Put a Ring on It

When Broadway producer Theo proposes to his boyfriend via a flash mob on Times Square he expects tears and overwhelming happiness. Instead the shell-shocked Kieran, intended groom-to-be, only nods because he sees no way of declining without utterly humiliating everyone involved. Soon it becomes obvious that over-the-moon Theo and reluctantly engaged Kieran will need a lot of communication to make their drastically changing relationship work. Just as they promise each other to not rush anything, Theo’s proposal becomes an internet sensation. When the media interest spirals out of control, and Theo’s friends interfere to stop him from doing something hasty, the musical producer has to admit that he is in over his head. Kieran on the other hand has to decide if he rather goes through with a wedding, he is not read for, or risk losing Theo’s love.
Theo and Kieran are characters who couldn’t be more contrary.
Kieran is your typical down-to-earth person. He is not overly engaged in his job as IT-specialist, even though he’s good at it. He is not ambitious to ascend in his job (or his relationship), but happy with the status quo. There is nothing he despises more than high expectations and over-the-top dramatic gestures in public. So when Theo proposes out of the blue, he can’t help but wonder if his boyfriend is in it for Kieran’s sake or to get a fancy wedding and a stereotypical HEA like in one of his musicals.
If Theo learned one thing from his long history of failed relationships, it is that acting fast is critical in love. Since their very first night he has no doubt that Kieran is the one he wants to spend his life with. Marriage seems like the ultimate dream come true. After his surprise-proposal turned into an internet-sensation he realizes that he cannot single-mindedly focus on archiving his own happiness, but instead has to consider his Kieran’s dreams and wishes, to make a shared future possible.
Favorite Quote:
The warmth of anger in Theo’s stomach felt so much better than the tight fear. “We didn’t discuss it before I asked you to move in. I asked, you were here with a box the next day.”
“My apartment building burned down.” Kieran pushed away from the counter.

Fun but angsty story of how hard it can be to get that ring in place and to keep it there. Sometimes it was almost painful to see the way Theo and Kieran dance around their own insecurities while managing to tromp all over the other guy's. Also, friends can sometimes be the worst part of trying to get things right. I often wondered if they would ever get things right or if it was a set up for something completely differently. It took work but it was worth the battle.

In the spirit of full disclosure, I must confess to being fangirl-stupid when it comes to K.A. Mitchell’s books. She tells interesting stories with complex, deeply flawed characters full of life and emotion and writes one hell of a smoking hot sex scene. She’s unique that way for me since I usually prefer my characters with a hero complex, complete with the knight in shining armor. This book confused me at first glance and brings the old saying “don’t judge a book my it’s cover” into full light. “Wait, K.A. Mitchell wrote a book about gay marriage? Love and trust and warm fuzzies? Look at that cover! Happy, smiling boys back-dropped against two intertwined wedding bands. Huh. This will be a change for her.” Well, don’t let that cover fool you. These boys had to wade through a treacherous sea of angst and claw their way to their HFN. Yep, this is definitely a K.A. Mitchell book!
We start with Theo on the eve of his graduation from college, together with his three best friends Gideon, Jax and Dean, solidifying their friendship with a last hurrah roller coaster ride on Coney Island with a promise that they will always be friends. This is the setup for the Ready or Knot series.
Flash-forward 13 years and Theo is now a successful Broadway theater director, deeply in love with IT worker Kieran. These boys are polar opposites. Theo is a showman, anyways wanting to be “on” in every situation, a perfectionist and romantic to the point of ridiculousness. Kieran is quiet, almost reclusive and has a very low drive for success. He doesn’t have a romantic bone in his body and absolutely abhors grand gestures of romance. I guess Theo didn’t quite pick up on that because he stages a Times Square flash mob to propose marriage to Kieran, which takes Kieran completely by surprise. And the angst begins…
Theo and Kieran now find themselves on different wavelengths and it threatens their relationship. Why is Theo so hell-bent on getting married? Why can’t Kieran express his love to Theo? Why does everything need to be so dramatic with Theo? Why is Kieran so hell-bent on not getting married? And of course these two don’t communicate very well. Add in Theo’s meddling best friends and boss and Kieran’s traditional Jewish grandmother and it all just plain goes to shit.
I absolutely loved this book. While Kieran took a while to warm up to, I was mesmerized by Theo’s loving, free spirit and fondly shook my head every time he got everything so incredibly, desperately wrong. In the end they finally find themselves on the same page and we get a lovely HFN. BUT, do NOT let the fact we don’t get a HEA deter you! Remember, this is a series and we’re going to see these boys again. We KNOW these boys get a HEA. It’s K.A. Mitchell. Duh!
Highly, highly recommended!

I am fairly certain my blood pressure was all over the place during the reading of this book. Where do I begin? I adore K.A. Mitchell’s books. Her mind is a plethora of creativity and it shows in every story she writes. Put A Ring On It was emotional. The main emotion was frustration. Kieran is a mess and through this whole story I found myself not understanding him. Why is he like this? But you have to look at the big picture. We don’t ALWAYS have to understand people or why they do what they do. More importantly we have no right to judge people’s feelings. No one MADE Kieran this way it’s just who he is and Theo loves him flaws and all. Theo is no Georgia peach either. He’s a Prince, yes. He’s handsome, rich, creative, kind, selfless… Okay he’s practically perfect. BUT he has his own flaws too and when it all hit me I took a breath. We are human not robots. Love isn’t always easy. You have to work in a relationship and if this book shows you anything it’s that lesson. It’s that no matter how it looks on the outside to the whole world, when the door closes and the two people who are in the relationship have to live with each other. THAT is real. THAT is the real show! K.A. makes you ponder things in this book. So, you may want to fish slap Kieran and you may want to hug Theo while simultaneously hitting him in the back of the head, you can’t look past the truth of this love story.
Well Done, K.A.