a reality TV show, Trip League, is also on the cruise which just adds to the excitement for Jess and Quinn.

J.R. is almost at the end of his contract to be on the reality show, Trip League, and he is ready for it to be over. He signed a contract to be on the show as a straight man and is ready for the show to be over so he can finally be the bisexual man he really is. He is portrayed on the show as a tough guy who is often mean to others but that isn't who he really is in reality. When he sees Quinn on the boat, he can't make himself look away.

I liked Quinn and J.R. together in this book. I thought it was great how they had an instant attraction to each other and how Quinn had been drawn to J.R. just from the television show. I thought that each of these characters seemed stronger together than they did apart. I liked how they were able to open up to each other and seemed to understand each other from the very beginning. The chemistry between them was intense and played out well on the page.

I thought that the reality TV show added an interesting twist to the story. I found the scenes when they were trying to be together but having to hide from the cameras to be well done. I thought it was great how creative they had to be to find time to be together and the fact that friends helped it happen was even better.

I would recommend this one to fans of m/m romance. I don't tend to read a lot of m/m romance but I have enjoyed the ones that I have picked up. This was a very well done story and I wouldn't hesitate to read more books written by Megan Erickson in the future.

I received an advance reader edition of this book from Berkley Publishing Group - InterMix via NetGalley.