Forever & Ever - A Collection of Stories

¸.•´¸★*´¨) ¸.•*¨)
(¸.★¨*.¸¸.•`★¤Faith, Love & Devotion¤★¨*.¸¸.*ˑ˞★

It's been almost eight years [February 18, 2011] to be exact when I discovered Tere Michaels and her ability to churn out realistic, human feelings in a book that introduced Evan, a recently widowed, straight cop, and disgraced, ousted cop Matt. It was an attraction that grew into love with all the trails and tribulations of outing, blending lives and making a family. These two men overcame so much over six books, introducing friends who became family and proving that with hard work, love and devotion, what seemed impossible was possible.

For this book, Forever and Ever, I think I needed it to stave my appetite at how book six was wrapped up. Though happy ever after, pieces were missing and in this book, the reader get to travel beyond the happy ever after to see the friends and family as they move on with life. Illnesses, marriages, even a secret one, babies, and more babies. There was talk of retirement and moving on from what was to what will be. Through it all, the gang held each other's hands, were there through thick, thin and triumphs. I will forever hold this one near and dear as finality rang out with "The End." Yes, there is more stories that can be had, but why mess with brilliance?

I voluntarily and honestly reviewed this book without bias or persuasion from Dreamspinner Press
Reviewed by Cee from Alpha Book Club

Reviewed by Jenn for Diverse Reader

I have read this series since the beginning and it’s a big part of what cemented my love of this genre. Evan, Matt, and the entire Cerelli/Haight family and friends that became family are so special to me. This book that is comprised of short stories following this family through the years reads like a love letter to the fans of this series. It is filled with so much heart and love, I read this whole book with a bit of tears in my eyes.

If you haven’t read this series, it starts out with Matt and Evan. Both men are straight and both have seemingly hit rock bottom. As they grow as friends, a spark begins to ignite. Both are shocked and not sure what to do about these new found feelings. They both mess up...a lot at times. Evan has four kids who have lost their mother and now he wants to bring Matt into their lives. He’s so afraid of hurting his family and Matt has no experience with children. This is where it all begins. This journey takes us on to meet friends of the guy’s and to get their stories. As I said above, these friendships develop into a huge extended family. We get to see everyone up to about 20 years from where Matt and Evan began and it is amazing!

There is a line in the book that I can’t directly quote because of language. It’s basically “Thank you for this amazing family” and I feel that so much. Thank you, Tere Michaels for this amazing family. Thank you for giving us this glimpse into the lives of this family. You have made me laugh and cry with this series. With each book, I fell more in love with the Cerelli/Haight family. You created something beyond special with this series, you didn’t just show us two people falling in love. You showed us a new family being built before our eyes. It wasn’t always pretty, but it was always real. I’ll miss this family, this series, but I know they’ll live on in rereads and in my heart.