Eyes Only for You

*** Copy provided to Bayou Book Junkie by Dreamspinner Press in exchange for a fair and honest review.***

This is Andrew Grey's Book 2 in the Eyes of Love series. It can be read as a standalone but Book 1 was really good and, for the most part, characters are reoccurring so do yourself a favor and read Book 1 first!

In this book, Jerry (who was introduced in Book 1) spends his time working as a realtor, working out at the gym and hanging with his friends. Jerry loves women and doesn't understand his body's reaction to his friend Marcello. Marcello is part of Jerry's group of friends who like to hang out together and work out together. Marcello has a crush on Jerry, which is just par for the course for him. Marcello has a history of falling for the wrong men and it's not the first time he's fallen for a straight man. Marcello and Jerry start spending more time together, until neither of them can deny their attraction.

I didn't love this book as much as the first one, but it was still really good. I had trouble connecting with Jerry and Marcello. In Book 1, Jerry was not portrayed well at the end, so it made it hard for me to like him and believe that he would be attracted to a man. Also, something that threw me off, in Book 1, Jerry had a younger sister that he was overly protective about. The scene involving Jerry's sister was pretty important in Book 1. In Book 2, Jerry is an only child so I spent too much time focused on that. Additionally, I was a little distracted by Phillip missing from this book. He was part of the group of guys who worked out, and he was really active in Book 1, then nothing in Book 2 and I liked his character.

In this book, we see both characters grow. They both become stronger and more confident in who they are. They're able to make their stand to each other's parents and their own which helps further their relationship. When it comes down to it, they are exactly what the other needs and are able to work through their issues to make a relationship together.

Rating: 4 stars

3 1/2 Hearts Reviewed by Prime

I’m going to start by the outset. I love Andrew Grey. I love his writing style and I love the characters that he creates, weaving them into relatable situations that keep you glued to the screen or page. If I see an Andrew Grey book that I’ve, Heaven forbid, missed, I will go and devour that quick smart.

Eyes Only for You is one of those books that have slipped through the cracks for me. In fact, I also missed the first book in the series, Eyes Only for Me, but luckily this sequel works perfectly fine as a standalone book. However, for those that read the first book, you’ll probably be pleased to hear that Ronnie and Clay (yes, I went to read about what I missed while writing this review) do make a number of appearances throughout the book. Overall, this was an enjoyable book. I think because it was written by Andrew Grey that leaves me more disappointed than a normally would be for a book like this.

The story is about Marcello and Jerry. The story is relatively simple. Jerry has never acted on his attraction to men before, but one day he just cannot hold back, especially after his break with a woman. Marcello is Jerry’s work out buddy and despite knowing that the man is straight he finds himself intensely attracted to him. The biggest problems for these guys – Jerry remaining in the closest (his family aren’t particularly nice) and Marcello being in a near identical situation in his previous relationship. Marcello also has challenging parents but they are now more accepting of their son’s sexuality than Marcello realized.

The storyline is one that hooks me, even ignoring the fact that Andrew Grey wrote the book. However, the words on the page didn’t quite catch me. OK, so this is difficult to explain. But to me there were a number of chapters where key events happened and I really enjoyed. Then in between them there was… well, there were chapters that I found just a tad boring, they felt like they were just filling in words and conversation that didn’t feel relevant. And, man, was that disappointing because I wanted to love everything about this book and give it an enthusiastic 5 stars.

That was my biggest issue I had while reading this. Other issues that I had with the book are primarily centered around the fact that the first few chapters were slow and didn’t feel like they were going anywhere (they were part of the filler chapters I talked about a few sentences ago). I think it was in this set up that I also found it hard to actually like Jerry. Don’t get me wrong, I eventually did as he had his “Gay for You” epiphany and just what Marcello truly meant to him, but at first he was not an easy person to like.

As I said earlier, because I love Andrew Grey’s books, I set my expectations very high for this book. This is primarily for people that like a gay for you romance.

Reviewed by Tammy for Love Bytes/Same Sex Romance Reviews.

