User Reviews
Rating: really liked it
I think, at the end of the day, we're all just looking for that one person we can be completely, unabashedly, profoundly
stupid with and not feel judged or embarrassed, and Anyta Sunday just gets it. And that's why her books will always have space on my shelves (and a soft spot in my heart).
Rating: really liked it
gays on a yacht you say?
Rating: really liked it
Anyta's "Signs of Love" series has been a lot of fun, and this latest installment was no exception.
From an early age, 28 y.o. Reid had always found himself being rejected, first by his less-than-compassionate parents, then by a long line of girlfriends, so one of his most heart-felt wishes was to finally have someone in his life that truly wanted him there. Who would miss him if he wasn't around.
At 37, Sullivan had found true love, only to suddenly and unexpectedly lose it four years ago. But he hasn't healed, hasn't learned to fully live again, even keeping his 12 y.o. daughter, Joanna, at arms length.
But Joanna was sick of her dad always running from putting down new roots, so she decided to take matters into her own hands and request that Sullivan hire a manny to help take care of her. When in reality, the manny was entirely to help in her efforts to pull her dad out of his funk and to reengage again.
Joanna and Reid were a bit of a devious, plotting pair, for sure, and I enjoyed seeing their up-hill battle with Sullivan slowly begin to bear fruit. Not that it was easy, it wasn't, but well worth the work that they put into “Project Anchor the Storm”, as she called it.
The story was Anyta's trademark slow-burn, with the steam seeming to occur especially late in this book, not that I minded, as I was kept engaged by plenty of touching and humorous moments in those earlier chapters. Like Reid's almost love-like infatuation with his life jacket, which constantly made me chuckle.
If I had to pick one aspect of the story, gun to my head, that was a smidge disappointing, I'd have to say that it would be that I would've like to have seen the story go a bit more over-the-top with the described character traits.
Such as Reid supposedly being misadventure-prone and Sullivan being stern and somewhat-cold. Other than a few instance of both, I was left wanting those aspects of their personas played up a bit.
The book ended with the shortest of separations, one that thankfully wasn't allowed to linger, then followed up by a grand gesture from Reid to get his man back, then an epilogue from a few months later, all of which made me pretty happy.
I'd rate the story at around 4.25 stars and strongly recommend it for fans of the other books in this series.
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Rating: really liked it
Coming February 17th!
*
Crafting a book is no lonely process!
I owe so much thanks to my beta and editing team for helping me shape Reid and Sullivan’s story. Thank you to Vir, Sunne, and Heather for being involved in the developmental stage—and bearing with me as you read various incarnations of the plot. Thank you to Suki Fleet for helping me with the British aspects of the story and for your maritime expertise. Thank you to Deborah Nemeth for content editing. HJ’s Editing for the fantastic line edits. Lynda for proofreading. And thank you to Vicki and Todd for final eyes reading and catching those last flubs. Maria Gandolfo, thank you for the chapter graphics of Cancer and Aquarius, and Natasha—cheers for yet another wonderful cover.
Rating: really liked it
3 StarsLook, if a Sunday slow burn and blatant cluelessness is what makes you happy, then this latest in her Signs of Love series will definitely deliver for you.
First there’s Reid, who’s had nothing but bad luck when it comes to love. He’s a bit down and needs a place to stay plus a job stat, so when he’s propositioned by a teen to be her manny in order to help her widowed dad heal, how can Reid say no? What he doesn’t anticipate is for said dad to be one irresistible hot number, and though Reid hasn’t experimented with the other side of his bisexuality, he wouldn’t be adverse to doing so with Sullivan. Too bad Sulllivan is as straight as an arrow.
Uh huh.
So, of course Reid is wrong in his assumptions. Of course, he’s totally dense when it comes to seeing how much Sullivan is attracted to him despite Sullivan’s huge reluctance to take the next step forward. Eventually, things bubble to a head as Sullivan’s “secret” is found out, and it just remains to be seen if these two can agree on a mutually beneficial arrangement.
Overall, this was consistent with the series’ vibe - easy and sweet, peppered with great funny moments with some twisty feels. What this wasn’t for me was Jamie, nor Beckett, and I had a more difficult time falling for Reid despite his earnestness, as well as for Sullivan despite his grumpy smart sexy self. The setup and romantic evolution just wasn’t cohesive enough, and the lack of a solid payoff regarding their win in the end really fell short as well.
Nevertheless, this will fill the Sunday void should you have one. For me though, this was not a close favorite by far, but as evidenced by the many other readers who have loved these two hard, I would say that the majority will find this a very satisfying treat!
