The Second Time Around

Jordan is 24 years-old, born with a silver spoon in his mouth and had never had to worry about money, health care or everything else since Mommy and Daddy had always taken care of it… Until Jordan comes out to them and his family rejected him. Jobless and homeless, Jordan only had his shiny car and his backpack when he came to B STAR, a rescue ranch for animals where he used to visit when he was younger.

Russ is the right-hand of Phyllis, the owner of the ranch, when he meets Jordan for the first time. He only sees a spoiled, rich brat who doesn’t know what real work means.

Jordan is at a crossroads in his life and he has to decide what kind of life he wants…one like his parents want for him, or one really for him. With the help of Phyllis, the horses and especially Russ, Jordan will have to make the right choices for his own happiness.
The Second Time Around by Rowan McAllister is my second book by the author, and like for the first time, I wasn’t disappointed and really loved it.

Jordan is completely lost when he comes to B STAR. He’s an emotional mess and only wants to forget his situation. He tries to avoid thinking of it by diving into work and seducing Russ. It works for one, but Russ is another subject, and the man always reminds Jordan how useless he can be. Until Jordan speak his mind and call Russ on his shit. That’s when things change for them. It was sweet and hot, like super-hot and I completely melted for them.

Russ is over 40 years-old, but the two are a very good match. Jordan is young, immature and a drama queen, but he’s also very smart and kind with a big heart. He tries to avoid thinking of his situation because he doesn’t really know how to deal with it, that’s when Russ came. With his care, gentleness, experience, and love, Russ helps Jordan to figure out what he really wants in his life. They were perfect for each other.

Rowan McAllister has a super good writing style that I like. The book and plot are captivating, and the feelings are very well written and developed without plot holes or inconsistency. That’s what I love here—the plot is simple—a young man trying to know what he wants in his life who meets an older man who knows what he wants in his life. But it was so well written with the feelings developed so well without being forced on us that you can only read the book and hold on it until the HEA.

I gladly recommend this book, It’s a good May-December book, with adorable MCs that you will love as much as I have.

It’s 4 OptimuMM for the Cowboy and his fallen Prince.

“The problem was, he’d been pretending to be someone else for so long, he didn’t even know who he was anymore—if he ever had. He was free now, but free to do what? It wasn’t as if he’d ever been really good at anything, not good enough anyway. Having a rich father had opened a lot of doors for him that he never would’ve been able to open on his own. Could he survive on his own merits?”

Jordan’s reality, once he uttered the words that, apparently, had far more power than he believed – “I’m gay and I don’t want to be a lawyer” – ceased to exist and he found himself with no family, no job, and no income. Volunteering at B STAR (Better the Second Time Around Rescue) in Texas, far away from his family in Virginia, seems like just what he needs. Working himself into the ground every day, too tired to move by bedtime, is just what Jordan needs to keep his brain from thinking too much. Russ, however, has little use for the trust-fund brat as he has seen his kind before and feels sure he knows the outcome of Jordan’s “volunteering”. Both men have a lot to learn, not just about each other, but about themselves as well.

“Apparently, Russ was going to be a bit of an obstacle to Jordan’s search for the Zen he needed to figure out his next step. Russ might have decided not to like him, for some unknown reason, but Jordan needed this place too badly to let some super-hot asshole get in his way.”

I’ve never been wealthy with everything given to me, well at least, everything material. So, I felt for Jordan and the way he couldn’t turn his brain off worrying about money, whether he needed to pay the insurance on his car, did he need to officially drop out of school, did he have health insurance and, if not, what would he do if something happened? Jordan is running himself ragged physically and mentally, and Russ doesn’t help the situation, certainly not in the beginning. Luckily, it doesn’t take Russ too long (with a shove from his boss, anyway) to figure out that Jordan isn’t just some trust fund brat and that he has genuinely suffered at the hands of his family.

“I meant what I said. Once I’m in, I’m in. I don’t play stupid games. With the people I choose to care about, I’m honest to a fault. I put everything out there…. Maybe you can understand now why I’m extra careful about who I let in. Why I’m a bit prickly on the outside.”
“So you don’t get hurt,” Jordan reasoned. “Because you’ve been hurt before.”

‘The Second Time Around’ is a lovely, and very sweet, romance that I enjoyed very much. I got frustrated more than once with Jordan but he got his head on straight at the end and learned a little more about how to adult. Russ is a wonderful man and exactly who Jordan needed. I was a little disappointed at the very abrupt ending but, all in all, this is a good read with fantastic characters, some angst, hot man on man action, and a special love story.