Marcello and Jerry have worked out together nearly every day at their local gym. Along with their other friends they try to work out together every day then go out to dinner when they can. The gym is a central part of their lives as not only their work out place but their social hub.
Marcello has had an enormous crush on Jerry since he first laid eyes on him even though he knows nothing will ever happen because Jerry is straight, he has managed to sleep his way through nearly every single woman at the gym plus most of the women on the periphery. Jerry is kind-of aware that Marcello might look at them a bit longer than is normal but he’s never thought anything of it until one night whilst they’re at dinner Jerry’s homophobic father decides to have a go at the majority of his friends because they’re all either gay or bi. Jerry is more than aware of the way his father thinks but that doesn’t mean he agrees! After being assured none of his friends blame him for his father’s views Jerry gets to give Marcello a hug goodbye and now he can’t stop thinking about him.
Marcello has always been completely open and honest with the fact that he is gay, he came out to his parents when he was a teenager yet, to this day his parents persist in believing he just hasn’t met the right girl. Marcello really only has his best friend Maureen to talk to about his feelings for Jerry, because she is well aware of Marcello’s history with choosing the wrong man she strongly urges him to forget Jerry and find an actual gay man!
Because Jerry can’t stop thinking about Marcello he makes the decision to spend more time with him to get to know him better but that backfires when Marcello makes it clear he wants Jerry and Jerry has to make up his own mind about what he wants. What no-one knows is that Jerry’s father has started pressuring him to quit real estate and join him in his automotive business, the only thing wrong with that is Jerry isn’t as into cars as his father is! Jerry honestly can’t work out what’ gotten into his father he’s always wanted things his way but this is ridiculous, he’s showing up at Jerry’ place out of the blue almost like he’s trying to catch him doing something he shouldn’t. There are more confrontations the closer he gets to Marcello but things come to a head when Marcello is beaten up and left for dead one night after he went for a run. Jerry doesn’t leave his side while Marcello recovers in hospital and when Jerry comes to the realization of just how much Marcello means to him he makes the momentous decision that he has to tell his parents regardless of his father’s reaction.
Eyes Only for You is an emotional roller-coaster for Marcello and Jerry whilst they try to develop a new relationship and still have their respective family’s love and support. It’s just lucky for both men that they have such good friends to lean on when it looked like everything was falling apart. Yet another heartwarming love story from Andrew Grey and yes you will need to keep your tissues handy!!

Reviewed by Meredith for Diverse Reader

So this is a sequel to Eyes Only For Me which I didn't realize. It's not a bad thing! It's a sequel, yes, but it's also a standalone. The MC's are different.
I'd put this book half in the friends to lovers category and half in the gay for you category. Marcello and Jerry are best friends and Marcello, who is openly gay, has been secretly pining for Jerry. He doesn't want to ruin their friendship by making any sort of advance so for a while there he's lusting from afar.
Jerry is, to everyone's knowledge, straight. But he does see Marcello in more than a friendship kind of way. Jerry has a lot of confusion going on in his head. Of course it absolutely makes Marcello crazy. Jerry is really scared and he's fighting an internal battle that makes for a serious push and pull game between these MC's. Not to mention Jerry is also dealing with his father and the business he doesn't want.

I loved Marcello's almost take charge attitude it amped things up tremendously in a super hot way.

I enjoyed this book. It was hot and frustrating and sweet. Also quite romantic. Many things that make an Andrew Grey book great!

Wow. That sums up my reaction to Andrew Grey’s “Eyes Only For You,” even after reading it twice. The romance is stronger in this book that some other Andrew Grey stories and the sex is frequent and scorching hot. Do you need to know more? Well, if so, here goes…
Marcello is a member of a small group of men who work out at a gym, sometimes together, sometimes in pairs. Marcello is gay but has so far been unable to find a man with whom he can have a stable, loving relationship. He has his eye on (sometimes literally, sometimes figuratively) his best friend Jerry. Jerry the straight guy. Jerry the guy he doesn’t want to risk destroying a friendship with. Oh, what to do, what to do.
Jerry is a real estate agent who has a successful career going on and wants to develop it even farther. So, what’s standing in his way? His own father, who built a small business and has dreams of handing it down to Jerry, and Jerry wants no part of it. Jerry has dated women but notices men, particularly his gym buddy Marcello. The desire is there but not the willingness to act on it. He knows his parents will not accept Jerry coming out as gay and he’s not sure he even accepts it himself.
Much of the story is Jerry dancing around his own sexual identity, which confuses Marcello as much as it confuses Jerry. There is a lot of yen and yang, push and pull, desire and fear, especially for Jerry. Jerry is carrying quite a burden, between his father’s demands concerning Jerry’s career and Jerry’s attraction to Marcello. When Marcello gets Jerry alone and whispers secret longings that Jerry can’t deny, the action gets hot, then hotter.
So, the question becomes, will Sal (Jerry’s father) continue to rule Jerry’s private and public life or will Jerry stand up to Sal at the risk of making a permanent fracture between father and son that perhaps cannot ever be mended. In other words, will Jerry have to make a choice between Marcello and his family? It’s an Andrew Grey romance so you can imagine what happens but watching it play out is worth every page turned, every heartache, every concern that this time, maybe Mr. Grey has written a story without is usual HEA.
I recommend this book, and the one that precedes it, “Eyes Only for Me” so highly. Either book can be read as a stand alone but I’m betting that if you read one you will want to read the other.