Rating: really liked it
Before the ending, this book was getting 4.5-5 stars.
This was so much fun to read. The banter was fabulous, the relationship-building was smooth, and I just couldn't wait for these two to finally get into the couple phase. Add in little cameos from the first three couples from this series, and this was headed to being amazing!
But that ending! I feel so unfulfilled. This is a personal taste thing, but the MC who was hurt should
NEVER be the one to grovel. Should never be the one who keeps reaching out to the other. I didn't get nearly enough from the other MC to feel as if his words/actions should be forgiven.
And then, it just ended. An epilogue 3 months down the road didn't help me feel as if the other MC really has his shit together. I didn't believe they were in any way solid.
Ugh. I'm so disappointed. And I hate that this is what I'm harping on, since the first 90% was so awesome. But the ending is the freshest in my mind.
Yall should still read this. Maybe it's just me.......
I just honestly wanted to throw my Kindle against a wall.
Rating: really liked it
Beta-ing this one for the lovely Anyta Sunday.
Rating: really liked it
Favorites’ shelf.I’ve been betareading Anyta’s work for more than two years now and every time she drafts a new story I feel privileged, honored and super glad to be a part of it. So, that said... Is this review unbiased? Well, maybe not, because I adore her, I love her writing and I enjoy this series like crazy, but still... unbiased or not, I needed to come here and tell you all that Reid and Sullivan are probably my favorite couple in the signs of love...
Whaaaat? What did she just say? Yes, yes, I know. I feel kinda weird with such statement and yes, I have some doubts and a little shame as if Theo and Jamie, Zane and Beckett were listening, frowning and judging me, but that’s the blast I had reading this story.
It was a delight, really. From beginning to end.It was also
a rollercoaster full of feels. I laughed, I cried, I laughed again... well, I could keep going on and on, but I guess you know what I mean. And please, don’t be scared about the crying part,
this is romantic comedy at its best. Anyta nails it. But still,
it contains some angst coming from the fact that one of them is a widower. Perhaps
angst it’s not the proper word here... it is to me because I’m a softie and some things affects me more that others but let’s just say: the premise it’s kinda sad, there is intensity and tenderness, but
the humor is so spot on and so absurd you end up forgetting there's sadness underneath.
I loved it hard.So yes,
I highly recommend this one. And let me warn you:
this is a book full of misunderstandings (hear my words: FULL! so If that’s not your thing, go away and far from this novel!)
naiveness, love, trust and kindness. And it’s super funny. Super, super funny. **Advance Copy review, Cancer Ships Aquarius will be released on February 17th**
Rating: really liked it
If you want a masterclass on how to write a slow burn romance with a clueless MC who is adorably oblivious to the effect he has on the other man, this is it.
Packed full of all the deliciousness you'd expect in this quite brilliant series from Anyta, this is probably my second favourite in the series now following book four.
There's also done guest appearances of characters ftom the other books and it made me happy to see them still living their best life.
Reid is cute as anything, Sebastian is just my type of guy and the supporting cast are a great mix, particularly arch schemer Joanna, who just wants her dad to be happy.
Loved it.
#ARC kindly received from the author in return for an honest and unbiased review.
Rating: really liked it
|| 3.0 stars ||
Sadly, I have to say this disappointed me. It could have been a lot better if only it had chosen to do things a little differently.
The romance here is between Sullivan and Reid.
Sullivan is a grumpy, closed-off, widowed father, who decides to get a nanny after his 13 year old daughter, Joanna, begs him for one. What Sullivan doesn't know, however, is that Joanna secretly only wants a nanny for her
dad. Sullivan has moved them around every year since his late-husband died, never setting up roots or connections, and Joanna has had enough. She needs someone to help her dad want to settle down again: in come Reid.
Reid is a lovable, funny, and caring guy, who for some reason can't make anyone want to stay with him for a long period of time: everyone always ends up leaving. So when he gets dumped by yet another girlfriend, he is very welcome and compassionate towards Joanna's idea to get her dad out of his shell with Reid's help. And there begins the story with Reid working as a nanny for Joanna and Sullivan, with a secret mission to make Sullivan want to enjoy his life again.
It's a sweet enough premise, and could have worked well if it weren't for the fact that I couldn't stand Sullivan. A lot of the things he did ruined not only the romance but also a lot of the story for me. Maybe it would have helped if we had at least gotten his point of view as well, but I doubt it.
