The Straight Boyfriend

Aaron is awesome, Vinny too. I love this third story deeply. I love how their relationship blossom throughout the story and the EPILOGUE really is the greatest! 11 years, huhh! Wohoo!!

** spoiler alert **
I'm still on my second read while I write this review, and still have the smile and dreamy face :)
How perfect the ending of this series, you think? You have no idea!
Because this is what's ALL the book I read should have their Epilogue! Sigh!
Just like Liam, Aaron 'is not gay. Aaron is not gay. Repeat. Aaron is NOT gay!'.
Got that?
Denial! Just like Liam's denial in Loving Jay, Aaron's also have a denial that, no way a straight guy can fall in love with a flamboyant Disney Prince's like gay guy! No way!
Yo Aaron, yes way!
I won't give you the story spoiler in this one, but you need to experience your own frustration after Aaron, and all the love you'll feel for Vinnie. Gosh! That guy!
Who doesn't want to ' switch team' for a guy like Vinnie? Hmm...not many. And Aaron is one of those serial straight dater who can finally 'finding' what's he's looking for.
After awhile, he came to realized that he can't imagine his life without Vinnie anymore.
Let's just put this picture of my lovely Lance here, to show you what's Aaron's feeling about his Vinnie. Damn.And let's put this 'interesting' conversation with Aaron's Mom here...

..."Oh, so you're gay?"
"Not really. But I'm going to be gay with Vinnie. Okay? I love him, and if loving him means I'm gay, then I'll be gay"

And this...

"I love you Aaron. And yes, I will help you. I'll be here and listen with an open mind if you say you're struggling with the gay stuff or the same sex attraction or whatever. Because loving you is easy, so I guess I have to take the bad stuff with the good. It would be easier if you're gay, but I know that you're not. You're Aaron. And whether you're straight or not, you're the guy I love"
Swoooooooon.....
Don't worry of not 'seeing' Jay and Liam (especially him!) and Kee and Tate in this book.
They're 'everywhere'!...oh how I miss my Liam and Jay...And how Liam shows how a best friend he is for Aaron... I couldn't love the guy more!
And then after I laugh, I swoon, and cry with Aaron and Vinnie...enter the 'epilogue' !
You'll swooning after that only. This is not a perfect story. Vinnie and Aaron are not perfect but they're perfect for each other. And the epilogue, is just as perfect!

*.....I miss the boys already :(....*

There's a lot of warmth and love in this book. Friendship between Liam and Aaron is a heartwarming and deserved five stars for that only.
Aaron is straight, I think I agreed with you Dani about how determined Vinnie to have Aaron, sometimes, I thought he's kind of a doormat.
But once again, when love is talking, maybe we can quote what Liam said to Jay..."He is Jay sexual".
I enjoyed this book, so...

This story is unique because it morphed the plot of "Can you turn a straight boy gay?" This is the Australian version.

The beginning of the book shares details of Vinnie's background and home life. He comes from a huge Italian family - and I mean huge. There is also a detail that I will share because I believe it needs to be shared as a warning in case it bothers anyone.   *Spoiler*    He comes from what he called a poly family. The parents of this Italian family is his mom and dad and his aunt. Between the three of them that's how the family got so huge. His cousins are also his step brothers and sisters.

Aaron comes from your typical small family.

I love the dynamic of Vinnie's family. So many people, which equals, so many personalities, it's kind of like having your own small town. Everyone loves each other, gets along with each other, and supports each other. It's just wonderful and makes for some hilarious situations.

I loved Vinnie and Aaron. Aaron is the straight man, literally. He loves fishing, he loves his lawn, and he loves women. Vinnie loves cooking, he loves his Italian roots, so he loves his mama.

I also loved the way that Aaron got enveloped into Vinnie's family. He took it like a fish to water. They were so accepting of him and Aaron just ate it up. It was really heartwarming to watch.

The relationship between Aaron and Vinnie was a joy to see developed. Once they got their sea legs they fell into a nice routine which Aaron really enjoyed. There was also some hilarious moments that really made me lol.

The pace of the story is solid. It has a firm beginning, a middle composed of a few parts, and a conclusive conclusion. Aaron struggles with is he gay, is he bi or is he straight or just gay for Vinnie. He wrestles with that for a while and with the help of his best friend comes to a conclusion. This introduces the ending and conclusion of the story which leads to a HEA.

My only issue with the story was the poly family. I felt it was unnecessary to this story. I wish that part would have been left out. He still could have had a huge family without it being poly.

I do recommend this story because it morphed the plot of "Can you turn a straight boy gay?" This is like the Australian version with a twist and some colorful characters.

I received this book in exchange for my honest review by Gay Book Reviews.

Reviewed by Meredith for Diverse Reader

The Straight Boyfriend is book three in Renae Kaye’s Loving You Series. Book one is Loving Jay, which is the book I found this author with and adored it! Book two is Don’t Twunk with my Heart, another awesome addition to this series. So, I was very excited to read this one.



I’ll admit the title did have me furrowing my brow, no lie. I knew right off the bat that this was a GFY story. Do I have issues with GFY stories? Sometimes. If written with laced disrespect it kills the story and in turn an author loses their audience. Did I find this one disrespectful? Not completely. Let me explain.



This is no doubt going to be, or already is, a controversial book. It’s a book that will be read by many who see it as a sweet love story, a fantasy come to life. Others will read it as insulting to their identities and those of the LGBTQ community. One cannot tell the other they are right in their feelings. So when you read this book you’ll need to make your own judgements.



Vinny is an effeminate gay man. His parents are in a Polyamorous relationship… and they are a huge Italian family. Yeah, let that sentence absorb a bit. I grew up in an Italian family and all of that would have been a no go. So wrapping my head around it was something I tell you. Refreshing, yes. I like to think where we once had to hide our lifestyles we no longer do. So, Vinny’s life is a basket of labels.



Aaron… Okay this guy is where I had some issues, and maybe not why you think. First off he identifies as straight. He is a philanderer, comes from a heterosexual family mom and dad. He’s a cheater. Straight up cheater of women. Not gonna lie I didn’t like him in the beginning. It was going to take a miracle to understand his thinking.



When his girlfriend leaves him (and rightly so) he’s stuck with a mortgage he can’t pay…yadda yadda enter Vinny to the rescue.



This story is off the charts different than the first two books without question. I had a lot of internal struggles reading this. My own feelings, beliefs, morals, and identity battled during my read. I put a lot of that away to form a professional outlook.



I feel the author is writing a fairy tale of sorts. She’s twisting labels, yes. I can see where people would be upset but I really do not think that it’s the author’s intention to insult rather than make a fantasy in today’s society.



It is a sweet romantic story with a wonderful HEA. I loved Vinny a lot and he was my favorite. I felt for him in many ways through this story. Aaron, though I’m happy he found a solid love for his life; in my own eyes I don’t feel it excuses his cheating. So I’m on the fence with how I feel about him. He’s like the guy I’ll be nice to because Vinny is my friend. I wasn’t thrilled with Aaron and how he identifies himself BUT I also cannot and will not judge a person based on how they feel inside so Aaron gets this. He does.



Like I said it’s different than the other two books and it will need a open mind and some moral struggles but it’s a good addition to the series.