NOTE: This book was provided by Dreamspinner Press for the purpose of a review on Rainbow Book Reviews

Jordan expected his coming out to his parent to be bad but not being disowned. As long as he did as his father wanted, becoming a lawyer and marrying a woman they would let things slide, but Jordan decides not to hide any longer. With nowhere to go and is credit cards canceled he decides to go to the charity his mother supported an Animal rescue called the Second Time Around Ranch. B STAR for short.
Phyllis welcomes him with open arms and offers to let him stay for room and board since he is good with the animals, However, the foreman, Russ wants him gone ASAP. He doesn't have time to coddle spoiled little rich kids.

I liked all of the characters in the story. I even liked that at first Russ comes off as a major butthead, but is redeemed by the end of the story. I loved Jordan and how he was from money but had no problem working to prove his worth. I adored Phyllis. She is just wonderful and the glue that made the story stick.
I liked the storyline. There is a lot of raw emotion, and I love the hurt/comfort trope and May/December. You could even say a second chance at life. There are some animals that play a large part in the story as well. so if any one of these or all is your thing I highly recommend this book.
I will say that I wish the ending had been a little more conclusive and a more solid HEA but it was a good HFN.

✩ ✩ ✩ ✩ 4-STAR ✩ REVIEW ✩ ✩ ✩ ✩

> > Judging a Book by its Cover < <
Multiple layers on the cover. Foremost is a man in a black t-shirt with his hat tipped obscuring his face and a red sports car and ranch arch in the background. Faded into the background on the bottom is a cowboy on horseback, barely noticeable. Author name is legible and well placed but the title font could have stood out a little more.
The synopsis was interesting and pulled me in.

> > Looking Deeper < <
POV ~> Third-person

Jordan’s coming out did not go anywhere near as bad as he thought it would, it went worse. Much worse.
Homeless, jobless, and clueless as to what to do next, he finds himself at the one place he loved as a child: an animal rescue catering mostly to horses but also some odds and ends, too.

Russ was the rescue’s foreman and he did not have time for some rich kid’s whims but the boss lady says let the boy stay and put him to work so that’s what he does. Soon, he sees that there may be more than what meets the eye.
Together they work the rescue and grow closer together but the past does not stay in the past and all too soon, the men are facing some unsettling truths while trying to navigate a fresh and fragile relationship. Some of the conversations were repetitive, admittedly by even the characters but the interaction felt real, raw, emotional.
A smattering of secondary characters add support to the story, most are likable, others are not. The plot flowed smoothly and the writing style was wonderful. Predictability was low. The conclusion, I felt, could have been a little stronger, more… conclusive. I’d liked to have seen how Phyl recovered and what became of Marina, not to mention a solid HEA for the guys.
Overall, it was an enjoyable story that I’d likely recommend to others.
.
Rating: [R] ~ Score: 4.175 ~ Stars: 4
==========================
⭐ ⭐ **** Disclosure of Material: I received a copy of this book from the publisher with the hope that I would voluntarily leave unbiased and unsolicited feedback. I was not asked, encouraged, or required to leave a review - nor was I compensated in any way. I am posting this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission's 16 CFR, Part 255: "Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising". ***** ⭐ ⭐

This is a story about Second Chances at a real life. Jordan was given an ultimatum to pretend to be the son his parents wanted or he is no longer their son. Jordan decides to live his life and leaves his rich family behind and make it on his own.
Now he has no family, no job and no money but needs to decide where to go and what to do. That being said, he stumbles upon an idea to visit the rescue ranch which is one of his family's charities.

Once he get to the ranch, he meets the foreman Russ. Jordan immediately finds himself attracted to the man but knows that he is straight.
Russ is a cowboy that runs the ranch and has been hurt in the past so he is happy to just live the life he has until a rich pretty boy comes to the ranch looking to help. Russ doesn't want to like or give Jordan a chance but when he sees that maybe he was wrong about him, he doesn't know what to do about it.

I loved that we get both POV's in this story. Hearing what Jordan is going through makes you root for him. Russ was such a grump in the beginning that when he realizes Jordan isn't going anywhere, he has to learn how to deal with him and get over his hang ups. The chemistry was great between them. I loved how they got together and that Russ was so up front with Jordan. Jordan for his part admitted he was a mess but trying to move forward. The angst in this story was good when Russ's old boyfriend comes to town and dealt with pretty quick but it helped move the story. I loved Phyliss and how she treated all the men on her ranch like her own especially Russ.

I thought this story was going to be about Jordan's second chance but it turns out Russ needed one too. The only minus in this for me was the ending, I thought Rowan just stopped. We get the HEA but there was so much more to wrap up in the story.
Rowan is a newer author for me and I will definitely be reading more from her in the future. Reviewed by Jodi for Alpha Book Club.