My annoyance started with Sullivan lying to Reid by pretending his late-husband was actually his late-wife, claiming he is very much straight instead of gay (supposedly because he doesn't want to give Reid any ideas about getting together or something: I mean, presumptuous much??). Which was irritating enough, but then the book makes it sound like Reid is oblivious for not noticing that Sullivan is gay and into him, but... Sullivan literally
told him he was straight. That is not Reid being oblivious, that is just him respecting someone's sexuality.
Anyway, Reid and Sullivan eventually form a friendship, which was okay I guess, but it was still mostly Reid doing all the work here. Reid always reached out to Sullivan, Reid always tried to help and be understanding. And what did Sullivan do? Lie, set up ridiculous boundaries and mostly just give mixed-signals.
In the end, Reid obviously finds out about Sullivan having lied and being gay, but instead of feeling betrayed by that, he wants to date him. Which Sullivan refuses to do, because he still won't let anyone in, so they end up hooking up. A lot. No penetrative sex, though, no matter how much Reid begs, because that's too intimate. Reid, of course, takes any scraps Sullivan is willing to throw at him, so this goes on for ages. Which obviously annoyed me to no end.
Then, Reid finally decides to put it all out there, tell Sullivan he loves him and beg him to stay for longer than only a year, but Sullivan's reply to this is all angsty and difficult, and he basically rejects him. Reid is understandably hurt by this, and
finally decides to leave, only to realize half a second later that he is willing to fight for Sullivan even more, and comes up with this grand gesture to show him his love bla bla bla.
I mean, I'm sorry, that's nice and all, but where the hell was Sullivan's grand gesture? Where was his effort? Where was his grovelling? I needed Sullivan to get off his arse and show Reid how much he cared about him and that he was willing to fight for him. Which he never did. Thus, I ended up hating the whole thing.
If it had been the other way around, if Sullivan had tried to convince Reid throughout the book to give them a shot, then I am sure I would have felt very differently about their relationship. But well. That wasn't the case. It was Reid always taking the first step, and the second, and the third... etc.
It's a shame it all went like this because the premise was pretty cute, and the banter between them was often funny, and they did have great chemistry together. I just couldn't fully enjoy it because of Sullivan.
'Signs of Love' series: 1. Leo Loves Aries - 4.5 stars
2. Scorpio Hates Virgo - 3.5 stars
4. Pisces Hooks Taurus - 5.0 stars
5. Cancer Ships Aquarius - 3.0 stars6. Sagittarius Saves Libra - 3.5 stars
Novellas: 1.5. Leo Tops Aries - 3.5 stars
4.5. Pisces Floors Taurus - 3.5 stars
Rating: really liked it
This was fun, and, tbh, I expected nothing else. I've really enjoyed all the books in this series!
The banter is cleverly written and hilariously ambiguous at times.
Reid's so oblivious you wonder if he is from this planet on several occasions, but it is very entertaining all in all. I have to mention aubergines and bechamel sauce here – very well done, Miss Sunday!
Sullivan is gorgeously grumpy and touchingly vulnerable at the same time, and I loved his attitude in the bedroom … a lot. Yeap. A lot....
Not sure if some parts of the plot work 100% for me.
Reid’s behaviour, particularly at the beginning when he doesn’t really know his boss is not professional at all, and, if I think about it, I have NO idea what he actually does the whole time he's supposedly a manny, apart from taking Joanna to school and messing up meals in the kitchen.
As for the issue surrounding Riley ... not totally happy how that worked out.
But, in general, I was happy enough to look past these niggles and go with the tide 😁.
I enjoyed this, but book 1 will remain my favourite!
Rating: really liked it
This quote, while true is also so fitting to the story. I've been looking forward to this book for a long time, and I don't know if that's one of the reasons why I didn't love it as much as I wanted to - too high expectations. But I guess that’s life. I also think I’m going to be in the minority with those feelings, so please take it with a bit of salt.
I liked Reid and Sullivan together. I’m partial to adorkable characters like Reid, beyond clueless. It makes for fun – and awkward times. And of those there were plenty. But there was also this feeling that felt forced to me. There wasn’t a natural flow of things, least of all the conversations, like swimming against the tide.
There was a lot of UST between Reid and Sullivan, and their relationship was slow in the making. Despite Joanna’s plotting and planning. But I’m glad it was allowed to take time. Both men needed it. Well, maybe Reid could have gone faster – if he’d opened his eyes to truly see a thing or two – or ten. But clueless guys tends to stay clueless until something hits them over the head ;)
And was it only me that wanted Sullivan to make an effort too in their relationship? To me it felt like Reid was doing all the fighting for them and Sullivan setting up the limitations. Reid even had this lightbulb moment that he always put everyone else’s wants and needs before his own. But that only lasted for a page or two. I really wanted Sullivan to make some kind of grand gesture, but I would have settled for a smaller one. One not orchestrated by either Joanna or Reid.
