I wanted to like this one more than I did. I enjoyed it well enough to keep reading through the end, it wasn't bad by any means, it just didn't grab my attention as much as the first one. I still appreciated the way this author tells romances about beefy, hairy dudes, but some of the descriptions/word choices took me out of it (again, that's a me thing-authors can't please everyone when it comes to ick words, etc.). I did think the hurt/comfort aspect of the story was well done, as Locky loses his job but gets a big stock payout and is pushed by a friend to finally talk to a guy he knows about starting a night time bakery (the idea is cool, it's like a coffee shop/jazz club/non-alcoholic speakeasy vibe for those who want to be put socializing later at night and eat great desserts ((in this case pie!!) but are sober. He himself is a recovering alcoholic who also abstains from sex because it was so tied to his partying before. He also has trauma from childhood that makes him less than confident this venture is something he can/should do. Enter Benedict, small business consultant who has his own anxiety around his job that keeps him from getting close to clients anymore. But they're drawn to each other and rather than it being one person helping the other, they help each other move forward in their lives and deal with their stuff. I enjoyed the return of Artair and Luca from book one, and the shop name was a pun, which I always love. Overall didn't dislike the book, just felt disappointed when I didn't love it as I expected I would. Will definitely still read Kai's story next year!
•disability rep: anxiety, possible PTSD 
•fat rep
•BIPOC rep (one MMC is Black)
•queer rep (gay, pan, other side characters)