Speaking of Joanna. I loved the idea of a meddling child, but that’s also where it kind of went wrong for me. She never felt like the thirteen year old
girl she was supposed to be. More often than not she felt like she was at least in her mid-twenties. The way she talked, her mannerism, the plotting and planning. It didn’t ring true for me. But I hit my breaking point when she was referred to as a woman. Please don’t do this. She’s a child. Children have to grow up too quickly anyway, so please let them be children while they still can. A meddling younger sister to Sullivan would have been more credible. But those are my own personal thoughts and preferences.
In the end, we might be reading the same book, but none of us have read the same story. We are all different and me not enjoying this story as much as I hoped shouldn’t deter anyone else from giving this book a try. I do believe most of you will love Reid and Sullivan. So don’t miss out.
I'm just going to hide for a while...
A copy of this book was generously gifted to me in exchange for an honest review.
Rating: really liked it
3.5 StarsI liked this fifth instalment to Sunday’s Signs of Love series. It brought the feels but was mostly a feel-good M/M romance, highlighting the charming and humorous calamities of yet another clueless romantic as he falls head over heels for his unexpected dream man.
Slow-burn romance ensues when down on his luck Reid Glover fortuitously lands a manny position for the Bell family. Desperate for the work and for a place to stay, Reid jumps at the opportunity to work for Sullivan Bell—a widowed environmental scientist who lives and works on his yacht, the Aquarian, with his precocious and plotting thirteen-year-old daughter Joanna.
Truth is, Joanna doesn’t really need a manny, but she’s somehow convinced her sad and lonely father that bringing Reid on board to help out is more for her benefit than it is for his. So, Sullivan begrudgingly hires hot mess Reid, even though he has his doubts whether Reid is even up to the task. And so, Joanna’s semi-secret plans to help her father get back to living and hopefully finding new love (with Reid) get underway.
In line with the themes and tones of the previous books in this series, miscommunications and double entendres shared between our oblivious MCs quickly get underway. Usually, in other books, such misunderstandings and silly shenanigans walk a fine line with my patience, but Sunday always manages to make her characters and their misunderstandings so damn charming, resulting in more face-splitting smiles and fond head shakes then the frustrations and grievances one could (probably would) experience with such tropes.
I cared about Reid a great deal and I enjoyed following his every good-intentioned yet clueless move in his attempts to make Sullivan a happy and whole person, again, even as he himself—a bisexual having only been with women—worked through his presumably hopeless feelings for the terse and moody man he believes is straight as an arrow.
It was a sweet and heart-warming story, and one I was happy to read as an extension of a much loved series, but I will admit that I didn’t enjoy Reid and Sullivan’s romance to the same deliriously happy degree that I enjoyed some of the Signs of Love couples that came before them.
I’m not sure if my reaction had to do with my pre-existing difficult feelings towards romances involving widowed characters (and all the grief-stricken, guilt-ridden, angsty feelings that come along with them finding new love), or whether Sullivan himself didn’t quite hit the high mark that ALL of the previous characters hit, but something, for me, was ever-so-slightly off about his character, especially in how the final chapters played out and how they reached their HEA. This could very much be a me thing, as even I can’t pinpoint my exact feelings here—but I know, even though I had a fun time reading the book, that I was left unsatisfied with the ending, which feels like a shame.
Rating: really liked it
I didn't enjoy it.
This book made me discover a new pet peeve of mine. I hate when new employees are overly familiar with their bosses. Reid was already being sarcastic and cracking jokes at the expense of Sullivan minutes after he was hired. I like the whole bosses to lovers troupe but I need it to be more credible than that.
I enjoyed the first book of this series when Theo was clueless, or was it Jamie. This one I didn't like. After reading several books in this series where they are almost always clueless I'm in the mood for something else,give me a character who isn't dense. They insta-loved really fast as well especially since Reid just got out of a relationship, I didn't think he should be jumping into relationships that quickly.
His daughter, Johanna, sounded like a woman in her 20s and not the 13 year old she was supposed to be. That also did not lend any credibility to the story. Though looking at the reviews my dislike is clearly a ME thing since everyone else loved it. So yea.
Rating: really liked it
Okay, so I have a new favorite author. It's ridiculous how good of a romance story teller she is. Queen of slow-burn, chemistry and longing. Plus this one was really emotional.
Also, I have read 5 books and 4 short stories from her so far and every one of them took me only one, max two days, because I just couldn't put them down.
